City: Bengaluru

Ever wondered why Bangalore has several firsts to its credit? Be it industrialisation, automation, machine-tools, aviation, aerospace-research, advanced studies, information technology, the city has been the Mecca for trying out developmental projects. It sure speaks of the progressive nature of its people and their innovative spirit. In a series of articles, Citizen Matters will try to cover the various innovations that the city has pioneered through recent history. Receiving Station, MG Road (pic: Gopal MS) Ask the citizens of Bangalore to name the city's biggest problem and they are sure to say either traffic and/or power cuts. They will surely…

Meet Prakash Michael. 56 years old, freelance graphic designer and an alumnus of the JJ School of Art. Prakash runs a graphic design studio in Bangalore and is one of the most resourceful art directors I have met or worked with. Prakash MichaelWay back, when there was no desktop publishing or Photoshop, Prakash did the layouts, assembled his artworks and somewhere down the line, nipped into his dark room to print bromides of b&w logos and images. A true one-stop shop in drawing board publishing.Over the years, the end-to-end responsibilities of freelance became a serious limiting factor. "I just didn't…

Business Price of rice doubles in eight months Inflation might have taken a beating elsewhere, but for us in Karnataka, the price of rice is heading northwards. A kilo of good quality rice now costs Rs 38 to Rs. 40. The government's decision to impose levy on rice is the reason behind this rise. Moreover, the Andhra Pradesh Government, which was the main exporter of rice, has banned export as traders there opposed the levy system. So Karnataka is now exporting rice to Kerala, Goa, Maharashtra and Gujarath, creating a shortage for domestic use. The state government has not initiated…

What film societies do is show meaningful cinema - at a meaningful hour. Befittingly remembering Hal Ashby during his death centenary month, Bangalore Film Society (BFS) screened the intriguing director's "tantalizing knuckleball" comedy Being There, a few weeks ago. Shampoo, Bound for Glory, The Landlord, The Last Detail, Coming Home and Being There - with each of his films drastically different from the other, it makes a certain categorisation that erudite critics and viewers like to 'assign' to artists and their work, an exercise in futility. However, this could also be the chief reason why he never received as much…

The conflict between preserving the environment and providing housing for the masses is age old. Whether it is an urban sprawl or a concrete megalopolis, many of us get pained at the impact on the city's greenery. We pay the price with our health, our lifestyle and our culture. Are there alternatives that can provide affordable housing and yet allow us to be surrounded by trees? What about housing colonies like those of government quarters? DRDO Township, CV Raman Nagar (pic: V.Gopalakrishnan) India first gave a thrust to industrialisation during its first two five-year plans and a number of public…

'Multiple City' is a collection of writings on Bangalore, edited by Aditi De, independant writer, columnist and editor. It includes a selection of Bangalorean experiences - with verse, translations, fiction, and non fiction accounts and as Aditi says "celebrates the spirit of Bangalore". Aditi De at the book reading of Multiple City (pic: Meera K) During the book reading at Crosswords book store, Aditi mentioned about how she got into compiling this anthology; a friend from Penguin publishers had asked her what she thought of Bangalore and she wondered if Bangalore could be considered a city at all. The stories…

Strapped into the passenger seat on a motorised hang-glider, Aditi De glides across the city in the introductory pages of this absorbing set of tales of Bangalore. As you flip through the pages, you realise that she travels across different eras of the city - Bengaluru, Bangalore and back to Bengaluru. In an attempt to understand Bangalore's identity, she has selected stories of its making during the Vijaynagar and Kempegowda reign, its growth during the Mysorean and Cantonment rule and its transformations from a post-independence literary era to the current Bengaluru. The anthology of stories by various literary figures describes…

Traffic planning, road widening and mass tree felling is all the rage in Bangalore nowadays. City officials have paid scant respect to environmental activist groups who have protested the destruction of the inner city's green cover. There is good reason for this. Do you know that our city planners are extremely busy looking far ahead into the future and have some great plans in store? Here is a rundown of some stupendous new projects on the anvil and the benefits they will bring1. Improving passenger volumes on the Bangalore Metro:High passenger usage is a key to any major Metro project.…

I was walking past an unnamed bylane in my neighborhood, known to be rather dirty and untidy usually; I was pleasantly surprised to find this common and effective approach to prevent garbage dumping.Benson Town's Litter Free Lane (pic: Pushpa Achanta) Upon inquiry, I learnt that area residents and worshippers at a chapel nearby worked with the local ward councilor to implement it. I plan to observe how long it lasts and replicate it elsewhere!⊕

Environment A memorial to a tree Officials of Lalbagh have come up with an idea to construct a memorial to a dead historical tree. If all goes well, Lalbagh will have a pigeon park around this memorial. The garden, which has a number of historical trees, recently lost a 95 year old Neelgiri tree. A beautiful memorial is now planned in its place. (Vijaya Karnataka, Tuesday, 30 December) 320 trees on Sheshadri road chopped Sheshadri road, once considered a cool place to walk, wears a barren look now, as around 320 trees were chopped for road widening works. Officials carried…