What works in Chennai
All catalogues · India profile
Quality scores are 0–100 rubric scores; “strong evidence” reflects study design; adoptions count documented replications elsewhere. Know more
Evidence snapshot for Chennai
Chennai is home to IIT Madras's research and innovation ecosystem, which has incubated 567 startups valued at roughly ₹74,100 crore (~US$8 billion), including two unicorns, while filing 431 patents in FY2025-26 and licensing 27 IP assets to industry partners. The city also hosts Avaz, an augmentative and alternative communication app developed by an IIT Madras graduate that was India's first AAC tool localized into six regional languages and won the President's National Award for Empowerment of People with Disabilities in 2010. Environmentally, Pallikaranai Marsh, a 1,247-hectare Ramsar-designated wetland in South Chennai, serves as the city's principal natural flood buffer and hosts over 120 bird species, though it has shrunk from approximately 6,000 hectares historically to under 600 hectares despite restoration efforts since 2018.
Drawn from: IIT Madras Research Park & Incubation Cell · IIT Madras Research Park & Technology Transfer Office · Avaz — India's First AAC App Giving Non-Verbal Children a Voice in Six Regional Languages · Pallikaranai Marsh — A Ramsar-Listed Flood Buffer for South Chennai, Undermined by Continuing Encroachment · Bodhan AI — India's National 'AI Literacy for Teachers' Mission · Tamil Nadu's Mandatory Rainwater Harvesting Law — Building-Level Groundwater Recharge
Generated from this place's cited practices only. Always check the linked sources.
Strengths & weaknesses vs peers
Strengths
Evidence of impact / measured results +43 pts 100 here · 57 average
Water & soil — retention, infiltration, erosion control +35 pts 83 here · 48 average
Teacher capability & pedagogy +29 pts 67 here · 38 average
Demonstrated reach +24 pts 100 here · 76 average
Sustainability / continuity +22 pts 100 here · 78 average
Scalability +16 pts 78 here · 62 average
Multi-stakeholder collaboration +10 pts 83 here · 74 average
Innovation +9 pts 71 here · 62 average
Weaknesses
Inclusiveness / equity -10 pts 33 here · 43 average
Equity & inclusion -16 pts 33 here · 50 average
Evidence of learning impact -26 pts 0 here · 26 average
Carbon — sequestration / storage, evidenced -27 pts 0 here · 27 average
Transparency, ethics & data protection -47 pts 0 here · 47 average
Evaluation evidence -49 pts 0 here · 49 average
Documented learning -74 pts 0 here · 74 average
Score profile vs peers
Coloured bar: Chennai. Grey bar: peer average across the corpus. Both on a common 0–100 scale.
Points compare this place's average on each dimension with the average across all evaluated places, on a common 0–100 scale. Know more
Top good practices here
IIT Madras Research Park & Incubation Cell · 81
IIT Madras Research Park & Technology Transfer Office · 71
Avaz — India's First AAC App Giving Non-Verbal Children a Voice in Six Regional Languages · 56
Bodhan AI — India's National 'AI Literacy for Teachers' Mission · 33
Tamil Nadu's Mandatory Rainwater Harvesting Law — Building-Level Groundwater Recharge · 27
Each number is the practice's overall 0–100 quality score against its catalogue's rubric. Know more
Recommended to adopt or replicate
Transferable practices from elsewhere that address this place's gaps.
Karya — Fair-Wage AI Data-Work Platform Bringing Digital Income to Rural India · fit 100/100
- Backed by strong evidence
- Addresses this place's weak dimensions
safe+natal — Comadrona-Designed Smartphone Checklist for Maternal Risk Screening in Rural Guatemala · fit 100/100
- Backed by strong evidence
- Addresses this place's weak dimensions
Digital Green — Video-Mediated Agricultural Extension · fit 100/100
- Backed by strong evidence
- Addresses this place's weak dimensions
Kartu Prakerja – National Digital Skills and Financial Inclusion Programme · fit 100/100
- Backed by strong evidence
- Addresses this place's weak dimensions
Smart City Wien Framework Strategy · fit 82/100
- Rated highly transferable
- Addresses this place's weak dimensions
Ciudad Mujer — El Salvador's Integrated Women's Services Programme · fit 100/100
- Rated highly transferable
- Backed by strong evidence
Already adopted in 3 other places
SASA! Community Mobilisation Programme against Intimate Partner Violence — Uganda · fit 100/100
- Rated highly transferable
- Backed by strong evidence
Already adopted in 4 other places
Ushahidi — Kenya's Crowdsourced Crisis-Mapping Platform · fit 82/100
- Rated highly transferable
- Addresses this place's weak dimensions
Fit estimates how well a practice matches this place, 0 (poor) to 100 (excellent); the list is ordered to favour practices that address this place's gaps. Know more