City: Bengaluru

Property taxes are due city-wide, but clear information about how the tax is to be calculated has still not reached citizens, and this has created much disturbance and worry.To address the confusion, the Citizens' Action Forum (CAF) on 29th November passed a resolution demanding that the state government should bring back the Annual Rateable Value (ARV) based property tax system. CAF claims that the revised system which the BBMP has introduced recently was a violation of all the promises politicians had made before the elections.The meeting saw a participation of around hundered people from various residents associations who voiced their…

Is it difficult for citizens who are so articulate, so cultured and so well informed on conditions abroad to help evolve a traffic flow system and ensure the woes of commuters? The solution could be planned in several layers.Top on the list is synchoronised signal lights, adjusted to a moderate speed level. Moderate, because all kinds of vehicles ply on our roads and some of them may not touch the speed limit of 40 kilometers per hour.Heavy vehicles, cargo laden trucks and the like must be barred entry in arterial roads. If this is not possible, they must be allowed…

When we talk of garbage not being disposed off well, we do not think about garbage other than the regular kitchen waste and plastic. One major type of waste that we hardly talk about is radioactive waste, produced at cancer hospitals. While our kitchen waste may not be so harmful, radioactive waste can be hazardous. On a casual inquiry, I found out that the cancer hospitals in Bengaluru were apparently disposing residual radioactive waste into the public sewerage and garbage. This sounds alarming, but this is what they are supposed when the radioactive material (used for treatment) is 'fully used'.…

Some of the cyclists of Bengaluru decided to organise an event called 'Critical Mass' on the evening of 27th November in the city. They would like to reclaim the roads of their city for cycles and other forms of non-motorised transport. All over the world, the Critical Mass (CM) is done on the last Friday of the month. Even though it was a working day, the idea was to spread the message in a live form to a large commuter base. If it were to be on a weekend, it would simply be a weekend leisure ride. CM helps in…

Bengaluru witnessed a special and a very essential awareness campaign this Sunday. 1st December being World AIDS Day, the students of Symbiosis Institute of Business Management (SIBM), Bangalore, along with ActionAid, an international NGO, held a campaign in the city to sensitise Bangaloreans about AIDS and ways to deal with it. The motive was to remove the stigma associated with this dreaded disease which has already raised its ugly head in India, and is spreading rapidly. Action Aid139, Richmond Road, Bangalore-560 025 Telephone: +91-80-25583767/25586682Forum Mall at Kormangala saw a host of events organised by SIBM and ActionAid. The latter had…

The Kadlekai Parishe (groundnut festival) is a cultural tradition of Bangalore that has survived for over four centuries. One of the city's oldest cultural events, it takes place on the last Monday of the Karthikaa month at the Bull Temple Road in Basavangudi  . This year there were a lot more people than the last year, by eye witness accounts. Amoghavarsha visited the festival and snapped up these moments. Groundnut stalls, heaps of groundnuts, that bring flavor and name to the fair! This is the cool future teller! Different shapes and sizes of robot dolls with some pre-recorded future messages…

I was to board the KSRTC Meghadoota service to Chennai on 27th November 2008 at the Shanthinagar bus stand in Bangalore. The bus that was scheduled to start at 10.17 PM, did not arrive at the bus stop till 11 PM. The bus that managed to arrive so late from the depot had mechanical problems. The driver reported that the bus could not pick up speed and possibly not go beyond third gear. Apart from this, the bus also had very bad air conditioning, which added to the frustration and fury of the passengers. The angry passengers demanded that the…

‘Because the wind wants to feel your hair, and the earth wants to touch your feet.'- Kahlil GibranWe live in nature, but we don’t live naturally. We live on the earth, but we don’t touch it. Ninety per cent of the time, we hide from the sun. We use hot water to bathe, which is a fast, functional affair. Most of the time we condition the air we breathe. In winter, we keep warm and in summers, we protect ourselves from the heat. We burn most of the vitamin in food before we eat it. In fact, we protect ourselves…

Business International passengers drop by 40 per cent at BIA Recession in US and European countries has its impact on BIAL. The number of international passengers in Bangalore has dropped by 40 per cent in the last six months and flight operations have dropped by 1.5 per cent. This has made life miserable for taxi operators as well as ticket booking agents. Many agents are likely to go bankrupt if the situation continues for another six months. Jet Airways has stopped flights between Bangalore and Chennai. Other companies too are likely to follow suit. (Udayavani, Saturday, Nov 22) Crime Boy…

As the terror attacks and their aftermath play out in Mumbai and on the TV networks, the usual questions are making the rounds in Bengaluru. Illustration: Sujay Ramiah. Citizens around the country are going through a mix of reactions. They range from shock to worry to frustration to angst to numbness and to even a desperation to look away and move on.The attacks have again pointed out how easy it is to plan, penetrate, set up, and launch such offensives in Indian cities. That worry isn't about to go away soon. Developments: Prakruthi, a citizens group becoming known for rejuvenating…