Good morning, Chennai!
⛅ Today’s weather: Cloudy weather to continue for today.
🧐 Did you know? The famous Bosotto Bros bakery was appointed as the official caterer of Prince Andrew’s first birthday on February 19, 1961, when Queen Elizabeth was visiting Madras. They baked a birthday cake for the occasion.
♻️ Unable to deal with plastic
Despite a plastic ban in place, the city is unable to recycle or dispose of it.
What’s it about? Chennai doesn’t have the necessary infrastructure to deal with plastic waste. The Circular Initiative, an NGO that works to reduce ocean plastic, mapped plastic recycling supply chains in the city and found only 20% of plastic is properly disposed of.
- Chennai generates 1.4 lakh tonnes of recyclable plastic waste annually. It collects only 30,000 tonnes, mostly through the informal sector. Recyclers only take rigid plastics like PET bottles and high-end polyethylene.
- Chennai only has facilities for non-recyclable plastic waste. It has three incinerator plants and five centres where plastic is bailed and sold to cement factories.
Additional insights: The NGO’s study also showed that though solid waste is managed by municipalities and local bodies, the informal sector plays a huge role in collecting, aggregating, and recycling. It said necessary infrastructure and regulation of the informal recycling sector could improve collection and segregation.
🚗 Greenhouse gas contributors in Chennai
A report by the Corporation showed road transport and railways contribute 16% of the city’s total greenhouse emissions.
What’s it about? A draft report of the Chennai Climate Action Plan from the Corporation suggested using more electric vehicles (EVs) as an alternative to reduce emissions. A Deloitte report stated that e-vehicle conversion could be done by retrofitting existing vehicles. 66.4% of all trips in Chennai are done using on-road transportation.
- To transition to EVs, the city needs adequate infrastructure like charging stations. The Corporation’s report also said the city could help raise funds for charging infrastructure which will need grants from the state and changes to building regulations.
- The report states the perception of EVs being unreliable and difficult to charge has prevented adoption. Also, several middle-income households don’t have parking spaces. Companies like Ola Electric are looking abroad for opportunities.
Legislation and incentives: The Deloitte report suggested government-backed financial assistance for auto drivers to buy and operate EVs through a usage-based payment system. In February, the state government revised its EV policy to attract investments worth ₹50,000 crore and create 1.5 lakh jobs.
📜 Day one of Makkalai Thedi Mayor
The new initiative from the city’s Mayor began with the residents of Royapuram.
What’s it about? A year after Chennai Mayor R Priya took charge, the first public grievance meeting under the Makkalai Thedi Mayor initiative was organised. Royapuram residents submitted petitions for housing issues, birth certificates, and other needs.
- In total, 401 petitions were received during the meeting. Residents get an acknowledgement informing them which department their issue falls under and its status.
- For those who applied for birth certificates, they were immediately issued. Additionally, sewing machines were given to women along with nutrition kits to 17 women, cheques for road accident victims, and old age pensions to five beneficiaries.
Plan of action: The plan is for the Mayor to visit one zone every fortnight. It would then take approximately eight months to visit all 15 zones of the Corporation. This gap may be reduced if there’s a need to visit more zones.
😋 New spot for quick South Indian fare
Cafe Pramadham opens its doors in the city with a curated menu of classics from across the state.
What’s in store? Cafe Pramadham aims to be more than just another dosa joint. The newly-opened restaurant on Greams Road has its signature dosa and coffee, which the restaurant roasts and grinds at the front of the cafe. The neighbourhood needed a quick and reasonably-priced dining option.
- The focus is on serving comfort food with a focus on classic South Indian tiffin in a contemporary casual dining format. It’s a deliberately short menu for now as they test the waters.
- Their masalas and podis are made in-house. The objective is to offer compact and varied versions. They do veer away from the typical idli-upma-vada format by tweaking some classics.
Wait and see: This new cafe is a refreshing change to the traditional quick South Indian fare dominated by Sarvana Bhavan and Sangeetha-style restaurants. It’s a competitive segment that Café Pramadham is in. Their challenge will be balancing traditional cooking with a twist.
✨ Things to do…
Here are some fun and interesting things to do in the city over the weekend!
- Catch Faiyaaz Hussain live in a standup special this Sunday.
- Music and Mayhem presents an open mic night for musicians this Saturday.
- Pottery Paradise presents a pottery workshop for kids this Saturday.
- ‘Inime Ippadithan’ is a showcase of budding Tamil comics this Sunday.
- The Paw Project allows you to volunteer at the Blue Cross of India this Sunday.
🛋️ Local Lounge
Yesterday’s Poll Results:
- I prefer using Ola: 44.4%
- I prefer using Uber: 55.6% 🏆
Answers to Yesterday’s Question:
What’s your favourite South Indian breakfast item?
Chitra: “Hot masal dosai”
Sanjay: “Idli”
Nirja: “Idly and sambhar”
Kalaiarasi: “Idly Sambar Vada”
Chandhru: “DOSA”
That’s it for today. Have a great weekend!