City: Bengaluru

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…

The well known artist G Subramaniam's works were on display at Silk Interiors in Bella Vista on Lavelle Road earlier this month. This store for interior décor artifacts houses a gallery named "iArt". Artwork by G SubramaniamG Subramaniam has a fascinating and unique way of expressing his creativity. He creates collages on canvases. Yes, the same collage techniques from your college and school competitions! Subra as he is popularly known in the art field, has combined this with his imagination and created a splendid new image. Most of his works revolves around Indian deities; Krishna, Brahma and Ganesha. Subra says,…

What would it be like to witness a bunch of people from all walks of life discussing and debating passionately on matters that matter? This was what happened at the lush green campus of Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bengaluru on 9th May, when around 170 people from over 60 different organisations got together for the 'Unconference' on Green and Sustainability. (Unconferences as opposed to regular conferences, are organized, structured and led by the people attending it.) People from start up companies, large firms, educational institutions, governmental bodies and freelancers held a collective brain storming at a full day…

N Sivasailam, BMRCL chief, explained Metro's position to a group of citizens waiting to hear him out, while those against the tree felling and metro's way of functioning voiced their protest. However, on the question of the Metro using the Lalbagh and R V Road, the Metro's own Detailed Project Report and Sivasailam’s explanations do not sit well together. The morning of Saturday, 9th May, saw a motley crowd of hundreds assemble along RV Road (popularly called Nanda Road) in Jayanagar. Two events were being held simultaneously. The first had been called by Jayanagar MLA Vijaykumar, who at the behest…