City: Bengaluru

At the busy Sarakki junction, early morning traffic jams come with an additional problem - garbage piled up by the informal market set up by vendors. The vehicles coming from JP Road, Kanakapura, Banashankari go through this junction.This informal market has been operational at this junction for thirty years now. It is set up every morning at around 6am and is shut down by around 9am. It has survived despite the fact that Sarakki has two other designated market areas. Garbage piled up in Sarakki junction. Pic: Sankar C G When the vendors wind up for the day, they leave…

Go on Google and parenting terms hit you faster than a screaming toddler launching himself at mom, in supersonic speed. But the one that always gets me worried that I belong to the Neanderthal era and cracks me up at the same time has to be the much used and abused term called ‘Attachment parenting.’ Coined by Dr William Sears who wrote a plethora of baby books, it’s one of those terms that certainly doesn’t apply to India. In fact the good American doctor was definitely not thinking of us when he coined it because in India we are always…

Residents Welfare Association of Padmanabha Nagar, under the aegis of Abhyudaya, arranged a platform for citizens to interact with Mayor  D Venkatesh Murthy and Deputy Mayor L Sreenivas at Carmel School, Banashankari, on June 2. Mayor D Venkatesh Murthy and Deputy mayor L Sreenivas, with residents of Padmanabha Nagar. Pic: Sankar C G BBMP corporators H Suresh (Kumaraswamy Layout), A H Basavaraju (Banashankari Temple ward), V R Sharma- President Abhyudaya, N S Mukunda- Secretary Abhyudaya, V V Ramakrishna-Joint Secretary Abhyudaya and activist N S Ramakantha were also present.Abhyudaya wanted to congratulate the Mayor and the Deputy Mayor on being elected…

A delicious aroma of the coffee cake in the kitchen fills the drawing room when I walk in. Ammu Joseph was in a relaxed mood at her home in Koramangala. She is absolutely fond of cooking and gardening.Ammu, a 58-year-old independent journalist, watches media closely and this has always been on top of her list. She has also authored many books on media and the gender issues in media. She moved out of the mainstream media in the late 80s, because she thought she could contribute to the field from outside. Ammu Joseph. Pic: Anisha Nair Excerpts from the interview.…

In this year’s graduate constituency MLC election for Karnataka, the three mainstream parties BJP, Congress and JD(S) won the first, second and third places respectively. The surprise result was that of Andhra Pradesh-based Lok Satta party, which came fourth.Legislative council elections use the preferential voting system, by which voters can rank candidates in their order of preference. Initially first-preference votes for each candidate - wherein they were ranked ‘1’ - are counted. Then candidates with the least first preference votes are removed one by one, and the second preference votes marked by their voters are transferred to the respective candidates.…

Many school bus drivers drive dangerously, disregarding rules and safety guidelines. It may not always be possible for  parents to accompany their child to school everyday - parents may have their own limitations. But I do not believe there is any valid reason for parents not putting their foot down against such risky transport options. Picture Courtesy – Posted in Bangalore Traffic Police Facebook Page by Sreenivas Machavaram Do these bus drivers even realise that they are putting the lives of these children in danger by jumping the median? Another big question is: Do the parents know this? The problem…

Food blogging is growing in India, and a lot of food enthusiasts are sharing their wonderful recipes online. Each of them have their unique stories, experiences, and of course, their food recipes. Here are three food bloggers who live in Bengaluru doing what they love doing, and a peek at their journeys.Blog beginningsArchana Doshi, on her food blog , calls herself a “chef, blogger, author, food writer” and more. She is a software engineer by profession but when she became a mother, she had to leave her career behind. At this time she decided to blog about parenting, and a…

Chikkanna, aged 40, a traditional handloom weaver from Chowdeshwari Nagar, Kanakapura road has decided to quit weaving after things turned worse due to debt and poverty. Three years ago when profits from his handloom died down, he took a loan to purchase a powerloom. The loan came at 12 percent interest. But he failed to repay the loan due to high interest, increasing power costs and day to day expenses. A Handloom weaver from Sarakki. Pic: Sankar C G Using a powerloom, one can make one or two saree per day. But the cost of one power loom is one…

Prof. Elinor Ostrom, recipient of the 2009 Nobel Prize for Economics, passed away in Indiana, United States, on 12th June, after a short and intense battle with pancreatic cancer. Her life and her ideas hold deep significance for us in Bangalore. Prof. Ostrom visiting Kaikondanahalli lake in February 2012. Pic: Harini Nagendra In February 2012, Prof. Ostrom visited Bangalore for a few days, giving the T N Khoshoo Memorial Lecture at the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE). In addition, she was very keen to visit one of the sites of a recent research program that…

On 8th May, BBMP issued a notice meant as a final warning to unlicensed health units to obtain trade licenses. But this was not the first time; BBMP had issued the notice thrice before - first on 5th December 2010, second in February 2011 and the third in June 2011.Despite these notices, 937 health units out of a 2648 hospitals surveyed by BBMP were unregistered as of March 2012. Early morning at 6, the bi-medical waste collectors-Maridi at work. Pic Abhishek Angad The notice makes it mandatory for health units to have an up-to-date receipt of tax payment, an authorisation…