Articles by Navya P K

RWAs and citizens' groups that fight public causes in court may soon get a helping hand. Rajya Sabha MP Rajeev Chandrashekhar (Independent) has offered to bear 50% costs of PILs filed in Bangalore and the state, through the Namma Bengaluru foundation. He first announced this on Twitter. Rajeev Chandrasekhar was elected to the Rajya Sabha in 2006. Pic: Subramaniam Vincent. Chandrasekhar's decision comes on the back of the Karnataka High Court's verdict three weeks ago on the city'sComprehensive Development Plan (CDP). In a PIL, citizens' groups had challenged a provision in the current CDP (2005-2015) that allowed commercialisation of residential…

In a major ruling, the High Court has ordered that commercial buildings not be allowed in residential zones in Bangalore from now on. The court passed the interim order on January 25th in a case filed by Citizens' Action Forum (CAF), Sadashivnagar RWA and 12 individuals in 2008. Petitioners had challenged BDA's Revised Master Plan (RMP 2005-2015), based on which land use zones are demarcated. A division bench of the court lead by Chief Justice Vikramjit Sen asked the government to go back the city's master plan of 1995-2005 for limits on commercial activity in residential areas. News of this…

Garbage collection in the city is currently broken because BBMP is not awarding long overdue new tenders. Contractors have been jamming the July 2011-initiated tender process with objections for months now. A Citizen Matters inquiry has exposed that BBMP has diluted the terms of engagement several times in past two months. Pourakarmikas manually handling the garbage in Richmond Town. Pic: Kathyayini Chamaraj A clause which mandated the contractor to submit monthly records of door-to-door collection to BBMP in electronic format, was removed in December. Another clause which imposed a 10-15% of monthly contract value as penalty for one offence of…

Jan JD-S Bangalore city corporator Diwaan Ali shot dead.Feb Anita Reddy, Founder, Association for Voluntary Action and Services, wins Namma Bengalurean of the Year Award, 2010, instituted by Namma Bengaluru Foundation.Mar High Court dismisses midnight tender case, clearing the way for BBMP to initiate works like road widening, signal free corridors etc worth Rs 22,000 cr.Provisional census data shows population density in Bangalore district increase by 147% in the last decade, literacy goes up by 6%.Apr Bangalore Traffic Police joins Facebook, becoming the first government agency in the city to have live interactions with citizens online.HC rules that all Bangalore…

Apartment associations in the city have got assurance from the state Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) that Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) norms for apartments will soon be re-defined. An informal group of residents from various apartments across Bangalore, have been in talks with the Board for over six months, many of them having faced issues with STP quality and adherence to regulations. Board Chairman A S Sadashivaiah said that the new processes will be finalised by March and will be implemented by June. Board will redefine aspects such as stringent checks before approving STPs, holding builders accountable for STP quality etc.…

In government parlance, ‘merging schools' is the fancy term for shutting them down. The schools are said to be closed down temporarily, and students and teachers are said to be shifted to other schools nearby. But for many children from the closed down schools, education ends just as their school closes. Mariyamma Temple school is being renovated by the temple committee for its own use, even though the school is still with the government. Pic: Navya P K Sathish Dharmaiah, a former 3rd standard student of Mariyamma Temple LP (Lower Primary) school in Tilak Nagar, now works in a mutton…

State government's Food and Civil Supplies (FCS) department has been accepting online applications for new ration cards at here. Here are some details you will need to fill online application form:-Ward number, taluk, city and district name-RR number and location code of your electricity connection (from BESCOM bills)-Personal details like address, phone number, job, DOB, number of years you have been staying in the house etc-Details of family members to be included in ration card-Total annual income of the family-Details of your LPG connection (agency name, consumer number, name of connection owner), if any. This data will be cross checked…

Kaikondrahalli lake along Sarjapur road, whose rejuvenation is being spearheaded by some active residents along with BBMP, is under the threat of encroachment now. While local corporator and MLA are demanding that the lake land be acquired for widening of Sarjapur road, another group is trying to build a temple in the north-east side of the lake. Fencing on side was completed smoothly. Pic: Navya PK In September, when the fencing around lake perimeter was in progress, some anti-social elements had opposed it, threatening the BBMP contractor and officials who were in charge of the work. Residents nearby say that…

After Bangalore being named the top third international tourist destination by BBC's travel guide publisher Lonely Planet recently, the state tourism department is now taking steps to establish Bangalore as the gateway to South India. Launch of the Kaapi Trail with Mr. Janardhan Reddy, Mr. Anil Bhandari, Mr. Jawaid Akhtar and the officials of BIAL Pic: BIAL Tourism department in association with Bangalore International Airport (BIAL) is holding a 10-day coffee festival at BIAL for passengers from December 6-15. Passengers will be treated to different coffee breeds from nine coffee growing areas in South India. Of these, five points -…

On 8 November, some apartment associations around Cubbon Park had domestic workers in their apartments profiled. Photographs, fingerprints and detailed information of the workers were recorded by a private agency. The profiling was organised by Cubbon Park police station. Domestic workers Protest Pic: Navya P K The private agency Hamari Suraksha in its website says that it is ‘rooting out domestic terror' through this procedure. This is supposed to prevent crimes committed by domestic workers and help the police track workers when there is a crime. We are not criminals The event sparked off a protest on 10 November by…