City: Bengaluru

One day, the garbage truck didn't turn up.Up until that time, I had never given much thought to the black plastic bags which I diligently tied with all my household waste in it. Everyday I kept it outside the door of my apartment in Malleshwaram to be taken away. It was the ‘kasa’, the ‘kachada’, the ‘garbage’ and that was it. Read this article by Savita Hiremath, a resident at Brigade Regency Apartments, on her experience. Up until that time, the sight of the large garbage collection truck, with its blue sheet flapping in the wind and leaving a trail…

It is very easy to rant and rave about the problems we women face in the great city of Bangalore. Well it is not all problems, is it? Some things are possible precisely because we are in this city. IT and Biotech have opened up great avenues. But long before IT and BT, the city was known for the hub of scientific research, home for India’s premier research institute, IISc. The Indian Institute of Science was set up in 1909 and has remained the pride of the city since then. So it was only natural when the Indian Academy of…

“We don’t want to see piles of garbage on the road when we grow up. It is our future we are looking at”, says Anugraha Anand, all of 12. Anugraha and her friends at her apartment complex Renaissance Regalia on 6th main Malleshwaram are spearheading a campaign on waste segregation and solid waste management. “We do not want piles of garbage on the road when we grow up”, say the young children of Renaissance Regalia in Malleshwaram. Seen here from L to R - Sowmya Panyan, Srishti, Malaika Vijay, Prerna Mohan, Tanvi Kaushik, Anugraha Anand. Pic courtesy: Vani Murthy Leading…

Apart from growing into a booming martial arts school in Bengaluru, Independent Shootfighters Inc. is also rapidly gaining ground in training women in self defense.Established in March 2007, the school has trained more than a lakh women in self defence through corporate workshops, schools, colleges and also as a social cause for Sri Lankan women refugees in Chennai. "Women’s self defence, has always been a topic close to my heart," says Ashwin Mohan. Pic credit: Ashwin Mohan. Independent Shootfighters was established with three students by Ashwin Mohan.  Today, it has eight coaches, seven centres and over 800 students across the…

“Parikrma does not have an ‘a’ before ‘m’ akka”, Phalitha corrected me. Sitting between seven school children who kept a watchful eye over my notes, I forgot that I was the one who should ask the questions. An eight-member-student team from Parikrma participated in the recent TEDIndia conference held at Infosys' Mysore Campus. Pic: Poornima Dasharathi. Phalitha G A, Soumya N, Vinod C, Vignesh S, Nikhil G, Manohar J Achar, Sreenivas and Nehminlen Haokip (“he’s from the north-east akka”) – all studying in 8th and 9th standards were a part of eight-member-student team that participated in the recent TEDIndia conference…

Winter in Bangalore is an amazing time. It isn’t bitterly cold but chilly enough to make you want to wrap a stole and seek the warmth of the sun. The rains are gone and the city is dry, green and colourful, with pink blossoms all around. And most importantly, after a month of dull weather the sun is finally out. What’s a better time than this to take the children out and indulge in something unusual? We give you a list of 10 things to do with kids this winter. Indoors and outdoors, both. The eco-park 'Our Native village'. Pic…

What should be an ideal way to find a match? A man and a woman meet and then they decide to marry. Of course, this is the practice followed in many western countries but a rare practice in India. We claim we are a modern and civilized society but still keep a highly orthodox perception about marriage. There are two roadblocks to perfect marriage in Indian society. One is horoscope matching and the other is the practice of dowry, which is used to decide matches by most parents. The bride and groom rarely get the privilege of taking their own…

“Only five per cent of people follow their heart. The rest work to please others”, said the 45-year-old S V Ramachandran as he welcomed us into The Qurio City shop, the centre of his passion for antiques. It was around 7 PM on October 21st – and the second edition of the event, 'City Specks: Mapping Memories'. “Only five per cent of people follow their heart. The rest work to please others”, says S V Ramachandran. Pic: Pushpa Achanta. The event was  part of the theatre group Maraa’s recently concluded October Jam. For the next hour and a half, he…

The BBMP’s Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) has approved grade separator projects and road widening across the 12 arterial corridors in Bengaluru. This is part of making these corridors signal-free. Earlier, Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic) and TAC member Praveen Sood had told Citizen Matters that 80 junctions in the 12 arterial corridors have been approved by TAC for grade separator projects. This was also confirmed by H Raja Simha, another TAC member and Technical Advisor to the BBMP Commissioner, and T N Chikkarayappa, BBMP’s Chief Engineer (Major Roads).BBMP has released to Citizen Matters the names of 60 of these junctions…

Last night, I was returning from the house of a friend. We were a group of six, and all sober. We realised that a few in our group were hungry, and headed to Paramount in Koramangala for dinner. The time was around midnight, and the cops were at the door ensuring that no impressionable, upright citizen was enticed into the den of vice.. Oh sorry, they serve only food! The moral indignation of the police was to be seen to be believed. I understand the concern behind having bars/pubs open late. But I cannot for the life of me understand…