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Vol. XXXIII No. 16, December 1-15, 2023
Archives: Vol. XXXIII No. 16, December 1-15, 2023
Does our city need flag posts at every street corner?
-- by Sriram V.
For all that the authorities keep chanting Singara Chennai, ground reality is far removed from the idea of the city beautiful. Which world-class metropolis has party flag posts erected at every street corner, sometimes even two or three sharing the same space? These not only impede pedestrian and vehicle movement but also become convenient urinals and rubbish tips. It is high time that the Corporation of Chennai passes a resolution to remove all these excrescences and then makes sure that the police do act. But then, with every political party zealously guarding its flag posts, this is unlikely to happen any time soon. In fact, the police have in a recent instance been subject to attack when they attempted removal of one such flag post.
The offending structure was no ordinary flagstaff. While the norm is to have ten-foot poles this was a giant 55 feet and erected by the party faithful outside the residence of their leader. The police were ordered to remove it and here we need to note that the alacrity with which this was done was because the said leader is in the Opposition. Flag posts of the party in power, no matter which one is the incumbent, can never be touched. But be that as it may, when the police attempted to remove the pole, rioting ensued and the crane, hired to remove the flagpole, was damaged. So much for people entering politics to serve society.
In the ensuing case the High Court of Madras understandably came down heavily on the offending party workers. It chastised them for having rioted and imposed fines on them. There were also some stern remarks from the
Rising trend in street dog menace signals need for urgent action
-- by Varsha V.
Last month, 28 residents in Royapuram were attacked by a rabid dog before it was beaten to death. The victims have reportedly been given medical care and administered the first dose of the human anti-rabies vaccine and immunoglobulin. The Corporation collected the addresses of all who were bitten by the animal and are now monitoring their health. They will continue to receive additional doses of the human anti-rabies vaccine to complete the course. As for the street dogs in the locality, the Corporation is observing them for indications of infection. “After the dog tested positive for rabies, we did a combing operation
Heritage Watch: Better days for the GPO
At long last the Department of Posts has decided to embark on restoring the iconic GPO located on First Line Beach/Rajaji Salai. The structure, recognised as being of Grade 1 importance by the High Court of Madras has been languishing for quite a while.
Designed by Robert Fellowes Chisholm and completed in 1884, it was meant to be the head post and telegraph office, with three floors. The top storey was the residence
Lost Landmarks of Chennai
-- by Sriram V
The river we lost
How many rivers does Chennai have? Most people will say just one – the Cooum and sneer even while they say it, as though it is all the river’s fault that it is what it is today. To this lot, all of Chennai’s rivers and canals go by the name of Cooum. The more knowledgeable ones will say two – the Adyar being the second. A smaller group
The Joint Sector Days: When a German Giant bit the dust
Business Houses of the South by Sushila Ravindranath
Tamil Nadu Petroproducts Limited (TPL) is one of those pre-liberalisation projects which came up in Chennai during the height of import substitution times. It was promoted by the fertiliser giant SPIC as a joint venture with Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation to manufacture Linear Alkyl Benzine (LAB),
