Articles by Pavan Kulkarni

Part I: How C V Raman came to BangalorePart II: The Raman Effect on Indian Institute of SciencePart III: Raman, his research institute and his many hobbies The collection of specimens in his museum and his reputation as the greatest scientist of India attracted many visitors from around the world to Raman’s institute. But not all were welcome. Proposals made by government representatives to offer Raman the much-needed funds, only if he could in exchange provide the government with certain kinds of research helpful for Defence Ministry, had enraged him. He had developed a natural distrust and aversion towards politicians.…

For part 1 of the series, click here: How C V Raman came to Bangalore. For part 2, click here: The Raman effect on IISc C V Raman with his Nobel prize. Pic courtesy: Raman Research Institute While still serving as a professor at Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Raman had planned for a private institute where he could carry out research work on subjects that interested him personally, without having to go through a long and tedious procedure of getting approvals from a complex bureaucratic system at IISc. He had saved a considerable amount of money for this purpose…

To read part I of the series, click here: How C V Raman came to Bangalore The house of Tatas had always hoped to have an Indian director for the institute one day, which was not very feasible in the colonised country. But the opportunity to economise on the weight carried by Raman’s international reputation, by his knighthood and the Nobel Prize, was quickly seized by the Tatas, and for the first time ever since its inception in 1909, an Indian was appointed as the director of IISc in 1933. Many nationalists at that time harboured a feeling that the…

C V Raman in his classroom. Pic courtesy: Oldindianphotos.in November 2015 marks the 127th birthday, and the 45th year of demise, of Chandrasekhar Venkata Raman, one of the greatest minds produced in the twentieth century. Bengaluru was home to this great mind, nobel laureate who is popular as Sir C V Raman. The city bears many landmarks and institutions in his memory,  such as Raman Research Institute,  Panchavati - C V Raman’s home in Malleshwaram where he lived, and C V Raman Nagar. Born in Thiruvanaikaval near Trichinopoly to Chandrashekar Iyer and Parvathi Ammal on November 7, 1888, Raman was…

11-year-old Amita, a resident of Dega Enclave apartment in Koramangala in Bengaluru, was rushed to a doctor for developing severely high temperature soon after recovering from gastroenteritis. She was diagnosed with Typhoid. After spending four days in St. John’s Hospital on drips, she has returned home on June 16th, and is likely to miss her school for another week. There were many other kids who fell sick in the same apartment of eight houses, but hers was the most severe case. The culprit behind the case is supposed to be the contaminated water supplied through the Bangalore Water Supply and…

The BDA tender makes it mandatory to leave some space to make the skywalk path visible from beneath the road. Pic: Shree D N The Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) wants to improve pedestrian experience on Outer Ring Road by building 25 skywalks. However, the plan has hit a deadlock, after there were no bids or expressions of interest put up by anyone for the tender to construct 23 of these. Jayashankar Reddy, Executive engineer, BDA, told Citizen Matters that no applications were made for the tenders the BDA had called for, to construct pedestrian these pedestrian skywalks. The BDA plans…

Lingaraj Urs (third from right) with members of Bruhat Whitefield Residential Community Association (BWRCA). Pic: BWRCA Facebook Page Well-known formula for bringing in change world over is, if you want to change the system, be a part of it first. Lingaraj Urs, a top IT honcho, fed up of the problems in his area, wanted to change the system to improve governance and administration in his area. He decided to get into poll politics to do it. And he won. To most well-heeled urban citizens, politics was thus far known as ‘the last resort of scoundrels’; good men and women…

The place in front of K C General Hospital where a sky walk is proposed to come up. Pic: Taken from E-Proc website Walking on some of the Bengaluru’s roads will be easier henceforth. Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has opened up tenders for 54 skywalks across the city. These are either important junctions where multiple roads meet, or mid-blocks with prominent properties on either sides requiring pedestrians to cross the road regularly. While compiling the list of ten most accident-prone areas in Bangalore, Citizen Matters learnt from traffic police that the most predominant factor causing accidents is the pedestrians…

44-year-old Seema Rai died in Fortis Hospital on Bannerghatta Road in May 2010, due to complications after a pancreas transplant surgery performed on her. According to latest orders given by the Appropriate Authority and Appellate Authority, the surgery was done without an informed consent of the patient, and without a valid license. Following a five-year-long legal battle over her husband Major Pankaj Rai’s complaint against the hospital to the Appropriate Authority, the Certificate of Registration granted to hospital in March 2010, permitting it to perform transplantation of liver, kidney and homograft, was cancelled.     KMC exonerates the doctors While these…

The police on May 8th 2015, filed a charge sheet against a former senior official of Fortis Hospital, Bannerghatta Road, Bengaluru and a government officer, with reference to a case of organ transplantation, where the patient died after the transplant. P K Davison, the Facility Director of Fortis Hospital on Bannerghatta Road, Bengaluru, and Dr V Raju, former deputy director (Medical) in the Office of Appropriate Authority for Organ Transplantation, Government of Karnataka are the accused in the case as per the charge sheet. The records reveal that the police have charged them with colluding and committing forgery on Fortis…