QChennai: RK Nagar Poll by 31 Dec; Chennai Corp Scam Exposed

Here is your roundup news from Chennai.

1. High Court Expects ECI to Conduct Bypoll for RK Nagar Before 31 December

The Madras High Court on Tuesday observed that it expected the Election Commission of India (ECI) to conduct the by-election for the RK Nagar Assembly constituency that fell vacant since the death of former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa last year, by 31 December. Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice M Sundar made the observation while disposing as infructuous a writ petition filed by Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, representing by its organising secretary RS Bharathi, seeking a direction to weed out bogus voters before holding the poll.

The first Division Bench held that there was no necessity to pass any orders on the issue since the election officials had already removed the names of 45,819 voters from the rolls for the constituency though the petitioner party wanted only 44,999 entries to be deleted.

(Source: The Hindu)

2. NGO Exposes Chennai Corporation's Road-Laying Scam

Unearthing a scam to the tune of crores of rupees by the Chennai Corporation, NGO Arappor Iyakkam has exposed corruption in the laying of roads along bus routes in Chennai. In a first in a series of promised “exposés”, the anti-corruption group has alleged a scam in the laying of 'Devanathan Street' in Mandaveli. The Chennai Corporation had allocated Rs 345 crore for the re-laying of roads along the bus routes most frequented in 2015.

After this year’s monsoon, restoration work was taken up in 32 roads by Public Works Department (PWD) and Chennai Metro Water Supply and Sewerage Board. The inability of the departments to pay Rs 34 crore delayed the re-laying work. Corporation officials also claim that 80 percent of the roads that are now listed as ‘severely battered’ and ‘unusable’ have been delayed for the last five years because of non-payment. But the solution is not re-laying. The roads needs to be desilted six months before the onset of the monsoon.

Read the full story here.

3. Father of Rape Victim Alleges Threat

The father of the 7-year-old girl who was raped and murdered by a neighbour in Mugalivakkam in February, has lodged a complaint with the Chengalpattu town police station stating that the suspect in the case had threatened to kill his son too. The trial for the case has been going on in the Chengappettu Mahila Court and Daswanth is being tried for the offence.

The case came up for hearing and the girl’s father Babu and Daswanth were standing in the verandah. Babu claimed that Daswanth came near him under the pretext of speaking on the phone and threatened to kill him and his son if he ever came to the court again. Babu and his family had shifted to Andhra allegedly after Daswanth’s family had threatened him.

(Source: The Hindu)

Also Read: Rape Survivors in India Suffer Daily Despite Reforms: HRW Report

4. Thideer Nagar Residents Relocated Despite Resistance

Despite opposition and protests, the residents of Thideer Nagar, Greams Road, were relocated to the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board (TNSCB) tenements in Perumbakkam on Tuesday. Residents complained that despite seeking more time, officials of the Greater Chennai Corporation had insisted that they move immediately. The authorities had come to the area last month to evict the families as part of the Cooum River Eco-restoration Project.

The families had even staged a ‘road roko’ on Greams Road on Monday demanding more time, but the police had intervened and they were forced to disperse. Last month too, the families had urged the authorities to postpone their eviction, demanding more time. They alleged that they were informed on the relocation only a day before.

(Source: The Hindu)

5. Aadhaar to Be Linked with Civic Services

The Chennai Corporation is planning to integrate Aadhaar with various civic services, including birth and death certificates, property tax assessment, trade licence and building approval. Over the past few years, there have been many instances of residents complaining to the Chennai Corporation Commissioner whenever zonal level officials asked residents to produce Aadhaar for civic services. Former councillors have also been complaining to senior officials that zonal level officials were reportedly harassing residents, demanding Aadhaar. A few years ago, former Commissioner Vikram Kapur had even warned zonal level officials of action for demanding Aadhaar from residents for civic services.

Now, the situation seems to be changing. Following a meeting on the State Resident Data hub held on October 23, senior officials have informed zonal level officials that database integration of Aadhaar may be carried out to “ensure the authenticity of the individuals availing themselves of civic services”.

(Source: The Hindu)

Also Read: Aadhar Card Not Mandatory for Availing Benefits: SC

6. Harassed by Financier, Film Producer-Director Ends Life

Film producer-director B Ashok Kumar committed suicide in his residence in Alwarthirunagar near Valasaravakkam on Tuesday. In his suicide note, Ashok Kumar, who was a relative of director-actor Sasikumar, has blamed a film financier for pushing him to take the extreme step. An official of Valasaravakkam Police Station said Ashok Kumar, a native of Madurai, committed suicide by hanging in his multi-storeyed apartment at Arcot Road in Alwarthirunagar. His suicide note accused a film financier based in Madurai, with whom his production company has been taking loans, of charging exorbitant interest.

He had further claimed that it was a big mistake to have associated himself with the financier for more than seven years and that he had paid exorbitant interest on the loans. For the past six months, he was harassed and threatened by the financier, who claimed to have political clout and also was influential in the police and film circuit.

(Source: The Hindu)

7. Drone Mapping Project Begins

The Chennai Corporation on Tuesday started a project for mapping of utilities and private properties using drones, developing a Geographical Information System (GIS) based on the drone mapping. A few years ago, former Mayor Saidai Duraisamy announced the project at the Chennai Corporation Council. “The project will be used for planning of development work on a priority basis. We will make major policy decisions based on the results of the survey. We will complete the work in 120 days,” said SP Velumani, Minister for Municipal Administration.

“Chennai is the fourth largest local body in India. It has an area of 426 sq. km. and 75 lakh people. The World Bank has funded the project estimated at Rs 6.43 crore. Two unmanned aerial vehicles will be used to map the city,” said Velumani. The mapping is expected to be a tool to identify gaps in civic amenities

(Source: The Hindu)