City: Bengaluru

Number of Bengaluru-based citizens groups and NGOs have filed a writ petition in the High Court of Karnataka against government authorities and private firms over the Bellandur-Agara Special Economic Zone (SEZ) project. The SEZ project, which is being built in a sensiive area between Bellandur and Agara lake, has been in the news recently on questions over environmental and water clearances.  Citizen Matters is awaiting further details regarding first proceedings of the case. We will run a detailed report when we get more details.   

The world recently observed breastfeeding week, to spread awareness on the importance of breastfeeding babies. In Bangalore too there were several awareness campaigns, seminars, rallies, advertisements and related promotions. The government has for sometime been campaigning aggressively on malnutrition and importance of breastfeeding through a series of advertisements with film actor Aamir Khan as the ambassador. Experts however are pointing to a declining graph among educated women on the willingness to breastfeed their babies even for first six months. Why unwillingness to feed the baby? Breastfeeding a baby brings its own set of ‘problems’ which many new moms find tough…

With increased demand for Aadhaar cards and the urgency among people to get the card, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has taken initiative to provide the cards electronically. Now you can get e-Aadhaar card, without having to wait for the UIDAI to send the card to you. Though this service was introduced a year ago, not many know about it. Sources in the E-governance Department which has been entrusted with the task of providing this service say that they do not have numbers available on how many e-Aadhaar cards have been issued. Why e-Aadhaar card? E-Aadhaar is a…

The Stamps and Registration Department, as an annual exercise, is in the process of revising the guidance values of all commercial and residential units in Bangalore Urban, Rural and Ramanagara district. Latest update: Look upwards; pay more!How has the new guidance value affected the realty market in Bangalore? What is the new guidance value criteria for apartment? Click here to read. Last year, the Department received 19 lakh property registrations from April 1, 2012 to March 31, 2013, in all 47 sub registrar offices and realised an amount of Rs 5.265 crore. Of this, 17% of the applications were from…

The residents of Borewell Road in Whitefield are a worried lot. This once-peaceful, residential stretch is being targeted for road widening - for the second time in six years! This will result in many old homes and new apartments being demolished. Six years ago, the compound walls of homes were illegally razed and the road was widened on either side by 8 ft. All this, while the authorities claimed helpless to intervene and stop this act. Residents had to re-build their walls and repair their homes at their own expense. Now, six years later, this spectre has resurrected, to haunt…

Monsoon is at its best this year. Rivers and reservoirs are in spate, enhancing the beauty of waterfalls across the state manifold. Weekends are your chance to revel in the lap of nature and water, more so if the weekend is long. Citizen Matters lists some destinations that are not very far from Bangalore, where you can spend your weekends this monsoon. Google maps or GPS navigation would be your best friend for all these journeys, if you are driving on your own. A trip to Shivanasamudra will ensure you enjoy the beauty of the twin falls -Gaganachukki and Bharachukki…

A picture, it is said, is worth a thousand words. So it was, with reference to the recent inauguration of the ‘Kasa mukta’ (garbage free) initiative, at Freedom Park in mid-July. While several thousands of words have been written and spoken about garbage, and about the authorities’ failure in cleaning up the mess, one picture said it all, very eloquently. (The Hindu, 25 July). It showed a horrendous pile of used plates, hundreds of them, tossed on the ground at the Freedom Park, at the end of the meeting by the ‘invitees’ including VIPs. The participants could not care about…

A scene that steals your heart. Pic: Nikita MalusareThe 17-feet-high, 40-feet-wide vertical garden, with 5000 pots. Pic: Nikita MalusareFlowery carpets welcome you to the show! But no - you will not want to walk on them! Pic: Nikita MalusareVegetable grown in pots, put up by Horticulture Department. When are you going to set up your own vegetable garden? Pic: Nikita MalusareYes, that's an EGG PLANT! Pic: Nikita MalusareTake home some seeds, and grow a piece of Lalbagh at your own balcony.. Pic: Nikita MalusareThese water-rich plants are a gardener's delight.. Pic: Nikita MalusarepotTry figuring out what flowers are these! Pic:…

Haseena was attacked with acid in 1999. She lost her eyes forever, her body suffered severe damage, which stole her right to live like all of us. Her attacker spent only five years in jail, and has faded away from public memory. However, Haseena refused to go down in life. She took up a computer course and learnt to stand on her won feet. Now she’s employed, and helping other visually impaired become self-reliant. Haseena narrates her story to Citizen Matters. Over to Haseena. I was born and brought up in this beautiful city of Bangalore, where my parents and…

August 6 was World Organ Donation day - a day to celebrate the spirit of organ donation, the process of giving life to another human by donating an essential part of one’s body; to become useful even in one’s death, to leave behind something that will light up another life. How does one donate his/her organ? Well, except for kidneys, not while one is alive. Donating organs while alive, or transplanting organs of a live human is illegal. Transplantation of Human Organ Act - 1994 mandates that the organs be removed only from a dead body of a donor, with…