City: Bengaluru

At the launch of the Green and Safe School project. Pic: B.PAC  B.PAC has been working on sustainability and safety issues and is now pioneering the concept of a Green and Safe School model with a holistic vision to create a clean, hygienic, safe environment in government schools that is conducive for learning. A ‘Green and Safe School’ follows a child-centric approach, where schools become a space for positive carbon footprint, free of violence, harassment and abuse. B.PAC in association with Shell MRPL Aviation Fuels & Services Ltd aims to apply the principles of the Green and Safe School to…

January 25th is observed as National Voters' Day by the Election Commission of India (ECI). Does it include real voters? I doubt. As mentioned in my last blog post, sloganeering and “celebrations” have started on January 14th. Some reality checks on the rolls of Bengaluru Legislative Assemblies, published on January 11th 2016: Was there an exodus in parts of Mahadevpura? ECI rules require District Electoral Officers (DEO) to examine cases of deletions exceeding 2% and additions exceeding 4%. Deletion is more than 2% in 152 parts. Top 7 of them are from Mahadevapura constituency, with more than 20% deletions each. 266…

A 35 metre long cycle lane laid on a pilot basis at HSR Layout. Pic: Akshatha M HSR Layout in Bengaluru is in news yet again for the proposed cycle lanes. A 35-metre long green lane painted with images of cycles is arousing curiosity among people. What’s going on? Has this been tried elsewhere in the city? What were the results? Will HSR Layout plan survive the test of time? Bengaluru got its first cycle track on public roads in 2012. Separate cycle tracks were laid on about 40 km stretch in Jayanagar with the Department of Urban Land Transport…

A file picture from an earlier edition of Traffic Police Day. Despite the growing vehicular population, Bengaluru is kept on the move thanks to its traffic police. Battling the harsh sun, rain, pollution, the indignant citizen and many civic woes, the service of the Traffic Police goes unnoticed. With the aim of urging young people to recognise their tireless contribution and to empathise with the hardships they face, (Children’s Movement for Civic Awareness) CMCA organises 'Traffic Police Day'. Traffic Police Day is dedicated to thanking one of the city’s unacclaimed heroes – the traffic police. 2016 marks the 11th annual celebration…

  Bengaluru this week January 21st 2016     CITIZEN MATTERS Bangalore's own interactive newsmagazine Speak up, it's your city!     Can you imagine if it was possible to take a train for your commute within Bengaluru? For starters, it would be cheaper, it would decongest the roads, and you’d possibly get to where you wanted much quicker. This may become a possibility if you extend your support to the Namma Railu campaign. In this edition, we tell you how you can #SupportNammaRailu, ahead of the railway budget and beyond. Also read the latest updates on what is happening with…

With the absence of major rivers, floods in Bengaluru are caused only by rainfall. Knowing which are the months that are vulnerable to floods helps in taking necessary precautions. Primary rainy season in the city is from June to September when Bengaluru receives rain from South-West Monsoon, and secondary rainy season is from November to December when it receives rain from North-East Monsoon. Here is the raw data for rainfall in 100 years, from 1901 to 2000. This exhaustive data is plotted in graphs for each month.    100 years rainfall graph for the month of January  100 years rainfall…

Citizen Matters is looking to work with citizen writers/photographers for a new series: Disappearing professions of Bengaluru. Through this series, we are looking to capture the essence of a Bengaluru that is slowly disappearing, and create a repository of what could perhaps become history in a few years. The series will offer an insight into how Bengaluru is coping with all the change, as the city and her people move forward in the race to become a true metropolis. Disappearing professions of Bengaluru Do you remember the knife sharpeners, kulfi walas/ice cream carts, salt sellers, son papadi sellers, metalware repairmen, etc…

Why is the city of Bengaluru full of traffic? Why does everyone prefer private vehicles as opposed to public transport? If one decides to use public transport, will s/he be able to do it comfortably? The answer to all the above questions is: Bengaluru doesn’t have a reliable, predictable public transport network yet, which forces people to use private vehicles. Result: Traffic jams, with average speeds of 6-9 kmph on road! Bengaluru has been blessed with good rail network (Check the list here). This can be used effectively to beat the traffic woes of the city. In fact, many parts…

GAIL has begun the pipeline laying work for its PNG project in HSR Layout. Pic: Akshatha M Within months of the GAIL Gas Ltd initiating work on its ambitious City Gas Distribution Project in Bengaluru, it has attracted the wrath of residents of HSR Layout. A few days ago one of our readers had written about how HSR Sector 7 residents are caught between GAIL and BBMP. The author had complained against the contractors for doing a shoddy job and not restoring the trenches properly. Now it is the turn of HSR Sector 2 residents. HSR Layout is the second…