Articles by News Desk

The much awaited schedule for elections to the Lok Sabha, the current term of which ends in June 2019, has been announced. The mammoth electoral exercise, which has been hailed as 'the festival of democracy' by the Prime Minister himself, will be conducted in seven rounds: on April 11, April 19, April 23, April 29, May 6, May 12 and May 19. Results will be announced on May 23rd. According to Census 2011, India has 53 urban agglomerations or cities with a population of 10 lakh (1 million) or more. The top 10 among these are Greater Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata,…

Unauthorized colonies to be legalised in Delhi On March 7th, the central government gave its nod to the constitution of a panel to look into the process of transfer of rights or ownership to the residents of Delhi's unauthorized colonies. The move will be applicable to around 1790 unauthorized colonies in the city that is home to a largely migrant population who moved in search of employment. The committee is to be headed by lieutenant governor Anil Baijal. The committee is expected to submit a feasibility report within the next three months. The committee comprises ten members and is expected…

City up in Swachh Survekshan, Smart City rankings Bengaluru was ranked 194 out of 425 cities in Swachh Survekshan 2019, with a score of 2351.81 out of a total of 5000. This was a marginal improvement over the city's ranking of 216 in 2018, and 210 in 2017. BBMP had reclaimed black spots, overhauled transfer stations and organised compost santhes in an effort to improve the city's ranking this year. But factors like the lack of new garbage tenders and of ODF (Open Defecation Free) certification worked against the city. Many citizens had also given negative feedback during the survey,…

Write an Open Letter to your MLA A contest for all citizens of Bengaluru. Write an article on how your MLA performed in the last 5 years. How has he/she delivered / achieved as against what was promised during the 2013 state elections. What do you expect in the next term? What we expect: Your letter should make one think, substantiate them with context and data. Write in a simple and lucid style. Your write-up should be based on an understanding of the role of an MLA and the authority vested in him/her. Do not mix up MLA’s roles with other…

Chennai awarded as fastest mover in Swachh rankings Chennai has been lauded for the special efforts it has taken in the previous year to become one of the cleanest cities in the country. The city has also been awarded for fastest growth in 2019 among cities with a population of more than 10 lakh. Chennai has climbed 39 spots to secure 61st spot in the Swachh Survekshan rankings released by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development. This spike in rankings is primarily due to the improvements in source segregation and redressal of complaints registered on the Swachhata App. The…

"கூத்துக்கொட்டாய்" உயிரற்ற பிம்பங்களை, சினிமாவிலும் தொலைக்காட்சியிலும் பார்த்து பழகிவிட்டோம். உயிரோட்டத்துடன் நம் கண் முன்னே ஆடிப்பாடி நமக்கு புத்துயிர் ஊட்டும் 50 திறன்மிகு நாட்டுப்புற கலைஞர்கள் வரும் சனி ஞாயிறு சென்னைக்கு வருகிறார்கள். 4 மணி நேரம் 50 கலைஞர்கள் 55 வகையான மீட்டெடுக்கப்பட்ட தமிழர் கலைகள் ஒரே மேடையில்! குதூகலம் கொடுக்கும் அரிதான பழைய காலத்து விளையாட்டுக்கள். ஆட்டம்போட வைக்கும் நாட்டுப்புறப் பாடல்கள், மலைக்க வைக்கும் திறமையுடன்  வீதி நாடக வகைகள், பிரம்மிப்பூட்டும் நம் பாட்டன் காலத்து ஆட்டங்கள்! 'கூத்துக்கொட்டாய்' - இது நம் தமிழர்களின் செறிவூட்டும் பொழுது போக்கு! 'கூத்துக் கொட்டாய்' நிகழ்வை அளிக்க இருக்கும் கலைஞர்கள் சமீபத்தில் 120 கலைகளை ஒரே மேடையில் நிகழ்த்தி உலக சாதனை புரிந்தவர்கள். கலைமாமணி உள்ளிட்ட பல விருதுகளை மாநில அளவிலும் தேசிய அளவிலும் வாங்கியவர்கள். இதில் திரட்டப்படும் தொகை நலிந்த நாட்டுப்புற கலைஞர்கள் பிள்ளைகளின் கல்லூரி படிப்பிற்காக செலவிடப்படும். நிகழ்ச்சி…

Delhi's bid to end manual scavenging In a move that will help sanitation workers clean manholes without having to enter them, 200 sewer cleaning machines have been introduced on March 1st. The technology was developed by the Delhi Jal Board and launched by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. The machines have been provided to skilled manual scavengers and family members of those who died engaged in sewer cleaning. The government will help beneficiaries secure loans to buy the machines, making them sanitation entrepreneurs. The machines have been equipped to perform hydraulic, jetting, grabbing and roding works. The work which was previously…

H1N1 cases spurt in February Since January, 603 positive cases of H1N1 have been reported in Karnataka, according to the State Health and Family Welfare Department. Of these, the highest number of cases, 141, were from BBMP limits. Reported cases shot up suddenly in February - cases almost doubled from 49 in the last week of January, to 91 in the first week of February. Overall, 400 people tested positive in the state in February alone, of whom 14 have succumbed to the infection. Bengaluru Urban District Surveillance Officer, T K Sunanda, said at a press conference, that areas such…

Krishna water to stop flowing to Chennai Chennai may not continue to get its water supply from Krishna water as the Kandaleru reservoir in Andhra might shut its gates early next week.  Though Chennai was supposed to receive 1 tmcft water from  February till the first week of March, the Poondi reservoir has received only 370 mcft. Chennai is unlikely to get the remaining 630 mcft. Krishna water and Cauvery water have boosted water levels in the city’s four reservoirs which had fallen to below one tmcft last month. The city is currently being supplied with 480-550 MLD on alternate days…

BBMP's Rs 12,574 crore budget approved BBMP's 2019-20 budget with a total outlay of Rs 12,574 crore was approved on February 23, five days after it had been presented. For three days, 24 councillors had discussed and revised the budget, adding Rs 1,886 cr to the original allocation of Rs 10,688 cr. However, BBMP Commissioner N Manjunath Prasad stressed on the need for financial reforms, pointing out that even the original allocation was beyond the civic agency's revenue and receipts. He added that the budget should be "realistic", reported The Times of India. On the 18th, the budget had been…