A 20-foot-deep crater opened on Perambur Barracks Road on September 30, damaging a sewer line — the second collapse on the road in weeks. As north Chennai's 50-year-old sewer network gives way, the cave-in sharpens questions about the TVK government's delivery on its infrastructure promises.
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India's gross GST collections rose 14.7% year-on-year to about ₹2.04 lakh crore in September, the third straight month above the ₹2 lakh-crore mark. Tamil Nadu bucked the trend: its domestic collections fell 5% to ₹10,188 crore, making it the only major state in the red.
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Chennai's Special POCSO Court has rejected the bail pleas of Shanti, 60, and her husband Mahendra Simhan, 63, arrested alongside Gem Granites proprietor R. Veeramani in the alleged child-abuse case. The court cited pending forensic examination of seized devices, flight risk and the risk of witness intimidation.
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The Enforcement Directorate has opened a money-laundering probe into the alleged ₹100 crore racket in which private schools were promised permanent recognition for cash. The case, first registered by the Chennai Central Crime Branch, names former school education minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi; he denies the charges and has moved the Madras High Court to quash the FIR.
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From 1 October, Tamil Nadu's 2.09 crore ration cardholders can collect their subsidised foodgrain quota at any fair-price shop in the State, not just the shop their card is tied to. Biometric authentication is now mandatory at every shop, and POS devices will track each withdrawal.
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The expanded Vetri Payanam scheme brings free travel to 12,692 state buses, including Express, LSS and Deluxe services, from 2 October. An estimated 8.4 million women and transgenders stand to benefit daily, with no income cap or journey limit.
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Greater Chennai Police Commissioner A. Amalraj has ordered the preventive detention of R. Veeramani, 84, and associates Shanthi and Mahendra Simhan, saying they posed a threat to public order. Four cases are under investigation; a WhatsApp tip line is open.
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Justice P.B. Balaji struck off a plea to declare the Ambasamudram runner-up the winner, saying a multi-candidate contest can only end in a fresh poll if the petition succeeds. Counsel for Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay told a Division Bench that the Election Commission must now hold polls in both seats.
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Oil companies raised 19-kg commercial cylinder prices for a second straight month, lifting Chennai's rate by ₹66.50. Domestic LPG was unchanged. TNCC president Manickam Tagore said small eateries face a festive-season squeeze.
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A Division Bench led by Chief Justice Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari has given the State four weeks to report which caste appellations on streets, roads and localities have been removed, and which still remain, nearly five decades after a 1978 order first demanded it.
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Gantries with RFID readers, radar and number-plate cameras have replaced manned booths on the Chennai–Tiruchi highway. About 46,500 vehicles a day use the plaza; FASTag vehicles pass without stopping, while others get challans.
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The High Court has done what successive governments promised in 1978 and never finished. The State's status report must be honest, public and followed by a deadline.
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The Madurantakam and Dharapuram byelections were caused by two MLAs who resigned and changed parties a month after being elected. The Tenth Schedule cannot stop this. Parliament should.
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The court rejected a nationwide firecracker ban and accepted NEERI's call for a "limited and conditional relaxation" for redesigned joined crackers. Sivakasi cheered, but says mass production will have to wait for next year.
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Country-made crackers stored on the first floor of a house in Pandamangalam exploded around 4.30 p.m. on Wednesday. The shop owner, his wife and a worker were killed; police feared more people might still be under the debris as rescue teams worked past nightfall.
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Both seats fell vacant when AIADMK MLAs elected in April resigned and joined the ruling TVK on the same day. On October 6 they seek re-election on the TVK ticket against the DMK, the AIADMK, the NTK and the Left.
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Fisherfolk from 64 villages want the government order for a new Secretariat at Pattinapakkam withdrawn, while Kasimedu's boat owners plan an indefinite strike over vessels held in Andhra Pradesh for more than 100 days.
· 4 min read
About 250 nurses fasted in Chennai against temporary appointments, as the Health Department warned applicants about touts. Doctors want hospitals declared high-security zones after a string of violent incidents.
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The southwest monsoon ended 13% short nationally and 20% short in Tamil Nadu. The IMD expects a normal northeast monsoon from the third week of October, but warns north interior districts may get less.
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Justice V. Lakshminarayanan said the police had no "magic wand" to crack the case within four days of forming a Special Investigation Team, and ordered a status report by October 7. Separately, police have booked R. Veeramani over the death of a minor in 2004.
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The first Phase II stretch will run non-stop from Porur to Vadapalani while six stations are still being built. Separately, the State is preparing to hand the MRTS to Chennai Metro Rail by December.
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A new Secretariat at Pattinapakkam and seven Chennai boats held in Andhra Pradesh are two sides of one question: does the State see its fishers as citizens or as occupants of valuable sand?
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Born Muthaiah in Sirukoodalpatti in 1927, Kannadasan left school after Class VIII, found his voice beside a poet-saint's memorial in Tiruvottiyur, and wrote film songs that still open the day in Tamil villages.
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The 17th-century palace of Rani Mangammal, which holds the blood-stained cloth Gandhi wore when he was killed, was repaired with traditional materials and given digital galleries mapping his 20 visits to Tamil Nadu.
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Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay extended the renamed Perunthalaivar Kamarajar Breakfast Scheme to Classes 6 to 8, adding about 15.30 lakh pupils in 7,537 more schools. The idea of feeding children at school in Madras goes back to a Justice Party leader in 1922.
· 3 min read