City News – Page 20 – Citizen Matters, Chennai

Is this really the Bhogi tradition?

January 13, 2018 Meenakshi Ramesh

On Bhogi, people discard old and derelict things and look for new things that signal change or transformation. At dawn, people light a bonfire with logs of wood, other combustible stuff (mainly knick knacks that

How a Chennai initiative is helping differently-abled people acquire economic independence

January 12, 2018 Bhavani Prabhakar

It’s a ‘fair’ with a difference. Kasim Basith’s initiative, ‘We Are Your Voice’ organises an annual job fair for persons with disability and has successfully placed many of them in reputed organisations.

The gems Mylapore has, but rarely notices

January 11, 2018 Seetha Gopalakrishnan

Houses of Mylapore, an initiative working to showcase the architectural beauty of the neighbourhood, seeks to highlight characteristics of the varied ways of life in the area, over time, through architecture and design.

Fed up with Electricity Board issues, Adyar residents raise list of demands

January 10, 2018 C Ramakrishnan

A remote EB office, tardy redress of complaints, dangerous placement of junction boxes — these are just some of the issues that Adyar residents have been fighting, especially after the office was moved to Thiruvanmiyur.

Is TN transport department’s daily Rs 9.4-cr loss behind Chennai bus-riders’ woes?

January 8, 2018 Laasya Shekhar

Affidavit filed by official shows that the state transport unit suffered a loss of Rs 2981.57 crores in 2016-17. No wonder MTC workers have been left in the lurch over wage revisions and pension payments.

Tired of your road being laid and relaid? Don’t be silent!

January 3, 2018 Raghukumar Choodamani

Lack of coordination between government departments is at the root of many civic problems, most notably the condition of roads. An angry citizen calls for action by the people to get such issues solved.

Demolition of religious structures in Chitlapakkam raises hope for Chennai lakes

January 2, 2018 Laasya Shekhar

For activists and officials clearing encroachments in Chitlapakkam Lake, it was heartening to find a good number of people rising above blind religious belief to support the environmental cause.

A life spent caring for others, even the dead

December 29, 2017 Bhavani Prabhakar

Meet the phenomenal Roja Sri, a lone woman, who apart from caring for the needy and poor, takes full responsibility for unclaimed dead bodies in the city and performs their last rites.

Law on paper, manual scavengers in Chennai struggle for respite

December 27, 2017 Laasya Shekhar

Central law says manual scavengers can choose to give up the profession and start life afresh with funds from the government, but hapless workers in Chennai know how elusive that can be.

R K Nagar wakes up to songs of a different kind on election eve

December 20, 2017 Laasya Shekhar

A day ahead of the controversial R K Nagar byelections, VoiceOfPeople used music and conversation to educate people about responsible voting in a constituency plagued by myriad problems.

When all you need to be is a gracious guest…

December 19, 2017 Aarti Madhusudan

What if you were invited to dine and interact with a group of citizens that you would never have met in the usual course? Aarti Madhusudan gets new perspectives on inclusion and empathy after such an evening in Shollinganallur.

When Greater Chennai Corporation hears citizen voices

December 18, 2017 R Venkatasubramanian

Across Chennai, individuals and groups are taking proactive action to interact with civic authorities and get their issues resolved. And it often works, as this piece from a citizen journalist shows.