Articles by Mathew Prasad Idiculla

The Akrama Sakrama scheme, which seeks to regularise unauthorized constructions and developments, has been one of the most contentious civic issues in Bengaluru. The scheme was initiated by the Karnataka Town and Country Planning Act and Certain Other Laws (Amendment) Act, 2004. This Act amended the Karnataka Town and Country Planning Act, 1961, the Karnataka Municipal Corporations Act, 1976 and the Karnataka Municipalities Act, 1964.   After this amendment was stayed by the Karnataka High Court in 2007,  having been found to be prima facie against constructional provisions, the state extended the scheme by passing amendments in 2009 and 2013.…

As urban sprawl in India unfolds at a frantic pace, it’s quite natural to ask: where does a city begin and where does it end? What is the spatial terrain that makes up a city? What should the boundaries of the city government be? These are some fundamental questions that need to be considered while discussing urban governance. These questions become all the more relevant at a time when there are discussions for the division of a city such as Bengaluru into two or three different municipal corporations. While questions on the institutional form of the city government have received…

The BBMP council is finally in place, but the BBMP is not the only agency responsible for urban governance in Bangalore. There are many para-statals like BDA, BMRDA, BWSSB, BMTC responsible for performing the many civic functions of the city.  There is a clear need for a citizen to understand the functional differences between these statutory agencies to deal with issues pragmatically. The City Corporation The BBMP (meaning Greater Bangalore City Corporation) is the Municipal Corporation which is responsible for the overall administration of the city of Bangalore. The BBMP was officially formed in January 2007 by merging the 100…

"The National Seminar on Urban Growth of Bangalore with special reference to Bangalore Cantonment (1809-2009)" was held at Christ University from February 18th to 20th. This seminar was organised by the department of History, Christ University, Bangalore along with the Indian Council for Historic Research (ICHR), New Delhi. There was also a photography exhibition that featured numerous archival photographs of buildings of Cantonment. Swati Ramanathan. Pic: Mathew Prasad Idiculla. Swati Ramanathan, co-founder of Janaagraha, in her inaugural speech spoke of the how effective urban planning and urban governance can work together to provide a better city administration system. She also…

The BBMP has, ever since its formation, received the citizens ire for its failure to deliver civic services effectively. When young children fall prey to the open drains in Bengaluru or when trees are callously cut for the metro or road widening purposes, Bangaloreans, feeling the heat, protest against the BBMP. But the citizens have not been able to find any answers, as currently there is no one that is politically accountable to the local problems in Bengaluru. So for almost three years, Bengaluru has been under the Bureaucrats Raj.Due to the absence of elected representatives in BBMP, there is…