One smoke, two birds: Laser show and mosquito fogging

The civic body recently had inaugurated the city’s first pedestrian plaza in T Nagar with much ado and with a redundant gala. The Chief Minister, who follows a precedent of inaugurating new projects through video conferencing, had come down to inaugurate the Smart City project.

One of the highlights of the inaugural event was a laser show held in front of the dais, on which CM was seated with his retinue of ministers. The artist was impressing the gathering with his skills. For several minutes, when the wind was blowing from the direction of CM, the press reporters and everyone was thinking that the smoke was from glycol- based or glycerin-based fluids or through the atomisation of mineral oil, which would normally be odourless.

Then the wind direction changed and only at this point the gathering came to know that the smoke used was Pyrethrin oil, which discharges a pungent odour. This way the civic body saved money which would be spent on haze solution and controlled mosquitoes, too. A ‘smart’ move to inaugurate a Smart City project. — Rudhran Baraasu, Chennai