Articles by News Desk

Bengaluru ranked India's least liveable city Bengaluru was ranked the lowest among the five Indian cities featured in the EIU (Economist Intelligence Unit) Global Liveability Index 2022, released on June 24th. Bengaluru had a global ranking of 146, and fell behind Delhi (ranked 112nd), Mumbai (117), Chennai (142) and Ahmedabad (143). The index ranked 173 global cities based on liveability, as determined by stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education and infrastructure. In terms of infrastructure, Bengaluru scored 46.4 out of 100, worse than Karachi - among the world's five least-livable cities - and as bad as Lagos, the third least-liveable city.…

Mumbai on red alert despite rains subsiding Despite some respite from heavy rainfall on the morning of July 8th, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a red alert in the city for the weekend, citing heavy rainfall at isolated places. There is the additional possibility of occasional strong winds reaching 40-50 kph. The city's local trains and buses - its lifelines - have remained normal, barring a few inconveniences. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), in the meantime, has barred entry into beaches on days of heavy rainfall. Source: NDTV, Mint COVID cases reduce Mumbais daily COVID cases have continued on a downward trail, with only 695…

Drones on vigil in Marina after rising crimes To stem crime happening on the Marina in Chennai, drones are to fly across the beach from Light House to MGR Memorial for three hours in the mornings and evenings. Weekends will see the increased duration of surveillance due to more crowds frequenting the area.  Apart from this, the police will also employ facial recognition software (FRS) to inspect people sleeping on the beach. They have received intelligence that history-sheeters have been hiding on the beach and have committed robberies in the area. With three robbery cases in the last month on the beach,…

A new government portal is all set to ease the process of getting notary services for various documentation purposes including agreements and contracts. e-UDBHAVAM is the online portal from the new National E-Governance Services Ltd (NeSL) administrative office in Bengaluru. NeSL is India’s first Information Utility and is registered with the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC). R Ashoka, Minister, Revenue Department, Government of Karnataka, launched the portal on April 25th, 2022. One needs notary services for various documents, which can be a hassle to obtain considering only certain entities are…

Revised COVID guidelines Due to rising COVID cases, the State Health and Family Welfare Department has issued revised guidelines for apartment complexes, educational institutions and offices, based on recommendations of the COVID Technical Advisory Committee. Apartment complexes with three to five cases on a floor are now considered small clusters, and symptomatic individuals on the floor should be tested. If more than five cases are detected, all symptomatic individuals in the block/tower should be tested. And if more than 15 cases are reported, all symptomatic individuals in the complex should be tested. Swimming pools and other recreational areas are to…

Mumbai is the most expensive city for expatriates According to Mercer’s 2022 Cost of Living survey, Mumbai has ranked 127 among the costliest cities in India in terms of living expenses and accommodation costs. The cities that followed were New Delhi (155), Chennai (177), Bengaluru (178), and Hyderabad (192).  The survey found that while the city is popular for multinational corporations to establish corporations, organisations are considering other, low-cost cities as alternatives. Mumbai, along with New Delhi, was found to have the highest cost of daily necessities such as milk, bread, vegetables, etc. Source: The Times of India As Mumbai expands, glaring…

Four metro water wokers die due to asphyxiation Four contract workers of Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB) have died in two different incidents over the past week, allegedly due to asphyxiation while cleaning septic tanks. On Tuesday, two workers, Nelson and Ravikumar who were involved in cleaning a septic tank in Madhavaram asphyxiated while at work. While Nelson was declared dead on arrival, Ravikumar died on Thursday without responding to the treatment. Meanwhile, two other workers, identified as D Dhakshinamurthy, 38, and P Periasamy, 38, of Pallikaranai died allegedly of asphyxiation while cleaning a septic tank located…

BBMP ward delimitation draft out State government notified the draft of the BBMP ward delimitation report on Thursday. As per the draft, the number of BBMP wards will increase from 198 to 243. Ward boundaries have been redrawn based on the 2011 Census population numbers. As per the draft, out of 28 Assembly constituencies in Bengaluru, 17 now have higher ward numbers. Ward numbers have remained the same in eight other constituencies. Whereas three constituencies - Jayanagar, Shivajinagar and Chamarajpet, all ruled by the Congress party - now have fewer wards than earlier. Opposition MLAs called the exercise “gerrymandering” to…

Chennai to get 100 E-Buses As part of a German bank-funded project, Chennai will get 100 E-Buses in the coming months. The tender has been called for by the Institute of Road Transport (IRT) which is seeking automobile manufacturers who can supply the buses as well as the necessary charging infrastructure to the Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC).  The buses will all be low-floor and air-conditioned. They will have a capacity of 36 passengers each. There will also be provision for wheelchair-bound passengers and a ramp for entry and exit. The transport department will expand the fleet of E-buses depending on…

Less rainfall in Mumbai as monsoon begins Monsoon touched Mumbai on June 11th this year, and yet, the city has reported unusually low rainfall. Otherwise typical this time of year are intense showers, followed by flooding in many parts. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) reported that as of June 23rd, the city’s rainfall deficit for the month so far stands at 47%. Experts attribute this to the absence of low-pressure systems in the Bay of Bengal and a ‘weak’ offshore trough in the Arabian Sea, close to the Konkan coast. “Ideally, 12 low-pressure systems are expected to form in the…