City: Bengaluru

Waste or garbage management is the responsibility of each one of us. It starts with us- residents and shopkeepers. All of us have to overcome the chalta hai attitude towards this very important environmental issue. The government and civic authorities also have a big role to play. Both of them have to work together as a focussed and committed team to overcome this huge issue. Unfortunately this has not happened. Residents Welfare Associations have regularly brought or bringing to the notice of concerned civic agencies, officials and elected representatives, to move forward, on this very important environmental issue through coordinated…

Years ago, my grandmother apparently cured her five children’s whooping cough by using natural Ayurvedic remedies. When we were kids and she was visiting us, Nani was the ‘go-to’ person for everything from upset tummies to cuts, bruises and falls. And as far as I remember, her remedies usually worked. According to my mother, “in those days, in her generation, people knew.” Now if you ask me, these days most of us don’t know. And even if we do, it feels safer applying a medicine instead of a turmeric powder and mustard oil mix on a burn. What if the…

There are a lot of plans which are chalked out by all civic authorities to make Bangalore garbage free. But here are some simple things which you can do to make a huge difference- 1. Prevention is better than cure, so our main focus and priority should be on minimising waste to reduce the amount of waste generated. For instance, we urge people to stop using plastic bags. But, government needs to provide an alternative to this. Shops should be set up to sell cloth bags at cheaper rate. If cloth bags are available, then people will buy them and…

A few months back, when Union Minister Jairam Ramesh made an observation that in India we have more temples than toilets, there was a general unqualified uproar among the political class who demanded an apology even regarding a genuine concern, as always.As a resident of a ‘so called' well planned and affluent locality like HSR Layout, my observation is no different than the Union Minister. Construction workers waking up as early as 4 am to answer their calls of nature in an empty site nearby or dark spaces away from the view of early morning walkers is a regular ritual.…

I had taken the children of the Sindhi School, in Malleswaram, on a nature trail to the Bannerghatta Zoo area, and it was they who spotted this very interesting-looking caterpillar, and asked me what it was. “Looks as if the caterpillar has also packed a lot of lunch for a picnic in the Zoo!” joked one of the children. The reality, as I found out, was very, very different... this caterpillar was actually carrying its own death on its back, not its food!   A variety of wasps called ‘Braconids,’ deposit their eggs on the backs of certain caterpillars, like…

The buses never stick to timings and hence lose the faith of the commuter. File pic. Fares on Bangalore’s public transport buses (BMTC) were hiked last month, and the reason for justifying the hike was that diesel prices and staff salaries had risen. Following protests, the public have been promised that the decision would be “reconsidered.” But as a commuter I am raising a wider issue – the obligation in a public service undertaking  to ensure that all alternative avenues of closing the gap between rising costs on the one hand and revenues generated on the other, are exhausted before…

There are many survivors who braved all odds and walked with faith, who could come out safely from Uttarkhand. One such survivor is Vijaya Bharathi, a resident of Nagarbhavi. The 37- year old homemaker told Citizen Matters: “The atmosphere was as cold as death all around during the heavy downpour and even afterwards. We fought death to reach home safely.” Here’s the account of the horror she went through, in her own words. *** I, along with 12 family members, left Bangalore on May 30 to New Delhi by train. We were a part of the 45 member group who…

The soiled hands of Aditi, Arush, Dev and their friends told a different story altogether. Their happiness knew no bounds as the youngsters carried saplings and buckets of water as part of a 2-day long tree plantation programme. This was organized by Rank Residency Apartment Owners’ Association at Kaggadasapura on 15th and 16th June, 2013 with assistance from Trees For Free treesforfree.org The area has been witnessing large scale felling of trees due to unplanned urbanisation and encroachment. A decision was made about replacing the lost green cover. Appropriately, the residents named the initiative as “Trees for Tomorrow”.Anytime is right…

We all dream of a clean city where there is no garbage on the road, where one does not hear vehicle horns constantly, where civic amenities are available when you need them. But is it really happening in our city? Who is responsible for this? Who should take the blame for it? I am sure many will jump and blame the government. I agree with the fact that partial blame lies with the governing bodies but what about us? Have we every questioned ourselves? Have we, in true sense of the word, been doing what requires out of us a…

Janaagraha, a Bangalore based not-for-profit organisation, announced the results of its Ward Quality Score (WQS) 2013 project on June 28, 2013, revealing a worrying decline in quality of infrastructure and services enjoyed by citizens of Bangalore. WQS assessed all 198 wards of Bangalore across 23 quality of life indicators, grouped into water, sanitation, environment, mobility and public amenities. Overall City Quality Score for Bangalore declined from 5.5 in 2010 to 4.4 in 2013. Pattabhiram Nagar in Jayanagar Assembly Constituency (Ward No. 168) and Yelahanka Satellite Town in Yelahanka Assembly Constituency (Ward No. 4) are the best two wards of Bangalore…