Some Chennai Metro Rail commuters have been facing issues with the opening of ticketing gates and the debiting of fares on the newly opened 14.6-km Poonamallee-Vadapalani stretch of the Phase II network.

It was only two weeks ago that the first stretch of the 118.9-km Phase II network – a part of corridor 4 (Poonamallee to Light House via Vadapalani) – was opened.

Arunachalam, a frequent commuter, said he often faced issues with the ticketing gates on the newly opened stretch, wherein it took multiple attempts to open them.

“I use my National Common Mobility Card, and sometimes, I have to swipe the card multiple times before the gate opens. Other times, we have to call the staff to help us open the gate. It is a bit frustrating to do it when you are rushing to board the train. A newly installed gate shouldn’t have such problems,” he added.

He also said that while exiting, the card doesn’t debit the fare. “The problem is, the card will show that I’m still inside and I will have to pay a fine. So, I had to reach out to the staff to fix the problem. This is a waste of time,” he said.

Rajesh, another commuter, said that he too faced this issue while trying to board a train at Kattupakkam recently. “When I was hurrying to board the train to my workplace, the gate was not detecting my ticket. After trying a few times at the first gate, I tried the second one, and then a staff came to assist me. The authorities should rectify the issue soon,” he added.

Officials of the Chennai Metro Rail Limited said measures were under way to resolve the issue.

A number of doctors in Chennai are reporting a continued rise in fever cases, with dengue remaining prevalent and influenza along with a few other respiratory viruses also in circulation. With the Northeast monsoon bringing the first spell of heavy rain to the city some days ago, there is a need to take precautions to prevent infectious diseases in the coming weeks.

Suresh Kumar, senior consultant, Infectious Diseases, Apollo Hospitals, said, “We have been seeing an overlap of dengue and influenza in 15% to 25% of patients. Both outbreaks are happening right now. As a result, the fever drags a bit longer to about 10 to 12 days. In dengue, we are noticing atypical manifestations in some patients. This includes hepatitis or elevated liver enzymes, brain involvement causing confusion and altered mental status but the recovery has been good.”

A government physician said there has been a spike in cases of fever with thrombocytopenia (low platelet count) over the past month. However, mortality has been low and recovery has been good, he said. “These could be mixed tropical infections, and we treat patients accordingly. Specific testing is not routinely done in the government sector, and so the infections could be dengue or chikungunya or leptospirosis,” he said.

Sowmya Sridharan, consultant – Infectious Disease, Kauvery Hospital, said that there was a slight reduction in the number of flu cases since the second week of October. “It is prevalent but less when compared to last month. There are sporadic cases of other respiratory infections too,” she said.

“However, we are still seeing a considerable number of dengue cases. Some patients have had severe symptoms requiring hospitalisation. Some of them come late on day four or five of fever with symptoms of dehydration and organ dysfunction. This makes management difficult. If patients come early, then most of them are treated as outpatients. However, recovery rates have been good. It is ideal for persons having high grade fever to see the doctor on the third day of fever if it does not subside,” she explained.

Another government doctor in Chennai said that if a child is active, taking food, and has no vomiting or headache, parents can give paracetamol based on a doctor’s prescription and manage them at home. However, combination drugs should not be given. “If they feel they cannot manage and if the child has warning signs such as lethargy, reduced movement, vomiting, abdomen pain, and reduced urine output, they should seek medical help with the nearest hospital or paediatrician. Parental anxiety should be addressed by doctors,” he said.

As precautionary measures, people must be careful while eating outside as water contamination may occur during the rain, Dr. Sowmya Sridharan said, adding: “Gastroenteritis, typhoid or typhoid-like bacterial infections are common during rain. To prevent dengue, waterlogging in and around houses should be avoided to prevent mosquito breeding. Mosquito nets and repellents could be utilised.”

Getting vaccinated against flu is important but there is a small shortage of vaccines, Dr. Suresh Kumar said. “While trivalent vaccine is the recommended one, it is in short supply and quadrivalent vaccines are available. This issue needs to be addressed,” he added.

 

Residents of the western suburbs, including Pattabiram, Thandurai, and Thiruninravur, have urged the Highways Department to regulate the spaces, beneath flyovers and service lanes, which are mostly encroached upon by vendors.

Poor maintenance

Motorists also complained about the lack of maintenance, such as the painting of rail overbridges in Thiruninravur, Veppampattu, Thandurai, and Pattabiram.

Thandurai resident K.S. Gopalakrishnan said that several shops occupied space on the service lanes of the flyover that replaced the LC-10 railway gate in their area, creating traffic bottlenecks during the morning and evening hours.

“Several two-wheelers belonging to customers take up the remaining space, causing inconvenience to residents of these localities, including Gopalapuram and Vallalar Nagar. Ambulances, cars, and even autorickshaws struggle to navigate these roads. Commuters taking trains from the nearby Pattabiram station also park their vehicles here,” he said.

These encroachments under the bridge and along the service lanes were there for nearly 15 years without any interference from an agency, said another resident. Jayaraman of Pattabiram said that the recently completed flyover at Veppampattu and the one under construction at LC2 Pattabiram Railway Siding also had encroachments. “Lighting under these bridges is not much, which leads to all kinds of unwanted activities. Food joints come up without any permissions. People are scared to go to such spaces after dark as there is absolutely no police presence,” the resident said.

Road users’ rights

Consumer activist T. Sadagopan said that it is necessary to regulate the shops and the parking spaces beneath the flyovers and the service lanes. “People talk of the rights of the vendors, then what about that of the road users for whom these facilities were primarily created? We would like some greenery and walking spaces under these flyovers, not illegal shops. The flyovers should also be decorated with wall art and murals like those inside the city. There are shops constructed by the Avadi Corporation that remain empty as the rents are exorbitant. Street vending zones must be created like in the case of Greater Chennai Corporation.” Sources in the Highways Department said that steps would be taken, along with the local body, police and Revenue department, to remove the encroachments.

Fishermen living in 64 villages from Tiruvallur to Chengalpattu on Tuesday continued to peg their hopes on Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay to withdraw the G.O. issued regarding the construction of the secretariat at Foreshore Estate. Hundreds of fishermen and women, who staged a protest near Srinivasapuram, said they believed the Chief Minister had their welfare at heart.

Community leader K. Bharathi, who has been spearheading the movement, pointed out that Minister Aadhav Arjuna had said that if asked to choose between fishermen and the secretariat, the Chief Minister would naturally go for the welfare of the fishermen. “We are hoping that the current proposal would be dropped and an alternative land would be chosen for the secretariat,” he said.

Local residents took out a silent march from their villages to the venue of the protest. Black flags planted on the sands fluttered in the wind as leader after leader urged the government to change its stand as otherwise their livelihoods would be affected badly. “We won’t have any freedom to carry on with our lives or unload our fish near the sands,” said Kabaddi Maran, a community leader.

Roobesh, another community leader, said that the State government must return lands belonging to the fishermen that were taken over and became houses for government staff. “Many of those buildings were demolished several years ago. There were several proposals including construction of a large complex. The land on which All India Radio stands today belonged to Nochikuppam,” he said.

Viji of Srinivasapuram, the other leader bringing people together, said that fishermen had been demanding that around ten thousand slum clearance board tenements should be demolished and reconstructed. Some of these buildings were constructed during former Chief Minister K. Kamaraj’s time and also in the 1970s. There has been no maintenance after the tsunami of 2004. We also want the government to construct homes for non-fishermen who live amongst us in these villages,” he demanded.

The Ayanavaram police arrested a 35-year-old man for allegedly cheating a 32-year-old woman by promising to marry her and obtaining ₹50,000 and gold jewellery from her.

According to the police, the woman, a beautician living with her children at her mother’s house in Pudhu Nagar, Ayanavaram, was looking for a suitable match online for her second marriage when she came in contact with Ali Harman. They began communicating with each other over the phone.

On September 16, Harman allegedly visited her house and sought her hand in marriage from her parents, who agreed to the proposal. The next day, he allegedly told her that he was in urgent need of money and promised to return it, following which she transferred ₹50,000 to him through PhonePe.

On September 19, Harman allegedly told her that he wanted to buy jewellery through an exchange offer for their proposed wedding. Believing him, the woman handed over an earring, ring, and a 1¼ sovereign chain.

When she later tried to contact him, he allegedly stopped answering her calls and went missing. Based on her complaint, Ayanavaram police registered a case under cheating and other relevant sections and began an investigation.

After investigation, the police traced and arrested Harman, 35, of Netaji Street, Tharapakkam. The police said Harman worked as a medical representative and had allegedly sold the jewellery obtained from the woman and used the proceeds to purchase a car. A car and two mobile phones, including an iPhone, were recovered from him. Harman was produced before a court after interrogation and remanded in judicial custody.

The storm-water drain work on Kaliyamman Koil Street, at a point where it joins the Virugambakkam canal, will be completed within two weeks, Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) Commissioner G.S. Sameeran said during an inspection on Sunday.

Mr. Sameeran inspected the development works under way at the Virugambakkam canal in Kodambakkam zone at an estimated cost of ₹30 crore. The works included construction of retaining walls, fencing, and removal of silt and waste.

He also inspected the construction of a bridge across the canal by the Chennai Metro Rail Limited at an estimated cost of ₹12 crore.

The existing bridge was being removed as part of the work. Officials were instructed to construct the bridge before the Northeast monsoon.

The Virugambakkam waterway canal begins at Bhuvaneshwari Nagar in Virugambakkam, and passes through Chinmaya Nagar, Saligramam, and M.M.D.A. Colony, before joining the Cooum.

The canal is 6.70 km in length and 8-25 m in width.

Mr. Sameeran also inspected dengue prevention measures in Kodambakkam zone.

MGR canal

He visited the MGR canal and reviewed mosquito-control spraying before conducting a door-to-door field inspection on 2nd Sector, 13th Street.

The Commissioner also distributed awareness pamphlets to residents and advised them to prevent water stagnation, remove unwanted articles, maintain cleanliness, and seek immediate medical treatment in case of fever.

Two 17-year-old boys from Nagaland were rescued by the Railway Protection Force (Katpadi) in Ammor village on Sunday.

The police said the rescued boys were identified as T. Nagampha and A. Tsemtun Kanyak. The teens were stranded in a remote forest area near a railway track between Walajah Road and Mukundarayapuram railway stations past midnight.

A railway patrol team comprising assistant sub-inspector P.R. Murali and head constable G. Gopalakrishnan found the teens. “We got an alert from our counterpart in Nagaland that two teens were missing from their houses and were headed towards Kerala. Despite heavy rain, our patrol team was looking for the boys in the area,” said K. Prabhu, inspector, RPF (Katpadi).

The police said that the two boys had left their homes in search for jobs in Keralam. The boys had initially travelled by train and reportedly alighted at Samalkot Railway Station near Kakinada in A.P to attend nature’s call.

They had briefly alighted at Samalkot Railway Station and before they could re-board, the train departed. They subsequently purchased fresh tickets and boarded another train, the Gurudev Express, bound for Thiruvananthapuram.

However, overcome with anxiety, the boys got down near Katpadi and were walking aimlessly when they were found by the patrol team.

After their rescue, the boys were provided with suitable clothing, food, and necessary medical assistance. They were found to be in good health. Necessary arrangements were also initiated for their safe reunion with their family. After informing the Child Welfare Committee, the boys were handed over to the Child Helpline for Safe Custody at the Collectorate.

In a significant development, the Tamil Nadu government has shortlisted two sites for Chennai’s second airport and has asked the Airports Authority of India (AAI) to conduct a pre-feasibility study. The move comes nearly a week after Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay announced that the State government will drop the greenfield airport project planned at Parandur and will look for alternative sites. 

The Hindu was the first to report that two sites—Cheyyur and Gummidipoondi—are the top contenders for the project. It is now learnt that the State government has asked AAI to study Cheyyur in Chengalpattu district and Manellore, near Gummidipoondi, in Tiruvallur district. Sources said that a final decision will be taken after the AAI gives its recommendation in the pre-feasibility report.

A team from Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation (TIDCO) has already completed the first round of inspections for both the sites.

Sources said the Cheyyur site is about 40 km from the Puducherry airport and nearly 35 km from Kalpakkam. It is also nearly 100 km from the existing airport at Meenambakkam. The Manellore site is about 50 km from the city and 35 km from Sriharikota.

Sources said that even if AAI recommend one of the two sites, there could be some difficulty in getting the remaining approvals from various regulatory bodies, given the location of both sites. “While there is possibility for Cheyyur, provided the Ministry of Defence gives clearance, since the Indian Air Force, Tambaram, controls the airspace in the region. But Manellore in Gummidipoondi has some challenges,” a source said.

As the next step, a team of AAI officials will visit both sites and carry out an inspection, after which the report will be drafted. It is expected that AAI will submit the report in a few months. “The State government wants to start the process on the second airport soon. It will help if AAI speeds up and gives the report at the earliest,” another source said. 

But another source pointed out that even if the State government wants to build the second airport soon, it may have to wait for a minimum of 5-7 years to make this project a reality.

Homemaker Rigzin Ladol and her retired teacher and husband Tundup Tsering from Zanskar district of the Union territory of Ladakh stood proudly next to their 24-year-old daughter Stanzin Tsangyang at the Officers Training Academy (OTA) in Chennai on Saturday morning. Their daughter had completed her training and was commissioned into the Army as a Lieutenant.

Lt. Stanzin Tsangyang was among the 342 persons who completed their training and were commissioned as officers during the Passing Out Parade (POP) at the OTA. “I was interested in sports, and I was in the NCC during my college days. I was interested in joining the Army,” says the engineering graduate. “She is the first from my family to join the Army,” says her father Mr. Tsering.

Like Ms. Tsangyang, Lt. Ritika Dubey from Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh is the first from her family to join the Armed forces. There were also Lieutenants Mohit Arora, Prashant Gurung, and M.R. Raswanth, who had followed their family’s tradition of serving in the Army. Besides, 17 cadets from friendly foreign countries such as Bhutan, Eswatini, Lesotho, Seychelles, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zimbabwe also completed their training on Saturday.

Earlier in the day, Admiral Krishna Swaminathan, Chief of the Naval Staff, reviewed the parade in Parameswaran Drill Square. During his speech, Mr. Swaminathan said: “Courage is a muscle. It strengthens every time you use it. Whether physical or moral, courage more often than not, means the ability to stand alone to your convictions. It cannot be downloaded in a crisis; it is built and engrained over time in the small choices we make every day.”

The character of warfare might have changed in many ways but fundamentally, war remained a profoundly human endeavour, said the Chief of the Naval Staff. “Combat operations may see new weapons being used across new domains, but their outcomes shall continue to be determined by the men and women who fight, lead, inspire, persist, and persevere.”

He presented the prestigious ‘Sword of Honour’ and Bronze Medal to Battalion Under Officer Gurkeerat Singh Hora, OTA Gold Medal to Academy Under Officer Abhinab Chauhan, and Silver Medal to Academy Cadet Adjutant Niket Singh Tomar. 

After more than a decade of its opening, an Amma canteen near the old bus terminus in Arakkonam town in Ranipet got a fresh lease of life on Saturday as Minister for Co-operation V. Gandhiraj inaugurated the restored facility.

Civic officials said that former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa virtually inaugurated Amma Canteens in Ranipet, Arcot, Arakkonam and Walajah towns in the district in 2015, when the scheme was launched in the State.

Since then, renovation of the facility was not done. “The municipality has completed restoration work of the canteens for the first time with improved civic amenities for visitors,” G. Anandan, Commissioner, Arakkonam municipality, told The Hindu.

Accompanied by Collector N. Priya Ravichandran, Mr. Gandhiraj inspected the renovated canteen, which was done at a cost of ₹11 lakh in the town.

The canteen in Walajah town that refurbished at a cost of ₹9 lakh will be opened to the public in the coming week.

 
The kitchen was refurbished with new water pipelines and utensils. Electrical lines were also checked thoroughly to prevent any power fluctuations and short circuit. An overhead tank with a storage capacity of 50,000 litres was cleaned.

 
Motor pump sets connected to borewells that supply water to the canteens were refurbished, to ensure uninterrupted water supply. A fresh coat of painting was also given to the facility.