Good morning, Chennai!
☀️ Today’s weather: High: 32 ℃ | Low: 23 ℃ | Clear skies with some fog in the morning.
🧐 Did you know? The College of Engineering, Guindy, established in 1794, is the oldest technical education institution in India. It was originally called The School of Survey.
♿ Spotlight on transport accessibility
A short film highlights the challenges faced by Chennaiites in accessing public transport.
What’s it about? Level Up is a new short film about universal accessibility of public transport from Archanaa Sekar, Bhargav Prasad, and Pavithra Sriram. The film is part of the Nagari Film Competition, designed to develop films on urban issues. This year’s theme is Mobility in Urban India. Level Up was the only film from South India.
- The grant’s criteria was the team should include an activist, an urban planner, and a filmmaker. Archanaa Sekar worked with the Disability Rights Alliance (DRA) to understand accessibility and universal design.
- Level Up focuses on the two-decade battle for low-floor buses. Boarding becomes easy for persons with disabilities and senior citizens. The film highlights how they overcome day-to-day hurdles instead of treating them as victims.
Opportunities and awareness: Those involved hope the movie will change people’s perspective on universal accessibility. While the 20-year struggle for low-floor buses was won, there’s more to do to make public transport accessible for all.
🛍️ Norms for vending zones
The Chennai Corporation and the traffic police are mulling relaxing norms for vending zones.
What’s it about? The civic body and the police are conducting a study to explore the possibility of permitting vending zones near schools, hospitals, and places of worship. The final decision will be taken by the state government in two months.
- The roads with street vendors within 100 metres of hospitals, schools, and places of worship were expected to be categorised as non-vending zones. The norms could be relaxed.
- The government has asked the Corporation to finalise the list of vending zones in all 200 divisions. Officials are expected to relax 25 to 100 metres in exceptional cases.
Long-pending demand: Members of the Town Vending Committee have been demanding a relaxation of norms in places like Egmore since poor people struggle to buy essential goods.
🌧️ Another spell of rain?
A new low-pressure area is expected to bring heavy rains this week.
What’s it about? A new low-pressure area in the Bay of Bengal could bring heavy rains this week to the state and city. The system is likely to intensify and move west-northwestwards.
- The system may reach the southwest Bay of Bengal near the Sri Lanka-Tamil Nadu coasts around December 12. This could trigger heavy rains across coastal Tamil Nadu.
- The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted moderate to heavy rainfall from December 11 to 13 with cooler temperatures.
Forecast for the state: Heavy rainfall is expected for Mayiladuthurai, Thanjavur, and Tiruvarur on December 11. Heavy rains are expected in Cuddalore and Puducherry the following day.
🧱 Protecting water bodies
The Chennai Corporation will rebuild compound walls and fencing around several water bodies.
What’s it about? The Chennai Corporation has floated a tender to rebuild compound walls and fencing around several water bodies. Among them are the Kodungaiyur and Vyasarpadi canals in the Tondiarpet zone. ₹2.20 crore has been allocated for the project.
- Several lakes and canals in North Chennai have been neglected. The civic body is looking to restore them to help improve water flow.
- Compound walls and fencing will be built along the Kodungaiyur’s main and link canal to prevent waste dumping. The walls and fencing at the Vyasarpadi Canal and the Ezhil Nagar link canal will also be enhanced to avoid inundation.
Polluting activities: At the Captain Cotton Canal, despite the Corporation’s efforts to clean up the water body, residents continued to pollute it.
📊 Today’s Poll
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🗞️ In other news…
- A new loop road will transform Tirumazhisai into the next urban hotspot.
- A new modern market at Papermills Road in Kolathur is in dispute over legal tussles.
- Kalaignar Centenary Climate Park was inaugurated by MK Stalin near the Kilambakkam Bus Terminus.
- Experts from IIT Madras have been hired by the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust to develop Ram Katha and Hanuman Katha galleries with 7-D technology.
- Several dead fish in the Ambattur Surplus Canal have caused panic among residents.
That’s it for today. Have a great day!