1. Why Not a CBI Probe into Firing, Asks HC
“Let it be made over to the CBI (the Central Bureau of Investigation),” is how the Chief Justice of Madras High Court Indira Banerjee reacted on Monday after glancing through a counter-affidavit filed on behalf of the Director General of Police in reply to a batch of public interest litigation petitions, including the one that sought a CBI probe into the Thoothukudi police firing incident which claimed 13 lives on May 22 and 23.
However, the Government Pleader convinced the Chief Justice to adjourn the hearing by a week so that he would be in a position to place the video clips and other materials to show what actually transpired during the protests demanding closure of Sterlite’s copper smelting plant in Thoothukudi.
(Source: The Hindu)
2. Metro Staff Stage Stir Again, Demand Pay Hike
Nearly 150 employees of the Chennai Metro Rail once again staged a sit-in on Monday demanding an increase in wages. Two days ago they protested on the premises of Chennai Metro Rail Limited in Koyambedu. Those who staged the protest are employed as station controllers and some are involved in maintenance of stations and trains. They currently draw a salary of around ₹35,000-₹39,000. Recently, the management gave a hike to all the employees.
“Many of them have got nearly 20% hike; but a section of those working as station controllers and other staff in maintenance have got only a 5-6% increase. Everyone deserves a decent hike,” a staff member said.
(Source: The Hindu)
3. Aadhaar Helps TN Trim PDS List; 1.43 crore Duplicate Names Off
Thanks to Aadhaar, the demographic and biometric authentication process has helped remove the names of 1.4 crore people from the public distribution system database in the state as they appeared on more than one ration card. The duplications were rectified after seeding of Aadhaar numbers in the government database for universal PDS.
“Names of these people appeared in one or more cards and they were enjoying subsidised commodities. After seeding of unique numbers to the database for the distribution of smart cards, the number of people came down from 8 crore to 6.6 crore in our database,” said a senior government official.
(Source: The Times Of India)
4. Corporation Finds 9,000 Homeless, to Build 12 New Shelters
The city corporation has identified nearly 9,000 homeless people in Chennai through a recent third-party survey and created an app to map them. Officials in the civic body said the streetwise and division-wise mapping of the homeless will help identify sites for additional shelters.
On a mobile app that is currently being improvised, clusters of homeless have been mapped using blue markers while shelters in operation have been mapped with red markers. The app will be made public through a link on the corporation’s website. The number identified in the street-to-street survey which spanned a month and a half is almost three times the 3,547 computed by the civic body last year. Based on the results of the survey, 12 new shelters will be constructed.
(Source: The Times Of India)
5. Man Attempts Suicide at Secretariat
A 36-year-old man along with his wife and two children attempted suicide in front of the main gate of the Secretariat on Monday, reportedly frustrated over official apathy. On Monday morning, when the House was in session, he doused himself and his family members with kerosene and attempted to set everyone on fire.
According to the police, Jayakumar, 36, of Otteri Nammalvarpet, was living in a hut encroaching on a water body. The authorities demolished the tenements and allotted houses for the residents in Perumbakkam after enumeration. While the other residents were allotted houses, he was left in the lurch. All his efforts to get his name included in the list of beneficiaries went in vain. Frustrated over the apathy of officials, he decided to immolate himself and his family.
(Source: The Hindu)
6. Time-Worn MTC Buses Raise Safety Questions
More than 80% of the Metropolitan Transport Corporation’s (MTC) 3700-strong fleet of buses is over five years old. With the fitness of the vehicles coming under a cloud, so does the safety of passengers who travel on them. MTC, burdened with huge losses in the wake of the 30% reduction in commuter population after the hike in bus fares, faces a funds crunch with regard to even undertaking maintenance activities. So, replacing its ‘ageing’ buses is virtually ruled out.
Of the 3,716 buses (includes air-conditioned, small and vestibule buses) only 674 buses are under five years old, and none figures in the under one-year category. While 1,921 buses are between five and 10 years old, 1,121 are in the 10-13 year bracket.
(Source: The Hindu)
7. Vehicle-Free Stretch Along Marina for Morning Walkers
In a big relief to morning walkers who use the service road along Marina, the Chennai City Police has banned vehicles from using Loop Road, off Kamarajar Salai, from 5 am and 8 am.
This initiative is a consequence of City Police Commissioner AK Viswanathan receiving multiple complaints from morning walkers about frequent accidents. According to statistics provided by the police, over 5,000 people use Loop Road, measuring for about 2 km, for their morning walk. Walkers and beachgoers will be able to use the space behind Light House on Loop Road for parking.
(Source: The Hindu)
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