CITIZEN MATTERS
Bangalore’s own interactive newsmagazine
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City news that matters

Before we get into our stories, here is a short summary of what happened in the city.

• BBMP has begun the construction of an open air theatre under Domlur flyover at a cost of 40 lakhs. The theatre can accommodate up to 500 people and will also have a Bangalore One centre.
• BMRCL is in talks with the Forest Department to acquire 4.97 hectares of forest land near Devika Rani Roerich estate on Kanakpura Road for a planned depot for the metro. This will be the first time that forest land is being acquired for the Metro project.
• BESCOM officials have told the High Court that unless alternate land is made available, they are in no position to shift electricity transformers from footpaths as it will adversely affect consumers.
• Bengaluru Police have arrested a suspected Bodo militant who was allegedly involved in a recent killing of six tribals in Assam. He was carrying a phone with an preactivated, unverified SIM card. The police have also filed a case against Vodafone India and seven distributors for duplicating genuine customers’ documents to create a fake identities to issue SIM cards.
• Bengaluru is all set to get its longest train route to Katra at the foothills of the Vaishno Devi shrine in Jammu and Kashmir. The Yeshwantpur-Katra Express will cover a distance of 3,246 km in 56 hours and 40 minutes.
• Of the 24 cases of H1N1 or swine flu reported in Karnataka since the beginning of 2015, 15 are from within Bengaluru alone. While the Health Department has said that there is no reason for alarm, it has asked people to take precautions and not ignore any symptoms.
• Close to a year after the Upa Lokayukta directed BWSSB to set up a sewage treatment plant at Puttenahalli Lake in Yelahanka, the lake has become more polluted than before due to a stormwater drain carrying sewage from areas around 5th and 6th phase.
• ECA International’s has pegged Bengaluru at rank 171 in the global liveability index for expatriates. Mumbai and Chennai follow behind, both at rank 182.
• Ola Cabs is on the verge of buying its former rival Taxi For Sure, in a move to take on Uber. The deal is likely to be finalised in the next ten days and is said to be pegged at a whopping Rs 1,250 crore.

This week’s highlight: When layout developers don’t give up Civic Amenities sites

» The Revised Master Plan 2015 states that the 45% of the total land area in a layout needs to be reserved for civic amenities. In response to a lawsuit filed by Classic Orchards Property Owners Association, the High Court has said that BDA must get unrelinquished CA sites from layouts.

Living in the city

» It is likely that the elevated road project from Ejipura to Kendriya Sadan, will not be providing a respite to commuters anytime soon. The project which was approved last year has been taken off the JNNURM scheme. Read: Centre withdraws JNNURM funds sanctioned for Ejipura-Kendriya Sadan elevated road.

» BBMP councillors don’t want bureaucrats’ rule in Bengaluru in case the elections are postponed. A unanimous resolution passed by BBMP wanted an extension of Council’s tenure in case polls are delayed. Read: BBMP to ask state to extend council’s term by 6 months.

»  Bengaluru-based Citizen Action Forum (CAF) wants the government to delink the BBMP elections from the restructuring process. Read: Govt will use BBMP division as an excuse to delay polls.

Survey: How much are you paying for your water?

» Anirudh Rajashekar, a masters student from MIT’s Department of Urban Studies and Planning, and IIM Bangalore’s CRERI group are collaborating on a research study involving private water tankers. Please take the survey – How much do you pay for water?

Three lucky respondents will go home with PVR tickets!

Of trees and flowers

» The Neralu Urban Tree Festival will be spread across three major parks of the city this year. Read:Lalbagh, Cubbon Park, Basavangudi to witness Bengaluru’s tree festival.

» Peepal trees form the places of memory and cultural value, even in a metropolitan city like Bengaluru. Read: Ashwatha Katte as a community space

» With online ticketing and drones that spotted a fire, the 10 day flower exhibition at Lalbagh was certainly a notch above the previous editions. Read: Flowery Red Fort and musical instruments steal hearts at Lalbagh.

Managing waste and garbage wisely

» Unable to bear the filth accumulating in the plot next to their house, Josephine Joseph and her family cleaned it and put up something to keep litterers at bay. Read: Using the tricolour where images of god fail!

» Need to dispose of bulbs, CFLS, tube lights, batteries and other electronic parts? Hasiru Dala is organising an e-waste pickup drive at Bellandur on February 9th. That and more in the Bellandur Buzz newsletter.

»  The times they are a-changin’? We sure hope so. Deepa Mohan shares a picture from Bannerghatta National Park which we hope is inspiration enough for others to follow. Read: Welcome sight in Bannerghatta.

Food for thought

» Ashwin Mahesh shares some food for thought this Republic Day on citizenship. He opines that the most useful input to public problem solving is not ‘quantum of time’ or ‘money’, but persistence. Read: It’s time to celebrate citizenship.

Events this weekend

• Watch 9 Mois Ferme, a César Award nominated French comedy film at Alliance Francaise on January 29th.
• Bhoomi College is organising a workshop on Organic Gardening on January 31st. This workshop will help you apply the basic principles of gardening to your home, apartment or terrace.
• Take your children to the Banyan Tree Festival to be held at Pestalozzi Children’s Village Machohalli on January 31st and join them as they take part in a multitude of activities including kite flying, storytelling and paper bag making.
• Jagriti is playing host to the world premier of the play Stalowa Wola, a story about a man who goes on a journey in search of his dead wife’s ghost on January 30th and 31st and February 1st.
• Another activity for children – Little Cloud Storytelling Time for kids between four and six years. This will start on February 1st and go on until March at Ranga Shankara.
• Sign up for Unhurried’s Basavanagudi Heritage Homes Walk and go back in time to a bygone era of Bangalore on February 1st.
• Enthrall your senses to an enchanting evening of music and dance at From Classical Music to Flamenco, at Alliance Francaise on February 1st.

You can also have a look at the complete listing of events coming up in Bengaluru here. 

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