City: Bengaluru

A massive Rs 2,300 crores industrial project is coming up in Agara, adjacent to Koramangala, along Sarjapura Road, the first of its kind here. But it might be coming at a cost to the people staying nearby. The project, by Manipal ETA Infotech Pvt Ltd, is a township that includes an SEZ, retail outlets, hotels, office buildings, two residential apartments etc. The project is a joint venture between Century Real Estate and Mantri Builders - while Century is providing land, Mantri is taking care of the construction. A SEBI document of 2011 mentions Sushil Mantri as Chairman and Managing Director…

Devranjan is a tailor employed at a small shop on Brigade Road who gets paid Rs. 200 on a daily basis. He lives on Hosur Road and travels to Brigade Road every day for work, shelling out between Rs. 35-40 every day. As there are no direct buses to his place, he needs to switch between buses every day. This clearly shows that Devranjan spends at least 17 per cent of his monthly income on commuting to and from his workplace. He is one among the many who face the wrath of expensive public transport in Bangalore. Connectivity between buses…

Is Bangalore hosting way too many talks and seminars and not showing much action on ground? Many seem to think so. But Usha Rajagopalan's talk was infectious enough to get us all on our feet to go home and save water and our water bodies nearby. An interactive panel discussion, "Water Matters: 1.3 billion litres/day - Where do we go from here?" was organised by ‘The Alternative' on Friday, March 22, 2013 at Max Mueller Bhavan. The panelists included Usha Rajagopalan (A founding member of the Puttenahalli Neighbourhood Lake Improvement Trust (PNLIT)), Sekhar Raghavan, the first trustee of the Akash…

Earlier this month, I sent the following letter to the The Chief Justice of Karnataka regarding storm water drains, an issue that I have tried to take up with the concerned government authorities without much success. Remarks that the High Court (HC) of Karnataka made on storm water drains prompted me to write this.The Chief JusticeHigh Court of KarnatakaBangalore 560001 March 13, 2013KIND ATTN: The Honourable Judges of Karnataka High CourtSubject: STORM WATER DRAINS (SWD's) IN BANGALORE CITYI understand from the newspapers that the Honourable Court is seized with a matter concerning storm water drains in the city and has…

"Put yourself in your teenager's shoes," the firm voice told an expanse of riveted ears, "but first remember to remove your own". Such were some of the profundities shared by Dr. Ali Khwaja, during his talk on raising teenagers earlier in March at the Parish Hall of Ascension Church in Bangalore's Cooke Town. aaaA Heart for the Youth: Dr. Khwaja elaborates his serious points in a most engaging way - with jokes, anecdotes and voice role-play. Pic: Jatin Prabhu Khwaja is a professional diploma-holder in Behavioural Sciences, and founder of Bangalore's Banjara Academy on interpersonal skills; his credible musings on…

"Not only did I have to point out the corruption, I had to do the complete investigation and support it with proof. It took me two full years to gather all the documents required to expose the corrupt BBMP engineers," says S R Venkataram, 82, a veteran RTI activist.Venkataram realised the power of RTI early on, "I started using the powerful RTI tool soon after it was enacted in 2005 which enables any citizen to fight corruption and ensure good governance in Government offices." Venkatram S R, RTI Activist with his neatly documented set of RTIs. Following up on public…

About 38 years ago, way back in 1974, there was no "no water day" for Bangalore houses. Corporation water was released to houses every day. "Water timings" was also unheard of. Corporation water flowed in the taps through the day, so much so that many houses had taps connected to an overhead water storage tank only as a back-up. And water used to fill up in the overhead tank on its own, because the pressure of the water in the pipes was sufficient to help the water "reach its own level". This was the time when Bangalore city had just…

Sometime around February 9, my maid came up to me with a Kannada newspaper and tentatively enquired whether I was free. She wanted to know whether I could help her fill in an application online for her sister Azira who was seeking a job in a Government Primary School as assistant teacher. Thinking that this should merely be a matter of downloading a form and handing over the printout for her to fill, I readily agreed. She showed me the URL in the newspaper: http://www.schooleducation.kar.nic.in. I typed it out in my browser and the page that opened up looked nice,…

"Don't worry for water, Bangalore," - a fortnight ago a news report ascribed the above assurance from the BWSSB and the Government. Nothing can be further from truth. Bangalore is facing a water calamity. The facts are given below. GAP BETWEEN DEMAND AND SUPPLY WILL ONLY INCREASE At the historical 4% population growth rate of Bangalore over the past fifty years, the population of Bangalore living in the 772 sq. km. of area under the present BBMP will increase from 85 lakhs in 2011 to one crore by 2016. With Hessarghatta gone and Tippegondahanally drying up, the only reliable water…

Many believe that there will be future wars over water. Some facts: Water, the "elixir of life" is a natural resource and must be shared equitably between every living being. Those authorized to handle water are only its trustees and not owners. The United Nations mandates 135 litres of water per person daily, but providing this remains a dream especially for people from marginalized communities. Around 3/4th of the earth is water of which 97 per cent is saline and unfit for human consumption. Two per cent of the remaining water is frozen. Half the rest is in rivers, streams,…