Urban News

  • Increase font size
  • Default font size
  • Decrease font size
Towns and Cities

Rs 1 crore for Ooty lake beautification

Tuesday, 02 February 2010 05:40 administrator
Print PDF

Deccan Chronicle 02.02.2010

Rs 1 crore for Ooty lake beautification

February 2nd, 2010
By Our Correspondent

Feb. 1: For old-timers, it is quite difficult to forget the song Naan Parthathiley Aval Oruthiyaithaan in the MGR-starrer Anbe Vaa. The scenic background on the southern side of Ooty lake, opposite the boat house, which provided the platform for the first few scenes of this hit song, has over the years, with the negligent attitude of the officials, turned into a wild bush with weeds occupying the place.

Now, with the Hill Area Development Programme (HADP) lending a helping hand to reclaim the lost beauty of that place and Rs 1 crore being allotted for the purpose, the process of regaining what has been lost in this area to make it a scenic park is under way.

Mr M. Prakasam, assistant director of horticulture at the Government Botanical Garden here, said the department was doing gardening work and turfing works are expected to be completed in a couple of weeks.

With flowers expected to bloom in another couple of months, this portion will be a feast for the eyes of the summer tourists and become a picnic spot. The agriculture engineering department is laying a footpath around the southern part of the lake to make it a walkers’ paradise.

 

More birth, death records to be computerised

Saturday, 30 January 2010 02:48 administrator
Print PDF

The Hindu 30.01.2010

More birth, death records to be computerised

Special Correspondent

Resolution adopted at monthly ordinary meeting

 

A total of 1,44,201 recordings will be undertaken

It has been proposed to set up an information centre

VELLORE: The Vellore Corporation has decided to computerise all records pertaining to births which took place in its limits from 1982 to 1991 and the deaths that occurred from 1985 to 1994.

A resolution was adopted at the monthly ordinary meeting of the Corporation Council held under the presidentship of P. Karthikeyan, Mayor of Vellore, here on Thursday.

The resolution said that the birth records from 1992 to 2009 and death records from 1995 to 2009 have already been computerised. A total of 1,44,201 recordings pertaining to births which took place from 1982 to 1991 and deaths which occurred from 1985 to 1994 have to be computerised. The Corporation Council approved the sanction of a sum of Rs.3 lakh to computerise the records.

K.R. Selvaraj, Corporation Commissioner, said that the Corporation has proposed to set up an information centre in its office to guide the public who came to obtain birth and death certificates. Responding to the complaint from K. Srinivasa Gandhi (Congress), 25th ward councillor, that the Corporation staff sought a certificate on the cause of death even for natural deaths from applicants for death certificates, the Commissioner said that seeking such a certificate was proper.

On the complaints of stray cattle menace leading to accidents in Vellore, the Commissioner said that the Corporation would arrange for removal of stray cattle weekly.

N.A. Balasundaram (Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam), 11th ward councillor, said that the discharge of human faeces from the latrines in the houses into the drainage canals in his ward posed a serious mosquito menace. He urged the Corporation to ask the owners of houses without septic tanks to construct such tanks in order to avoid mosquito menace. The Mayor said that this problem would not arise once work on the underground drainage scheme was completed.

Mr. Gandhi said that garbage collected from six wards was dumped in the 25th ward. The garbage was not removed regularly in view of the severe shortage of sanitary workers in his ward. The Corporation should arrange to remove garbage regularly, he said.

Mr. Karthikeyan said that women’s self-help groups (SHGs) could be used to clear the garbage in wards. Mr. Gandhi said that women’s SHGs were not fit to undertake such work, but men’s SHGs could be used for the same.

Last Updated on Saturday, 30 January 2010 02:54
 

Councillors finally take to the microphone

Friday, 29 January 2010 07:52 administrator
Print PDF

The Times of India 29.01.2010

Councillors finally take to the microphone

TNN, 29 January 2010, 03:35am IST

CHENNAI: The corporation council meet on Thursday witnessed a positive change as several councillors, including first-timers who keep silent during debates, spoke out about civic woes and need for development in their wards.

It was only a week ago that The Times Of India reported large-scale absenteeism of councillors during discussions.

Kalavathi Srinivasan of PMK spoke about the indifference of the administration towards her ward (100), Anbazhagan Nagar in Nungambakkam zone. She said the authorities could have merged four noon meal centres which had only seven children enrolled, to pave way for a ration shop, when there was no such facility in the ward. The officials overlooked a dilapidated old structure and a multi-purpose hall that has been lying locked for more than three years. "The ward has only streets, but no fogging operations are taken up here," she said.

Several councillors alleged that maintenance works were not carried out in their wards and the funding under the local area development (LAD) scheme was not utilised properly. K Armstrong, who absented himself from the council for more than a year said that the officials failed to avail of his Rs 25 lakh under LAD till date.

CPI member S Meena said there was no coordination between the utility agencies, and called for a coordination meeting. She said a proposal to lay a road under the centre's flagship programme JNNURM was dropped after work orders were issued. "Unexpectedly, TNEB came up with its cable laying work. Also, Metrowater has plans to cut roads frequently," she complained.

Bhuvaneswari Sankar, the lone independent councillor, urged the local body to set up an election office in all the 155 wards, so that electors' photo identity card could be taken throughout the year along with changes in the electoral roll. K Kirubakaran of ward 16 lamented the inordinate delay in building a flyover connecting Cochraine Basin Road and Kathivakkam High Road.

The active debate prompted Mayor M Subramanian to comment how a newspaper report has spurred the councillors to hold the microphone.

Responding to opposition floor leader Saidai P Ravi, Subramanian said finalisation of contractors for works on storm water drains and 16 canals under JNNURM costing Rs 814.88 crore would be decided in the next council meet. The mayor also asked the councillors to collect one lakh books from residents for the upcoming Anna centenary library.
 
More Articles...


Page 209 of 275