Chennai to rent 587 pumps for Rs 43.79 crore for monsoons; opposition questions need despite new drains
However, councillors from the opposition parties questioned the readiness of the civic body's permanent infrastructure like stormwater drains and its continued dependence on motor pumps to drain out water, in the event of waterlogging.
Of the 587 pumps, 150 are high-power 80-100 HP pumps, which the civic body will rent for Rs 3.38 lakh a month per pump (excluding diesel), for the monsoon period of 90 days from October to December. This will cost the city corporation a total of Rs 15.79 crore, which will also include charges for an operator per pump.
The highest number of these pumps (20) is to be deployed in the Adyar zone, while Alandur has been allotted 15 of these pumps. Other flood-prone zones like Thiru Vi Ka Nagar will get 16 pumps; Manali and Valasaravakkam will get 11 each.
Sholinganallur is to be allotted 14 pumps. So far, the corporation has been using pumps of capacities ranging from 5-50 HP, according to the resolution. While the size of these high-power pumps limits its portability, the corporation is also set to rent another 437 tractor-mounted pumps at a total cost of Rs 28 crore.
The city corporation said that these pumps were necessary to be kept on stand-by in order to help faster draining out of water while AIADMK councillor J John questioned the officials' lack of confidence in the stormwater drains and asked, 'The corporation has claimed to have laid 2,000 kilometres of stormwater drains. Why are we still depending on motor pumps?'
Mayor R Priya said that the pumps are intended to be used in cases of extreme weather events, like cyclones.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Indian Express
15 minutes ago
- Indian Express
GST restructure plan: In new regime, online gaming likely to be placed in top bracket
With the Government proposing to overhaul the GST regime with a special rate of 40 per cent on 'sin and demerit goods', the top slab is likely to see the inclusion of pan masala, tobacco, cigarettes, luxury cars, SUVs — and online gaming. According to sources, the Department of Revenue has kept in mind the country's 'social ethos' while tagging goods and services in the 'sin and demerit' category, and online gaming is seen to be fitting that definition. If this move is finalised, it is likely to cause an upheaval among online gaming companies, ranging from fantasy sports and real gaming platforms, which have previously complained of the 28 per cent GST levied on them. The latest consideration also comes amid growing concerns within the Central and state governments over the amount of money being spent on these platforms, and the ease with which these companies enable automatic deductions for payments, sometimes without consent, during consecutive rounds of a game. The 40 per cent rate, which is likely to be recommended by the GST Council, could also benefit the Central and state governments fiscally, with substantial revenue gains expected. The sector has shown fairly inelastic demand previously, when the GST rate was set at 28 per cent from October 1, 2023. Prior to that, many online gaming companies were not paying 28 per cent saying there were differential tax rates for games of skill and games of chance. Official data shows GST revenues jumped sharply after the Council's decision in July 2023 to impose a uniform 28 per cent levy on online gaming, horse racing and casinos with effect from October 1, 2023. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had said last September that revenue from online gaming 'increased by 412 per cent and reached Rs 6,909 crore in just six months… from Rs 1,349 crore before the notification issued on online gaming'. For casinos, she had said the revenue increased by 30 per cent, from Rs 164.6 crore in the six months prior to the decision to Rs 214 crore in the same period after the move. The need for a higher GST rate for online gaming may also find support among policymakers as they have been raising concerns over the amount of time being spent by users on these platforms that is resulting in them spending increasingly high amounts of money on such activities. A key consideration behind the move is concerns among policymakers over the time and increasingly higher amounts of money being spent by domestic users on online gaming platforms. The domestic spend on online games is not 'particularly small', Chief Economic Advisor V Anantha Nageswaran had said on August 14, days after the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) for the first time released monthly data breaking up payments made to various categories of merchants via the Unified Payments Interface (UPI). As per the data, UPI payments on digital games averaged more than Rs 10,000 crore in the first four months of 2025-26. '…take a look at how much Indians are spending on online gaming every month. And the number isn't particularly small — it is Rs 10,000 crore per month. That's Rs 1.2 trillion (in a year),' Nageswaran said at a meeting with statistical advisers in various ministries and departments, organised by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation. The Indian Express had earlier reported that the Centre is also finalising a move that could bring online real-money gaming companies under the ambit of anti-money laundering laws and subject them to stricter obligations, such as know-your-customer (KYC) requirements, and tracking and reporting suspicious transactions. According to a report by FICCI and EY from March 2025, online gaming companies in India collectively earned a revenue of close to $2.7 billion in 2024. These companies typically make money by taking a cut from a user's winnings. As per the report, more than 155 million Indians engaged with real money gaming sub-segments such as fantasy sports, rummy, poker and other transaction-based games in 2024, marking a 10 per cent increase over 2023. On an average, around 110 million people played these games daily.
Indian Express
15 minutes ago
- Indian Express
In industrial belt near Delhi, Trump's tariffs cloud outlook for export of engineering goods
In one of the many cavernous sheds dotting Ghaziabad, the industrial suburb on the outskirts of the Capital, a giant stands silent. The massive metal forging machine, hauled from China only months ago at a cost of Rs 20 crore, glints under the dim factory lights, its steel body collecting a fine coat of dust. It was meant to be the future: sleek, electric-powered, capable of shaping metal with precision and scale. Yet, in its shadow, the old ritual continues. A knot of workers, sleeves rolled, faces flushed with heat, gather around a much smaller press, striking molten metal with steady, rhythmic blows. The clangs echo through the workshop like the heartbeat of an older era. For Ghaziabad-based CD Industries, a manufacturer of metal flanges feeding oil and gas exploration rigs across the US, the dormant machinery was supposed to answer the shifting demands of its overseas clients. Instead, it waits, inert. 'Baal mundwaate hi ole padne lage (It started raining hail stones as soon as one got his hair shaved),' Pankaj Agarwal, Director, CD Industries, told The Indian Express at his manufacturing plant in one of Ghaziabad's biggest industrial belts on the Bulandshahr Road. Agarwal had purchased the electric metal forge to exclusively service client requests from the US, who had asked him to make flanges of up to 16 inches, as opposed to his current capacity of eight-inch flanges. But, with US President Donald Trump's decision to raise tariffs on several Indian goods – to 25 per cent, with a further 25 per cent increase threatened by August 27 – new orders have dried up for Agarwal, and many engineering goods exporters like him. Increasingly, several US-based vendors are even cancelling earlier orders, resulting in significant financial losses for several Indian medium and small enterprises. Engineering is the largest industrial sector in India and accounts for 3.53 per cent of the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The engineering goods export of India had a share of 25.22 per cent out of the total exports during the financial year FY24, as they jumped to $109.22 billion as compared to $106.93 billion during FY23. In FY25 (April to December), India's top five export destinations in the sector were the US (15.82%), the UAE (7.36%), Saudi Arabia (5.24%), Singapore (4.46%) and Germany (3.52%). Industries like auto components and metal works are particularly at a disadvantage. For CD Industries, the US is its exclusive export market, accounting for 50 per cent of the company's turnover. 'While we are continuing to deliver the previously placed orders, new enquiries have stopped coming in. For some companies, their previous orders have been cancelled, as importers are seeking a discount, which many manufacturers are not in a position to accept,' Agarwal said. His products are supplied across the length and breadth of the US, from the West Coast to the East Coast, and Texas to New York. 'The tariff situation is bothering us, haunting us, and we are really, really worried,' he said. His plant in Ghaziabad employs 225 people, including floor workers, project managers and quality control managers. For now, he says the older orders not getting cancelled – a fact he attributes to his long-standing relationship with his vendors, dating back 20 to 30 years – has allowed him to not trim the workforce. But if the situation continues for a longer time, he may have to let go of some workers, Agarwal said. Sanjeev Sachdev, general secretary of the Industrial Area Manufacturers' Association in Ghaziabad, said there are more than 400 manufacturing plants in the belt, which employ over 75,000 people. 'If the tariff situation is not resolved, and the government does not alternatively help the industry financially in the meantime, easily 5,000-7,000 people will lose their jobs. Many companies, who have purchased raw material and made finished goods, are staring at generations getting into debt,' Sachdev said. Pankaj Chadha, chairman of the Engineering Export Promotion Council (EEPC) of India, said about $5 billion worth of engineering goods exports are at risk due to US tariffs. 'Unlike other sectors, for us the pain started early on when the US announced 50 per cent tariffs on steel and aluminium. At this tariff rate, we cannot be competitive and we are not in a position to retain our market share in the US,' he said. Sachdev speaks with the quiet fatalism of someone who is anticipating to see too many balance sheets bleed red. Between raw metal and a gleaming finished part lies a steep markup – not just in price, but in labour, skill, and the hours of heat and noise that shape it. Yet that value can vanish in an instant. If an overseas buyer pulls the plug, the goods, tailored to a single client's specifications, are suddenly orphaned, with no other market to call home. In that moment, there are only two doors left open: swallow the buyer's demand for a deep discount, or consign the work to the scrap heap, where months of craft and capital dissolve into a fraction of their worth. For some manufacturers, it is not just a bad deal – it is the slow tightening of a noose. One too many of such blows, and the factory floor falls silent. Many in the industry, who spoke on condition of anonymity, warned that the real weight of the new tariffs will fall not on the industry's giants, but on the small and medium enterprises. The big players can simply pivot, scouting for new markets, absorbing the shock with the comfort of deep reserves. For the smaller firms, there is no such cushion, no easy escape route. The blow, when it lands, goes straight to the bone. Agarwal, Chadha and Sachdev, all said that the government's help to support companies in distress is the need of the hour. 'We expect the government to extend Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products (RoDTEP) to the steel sector and restart the interest subvention scheme to ease the pain,' Chadha said. Vinod Kumar, president of the India SME Forum, said that export-focused countries like China have heavily invested in promoting their products globally. 'India has not done that over the years. This is a systemic problem. The nature of trade has changed over the years. Only production is not going to solve your problem, we have to market them effectively,' he said.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Aasu, teachers unions urge govt to cancel reappt of retd teachers in colleges
1 2 Guwahati: The All Assam Students' Union (Aasu) and leading teachers' unions on Sunday urged the state govt to cancel reappointment of retired teachers in model colleges or any other govt-run educational institutions. Last week, representatives of several student bodies had held demonstrations in front of the state directorate of higher education, protesting against the decision to reappoint retired teachers in model colleges this year. In a joint meeting, convened by Aasu, with the teachers' unions, both the unions urged the govt to reconsider its decision to appoint retired teachers, terming it as 'unjust' decisions. The meeting included representatives from the Gauhati University Teachers' Association, Assam College Teachers' Association, Assam High School Teachers' Association and Assam State Primary Teachers' Association, among other teachers' associations. "After detailed discussions, the special educational meeting strongly opposed the notification issued for the recruitment of teachers in govt model colleges established by the Assam govt. The decision to appoint retired teachers, thereby depriving thousands of educated unemployed youth and forcing newly appointed young individuals to work for three years with a salary of only Rs 50,000, amidst uncertainty, was opposed by the meeting," Aasu president Utpal Sarma and general secretary Samiran Phukan said in a statement. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Could This NEW Collagen Blend Finally Reduce Your Cellulite? Vitauthority Learn More Undo "The meeting clearly said that the probation system is unnecessary and opposed the govt's attempt to extend this decision to provincialized colleges and schools," the note further read. The meeting rejected the idea of appointing retired teachers to 50% of the teaching positions, citing the need for experienced teachers as a 'pretext for depriving unemployed youth'. "The decision to allocate two out of three teaching positions to retired teachers is not justified," Aasu said. The meeting advocated for advancement of model colleges through a blend of experience and innovation. For this, they suggested that in model colleges, in addition to the positions of assistant professors in each department, at least one associate professor position should be created. In this way, experienced teachers will be appointed to these associate professor positions, they claimed. "If the govt considers it essential to utilise the experience of retired teachers, they can be appointed as guest lecturers rather than as associate or assistant professors. However, this should not lead to the elimination of associate or assistant professor positions," the unions said. "If the govt feels the need for experienced individuals in administrative roles for NAAC, IQAC, etc., it can create an educational officer position in model colleges," they further suggested. Stay updated with the latest local news from your city on Times of India (TOI). Check upcoming bank holidays , public holidays , and current gold rates and silver prices in your area.
