City: Bengaluru

It's not a long journey from 'Kannada baralla' to 'Kannada barutte' anymore. Pic courtesy: kannadalearningschool.com Here is a good news for all “Kannada premigalu”, whose resentment has been growing over years on the ailing status of Kannada in Bangalore. Contrary to the doomsday predictions for Kannada language, many non-kannadigas of Bangalore who were earlier stuck at “Kannada Barolla” are showing interest to learn the local language. The Silicon City is witnessing this trend over  last few years, which has resulted in popping up of many Kannada courses and Kannada learning websites. As Bangalore evolved into the IT capital of India,…

Bangalore has always been in news internationally for its software sector. Now it is the turn of lakes of Bangalore to draw international attention, pollution being the main reason. A San Francisco-based NGO, Sherwood Institute, focussing on water, energy and ecological infrastructure for cities, is collaborating with Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) to revive the dying lakes and watershed areas in Bangalore. Sherwood has invited public inputs on their site: See Better Lakes, Better Bangalore. The first watershed which is proposed to be revived with this scheme is the Bellandur watershed. Its catchment area, spread across 140 sq kms, includes Bellandur…

Dear Sir, Let me introduce myself. I am one of those estimated 48 Lakh commuters who use public transport to get to work. I travel, on average, 50 kms both ways in a day. It takes me 3 to 3.5 hours to do the same. I buy monthly passes every month and I have seen my spending go from Rs. 1350 per month just two years ago to Rs.1800 now. During this time, the cost of diesel has gone from Rs. 46.21 to Rs. 54.82. An 18% hike in fuel has meant a 33% hike in the pass rates. There…

When we are scared of creatures, we often don’t look closely at them... and so miss out on seeing how beautiful they can be. We often categorise a lot of insects as “bugs” and try to stomp on them! However, beetles are slightly different from bugs. Click here to find the major differences between bugs and beetles. We can observe beetles closely in our own gardens... but be careful in handling them. Some are harmless, but others can pack a wallop! Here is a Blister Beetle.This is called so because touching it alarms the creature, and it releases a fluid…

After years of lobbying by apartment residents against the imposition of annual fees on apartments that operate Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs), Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) has relented and reduced the fees to Rs.250 per annum. The KSPCB has ruled that apartments be treated as an Urban Local Body and has revised the fee for Consent For Operation (CFO) to Rs 250 per annum. Earlier apartments had to shell out Rs 30,000 to 40,000 per year for the same. The KSPCB order dated 17 July 2013 can be seen here. The background STPs were made mandatory in 2010 for…

Dr. Ashish Phatak, Prof. Vishal Diwan, Dr. Megha Sharma used famous comic characters Chacha Choudary and Saboo to promote their campaign 'Antibiotics Resistance- No Action Today , No Cure Tomorrow' Pic: Nikita Malusare Over the years, in India, increased antibiotic resistance especially in the case of tuberculosis has called attention of medical researchers to conduct a depth study in the effects of this microbial resistance. Three medical researchers working as an Associate Professors at R D Gardi Medical College, Ujjain, Dr. Ashish Pathak, Vishal Diwan and Dr. Megha Sharma, conducted a study in Ujjain to get to know the real…

A hoarding at the Directorate of Health and family welfare with information on dengue and chikangunya Pic: Vaishnavi Vittal ‘Dengue-like disease hits Bangalore’, ‘Sting of dengue at a feverish high in Bangalore’, ‘Dengue cases jump 3-fold in State’, are some of the headlines in recent media reports on dengue. However, several doctors in the city feel that there may be a slight misrepresentation in these reports that could unnecessarily result in panic and fear among people. A doctor with a well-known private hospital in the city, on the condition of anonymity, says a newspaper reporter asked if the dengue prevalence…

In a world of excess, how do you teach your kids to stay grounded? “Our last two vacations were in foreign countries, one intentional and one by chance. This year, when the vacation during summer was Coorg, our son asked us if we were going ‘abroad’ later.” Entrepreneur Supriya Kalbag laughs, but adds that the innocent query gave her a jolt. Was she raising a child who expected holidays to come with a foreign ticket and was taking for granted the hard work and effort that went into the comfortable life he had? Supriya decided to have a chat with…

To T Sham Bhat, BDA Commissioner Subir Hari Singh, BDA Chairman Town Planning Chairman                            Subject: Construct pedestrian subways in Bangalore This is to bring to your notice that there is urgent requirement of pedestrian subways at areas such as: • Vasanthnagar - Cantonment • Mekhri Circle • Jayamahal – Fun World • Indian Express • Mantri mall area • Belundoor • Yeshwanthpur,  etc It has indeed become a pain trying to cross roads in Bangalore as one has to literally put a risk to his life to cross a road. If he is not a good sprinter, heaven will…

Getting hold of a bottle of acid is not impossible, in Bangalore, but difficult - unless you have local contacts  - this what I found when I went hunting for acid on City streets a week before the Centre submitted the regulations on sale of acid to Supreme Court. My hunt started yielding results when I reached B V K Iyengar road and its surrounding areas. After searching in places like Ebrahim Street, J C Road and even petty jewelery shops and battery shops who use acid to clean jewels and batteries, I approached a shop on Hospital Road, near…