City: Bengaluru

Bengaluru world's 6th most congested city Bengaluru was ranked the sixth most congested city in the world by the TomTom Traffic Index 2023. TomTom is a Dutch technology firm. This is an improvement from the second rank in 2022, when travel for a 10-km drive took 30 minutes. But in 2023, the time was brought down to 28 minutes for 10 kms, with the congestion level at 63%. The ‘worst day’ last year was on September 27th, when it took 33 minutes to cover 10 kms, mainly on the Outer Ring Road, where a number of private vehicles from tech…

The following is an excerpt from the book Shades of Blue: Connecting the drops in Indian cities, written by Harini Nagendra and Seema Mundoli, and published by Penguin Random House India. The excerpt is from the chapter: Bengaluru: Landlocked city of tanks and lakes and has been republished with permission from the authors and publisher: To know where a lake once was, Bengaluru has only to wait for the monsoon. The Kempegowda Bus Stand, the Sri Kanteerava Stadium, the hockey stadium in Akkithimmanahalli in the city and the Asian Games Village in Koramangala, all of which are sites of former…

[Part one of this series explained the history of the Kannada signage issue] The protests by Kannada groups, led by the Kannada Rakshana Vedike last month, demanding that Kannada signage rules be implemented has sparked a debate in Bengaluru. Kannada groups point out that as Bengaluru is the capital of Karnataka, important communication in the city, including information on shops and businesses, must be done in Kannada. Imagine, they say, a Kannadiga coming from any other part of the state and feeling lost in a sea of English signs in Bengaluru. At the same time, the attacks on businesses and…

Gift-giving is a time-honoured tradition that helps us celebrate special occasions, express our love and appreciation for others, and foster strong social connections. However, the way we approach gifting can have a significant impact on the environment. Many gifts end up unused, discarded, or contributing to environmental pollution. In this article, I will share the consequences of gift-giving and suggest options for sensible gifting. As I have observed numerous gifts accumulating beneath Christmas trees or even being discarded in the ground, only to be unearthed as waste, I have become aware of the pressing issue of gift-related waste. Additionally, working…

Kannada signboards issue deepens Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot sent back to the cabinet an ordinance on the use of 60% Kannada in commercial signboards. He advised the government to pass it through the Assembly. Traders have demanded that the deadline for implementation should be extended beyond February 28th. Meanwhile, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Chief Commissioner Tushar Girinath said that the civic body has issued notices to 49,241 shops for not following the name board order. He said that only 16,813 shops have boards with 60% Kannada display. He asked zonal officials to take strict action if shops fail to implement…

In 2019, a new underground drainage pipe (UGD) was installed to clear an earlier blocked sewer that erupted, leaked, and contaminated the land. The culprit – output from the unplanned growth of commercial kitchens in 5th block, Koramangala, which have been pumping these effluents into the UGD. The Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) moved the UGD from the carriage way to the side of the road, where all the utilities were planned, as part of the whitetopping procedure. They found that the discharge from the line that was attached to a restaurant was entirely filled with oil when…

According to the recently released 2023 Bengaluru Crime Data, there is a significant gap between reported and detected crimes in the city.  In 2023, 12,627 cases of total crimes were reported, of which only 3,603 crimes were detected. This shows a gap of 71.48% between reported and detected cases. From 2022 to 2023, there seems to have been a 36% rise in crimes across the city, driven by various motives. However, sudden and grave provocation topped the list for motives. “We can never definitely say that crime has increased or decreased, because crime is always there, only the trend in…

The infamous Outer Ring Road (ORR)-Sarjapura Road traffic chaos is something every Bengalurean knows of. Some of us living in the neighbourhood live through this every day. All thanks to the poor quality of both the road network and public transport services. Neither planners nor politicians have paid enough attention to this area to make it livable! Sarjapura Road is an integral connection to the IT corridor of south-east Bengaluru. Given that the Outer Ring Road (ORR) is almost fully developed, with a focus on tech parks, new residential projects are happening on or around Sarjapura Road, especially the sub-arterial…

75th Republic Day highlights A detailed project report (DPR) to build a 2-km tunnel road in the city to solve traffic issues is in process, said Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot in his 75th Republic Day address. Other issues that he highlighted included those of farmers, unemployment, health and Bengaluru's civic problems. He also mentioned the progress of the Karnataka government’s five guarantees schemes. The government had deployed more than 575 police personnel and installed 100 surveillance cameras across the city and even at Manekshaw Parade Ground just before the celebrations. Police Commissioner B Dayanand said that 1,000 police officials were deployed to…

The perception that HSR Layout is as an upmarket neighbourhood has led to public transport infrastructure being ignored in the area. The common notion is that its residents prefer to drive rather than use buses. The reality, however, is quite different. There is a large number of deprived communities who live in areas around HSR layout, such as Mangammanapalya, Parangipalya, Bommanahalli etc. These communities rely heavily on public transport, which ply on busy roads such as Hosur Road, Outer Ring Road (ORR) and Sarjapur Road. The people here work long hours for a pittance, and commute long distances everyday. Unfortunately,…