City: Bengaluru

It has been six years since Bengaluru’s waste management mess was brought to the notice of the High Court of Karnataka through a Public Interest Litigation, by Kavitha Shankar and the Solid Waste Management Round Table team. While the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has undertaken many measures to help manage waste better, there is lots more that remains to be done. When the PIL began in 2012, the city of Bengaluru was producing about 3,500 tonnes of waste per day, with no waste segregation in place and all waste going to landfill. All mixed garbage from the city was…

High Court pulls up Palike for not filling potholes While hearing the Public Interest Litigation filed by four Koramangala residents including Vijayan Menon in 2015, the division bench of Chief Justice Dinesh Maheshwari and Justice S.G. Pandit issued oral directions to the Palike to complete filling 1600 potholes by the next day (September 20). The deadline was then extended to September 24 to ensure that there were no potholes on the roads, but the Palike found it difficult to accomplish the task, especially as the white-topping work was in progress. The HC appointed a commission consisting of  Dinesh Agrawal, Head of…

Sampath Raj, the 51st Mayor of Bangalore, finishes his term as the first citizen of the city in September. As the race for his successor heats up, we caught up with the man for a chat on his experience as the Mayor of Bangalore, on city administration, and other pressing issues. Much like that of a seasoned politician, his interview turned out to be more interesting for what he hinted at, rather than what he said. A mayor is considered a figure head and is not really considered very powerful. Is that what your experience has been in office? The…

The unprecedented growth of Bengaluru city has led to many complex problems. Out of the many problems that the city is facing, littering and the plastic waste problem are  most concerning. On this Gandhi Jayanthi (October 2, 2018), with a mission to make Bengaluru a plastic-free City, GO Native in collaboration with Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), United Way Bengaluru, Namma Nimma Cycle Foundation and  Let’s Be The Change are organising the first edition of Bengaluru Plog Run across 50 localities in Bengaluru. The Bangalore Plog Run aims to  1. Make plogging a fitness activity  2. Enable a healthy environment…

Bengaluru Bus Prayanikara Vedike (BBPV) organised a 'Commuter Ballot' campaign at Kempe Gowda Bus Stand, Majestic on September 20th, 2018. About 95% of the commuters who took part opposed the price hike. They also demanded that the State Government support to BMTC to make busses more affordable. The Karnataka Government has proposed to hike both BMTC and KSRTC bus ticket fares by 18% in context of the soaring fuel prices by the Central Government. Two days ago, the State Government has been quoted in the media that the proposal to hike the ticket fare is going to be temporarily docked.…

This article is supported by SVP Cities of India Fellowship There are some things in every house, which were used in the past, but not so useful anymore, but stay on the shelf collecting dust, because people think it might be useful in future. What if those products are rented for a fixed period? What if you could donate all that material to a store that makes products out of waste? Changing consumer habits have led to generation of more waste. Today recycling has evolved from being a trend to a necessity. This is also a business opportunity. There are…

The cash-strapped municipality of Bengaluru, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has acknowledged the long-known financial problems the BBMP is facing. BBMP is unable to fund the pending infrastructure projects, with amounts payable by the BBMP including pending bills mounting upto Rs 15,428.67 crore. BBMP Commissioner N Manjunatha Prasad formally wrote to the Karnataka Urban Development Department asking that the BBMP be brought under the ambit of Karnataka Local Fund authorities and Fiscal Responsibility Act, 2003. The act says the local body must compulsorily try to achieve 'sufficient revenue surplus' - excess of income generated in comparison to projected income. The commissioner…

LED lights to illuminate Bengaluru airport's second runway in 2019 The Kempegowda International Airport (KIA)'s brand new second runway slated to operate from October 2019 will be powered by energy and cost-saving LED lights. This choice was made to ensure lower maintenance, reduce power cost, ensure higher levels of safety and efficient operations. This will be the only airport in India to have LEDs. In a press release issued by Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL), CFO Tom Shimmin said that US based company, ADB Safegate, will be installing the necessary equipment to maintain the airfield’s LED lights such as cables…

A delegation from Bangalore Bus Prayanikara Vedike (BBPV) met Karnataka's Transport Minister D C Thamanna and submitted a memorandum, asking for bus fares to be reduced. A press note from Vinay Sreenivasa of BBPV says that the BBPV communicated to the minister that proposal to hike bus fares will harm BMTC, bus commuters and entire Bengaluru. The Minister did not provide any assurance on not hiking fares. The Transport Minister had been hinting at hiking fares of BMTC by about 14% - 18%. Bangalore Bus Prayanikara Vedike has been urging both the current government and past governments to reduce fares…

The aftermath of any festival leads to a lot of waste. Disposal management becomes an issue, not to mention the toll it takes on the environment. E-City Habba, a completely green event conducted at Electronic City with over 2000 audience, broke barriers by being one of the most unique festivals in Bengaluru. This extravaganza was organised by Electronic City Industrial Township Authority (ELCITA) the administrative body of Electronic City. They vouched to go green and upheld this promise in full spirit. This was one of the cleanest festivals; achieved by an initiative taken by ELCITA and graced by Infosys. The…