Articles by News Desk

Gokhale bridge to be re-opened in Sept 2023 Despite all the delays and the danger it poses to the trains passing by below, there has been no headway as to who - the BMC or railways - will demolish the Gokhale bridge in Andheri, Mumbai. The Gokhale bridge was partially closed in 2018 and completely shut down this past week after structural audits revealed that the bridge was corroded and degraded. As the BMC claims to have no experience in demolishing bridges above railway tracks, it is banking on the Railways doing so in the next month. Tenders can then…

Almost 3 lakh deletions in draft electoral rolls The BBMP (Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike) has published the draft electoral rolls, but with almost three lakh deletions from last year’s list. On January 1 2022, the city had a voter population of 94,92,539, but that got reduced to 91,15,805 on November 9th. The public can put up suggestions for objections, additions and modifications to the electoral draft rolls by December 9th. As Assembly elections are due next year, the rolls assume significance, said Chief Commissioner Tushar Giri Nath. He said that they have deleted almost six lakh entries as they were…

In its annual report titled ‘State of Policing and Law and Order in Mumbai, 2022’, PRAJA Foundation revealed that 98% of the total cases in Class II serious offences, including murder, crimes against women and cases under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act are pending for trial. In cases where the trials were completed, 86% ended in an acquittal or discharge. The data was based on findings from applications under the Right to Information (RTI) Act and data published by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). Read more: Is Mumbai really safe for its women? Data suggests otherwise…

Rains leave two dead and parts of the city waterlogged With the onset of the northeast monsoon on October 29th, Chennai has been experiencing heavy rains. The city was issued an orange alert. The downpour over the course of the week resulted in the deaths of two people. A 52-year-old autorickshaw driver, Devendran, was fatally electrocuted in Vyasarpadi on October 31st after he touched the pole of a pandal erected in front of a house, where rainwater had stagnated. Shanthi K, a 45-year-old resident of Pulianthope died after a concrete slab collapsed on her on November 1st. There has been…

Air quality dips in city; Andheri in 'poor' category Mumbai’s air quality deteriorated on Monday and fell under the 'moderate' category on with Air Quality Index at 149, according to System of Air Quality Forecast and Research (SAFAR). It remained in moderate zone until Thursday, as the city recorded an AQI of 152. An AQI between 201 and 300 is considered 'poor', 301-400 'very poor' and 401-500 'severe', while the AQI between zero and 50 is considered ‘good’, between 51 and 100 ‘satisfactory’ and between 101 and 200 is ‘moderate’. Within the city, on Thursday, the data showed Worli’s AQI…

Rs 5.20 lakh cr MOUs signed at Global Investors Meet On the inaugural Wednesday (November 2nd) of the three-day Invest Karnataka 2022 – Global Investors Meet, the government signed MOUs (memorandums of understanding) worth Rs 5.20 lakh crore, while many industry leaders assured further investment. Seven companies invested Rs 2.9 lakh crore in the ‘Manufacturing – Green Hydrogen and Derivatives’ sector. MoUs worth Rs 25,024 crore were signed with six companies in the core manufacturing sectors such as mining, iron, steel and cement, while MoUs worth Rs 22,906 crore were signed with nine companies under the e-mobility, aerospace and defence…

Egmore railway station to get a makeover Under the Prime Minister's Gati Shakti-National Master Plan for Multi-modal Connectivity, the Egmore railway station will be revamped to international standards. DEC Infrastructure and Projects is the contractor who will take up the redevelopment project. The project will take a year and a half, and will cost Rs 734 crore. The second-biggest station in Chennai will have various amenities like lounges, food courts and multi-level car parking spaces among other things. The platform of the station will also be redone. Since the station is a heritage structure, the work will proceed after a…

Section 144 in force from Nov 1st to 15th in Mumbai The Mumbai Police has issued several prohibitory orders, including Section 144, for the city between November 1st and 15th. As per the orders, gatherings of five or more people, processions, protests, loud speakers, bands, firecrackers, etc have been banned. Exhibiting or publishing any material leading to danger, governmental or moral trouble is also outlawed. The display and possession of weapons, arms and ammunition is also banned under a separate order from November 3rd to December 2nd. The restrictions are in response to information about the disturbance of peace, law…

Statue of Prosperity to be unveiled The 108-feet bronze statue of Kempegowda, the founder of Bengaluru, will be unveiled at the Bengaluru International Airport, Devanahalli, by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 11th. It will be called the 'Statue of Prosperity' to symbolise the progress of the city under the vision of its founder, Kempegowda. On October 21th, as part of the Nadaprabhu Kempegowda Campaign, vehicles were flagged off from Vidhan Soudha’s grand steps to collect sacred soil and water from the 31 districts of the state. The sacred soil and water will be integrated with the Kempegowda Theme Park…

Flooded buildings and inundated neighbourhoods have become more commonplace in the last few years. In addition, residents have to deal with seepage, weakening foundations, damp basements and soil damage, not to mention potholed roads and footpaths.  With climate change, rainfall is only going to get more intense. How do we fix rain-related problems and prevent further issues in our homes, apartment complexes and layouts? What issues are you facing? What do you need to know to get the problem solved? Citizen Matters, Bengaluru will host a panel of experts to address your questions and doubts on November 4th (Friday), 6…