Articles by Sneha Visakha

A few not at all fun snippets from the discussion. “99% of the earth’s resources are consumed by 1% of the world’s population, with the remaining 1% resources being fought over by 99% of the population”.Bengaluru's urban cover increased 350% over a 25-year period between 1992-2017, whereas its green areas shrunk from 17% to less than 6%’.The WHO recommends at least 9 square metres of green space per capita, in Bengaluru, it is only 2 two square metres per capita. Citizen Matters and Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy, in collaboration with the Bangalore International Centre (BIC), held a panel discussion…

Citizen Matters and Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy, in collaboration with the Bangalore International Centre (BIC), held a panel discussion on ‘Preventing Riots, Ensuring Harmony’ on December 7, 2020.  This was the seventh in a series of discussions, held as part of the Bengaluru Solutions Series, and dedicated to urban issues. It made significant observations on the role of the police and state response while expressing concern over the misuse of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.  The panel comprised of Vidbhuti Narain Rai, former IPS officer and author of ‘Curfew in the City’; former public prosecutor and independent advocate Venkatesh…

“We are requesting the government to come up with a law or policy like that passed in California last year (for the protection of gig workers),” said Tanveer Pasha, representative of the Ola-Uber drivers’ association, in a panel discussion titled ‘Formalising the Gig Economy’, held on June 8. Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy and Citizen Matters, in collaboration with the Bangalore International Centre (BIC), had organised the panel discussion as part of Bengaluru Solutions Series, a public engagement series dedicated to urban issues. This was the sixth installment of the series. The discussion was centred around legal protections for gig…

A recent photography project documented the lack of women loitering in Bengaluru. While men access public spaces freely, women venture out of their homes only for specific purposes, the project indicated. Why is women's access to public spaces so limited in Bengaluru, as in other Indian cities? To understand women’s participation in the city, it is necessary to focus on the structural factors that affect their ability to move and access opportunities. Data suggests that women often work out of their homes, tend to walk more and have shorter commutes, revealing a gender commuting gap in Indian cities. Bengaluru needs…

“It is a lack of (institutional) capacity which is leading to public woes on water. We are not in a position to give you quality services because of two things - one, manpower, and two, finances," said BWSSB Chairman Tushar Girinath, speaking at a panel discussion on ‘Sustainable, Equitable Access to Water’. Girinath explained that BWSSB has been experiencing a severe workforce crunch, its staff numbers woefully inadequate for carrying out the Board’s mandate effectively. Comparing BWSSB’s workforce with that of Delhi Jal Board, he noted that the latter employed 33,000 people (including regular and outsourced employees) for a population…

Like many metropolitan cities in India, Bengaluru is facing a dire water crisis. There is an imminent need to manage the city's water resources in a sustainable and equitable manner. With population projection of 13.6 million in 2020, Bengaluru is experiencing high growth rates and predatory geographical expansion that subsumes surrounding peri-urban and rural areas. But necessary infrastructure is not established to meet the basic needs of housing, water, sanitation, and so on. Lacking access to formal housing, majority of residents in informal settlements are forced to rely on water from private vendors, neighbourhood sources, or illegal networks of accessing…