City: Bengaluru

This article is part of a special series: Air Quality in our Cities If you were to go walking in Nagavarpalya area in the city, and take the inner by-lanes ahead of Gopalan Mall, you would come upon a sprawling settlement, home primarily to migrant workers from Northern Karnataka. They stay in small makeshift structures that are covered with blue tarpaulin sheets. Such settlements are present in several parts of the city, and they are usually devoid of basic facilities of sanitation, adequate supply of water, electricity etc. "If the migrant workers are staying with their families, they usually cook inside…

Mass transit such as BMTC, Namma Metro, or even cabs and auto rickshaws no longer dictate the convenience or time of your commute. A valid driving license and digital photo is all it would take for you to drive away with your choicest brand of two-wheelers. For over a year now, popular rent-a-bike services have been offering ‘rides’ to Bengalureans, catering to their local and hyperlocal commute. With low security deposit, online payment options, and no parking hassles, these app-based services make you think twice about owning a two-wheeler. Bounce, Drivezy, Vogo, Twic, ONN Bikes, Royal Brothers and Wheelstreet are…

The term of the present Lok Sabha will come to an end on June 3rd (04-06-2014 to 03-06-2019). Hence the Election Commission of India has announced schedule of elections to the coming Lok Sabha elections 2019. With the announcement of elections, the model code of conduct will be applicable with immediate effect. There are 28 parliamentary constituencies in Karnataka overall. Election will be conducted in two phases. Constituencies Notification Last date for submission Scrutiny Last day for withdrawal Poll  day Counting day 2nd Phase 14 19th March 26th March 27th March 29th March 18th April 23rd May 3rd Phase 14…

This Saturday, representatives of over 50 large apartments in Bellandur ward of Mahadevpura constituency met their MLA Aravind Limbavali, demanding a solution to their water woes. Majority of these apartments, located within the 110 villages that became part of BBMP a decade ago, have no BWSSB connections yet. The few who do have BWSSB connections, mostly on the Outer Ring Road side, get erratic supply. Their borewells have dried up, and they are paying cutthroat amounts to private tankers to fulfil their minimum water requirements. Even then, they don’t have enough water. BBMP asked to supply water, reign in private…

City up in Swachh Survekshan, Smart City rankings Bengaluru was ranked 194 out of 425 cities in Swachh Survekshan 2019, with a score of 2351.81 out of a total of 5000. This was a marginal improvement over the city's ranking of 216 in 2018, and 210 in 2017. BBMP had reclaimed black spots, overhauled transfer stations and organised compost santhes in an effort to improve the city's ranking this year. But factors like the lack of new garbage tenders and of ODF (Open Defecation Free) certification worked against the city. Many citizens had also given negative feedback during the survey,…

Write an Open Letter to your MLA A contest for all citizens of Bengaluru. Write an article on how your MLA performed in the last 5 years. How has he/she delivered / achieved as against what was promised during the 2013 state elections. What do you expect in the next term? What we expect: Your letter should make one think, substantiate them with context and data. Write in a simple and lucid style. Your write-up should be based on an understanding of the role of an MLA and the authority vested in him/her. Do not mix up MLA’s roles with other…

Iblur lake is almost ready! Those of you who travel by the lake may have noticed that the lake bed has been cleaned and levelled, the bund has been built, and bund walls pitched with stone. Water inlets and outlets have been constructed, and the newly built storm water drains along Outer Ring Road will bring rainwater runoff into the lake. Once Hoskote Gravel is laid on the bund, the walking/jogging path would be complete. Joggers and walkers have already started using the lake. Birds also make occasional stopovers. We, local residents who had formed the Iblur Lake Forum, are…

This January, BBMP  floated a new tender to deal with the city's perennial garbage problem. D Randeep, Special Commissioner (Solid Waste Management and Health), BBMP, sat down for a chat with 'Citizens Live' to answer niggling doubts about the controversial tender. "The central issue is still segregation. The new policy is that wet and sanitary waste will be picked up by BBMP everyday. Dry waste will be picked up by NGOs, waste collectors," he said. He stressed that it was therefore imperative that we, the general public, segregate our waste. "If you don't, we do have provisions to penalise people;…

A 600-metre stretch of footpath, along the Old Outer Ring Road in Nagarbhavi, has become a nightmare for pedestrians. This stretch starts from the main gate of Dr Ambedkar Institute of Technology (Dr AIT), a leading engineering college, and ends at Kengunte Circle. The Indian Institute of Plantation Management (IIPM), an educational institution under central government's Ministry of Commerce and Industry, is also located along this stretch. This stretch of footpath is perilous for the thousands of students and staff of IIPM and Dr AIT, and the general public, who use it everyday. It is ever-filled with vast volumes of…

BMTC has launched three new bus routes along the IT corridor, to service Sarjapur Road neighbourhoods. In a mini function today, MLA NA Haris, MLC Rizwan Arshad and Bellandur corporator Asha Suresh flagged off the new service. Two of the routes run in a loop to Electronic City - one in clockwise and the other in anti-clockwise direction - covering neighbourhoods like Kasavanahalli, Doddakannalli, Haralur and HSR Layout. The third route runs in a loop to Carmelaram Railway Station, covering Doddakannalli, Kadubisanahalli, Bellandur Gate and Kaikondrahalli. Residents along Sarjapur Road have been demanding BMTC services to these areas. The Kasavanahalli…