City: Bengaluru

It has happened to every woman. You are filling a form for a bank account or a driver's license or an internet connection. And the tip of your pen momentarily hovers over the section that stubbornly demands a ‘Father/Husband's Name'. In nearly every form we fill, however irrelevant to the nature of application you are filling, this information is vital. You ignore the thought as if the field were a leering lout serenading you on the street with a song and comply to the necessary evils of paperwork. A pre-paid SIM card application form picked up in Bangalore. Pic: Siri…

Residents of Sobha Daffodil apartment in HSR Layout Extension have been waiting for water for the last 4-5 months. They had paid around Rs 10 lakh to the BWSSB for water from Cauvery Stage IV Phase II project; they got pipelines laid and meters fixed. But no water comes here yet. Pic courtesy: BWSSB.org "We paid a few crores some 3-4 years back too, for water. In the last few months, we went to the local BWSSB office some 10 times. Every time, we were told that water will come the next day or next week, but there has been…

The weather in Bengaluru has become rather unusual these past few days - with dark clouds smothering the sky, accompanied by short spells of rainfall across the city. And this after a streak of particularly hot days - which went as high as a daytime maximum of 33.2°C on March 3rd, coming back down to a daytime high of 27.1°C yesterday (6th) under the influence of clouds and spells of rain.With all apparently unusual weather in the city comes the talk of climate change and how the climate of the city is becoming worse every year. While the city's climate…

A very eminent minister to the Maharaja of Mysore, M A Srinivasan, had once compared the philosophy of Golf with the essence of Bhagavad Gita - "Address yourself to your duty, O Arjuna, choose your weapon, act, and do not look up to see the fruit of your action". Golf. Growing up in a non-Army middle class background in Bangalore, my introduction to the sport was through the world of P G Wodehouse. Relationships were made or broken based on the characters' ‘handicap'.A sport that originated in pristine greens of Scotland - St Andrews being the Mecca of Golf -…

What would it be, to stand atop a gold mill tailing dump and be a sole witness to century old gold fields, sophisticated mining machinery and the deserted British colonial township of yesteryears? Or how would it be to stand amidst a shakthi and tantric temple which dates back to Ganga period and hear stories of sacrifices and wishes fulfilled from the bygone era? If this is the kind of experience you are seeking then head out to Kolar, one of the prosperous towns of Karnataka during the British era. KGF. Pic: Usha Hariprasad History of Kolar Abandoned forts, temples,…

40% of all the Cauvery water that gets pumped into the city - from a distance of about 140 km and to a height of 500m, at a cost of Rs 300 crores a year is said to be unaccounted for. This is either wasted as a result of leaks or is stolen or not recorded because of faulty meters, thus making it ‘Non-Revenue Water (NRW)' or ‘Unaccounted For Water (UFW)'. BWSSB has woken up to this alarming reality and is trying to address a part of the problem through a project funded by the Japan Bank of International Co-operation…

High mountains, deep mines and pristine particles - that's where you'll find yourself or lose yourself to the basic sciences of "Astrophysics and Astronomy" and their endless possibilities. "For the purpose of research, the collection of particles that reach the Earth from outer space needs to happen either at high altitudes or deep beneath the Earth's surface," says 70-year old astrophysicist Dr. Palahalli Vishwanath as he reminisces his work days spent at the best of locations that he would perhaps never have visited had work not taken him. And if that sounds exciting, then you should probably find out more…

"I am amazed to see how this barren land has been transformed into an oasis! " exclaims Prashanth Bhat, a prolific landscaper. He pauses in his speech and gently leans over the podium, to reabsorb the expanse of manicured verdure lying before him. The evidently humbled man takes a breath to proceed, "Such initiatives like this Horticultural Training Centre (HTC) are threatening my own job as a inner-city landscaper," he comments. The gesture is obviously dispensed in tribute to the dazzling dozen-year-old venue.But the actual occasion Bhat is gracing is the 25-year anniversary celebrations of the HTC. The Centre, as…

"We are a pure science research institute that focuses on biological sciences but we are also probably the only institute that recognises the need to diversify. We have students from engineering and technology backgrounds taking up Ph.D courses with us," says Dr. Mukund Thattai, Professor (Computational cell biology) capturing the essence of the National Centre for Biological Sciences in Bangalore, an offshoot of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR). NCBS. Pic courtesy: ncbs.res.in Students have to appear for an entrance exam held by TIFR which is a common exam for about seven institutes : TIFR, CDFD, NBRC, CCMB, NCCS,…

If you live within three km of South End circle, you have good news - you can throw away your wall clocks and wrist-watches, for the city administration has now put in place for you a fancy timekeeper, a 61 foot high ‘sky-kissing', ambara chumbana clock tower at the traffic intersection that chimes out the hour, every hour.With elections approaching, perhaps those sitting in decision-making kursis felt that just as the rural raitaru have been promised free electricity and other handouts, we the educated urban citizens too needed some goodies and gifts, so that we do not feel left out.…