Articles by News Desk

266 COVID-19 cases in Bengaluru, highest among metro cities Bengaluru Urban district reported 266 active COVID-19 cases (309 cases were reported in Karnataka) on January 4th. The city has the highest number of cases among metro cities. New Delhi and Mumbai reported 32 active cases each and Chennai reported 27 cases on January 3rd. However, on January 3rd, the test positivity rate in Bengaluru came down from 2.2% on December 25th to 0.3%. Dr Thrilok Chandra, special commissioner (health), BBMP, said testing has been ramped up to 5,000 a day. No samples with BF.7 or XBB.1.5 variants have been found…

In 2018, a revamped Church Street opened to the public with much fanfare. The 715-metre stretch was redesigned along Tender SURE guidelines at a cost of Rs 9 crore. The cobblestoned streets and wide footpaths were welcomed as being pedestrian-friendly, hassle-free for cyclists, and accessible to all. As in most cities in India, Bengaluru roads often require maintenance and repair due to constant digging up by service providers. To overcome this issue, Bengaluru piloted the state-of-the-art designed Church Street, a first of its kind in India. The project integrated all the networked services under the road: water, sewage, power, gas,…

River restoration work by GCC underway Work on the restoration of the Adyar and Cooum rivers is ongoing, with the planting of saplings along the banks, erection of barricades and levelling work taking place across various locations. The work is being carried out by the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC). As part of the project, a walkway has also been constructed from the MRTS bridge to the Thiru Vi Ka bridge. The cost of the walkway is Rs 5.4 crores. The planting of 60,000 saplings is also being carried out. The saplings include Neem, Ashoka and Banyan trees. Encroachments are also…

COVID-19 spending in Mumbai immune to any probes All spending done by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) during the COVID-19 pandemic is immune to any audits and probes, the municipal commissioner Iqbal S Chahal has said. Such a loophole is possible because the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897, and Disaster Management Act, 2005 were in force, shielding any decisions and expenditures made in this period in Mumbai from everyone but the Supreme Court. This news comes after Chief Minister Eknath Shinde had asked the Comptroller Audit General (CAG) to look into the BMC's projects worth Rs 12,000 crore between November 28,…

Caution over COVID-19 The City Police Commissioner, C H Pratap Reddy, issued a set of guidelines and strict vigilance measures to take precautions during the festive month. Wearing masks is mandatory in indoor and closed places, such as pubs, bars, restaurants, malls, offices, buses and trains. Schools are making masks and sanitisers mandatory, instructing children to maintain social distancing and not share food, among other things. The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has mandated COVID-appropriate behaviour, including face masks, due to TAC (Technical Advisory Committee) recommendations. The Health Minister, Dr K Sudhakar, has urged people to take precautionary booster doses,…

Cyclone Mandous uproots trees, damages Marina beach ramp Cyclone Mandous left a trail of destruction in its wake over the past weekend with hundreds of trees uprooted and damage to the newly inaugurated accessible pathway for persons with disability on the Marina beach. The cyclone resulted in the uprooting of over 200 trees in 107 locations and generated 645 tonnes of garden waste. Frontline workers had to clear the trees on war footing. The waste generated was sent to the dump yards in Perungudi and Kodungaiyur. Another fallout from the cyclone was the destruction of the viewing deck of the…

Police vehicles purchased for women being used as escort vehicles for Shinde govt MLAs Since July, vehicles purchased by the Mumbai Police under the Nirbhaya fund to combat crimes against women have been used as escort vehicles for MPs and MLAs of the ruling Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena faction. The fund is a corpus set by the Centre in 2013 for state governments to ensure women's safety in the aftermath of 2012 Delhi gangrape. In June, Mumbai police spent Rs 30 crore under the Nirbhaya fund and purchased 220 Boleros, 35 Ertigas, 313 Pulsar bikes and 200 Activas. Source: The…

Potholes back on roads after heavy rains By December 12th, 11.30 p.m., Cyclone Mandous led to a thunderstorm in Bengaluru and the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) observatory recorded 75 mm of rainfall this December. For HAL airport, rainfall recorded was 53.4 mm and for Kempegowda International Airport (KIA), it was 67.2 mm. Heavy rains jammed many roads and held up traffic, in Silk Board Junction, Basavanagudi, Queen’s Circle and Sulthanpet Main Road, due to poor drainage. The continuous showers ruined the roads and brought back potholes again, while recently-built roads also developed potholes. New potholes developed in a recently-laid road…

Some roads to be free of litter in Chennai by 21st December Across all 15 zones, the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) plans to make some roads litter-free, with the help of enforcement squads. This is part of a slew of initiatives to improve solid waste management in the city. There are also plans in place to solicit wider cooperation from residents and shop owners in avoiding littering. The enforcement squad will have conservancy inspectors and supervisors led by the zonal assistant executive engineer of GCC's Solid Waste Management department. They will issue spot fines to people who illegally dump garbage…

Worrying AQI levels call for an action plan Mumbai's average air quality index (AQI) has consistently been in the "Poor" and "Very Poor" levels this week. The stagnant winds, low temperature and high moisture accumulate and keep pollutants in the air longer. In response, the 24 wards have been asked to take remedial measures advised by Airavat Enviro Engineers and Consultants. The consultancy has suggested the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) take the following steps: clean dust and sprinkle water on roads; introduce a ban on open garbage dumping and burning; monitor construction sites, heavy potholed roads and industrial areas; direct…