City: Bengaluru

I thought it would be a very daunting task to seek an interview with Narendra Babu, three times MLA, Congress, from Rajajinagar, and currently the MLA from the newly carved constituency, Mahalakshmi Layout. So when I called on his mobile, his friendly response and immediate ‘yes' shattered the myth of hard-to-get politicians. Narendra Babu (left) speaking to citizens (Pic courtesy: Narendra Babu) His residence-cum-office turned out to be a laid back middle class home with his office on the first floor. A tulsi plant and a few other flowering shrubs completed the picture. The office itself was a simple hall…

"The world is a playground, and life is pushing my swing." - Natalie Kocsis The Revised Master Plan 2015 of the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) designates playgrounds as, ‘premises used for outdoor games’. Bangalore has many such grounds which are managed by the city’s municipal corporation – Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP). These grounds have unrestricted access; open play areas with some play equipment and courts, where multiple groups of youngsters are involved in various sporting activities - cricket, football, basketball and some unique hybrid sports. The Akkithimmanahalli playground before the encroachments in June 2008 (pic Rohan D'Souza) These playgrounds…

A toxic landfill project, which started operating from February 2009, at the outskirts of the city after facing stiff political and local opposition for five years, could be potentially hazardous for residents and villagers living in that area, warn environmental activists. Toxic Landfill at Dobbaspet (pic courtesy: GTZ) The Rs. 55 crore project, a joint venture of Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KPSCB) and Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ), a German engineering firm, is located almost 50 kilometres away from Bangalore in Dobbaspet near Tumkur Road (NH4) and aims to provide a long-term solution to the state's garbage disposal problem. Pollution…

New routes are regularly being introduced by the BMTC. This irritates me no end since, we, the citizens of JP Nagar V Phase are not at the receiving end of these new bus routes. Forget new ones, even the old routes seem to have disappeared overnight. BMTC seems to have wiped out JP Nagar V Phase from their route-maps. There are plenty of bus shelters, beautiful ones at that, but no single bus passes that way. A number of representations and meetings (with officials) have proved futile. Travelling out from JP Nagar, you have a few buses, but coming back…

Bangalore One (B1), a Karnataka government's e-governance initiative, has been serving citizens since 2005. This ‘One-stop-shop' facility that is open 24x7 (mini centres are open from 8 AM to 8 PM) aims to redefine public service under one roof. Here's a round up of available services at the B1 centres. Services offered by Bangalore One (pic: Vaishnavi Vittal) These centres allow you to pay your BSNL telephone billsas well as Spice, Airtel, Tata Indicom, Cell One and Reliance phone bills. Bills can be paid through cash, cheque or DD. You can also pay your water bills to BWSSB and electricity…

Environment Snakes creep from drainage pipes into houses Snakes in Bangalore seem to find a new place to stay. They have started visiting houses through drain pipes. There are about 50 such incidents reported so far this summer. Till now worms, cockroaches, scorpions were entering through pipelines. It is now the turn of snakes. Scorching heat is said to be the primary reason. Snakes look for cooler places and ultimately end up inside houses. Environmentalists guess that about 65 per cent of snakes in Bangalore house in drainage pipes. ( Vijaya Karnataka, Wednesday, May 13) Crime Police look for the…

There are many instances when you find yourself staring at something and wondering, ‘Have I seen this somewhere?' MS Gopal's photo exhibition, which opened on 11th May and will go on for a month at F&B restaurant, off St. Marks Road, makes you ask that question. M S Gopal's picture of a security guard, Jeevan originally from Assam. Gopal, a young professional has found his metier in shooting Bangalore with his pocket sized Canon A350. Many may feel that this is too small a tool for taking photographs, but Gopal looks at it as an opportunity. He can carry it…

It is common for any institution to give away their “best worker” awards. However, most of us think that a common man do not have much to do with it.But Jnanajyothi, the Senior Citizens Forum of Banashankari II Stage, has, from the last 3 years been celebrating May Day in a slightly different manner. On this occasion, they honour one person each from the various civic amenity service providers who have been serving the residents of Banashankari II Stage. According to M R Rangaswamy, President, Jnanajyothi, “Normally, it is the workers at the grass root level who are the first…

Authenticity is a tough art to master. There was one time when I went to a restaurant abroad that claimed to be Chinese, had interiors that was roughly Korean, displayed Japanese art and was called, hold your breath, Dalchini (Cinnamon in many Indian languages). The Confused Orient would have been a better name. A food critic once wrote about how any self respecting European chef would take the next flight out; livid with shock, on seeing what was passed off as Italian cuisine in the city.You must sympathise with the purists for the raw deal they get. Or perhaps, you…

On the afternoon of Sunday, 2nd May, a group of citizens came together at a dance auditorium at Jayanagar to discuss one of the city's burning issues: the “Namma Metro” project. Organised by Hasiru Usiru, the discussion  focussed on social, economic and environmental impacts of the construction of the Metro in Jayanagar. The four hour long discussion also included a critique of the current plan, alternative designs, as well as legal issues surrounding the controversial project.  The participants said that they have very little knowledge about the plans of the Metro. While some appreciated the introduction of the Metro in…