City: Bengaluru

Bangalore being a land locked city, many are not aware as to what the Indian Navy is all about. In fact the role and responsibility of the navy is not very clear to the majority of the nation. I still remember an incident, which happened way back in the early seventies when I was coming by train on annual leave to Bangalore. A fellow passenger asked me where I was working, I told him "I work in the Indian Navy". He gave my answer a very serious thought and after much reflection he said, "You people must be getting fish…

Namma Bengaluru - the so called 'naturally air-conditioned' city has long since lost its claim to this epithet. We do have summers and winters now and for all practical purposes, winter is not far away. Growing Radish in containers. Pic: Manikandan P. For me winter typically conjures up images of cold weather warmed by the winter sun, yummy carrot halwa, hot radish /cabbage parathas with pickle, comforting soup and masala tea. And a recent trip to the hills not only convinced me completely that cold weather makes one eat more; It also reinforced the excitement and joy of growing one's…

A notorious gang of criminals conning Bengaluru women into giving up their jewellery since 1991 were caught recently. Police (Bangalore South) are now preparing chargesheets against the gang members.  Gang members lined up outside the JP Nagar police station. Pic courtesy: JP Nagar Police. The gang used to steal jewellery from women, posing as policemen and promising to keep the jewellery safe. In Bangalore alone, there are 100 cases against the gang in 34 different police stations. Ten of the gang were nabbed on September 12 while six others were arrested on October 3 by the special squad. The squad…

Ghosts trapped in jars, straw flutes, tornado in a bottle; the complexities of science can be simplified for children in a fun way and this is exactly what Agastya Foundation does. A Bangalore based foundation dedicated to hand on science education, their aim is to foster creative thinking among underprivileged children who do not have access to books and laboratory facilities. Agastya Foundation's Science Fair. Pic: Usha Hariprasad. Chairman Ramji Raghavan left an illustrious corporate career in 1998 to set up the Foundation, which has such eminent scientists like P K Iyengar (Former chairman of Indian Atomic Energy commission) and…

Sanjay Mokla, 30, a native of Sangameshwar in Maharashtra joined Decathlon, a sports store in Bangalore as a cycle technician after quitting his job as a sales executive to be around what he loves most - cycles. His passion is evident when he introduces his work area as "dream place". Sanjay Mokla at home amidst cycles. Pic: Yogaraj S Mudalgi At college, Mokla has been a B.Sc topper and has cycled from Srinagar to Kanyakumari. More recently from his base in Bengaluru, he has taken on several long distance cycling trips. In conversation with Citizen Matters, he talks about his…

Zooni*, a 20-year-old resident of Yeshwantpur and a sex worker "by chance and not by choice," as she puts it, is a typical example of a woman who was driven into the sex trade as a result of being caught in a bad marriage. Public pledge to end AIDS, displayed at Bhoruka Charitable Trust's testing centre. BCT is an NGO funded by KSAPS. Pic: Deepa Ranganathan. Married at the age of 17, Zooni was impregnated by her husband, whom she describes as "a drunkard," months after their marriage. He abandoned her last year, but has continued to demand sex and…

Raadha 2010, an annual dance and collaborative arts festival was organsed by Raadha Kalpa between the 29th of October and 15th November across various venues in the city. Raadha Kalpa, founded by Rukmini Vijayakumar, a Bangalore based classical and modern dancer and choreographer, is an organization dedicated to the promotion of art and culture through performance, teaching and artistic collaboration. The Indian traditional ideals are communicated in Bharatanatyam, maintaining the purity of the classical form, and utilizing innovation within the classical context. Rukmini, one of the most talented artistes of the city holds a degree in Modern dance and Classical…

As part of the  "How to make Bangalore clean" drive BBMP and Solid Waste Management Round Table (SWMRT) were at Russel Market to educate the vendors at Russell Market, Shivajinagar on waste segregation at source. The drive was launched on November 14th. Built in 1927 Russell Market is still one of the most crowded and famous markets in the city, known for its variety of meat and seafood. Some of the rarest, exotic vegetables, fruits and flowers can also be found in Russell Market. One of the predominant reasons Russell market has lost its charm is the fact is the…

Castle Street in the heart the city has turned into a nightmare for residents of the road. Almost four months ago, KPTCL dug up the road to lay their lines which took over a month to be completed. Contractors were hired and water and sewage lines of most of the homes on the road were damaged during the digging. Requests for the lines to be repaired fell on deaf ears and finally private plumbers were hired by most residents to repair their lines. Immediately, BBMP issued notices to the residents and in some cases threatened to take them to the…

Why don't shark attack lawyers? Professional Courtesy!However lawyers with failing practice are sharks minus the teeth.  Lacking the ferocity, the honourable practitioners of law turn to fictional tales of courtroom victories to rope in unsuspecting clients - RangaTantra"Bandavaalavillada badayi " loosely translates to "Bluffing with no bounds", The  central character of this play is Ahoblu Rao, a practicing lawyer who is, practice challenged.  While his limited courtroom success partly explains his living condition, his is a story affected by a no-nonsense wife, getting nowhere son, assistants who expect to be paid for their services and clients who don't expect to…