Articles by News Desk

16 traders lose licences for using disposable plastic At a council meeting held in July, BBMP had declared an ultimatum to traders who do not stop using disposable plastic material (cups, plates and spoons). Mayor Sampath Raj had chalked out a week's deadline for the shopkeepers to permanently shift to using eco-friendly materials instead, failing which the licences of establishments would be cancelled. True to their word, the corporation's health department cancelled 16 trading licences of shops in Avenue Road, Bommanahalli and Neelasandra. One and a half tonnes of plastic was recovered through the raids conducted over two days, along with…

As many as 150 volunteers from VMWare India participated in a community electronic waste (e-waste) collection and awareness drive, under the bE-Responsible programme, on July 21st, from 11am to 1 pm. These volunteers walked the streets in small groups and went door-to-door to collect e-waste from households in three areas of Bengaluru - Koramangala 4th Block, ST Bed and Jakkasandra Extension Layout, says a pressnote from ENSYDE. Shweta Kadaba, a resident from Palm Springs Apartment in Koramangala 4th block, appreciated the initiave. “I gave the volunteers an old printer which had been lying in my apartment for the last 8-9…

How can cities as drivers and victims of climate change cope with its risks and become custodians of a livable environment? Chennai, having already been directly affected by the effects of climate change, especially needs to find answers to this question. EYES ON THE CANAL, an initiative focused on reimagining one of Chennai´s most important spatial and functional elements, the Buckingham Canal, has now floated an open call for ideas to raise awareness on the issue of climate change in urban areas and especially to propose visionary, but also feasible, solutions to improve the current situation alongside the canal.  How…

With truckers nationwide strike, veggie prices likely to shoot up Truck operators across the nation called for an indefinite strike against rising fuel cost, and calling for rationalising road toll plazas. Though the strike might not impact the supply of essential items like milk, water and medicine it is likely to affect the prices of vegetables. In Tamil Nadu it is estimated that around 4.5 lakh lorries would be off the road. Source: New Indian Express Key bus terminuses likely to be put to commercial use The MTC that has been financially strained with steady loss of commuters is likely…

Environmental Management and Policy Research Institute (EMPRI) has been designated as the state nodal agency for Climate Change in Karnataka to provide technical support in conducting research, training and capacity building in climate change programs. To strengthen state climate change cell in Karnataka, Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India has sanctioned a project, “Establishing/Strengthening the state climate change centre/cell under NMSKCC (State Climate Change Centre-National Mission for Strategic Knowledge on Climate Change) in the state of Karnataka”to EMPRI at a cost of Rs. 2.83 Crores, says a press note from Information Department, Karnataka. The project started in…

State transport department in dire need of funds  Transport Minister DC Thammanna has said that the state transport corporations BMTC, NEKRTC, and NWKRTC have run into annual losses worth Rs 600 crore, and a fare hike may be inevitable if operations are to be continued. The decreasing fuel efficiency (mileage) of buses caused by halting in congested, traffic-ridden roads and additional taxes for fuel have only added to the debt, the minister complained. In order to make profits and generate some revenue, a proposal for a 20% hike in bus fares has already been made. The matter is being considered by the…

A press note from the Information Department, government of Karnataka, says that BMTC is issuing student passes for the convenience of the students at concessional rates. An online system has been introduced this time, to avoid inconvenience to students like submission of documents and standing in the queues. This system is directly integrated with the Education Department database, where student can directly apply through Education Institutions or directly by themselves through e-form. This article lists the procedure to be followed for online application of student passes. For details of the updated service launched in 2019, click here.  Type: Upto 10th…

Do our smart city projects come at the cost of green cover? Several trees have been cut in T Nagar to pave the way for road development under the Chennai Smart City projects. Greater Chennai Corporation is building a pedestrian plaza from Anna Salai to Bashyam Road near Panagal Park, covering a stretch of 1.45 km. Residents, traders and NGOs have criticized Chennai Corporation's lackadaisical attitude towards conservation of trees and allege that work for the plaza has started without any survey or census of trees in the area. Source: The Hindu | The Times of India Two new sewage treatment…

Supreme Court slams city governments, Delhi LG for urban crisis Referring in particular to the garbage woes in Delhi and the drainage mess in Mumbai, the top court of the country pulled up urban governments over their inaction and ineffectiveness to stem the growing crisis in Indian cities. A two-judge bench took strong exception to the fact that around 13 states and several Union Territories had not yet formulated their policy for solid waste management strategy, well beyond two years since the central Solid Waste Management Rules came into force in April 2016. 10 states and two union territories were…

Pourakarmika kills self due to non-payment of salary for six months:  As many as 3,385 waste-pickers who had joined the BBMP's workforce recently and have less than one year experience with the civic body, did not receive salaries for the last six months. This allegedly led to Subramani, 37 year old resident of Vyalikaval, committing suicide on July 8th. BBMP has claimed to have released Rs 27 crore on July 10 subsequently to ensure that others are paid their dues and that such incidents do not recur. Meanwhile, the civic body is also planning on-ground verification of workers, because the list includes…