Articles by News Desk

Dear Reader, The last one month, water has been on our minds. While most talk has been about Cauvery water, are we forgetting the real issue? What does it take to support the water needs of a city of 10 million? Our many stories over the years have brought you stories of scarcity, depleting groundwater levels, disappearing lakes, monsoon floods and water quality issues. It is time to really understand the city’s water stresses, how they are being addressed and what action we need to take NOW! We invite you to a special session that brings together a panel of…

That the State government may have to release water to Tamilnadu has been a cause of concern for many Bengalureans. While the Union government of India has been asked to set up a Cauvery Water Management Board, the nation itself is facing another water conflict - with the government deciding to take more water from the river Indus. Welcome to the new era of overpopulation and urbanisation, where public commons are going to be the cause of wars. Water conflicts are going to be common in the future. In Bengaluru, the reality is that according to BWSSB, out of 22…

  GM-Free Karnataka and the Karnataka Alliance for Safe Food have announced a 'Sasive Satyagraha' event in Bangalore on October 2, 2016, to be held at the Gandhi Statue at  Anand Rao Circle, Bangalore from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. This is primarily a citizens' awareness and call-to-action campaign to protest against the approval of the commercial release of genetically modified varieties of mustard (GM Mustard) in the country. The fight against genetically modified food has just been revived with renewed vigour around the country, with activists and experts raising strong opposition to the introduction of GM Mustard. The commercial…

BBMP has come up with clear guidelines to manage solid waste generated during festivals. After Ganesha Chaturti, BBMP has geared up for Bakrid. Top officials and department heads including Mayor Manjunath Reddy and Commisioner Manjunath Prasad met in late August and have finalised the arrangements. Awareness and enforcement No slaughter can be carried out in public areas - roads, footpaths in areas outside the homes or shop in public view. Only animals in the permissible list can be slaughtered. Segregation at source is compulsory. Health Inspectors and Medical Officers will supported by volunteers have been reaching out to the various…

Eco-friendly Ganesha festival has caught up in a big way this year, in Bengaluru. Dedicated teams of volunteers have been struggling day and night, along with the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) and Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB), to put proper disposal systems in place, and to spread awareness among people. Making one's own Ganesha using clay was the mantra for hundreds of citizens this year. The result was obvious on the first day of the festival itself. According to Yatish Kumar K C, Additional Commissioner for BBMP West Zone, on the first daym there were 1350 clay Ganesha…

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CITIZEN MATTERS Bangalore's own interactive newsmagazine Speak up, it's your city!   Dear reader, Happy Independence Day, in advance! This Independence Day, we have a new project by the people, for the people, of the people! Here you can do your bit by contributing to a better neighbourhood. Is the footpath in your area broken? Do you have garbage blackspots in your area? Is there uncleared construction rubble in the area? Map it all, and help BBMP clear it: Help Bengaluru map its bad spots This week’s highlight Bengaluru needs a flood map People fishing in a storm water drain near…

Tired of seeing such garbage blackspots? Unwalkable footpaths? Broken slabs on streetside drains converted to death traps? Construction rubble uncleared for months? This Independence Day, we are launching a new project by the people, for the people, of the people! This is your chance to support BBMP in identifying the bad spots in the city and reporting them, by mapping them. This data will be shared with BBMP directly and can help eliminate the blackspots in the city, help identify future blackspots, remove the construction debris and fix the broken unwalkable footpaths. All you have to do now is to…

Here's a quick anecdote about the puzzle that was the Uber business model in Bengaluru. I visited Bangalore — the city I am from — earlier this year. I’ve been used to driving my parents’ car around town while visiting; for the first time, though, the consensus opinion from friends and family was that I should Uber the entire time instead. I’m a fan of convenience, so I agreed. It was pleasant enough: the cars were new, clean and shiny; prices were cheap when paid in USD; cars were abundant. Practically all the drivers were local Kannadigas who had quit jobs in the service…

The Government of India (Ministry of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation) has published, on 02 August 2016, the draft Agreement for Sale under the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, RERA-2016 for public comments. This comes as a sequel to the Act and the Draft Rules for the Union Territories also published by the Central Government in the recent past. It may be of benefit to those who are planning to buy a home for themselves or even a residential plot of land. It is also of importance since with the enactment of the RERA-2016, effective 01 May 2016, all…