City: Bengaluru

The debate about including IT/ITES industry under the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act has been going on for a while. Here is what IT employees think about their work conditions and about the IE Act. Pic: Wikimedia Commons Most employees that Citizen Matters spoke to, opined that the Act will help employees. There was skepticism though, on a government department's interference in the industry and on its ability to actually help employees.While most employees complain about favouritism, overtime without compensation etc., some complain about being affected by serious malpractices. Ravi (name changed), who used to work in Yahoo, the multinational…

With buildings trying to reach out to the sky, borewells reach down the other extreme. BWSSB is now trying to enforce the groundwater rules that came into force late last year. The Karnataka Groundwater Act, 2011 to track ground water exploitation calls for declaration of existing borewells/tubewells and mandates registration prior to digging any new borewells. File pic All commercial borewell drillers need to register themselves with BWSSB and proceed with drilling work after getting a consent letter from BWSSB. "Anybody digging borewells without prior permission from BWSSB will be subject to legal proceedings," says Engineer-in-Chief BWSSB Venkata Raju. "If…

Last December, Smart Vote and other organisations had campaigned for extending the deadline for voter registration. This seems to have paid off, as some 7.5 lakh voters enrolled themselves in the list, in December-January alone. Smart Vote had got people registered directly, and also created awareness among the public. The registration drive continues.Around one lakh applications are still pending, as they are yet to be verified and updated; BBMP had promised to complete this by March 10th. Our sample checks show that this is not complete yet. We will discuss this in a meeting with BBMP on March 13th.The CEO…

Malatesh Garadimani stands over the desk in Gallery No. 1, at Bangalore's beacon of fine art - Chitrakala Parishath. His straight face doesn't melt to my greeting smile, but instead exudes an intense self-belief. I am not as yet aware that he is a polio-victim who is being bolstered up by prosthetic apparatus. But, the infirmity of his lower limbs hasn't stopped him from excelling with his upper ones. It is such self-empowerment that induced CKP alumni and art teacher at Bangalore's Association of People with Disability - Shivubodha - to invite Malatesh into this prestigious space. After our introductions,…

For the past 12-13 years, IT/ITES industry in the state has been exempted from a key labour law which is applicable to other industries. From coming April, this law - The Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946, aka IE Act - is supposed to be applicable for all IT companies in India. While the state Labour Department is waiting for IT/ITES companies to start implementing this, the industry is said to be actively lobbying for exemption. Pic: Wikimedia commons The crux of the IE Act is that each company will have to define its employment conditions in ‘Standing Orders' (SOs),…

Technology is becoming the driving factor for the growth of any industry while information and awareness is key to ensuring healthy growth. With technology, information and awareness becoming increasingly accessible, the education and employment industries now understand the need to "Connect the dots". Education now includes courses that span across disciplines. The more diverse your background is, the more sought after you are by employers. And that is where Bangalore's National Institute of Advanced Studies plays such a critical role. The National Institute of Advanced Studies Pic: www.nias.res.in The vision of the institute is to serve as a forum for…

Most kids I know in the age group of 6 year onwards attend at least two after-school activities in a week, be it sports, music, dance or drawing. Some attend four. Many activity classes are held twice a week, which leaves kids with precious little time for free, unstructured play.Are we over-scheduling our children's lives? Leaving them with little time for unstructured free play? File Pic It's a dilemma faced by many moms, including me. Our generation didn't exactly spend most evenings in tennis, ballet or basketball classes or our summers in swimming or science camps. Extracurricular activities have always…

Students of Indian Institute of Journalism & New Media are conducting an anonymous survey to analyse the income disparities among various groups across the country. In most countries around the world, women and men are paid differently for the same amount of work. Unfortunately India is a country that ranks really low when it comes to gender parity. Based on the Gender Gap Index 2011, India was ranked at 113 out of 135 countries. These figures tell a sad tale.Article 39(d) and 41 of the Indian Constitution state the principle for “equal pay for equal work” yet the gender pay…

The Delhi gangrape and many more rapes that were never reported hitherto but are at least getting some attention now have been able to evoke noticeable public response regarding violence against women. Finally, more and more people have started understanding that millions of women all over the globe who hide their tears silently have the right to be treated equally, gently and with respect. The Women's Day celebrated at this point carries more meaning than ever before.'Promise is a promise: Time for action to end violence against women,' the theme given by the United Nations Organisation for the Women's Day…

I know how March 8 is going to be for me.I will be wished, my praises sung, my existence celebrated and my attention vied for. I will be wooed big-time by advertisers, offered discounts on jewellery, clothes. Why, someone will creatively offer 8% off on beer and champagne... There is no escaping March 8th these days if you are a woman. But there is more to International Women's Day than discount offers and "pampering the woman in you". The real reason why this day is historic, I will leave it to your online searching skills to discover - but the…