Articles by Navya P K

Enrollment for the much talked about UID or Aadhaar scheme is expanding in Bangalore starting this week. In addition to post offices, exclusive Aadhar enrollment centres have started functioning in the city from August 17. They are set up by the Centre for e-Governance (CEG) of the state government. UID/Aadhar 24x7 helpline for Bangalore 08044554455 Also, in a move that indicates the state government's intent to enable widespread access, enrollment centres are also being setup within residential communities as well.  From August 17, 9 day centres and 5 night centres have been set up for the general public. This is…

The High Court case on Sankey Road's widening, which citizens had filed against BBMP and state government, will include BDA as a party. Five citizens and the residents' association Malleswaram Swabhimana Initiative had jointly filed the PIL last month when BBMP cut 17 trees across Sankey road stretch.HC ordered a stay on BBMP's tree cutting at the time, when two of the 17 trees were still standing. Hundreds of trees are expected to be cut for road widening from Cauvery Circle to CNR Rao Circle, and subsequently till Yeshwanthpur flyover.The High Court bench headed by Justice N Kumar passed the…

BBMP has taken up road widening work up again and talk of TDR is afloat. But for the first time the agency is saying that if the people do not want TDR, financial compensation may be offered. K R Niranjan, BBMP Special Commissioner, says, "In core areas we can minimise road works by doing junction improvement etc. But in outer areas these works are necessary and land will be obtained through TDR; but if public do not accept TDRs we need to have reserve funds for acquisition."Road widening in outer areas is part of the ship load of projects worth…

A government task force report says that the Apollo Hospital on Bannerghatta road is built on encroached land, hence illegal. The report was authored by V Balasubramanian, Chairman of state government's Task Force for Recovery and Protection of Public Lands. A copy of the report is with Citizen Matters. Pages 17-22 of the report are devoted to this case. Who does the land belong to?According to the report, the five acres, where the hospital is located now (opposite IIM-B), was originally granted by government to a certain NRI docor, A M Nisar Syed in 1991. Syed had applied for the…

Residents of a few Sobha apartments in Bellandur have challenged the imposition of annual fees on apartments that operate STPs (Sewage Treatment Plants). According to rules of the state pollution control board (KSPCB), apartments that own STPs have to pay an annual CFO (Consent for Operation) fee.STPs are mandatory for apartments with area more than 20,000 sq mt in non-UGD areas. These apartments are treated on par with the most polluting industries, categorised as ‘Red' industries (Orange and green are the less polluting industries). The CFO fees for these industries depend on the capital investment in the project. Depending on…

The Karnataka state government's deadlines to launch mega transport projects continue to be paper statements of intent. Namma Metro's persistent delay is now virtually taken for granted. In the meantime, despite the deadline of 2013-14, Bangalore's Rs.6700 crores High Speed Rail Link (HSRL between city centre and the airport) is still stuck at the preliminary stage. A concessionaire, the firm that will fund, build and operate the PPP, is yet to be selected through tender process; construction will start only after the concessionaire awards tenders to other parties. Currently, only prequalification of concessionaires is completed. Prequalification is the process of…

A recent report by state government's Department of Urban Land Transport (DULT) has exposed several problems with BMTC's massive Traffic and Transit Management Centre (TTMC) project. TTMCs are jargon for the swanky new terminals BMTC is building around the city, 45 in all, of which 10 are completed. The cost of these 10 terminals is over Rs 450 cr. DULT comes under the Urban Development Department (UDD) of the state government. For instance, only 15 buses can park in the Banashankari terminal at a time, giving each bus only 31 seconds in the bay during peak hours. This is considered…

18 post offices in Bengaluru have been identified as enrollment centres for UID. The UID or Aadhaar was launched in the last week of June. There are no jurisdictional restrictions on the post offices for enrollment. Anyone from any locality can enroll in the nearest post office, among those listed. There is also no last date fixed for the enrollments unlike voter's id. The individuals have to only take the relevant documents along.Here's the list of the 18 post offices in the cityRajajinagar HOVijayanagar POBasavanagudi HOJayanagar HOWilson Garden HONandini Layout POMahalakshmi Layout PORT nagar HOBangalore GPOHAL 2nd stage HOBasveshwaranagar MDGMalleshwaram…

Twenty one families of Jayabheema Nagar slum in Malleswaram were displaced when their houses were demolished on Tuesday morning. A park or a playground will be built in that area. The slum, located behind Mantri Sqaure, was close to the upcoming Metro station here. It falls next to the alignment of BBMP's proposed 20 m road which would connect the Metro station to the main road. Demolition of Jayabheema Nagar slum in Malleswaram started at 4 am on Tuesday morning. Pic: Navya P K The slum does not come in the way of the road alignment, but would create a…

Property values in the city are set to rise with hike in guidance value. Guidance values are expected to go up by 30-100% this year (minimum of 30% within core areas and maximum of 100% in outskirts); rates would go up by more than 200% in outer areas like those near Peripheral Ring Road, since the market rates here have rocketed since the last revision. The previous hikes were in 2007, 2005, 2004 and 2002. During the 2007 hike, the value of residential, commercial and industrial properties were hiked by 50%, 60% and 25% on average.Officials at the Department of…