Chennai Nov 26 PTI The Madras High Court on Friday directed the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority and the Market Management panel in Koyambedu wholesale market to submit their response by November 29 on a plea to restore the tomato unloading ground situated there Justice R Suresh Kumar gave the direction while passing interim orders on a writ petition from the Thanthai Periyar Tomato Traders Association by its president A K Swaminathan The petition sought to quash the October 14 2020 order of the Chief Administrator Officer of the CMDA Market Managing Committee which closed the site and consequently prayed for a direction to him to permit the association members to use the ground for loading and unloading tomatoes PTI SA APR APR

Chennai Tamil Nadu India NewsVoir A multidisciplinary approach that takes into account every citizens requirements for daily life and the ways to mitigate the risks of climate change is critical for sustainable urban development says Ms Maanasa Sivashankar a city planner and design expert who holds a Master of Science degree in Design and Urban ecologies from Parsons School of Design New York The latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change IPCC Report minced no words while cautioning the governments across the world of the growing risks of climate change It is code red for humanity the report warns With the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority CMDA beginning the exercise of creating the citys third master plan and inviting the public to share their opinion on what their aspirations are for their city Ms Maanasa a city planner and design expert currently in New York thinks that an integrated and multidisciplinary approach to city planning should be the way to go to equip Chennai to support the daily life of its residents and to mitigate the risks of cyclones floods and other natural disasters induced by climate change Maanasa was born and brought up in Chennai and she has a deep passion for developing her own city to be sustainable and inclusive Her experience of working with international organizations such as the World Bank and the Inter-Parliamentary Union in city planning showed her the importance of engaging citizens and residents as essential steps to make cities more resilient and sustainable through collective action Chennais third master plan is part of the Tamil Nadu Housing and Habitat Development Project TNHHDP a World Bank-financed initiative of the state government This US9 million project for the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority CMDA includes technical assistance from the World Bank involving a climate and disaster resilience study and geo-spatial mapping to feed into the Master Plan preparation process In the process of planning the citys future citizens are as they must be an integral part Involving the public must go beyond being a mere formality Ms Maanasa emphasizes Making participation engaging inviting and continuous The real challenge lies in ensuring that residents can provide their time and uninhibited opinions to the process of planning With COVID-19 putting a strain on public participatory processes we must envision using digital innovation and technology to reach out to more people There are likely to be more extreme climatic conditions and unpredictable natural disasters While we cannot completely do away with the problem city planners must ask questions like How do we account for everyones needs and How can we ensure people can access and feel welcome in the solutions we make for them she says Most recently through her work as a consultant with the World Bank Maanasa created a participatory design process to help make Haitian emergency evacuation shelters safe and welcoming Undeterred by COVID-19 restrictions Maanasa worked virtually to analyze shelter designs led the literature review and supported developing a virtual participatory workshop She engaged a multidisciplinary group of experts including behavioral scientists Haitian government officials and Haitian shelter users to collaborate and contribute to design solutions The participatory process led to deep insights on enabling safety and inclusion for all Haitians in evacuation shelters Chennais master plan gives the city a chance to plan for future disasters and the citys envisioned growth Currently only 5 per cent area of the master plan looks at sustainable development models by using a holistic view of the demands and limitations Maanasas inputs for Chennais third master plan are Beyond the sharing of ideas Chennais master planning committee must devise design strategies on how the publics priorities will be selected and how people will assist in that selection City Designer Maanasa Sivashankar Co-founded Peoples Design Co and can be contacted via email at peoplesdesigncollabgmailcom Image Maanasa Sivashankar Co-founder Peoples Design Co PWR PWR

Maanasa was born and brought up in Chennai and she has a deep passion for developing her own city to be sustainable and inclusiveChennais third master plan is part of the Tamil Nadu Housing and Habitat Development Project TNHHDP a World Bank-financed initiative of the state governmentChennais master plan gives the city a chance to plan for future disasters and the citys envisioned growthCurrently only 5 per cent area of the master plan looks at sustainable development models by using a holistic view of the demands and limitationsMaanasas inputs for Chennais third master plan are Beyond the sharing of ideas Chennais master planning committee must devise design strategies on how the publics priorities will be selected and how people will assist in that selectionCity Designer Maanasa Sivashankar Co-founded Peoples Design Co and can be contacted via email at peoplesdesigncollabgmailcom