Articles by Bhanu Sridharan

At a testy hearing in the High Court of Karnataka, the University of Agricultural Sciences reversed its position on the BBMP's link road through its GKVK campus in north Bengaluru. Before a two-judge bench on December 16th, the university's counsel Nithin Ramesh said the Vice-Chancellor, P G Chengappa, was willing to convene a fresh meeting of the Board of Regents to strike down its earlier approval for the link road, and added that the board's earlier decision was taken under ‘duress'. As BBMP claims 70 per cent of the work is completed the High Court orders an expert committee be…

As part of the controversial project to lay a 9.2 kms road through the Gandhi Krishi Vignana Kendra (GKVK) of the University of Agricultural Sciences’ forestland, BBMP has cut down 680 trees, some of which were part of the university’s germplasm collections according to a survey undertaken by the Conservator of Forests, Bangalore Urban Circle. Germplasm collections are wild varieties of various crops that are collected and planted in different parts of the GKVK campus. The wild varieties are then crossed with conventional ones to create a hybrid. Sources within the university as well as the Forest Department have confirmed…

The attempts to construct a link road through the University of Agricultural Sciences' Gandhi Krishi Vignana Kendra (GKVK) campus has stirred up a fierce battle, between BBMP and a motley group of locals, environmentalists and former Vice Chancellors of the University of Agricultural Sciences. In June 2007, BBMP proposed a 9 km long (100 feet in width) road, to connect the Yeshwantpur-Yelahanka expressway to Bellary Road (NH 7). The link road will begin at the main entrance to the University of Agricultural Sciences (UAS) at Bellary Road, cut through prime forestland and end at the Yeshwantpur-Yelahanka Expressway. In June 2007,…

Tucked away in a narrow lane a little off the bustling MG Road, is the Indian Cartoon Gallery, the first of its kind in the country. An initiative of the Indian Institute of Cartoonists (IIC), the gallery was created as a space for both amateur and professional cartoonists to exhibit their work. Says V G Narendra, veteran cartoonist (with dailies like the Kannada Prabha), whose brainchild the IIC is, “we already had a Cartoonist’s Association for Karnataka, but through the IIC we wanted to promote interaction between cartoonists from across India.” He adds, “The gallery is a perfect space to…

The Udayabhanu Kala Sangha located in Kempegowda Nagar (Basavangudi) is a volunteer-based literary, cultural and social organisation. Founded in 1965 by L Venkatappa and M Narasimha (who also serves as secretary), the 43-year-old organisation had its beginnings in a small reading room. Says Founder-Secretary M Narasimha, “The Sangha started in a small 10X10 rented space, as a public reading room that stocked works of renowned Kannada litterateurs.” Some of these writers like Dr U R Ananthamurthy and Professor Vinayaka Krishna Gokak went on to become future Jnanapeeth awardees and regular contributors to the Sangha’s innumerable publications. Secretary M Narasimha. Pic:…

Satyajit Ray, Francois Truffaut, Girish Kasaravalli, Film Noir, Iranian documentaries and more - Bengaluru is the new haven for those wanting to explore cinema beyond the multiplexes. Whether one is looking for international film festivals or intimate rooftop screenings, the city's many film societies have it all. Besides bringing us the best in the world of cinema, they offer film buffs both new and seasoned, the opportunity to interact with one another. Pic: Suchitra Film Society. The city's oldest existing film society is of course the Suchitra Film Society (SFS). Suchitra started in 1971 as a forum for screening films…

On a sleepy Sunday afternoon of 29 June, Bengaluru made history of sorts. A 400 strong crowd made its way from Basavangudi's National College to the Town Hall, marking the city's first ever Pride Parade. For the uninitiated, the Pride Parade is an annual march held by queer communities around the world, as an expression of pride for their sexual identities and, in India's case, a demand for equal rights. The four-km rally was organised on Sunday, 29 June, to coordinate with the anniversary of what is commonly believed to be the beginning of the queer rights movement in the…

The Karnataka Quiz Association (KQA), breeding ground for some of the best quizzers in the country turns 25 this year. Around 200 quizzers from across the country will meet in Bangalore on 28-29 June (Saturday and Sunday) to celebrate the occasion with a special two-day version of its anniversary quiz ASKQANCE. Round one In 1983, the late Wing Commander GR Mulky along with seven other quizzing enthusiasts- Deepak Murdeshwar, Rajeev Gowda, Thomas Uthup, KN Mahabala, Tribhuvan Kumar, P Raju and Jagadish Raja, founded the KQA. Mulky (or Wing Co as he's fondly called) explains on the KQA website that the…