City: Bengaluru

Since its inauguration, a large number of people have been taking joy rides on the Metro. Now, after about three weeks, there are those who still take fun rides, but the number of regular users is on the rise too.Most are professionals whose office and home, both, are located near the stretch. But many use Metro along with other transport modes to connect from home to office. Pallavi Rao, a Yeshwantpur resident in her 20s, takes two buses - one from Yeshwantpur to Shivajinagar, and another from Shivajinagar to MG Road - and then rides the Metro to her office…

An announcement from BBMP in newspapers a while back has asked for citizens to write in with objections if any, to the proposed changes in road names. It is not just roads but also areas that have been renamed (among them Frazer Town, which everybody still refers to as Frazer Town rather than as Pulakeshinagar.The rationale for name changes is that the old names are relics from a colonial past and that we need to commemorate our own, indigenous heroes and  leaders (from Kittur Chennamma to Kempe Gowda, to former judge, governor and freedom fighter Nittoor Srinivasa Rau) which is…

Angry at BDA going back on its word, about 40 residents protested the flyover construction at Koramangala 80 feet junction in 1st block on November 7th. BDA had earlier agreed to stop the works until a consensus was reached. The protest began at around 9 in the morning and went on for about two hours.The residents have been protesting over the last month demanding BDA to stop the flyover construction. Residents had met top BDA, BBMP officials, and given petitions to elected representatives over the past month. 40 residents staged a 2-hour protest on Monday. Pic Courtesty: N R Suresh,…

The Department of Horticulture, Lalbagh, and Bangalore Environment Trust have recently restored and catalogued a total of 1020 rare botanical paintings - water colour illustrations, pencil sketches, ink drawings and lithographic prints - drawn by several artists in the late nineteenth century between 1887 and 1949. The drawings had been created in an effort to document plants, trees and fruits found in or considered important for the Mysore Kingdom. Illustration of Gloriosa Superba from the lily family. Source: Botanical Illustrations Collection at Lalbagh The old drawings had weathered, faded and were attacked by silverfish. These have been now restored, scanned,…

If you have a penchant for embroidered fabric in pastel colours, then Hakoba is the place. It offers fabrics with beautiful embroidery in subtle colours. Hakoba has its presence overseas as well. Our Bengaluru houses an exclusive showroom of Hakoba at Jayanagar, Gandhi Bazaar and Commercial street. The Jayanagar store sells sarees, salwar kameez, dupatta sets to embroidered fashion fabrics. It also offers Kurtas and party wear shirt for men. Embroidered fabric from the royal times. Pic: Nagashree GururajA privilege once reserved for kings and queens, embroidery is an ancient art. Centuries ago, embroidery added grace and refinement to royal…

In the last few months, many apartments in the city were pulled up for not operating their Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) according to standards. Apartment associations had complained that the standards set for STPs were too stringent and that officials did not follow clear guidelines during inspection. Click here to download The STP Guide: Design, Operation and Maintenance A guidebook released by the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) on November 1st addresses these issues. The book was authored by Dr Ananth S Kodavasal, environment expert and Founder of Ecotech Engineering Consultancy. Dr Kodavasal, in the book, has recommended that…

If there is an area where Hindi cinema has never quite got it right, it's science fiction. So as Hindi cinema's most expensive film ever and with the might of Shahrukh Khan backing production, Ra.One raised expectations. But in an age where films like Matrix, Avatar and Inception are routine, director Abhinav Sinha's Ra. One does seem like it's 20 years too late. The film based on a three-page story penned by Abhinav Sinha, was inspired by a commercial. Yet it's interesting that Sinha was Shahrukh's choice for director on Hindi cinema's most ambitious project till date. While Sinha earned…

For M Abdulla Saleem, his recent appointment as Additional Commissioner Police (Traffic) is a return to familiar turf. He succeeded Praveen Sood a few months ago. "I am basically a traffic man," proclaims Saleem and it is not without justifications. Pic Courtesy: DCP (Traffic) Office The 1993 batch IPS officer previously served as the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Traffic East Division, Bangalore and in 2010 completed a PhD in Traffic Management from Bangalore University. He has held various posts across the state including Assistant Superintendent of Police, Gulbarga, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) and Inspector General of Police,…

The Karnataka Volleyball Association (KVA) is conducting a selection trial to select under-16 boys and girls for the 34th Sub-Junior National Volleyball Championship (under-16) for boys and girls which will be held at Perinthamanna (Kerala) from 1st to 6th December 2011. The selection trial will be held on 5th November 2011 at Sri Kanteerava Stadium, outdoor volleyball grounds, Bangalore. Eligibility Criteria a) Players born on or after 01-01-1996 are eligible to participate in the above selection trials. b) Proof of age from Corporation,Municipality or Government hospitals is a must to attend the trials. For further details contact, K Nandakumar -…

Hundreds of bibliophlies, of all ages, flocked the fourth edition of the ‘Pustaka Parishe' at the Volley Ball Ground, on Sunday, 30 October at Netkallappa Circle in Basavangudi. Dr Anasuya Rajeev, in her forties, an astrologer and a resident of NR Colony, was at the parishe for the second time, looking for books on astrology and spirituality. Thousands attended the day long parishe in Basavangudi. Pic: Yogaraj S Mudalgi "They have a lot of books here and it is good for someone to find a book in the subject they are interested in." Thriteen year-old Manoj, a resident of Thyagarajanagar,…