City: Bengaluru

It may have surprised many, when Bengaluru set the record for the most protests in a month with 82 protests between December and January. The ‘garden city’ is rarely associated with political activism and is often overshadowed by the likes of Delhi and Mumbai. However, like in the rest of the country, the CAA protests have served as a locus for different groups, ideologies and movements to coalesce. Inspired by Delhi’s Shaheen Bagh, Bengaluru’s Bilal Bagh started on February 8 and is ongoing. Organisers have imposed precautions to keep the coronavirus at bay. On February 29, the City Corporation banned…

When fears about COVID-19 abound, the super-rich can afford to isolate themselves. They are stocking up food, sanitisers, toilet paper, and also checking into resorts in exotic locations. Some are also chartering private jets, taking along personal doctors, nurses and support staff, just in case. Little is the world thinking about those who are fighting to contain the disease. Our pourakarmikas, BWSSB workers, ayahs, nurses and those who work at burial grounds and crematoriums, have little choice. They must work, no matter what - all to ensure the city is clean and the rest of us are protected from the…

As most cities in India have unfortunately shut down due to the coronavirus scare, many citizens have been forced to work from home. We, at Beyond Carlton, thought now would an appropriate time to get citizens to check if their home or apartments are fire-safe.  This February 23rd marked the 10th anniversary of the Carlton Towers fire tragedy, that had claimed nine lives. As a mark of remembrance and tribute, Beyond Carlton, the citizen-led fire-safety initiative by those who lost their dear ones in the tragedy, organised a series of events in February. As part of this, we had launched…

https://youtu.be/onqbOrwibpI Credit: Naveeen Thomas Prasad Silk Board. Marathahalli. Outer Ring Road. What comes to your mind? Awful traffic jams, long commute and whatnot. Most of us avoid this route as much as possible, but many office-goers have no option. Recently, Naveen Thomas Prasad, an IT employee, noticed something beautiful on his way back from work -  Tabebuia Rosea trees in full bloom, lined up on the ORR between Marathahalli and Silk Board Junction. He decided to capture it on camera. On capturing the pink bloom!? Naveen says he’s always been spellbound by nature’s scenic beauty and how it can heal the…

Whitefield, ORR, Bellandur and surrounding areas are set for a water crisis, as the District Administration of Bengaluru (Rural) has come down heavily on tanker water suppliers for extracting groundwater from farmland. BESCOM has disconnected power supply to tanker operators’ borewells. Bengaluru Khasagi Neeru Sarabarajudhaarara Sangha, an association of private tanker-water suppliers, has called for a strike starting 16 March. This would affect residents, especially those in apartments, who depend on tanker supply for their daily water needs as they have limited or no supply from BWSSB. Tanker water supply to Mahadevapura and East Bangalore areas has become short by…

As much as Rs, 8344 crore was announced for Bengaluru’s development in the latest state Budget presented by Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on March 5. Here’s the catch: It is a carry-over of the previous year’s Budget – with an outlay of Rs 8015 crore for Bengaluru --presented by then Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy. What’s more, it bears a new name. The former’s grants came under the `Chief Minister’s Nava Bengaluru Kriya Scheme’ while Yediyurappa’s allocations for Bengaluru comes under the `Chief Minister’s Nava Nagarottana Scheme’. There are more similarities: From solid waste management to transport, mobility, water supply,…

Bengaluru recently topped the TomTom Traffic Index 2019, that ranked 416 global cities on traffic congestion. Mumbai (4th position), Pune (5th) and Delhi (8th) were the other Indian cities that featured in the top 10. Countless memes and jokes on Bengaluru’s notorious traffic and roads - most recently the ‘astronaut walking on moon’ video - have been doing the rounds. Why is the city unable to solve its traffic mess despite its countless planning documents and experts? Only 7% land in Bengaluru is used for road infrastructure Bengaluru is a ring-radial patterned city similar to Delhi, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad. The…

Five COVID-19 cases reported so far Five COVID-19 cases were reported in Bengaluru as of Thursday. The first case, confirmed on March 9, was that of a 46-year-old IT employee who had travelled from US via Dubai. His wife (47), daughter (13), and a 50-year-old man were added to the list the next day. The fifth case, reported on Thursday, was that of a 26-year-old who returned from Greece. All five patients have all been quarantined in the state-run Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Chest Diseases (RGICD). They are responding well to treatment and are recovering, said RGICD Director C Nagaraj.…

It was almost mid-morning on Tuesday, when Manjunath, a sugarcane juice vendor, had three unexpected visitors. Lanyards hanging from their necks, their ID cards were concealed in their pockets. However their sharp dressing - long-sleeved shirts and dark pants - was a giveaway to the 40-year-old vendor. He realised they were not ones to take a sip of ‘pressed juice’ from his makeshift outlet near Koramangala grounds. Manjunath says, “One was speaking on his phone, two others seemed to be checking the sugarcane juice vending machine, steel vessels, sieve, stored juice extracts. One of them made some notes in a…

The BMTC has more often than not followed the KSRTC in increasing fares. With the latter recently increasing fares, chances of the former considering a revision is a possibility. While that suspense continues, a study by the city-based think-tank Fields of View demonstrates exactly why it makes sense -- economically and environmentally -- to reduce bus fares. The study -- ‘Scenario based analysis of change in fares for public transport, ridership, congestion and emissions in Bangalore’ -- demonstrates through different scenarios (bus fare being the primary variable) just how much Bengaluru could gain, or lose, from BMTC’s decisions.The authors of…