Articles by Akshatha M

With the last date for receiving applications under Akrama Sakrama scheme having come to an end, the BBMP has received a lacklustre response from people willing to apply under the scheme. The number of applicants in entire BBMP limits is as low as 37, as on the last day - March 22nd, 2016. The State government introduced Akrama Sakrama scheme last year and gave a time frame of one year from March 23rd, 2015 to March 22nd, 2016, for people to apply seeking regularisation of unauthorised buildings. Thanks to the ongoing court battle, lack of publicity by the government authorities…

It has been five and a half months since the third time corporator from Congress, B N Manjunath Reddy took charge as the Mayor of Bengaluru. With BBMP budget round the corner and news of property tax hike after seven years making the rounds, the Mayor speaks about some of the issues in BBMP and clears his stand on certain things, in an exclusive interview with Citizen Matters amid his busy schedule. Just six months are left for your term to end. So what is that one thing that you would like to be remembered for as a Mayor of…

Mahesh (name changed), a resident of Malleshwaram in Bengaluru, has been watching many cables hanging on a tree near his house, some of them looking as if they are cut. Fed up of seeing them everyday without being able to understand why they exist, Mahesh decided to check the cut cable. To his surprise, the cable was cut at the other end too, and came off easily when he pulled it. People do not want to touch the hanging cables, because they think it could be electric cable and hence dangerous. As nobody checks them, unused cables laid by cable…

Pic: Ganga Madappa Only one pet dog per flat, every dog to have a collar, badge and microchip, clean up after your pet. Rottweilers, Pit Bulls and other aggressive breeds to be muzzled in public places. These and some more new rules are part of BBMP's draft by-laws for pet dog licensing that Urban Development Department is expected to approve soon. All these years, there were no rules governing pet dogs in Bengaluru, while other cities like New Delhi, Chennai or Chandigarh have had rules that require pet dogs to be registered for many years now. However, Section 344 of Karnataka…

It is a known fact that water tankers extract any water that they see in Bengaluru. This video is a proof of it. Come summer, water tanker business is at its peak, especially on the outskirts of the city where there is no Cauvery water supply. The business is a pleasure in the years in which there is less-than-usual rain, because demand for water is the highest. Nagaraj (name changed) is an owner of a water tanker, operating in Kammanahalli. He has been in the tanker business for 15 years now. There were virtually no rules for extraction of groundwater…

So, it’s curtains down on the 8th edition of the Bengaluru International Film Festival. The week-long film festival that saw a grand opening at Vidhana Soudha premises, much to the criticism of those from film fraternity as well as cine-enthusiasts, however, has managed to wrap up smoothly. There were many "firsts" for this year’s film festival’s credit. For the first time, the state government and Kannada Chalanachitra Academy took over the responsibility of organising completely, which had so far rested with Suchitra Film Society. Then again, for the first time, the Chief Minister himself led the Festival’s Organising Committee. In…

By-election for Hebbal Legislative Assembly Constituency is just a week’s away. The Chief Electoral Officer of Karnataka has announced the date for by-election to Hebbal and two other constituencies. The election for the three constituencies, Hebbal, Bidar and Devadurga, is scheduled for February 13th. The by-election in Hebbal is to fill up the vacant post that was created following the death of MLA Jagadish Kumar last November. As many as 20 candidates are in the fray in the Hebbal constituency. During the last election, the BJP candidate had won the seat. As this by-election is seen as a matter of…

Amidst the complaints raised by residents of HSR Layout, Gas Authority of India Ltd (GAIL) is busy laying pipelines across the city to provide piped natural gas to households in Bengaluru as a part of its City Gas Distribution (CGD) project. However, many people are unaware of what is going on - as we see roads dug up, trenches and warning signage in front of homes. GAIL's map for the City Gas Distribution Project in Bengaluru. Here is all you should know about CGD. What is City Gas Distribution Project? Control Room for GAIL Gas Ltd 080 6888 8081 City…

Ever since the BBMP published a draft notification proposing to hike the property tax with effect from next financial year, there has been opposition for the proposal from various quarters. Citizen groups have termed the property tax hike as unscientific and non-essential. While the BBMP is gearing up to revise the property tax in less than two months time, the citizens groups comprising motley of residents welfare associations have been trying their best to convince the BBMP on why the tax hike does not make much sense.   On September 8th, 2015, the BBMP issued a draft notification on revising…

A 35 metre long cycle lane laid on a pilot basis at HSR Layout. Pic: Akshatha M HSR Layout in Bengaluru is in news yet again for the proposed cycle lanes. A 35-metre long green lane painted with images of cycles is arousing curiosity among people. What’s going on? Has this been tried elsewhere in the city? What were the results? Will HSR Layout plan survive the test of time? Bengaluru got its first cycle track on public roads in 2012. Separate cycle tracks were laid on about 40 km stretch in Jayanagar with the Department of Urban Land Transport…