City: Bengaluru

In the first half of 2011 alone, 1172 fire cases were reported in Bengaluru (BBMP) limits, says a top Karnataka fire department official. Following the High Court's ruling on a PIL filed by the Beyond Carlton group, the state government issued a notification on July 7 this year. The notification mandates co-ordination between BBMP and the state's Fire and Emergency Services department to check for fire safety in high rises.High rises (buildings with height above 15 m) are supposed to abide by safety norms of BBMP's building bye-laws, RMP (Revised Master Plan) and NBC (National Building Code). Unlike earlier, the…

A group of like-minded individuals some curious, some creatively inclined and some very talented assembled at PageTurners Bookstore, MG Road on Saturday, September 3, for a popular event called the Open Show. I probably belong to the category of the curious and creatively inclined and couldn't wait to check it out. Open Show organises events around the world where the public can see compelling work and interact directly with photographers, filmmakers and multimedia producers. Free monthly social screenings give five curated presenters (from students to professionals) 10 minutes to project a 20 image project or 3‐7 min. multimedia work with…

"Be the change you want to see in the world" - M K Gandhi A friend of mine, talking about corruption once said, "India is like this only, we just have to flow with the tide... who has the time to spend... it's just not worth it". Another friend, a senior manager in a reputed company, talking as if corruption was a commodity, once said, "This is the going rate... what's wrong in paying?". Attempts to refute these statements and questions were resulting in long debates and at the end of it, strained relationships... so I breathed deeply and let…

"It can be presented as a speeding arrow reaching its target or as an intimate conversation between spouses." That's how R Visweswaran, veena maestro from Mysore describes naya or the rakthi raga Begada in his talk, "Classification of ragas as Ghana, Naya and Deshya ragas." He was speaking at  Shabda  an unusual performing arts event held recently at the Bangalore Gayana Samaja in Chamarajapet, recently. Shabda came into being when three carnatic musicians T M Krishna, H K Venkatram and R K Shriram Kumar met at the Music Academy canteen last December in Chennai. While T M Krishna and R…

When the BBMP budget was passed on Saturday, September 3rd, 171 corporators had got additional grants for ward works. While the allocation was Rs 1-4 crore for most wards, the highest allocation was for Mayor Sharadamma's ward Shettihalli (ward number 12). Mayor's ward received Rs 15 cr.The second highest allocation was Rs 8 cr, for Deputy Mayor S Harish's ward Nagapura (67). Rs 5 cr were allocated to Shanthinagar (117) and BTM layout (176), both of which are represented by Congress.The additional ward grants have taken the budget outlay from the earlier Rs 9196 cr to Rs 9380 cr. This…

In principle, your rights evolve from the principles of equity and justice, the principle of respecting your autonomy, your dignity, and right to your privacy and confidentiality. Rights of a patient You have the right to be informed of your disease as diagnosed by the doctor, proposed medical care and the risks involved in treatment whether medical or surgical. You cannot be discriminated against on the basis of your caste, creed, religion or race. You are entitled to respect for privacy and confidentiality of your identity and your medical condition. You have the right to refuse any treatment which may…

The Vidyapeeta ITI layout in Kathriguppe relinquished four parks to BDA as per layout plan sanction regulations. But instead of handing over these parks to BBMP for maintenance, BDA granted two parks to private parties; none of the four sites are parks now. The layout residents have been fighting for proper use of these sites since 1995. In HAL 2nd stage, BDA leased out a CA site of 21,900 sq ft to Indiranagar Social Welfare Trust in 1991. The lease was for 30 years on annual rent of Rs 2, on the condition that the Trust would build educational institutions…

He is one the world's foremost authorities on public transportation, and in particular bus systems. He led the transformation of bus transport in his home city of Bogota, Columbia and has since been involved a host of cities around the world.Dario Hidalgo is in Bangalore for a few days and he and his team of people from EMBARQ, an international organisation that develops sustainable transport solutions, are training BMTC officials on improving it's BIG-10 services. EMBARQ works with local transport authorities in developing countries to help them adopt best international practices. Dario Hidalgo, is Director at EMBARQ. EMBARQ works with…

It is always difficult to deal with the subject of a person who has passed away very recently. One is always worried that the perspective of time and distance may be lacking...so any work dealing with such a person is something very interesting and intriguing. It was with this spirit that I went to watch “Amrita, A Sublime Love Story”, produced by K K Kohli, staged by Impresario Asia, a troupe from New Delhi, at Rangashankara.In this production,  M S Sathyu, the noted film-maker, handles a play about Amrita Pritam, the noted poet and literatteur. Written by Danish Iqbal, this…

The BBMP budget was presented on 18 August, the discussions on budget went on for four days - from August 23-26. Some opposition leaders raised their points and asked for clarifications during the session. There were no official responses were given on the same day. The voting on the budget will be held on Saturday, September 3. BBMP budget discusion in progress. Pic: Yogaraj S Mudalgi Congress councillor M Nagaraj (Nandini Layout Ward 43), who was the opposition leader last yearAllocation is not equal for all wards; some have too many works proposed and others few. Many works proposed in…