1. Private Water Tanker Owners Put Off Strike
Residents of the city struggling to meet their water needs may get a measure of relief as private water tanker owners have decided to postpone their indefinite strike. They had earlier threatened to go on strike from 27 May after a crackdown on tankers tapping groundwater in the city’s outskirts.
After talks with officials of the Municipal Administration and Water Supply Department on Friday, the Tamil Nadu Private Water Tanker Lorry Owners’ Association has decided to postpone the strike. There are nearly 4,500 private tankers that fill the gap in water supply in the city. However, the number of trips have been reduced by about half, to 12,000 per day, for want of sources. For instance, tanker operators in the Poonamallee belt travel for an additional 25 km to source groundwater — even up to Tiruvallur.
(Source: The Hindu)
2. Stalin Proves Mettle, But Power Eludes
The DMK cadre are a bit confused. The confusion is over whether to call Thursday’s verdict a victory or not. The party-led alliance swept the Lok Sabha polls. But still, the party has not managed to win enough seats in the bypolls to regain power in the State. On the other hand, the party’s national ally, Congress, has performed miserably at the national level. So, despite so many choices the DMK, the party could not capture power either at state nor at Centre.
Being out of power for so many years and also losing its supremo M Karunanidhi, have been testing times for the party. The only consolation for the party is that its new leader MK Stalin has for the first time proved that he can deliver the goods.
(Source: The New Indian Express)
3. Victory Margin Exceeds 2 Lakh in 23 Seats
The scale of victory achieved by the DMK-led front in the Lok Sabha elections in Tamil Nadu is so sweeping that two-thirds (23 constituencies) of the winners have bagged the seats at least with a margin of over 2 lakh votes. In a couple of constituencies, the margin even exceeded five lakh votes.
Though the AIADMK too had won 37 seats in 2014, it could not match the latter in terms of margin of difference. Five years ago, the highest margin was about 3.23 lakh votes in Tiruvallur. But this time, it was 5,38,972 votes in Dindigul. In Sriperumpudur too, the margin exceeded the five-lakh mark where former Union Minister TR Baalu was elected. In both these seats, the PMK was the runner-up. Theni, the only constituency where the AIADMK-led coalition won, saw the margin drop to 77,674 votes from 3.14 lakh votes in 2014.
(Source: The Hindu)
4. Woman Rides Bike With Male Friend, Son Kills Her
A 22-year-old man allegedly hacked his mother to death after he spotted her travelling on a motorbike with her male friend at Tambaram on Tuesday night. Police said that Bhavani, 40, was married to one Anbu and the couple had three children – two boys and a girl.
“Anbu died a few years ago and Bhavani lived along with her children in Kakkan Street in Tambaram and worked as a construction labourer. Recently, she had befriended one Raj Kumar from the same area. One of her sons Sampath was angered by this,” said a police officer. On Tuesday night, Sampath, who was riding his two-wheeler, spotted his mother travelling on a motorbike with Raj Kumar.
(Source: The New Indian Express)
5. A Great Beginning, Says Kamal Haasan
Makkal Needhi Maiam founder Kamal Haasan on Friday said that he was “proud of the people of Tamil Nadu” for speaking in one voice through the results of Lok Sabha elections. Speaking to the media a day after the Bharatiya Janata Party won 303 seats in the Lok Sabha, Kamal Haasan said: “The people of India have given the verdict but I am happy Tamil Nadu didn’t go the same way. Tamil Nadu has been individualistic and clearly stated its stand point. I am proud of my people.”
Dwelling on Makkal Needhi Maiam’s strong show in its first elections where it garnered 3.72% vote share, the party chief said, “People have trusted and voted for us without expecting anything other than our commitment. I see the candidates who received votes in huge numbers as winners of tomorrow.”
(Source: The Hindu)
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