September, 2018 Citizen Matters

Murky Metro: CAG auditors point out irregularities in the way Jaipur Metro was launched

September 28, 2018 Himanshu Upadhyaya

Flouted guidelines, inadequate groundwork and hazy dealings: A look at the grey areas and violations for which the CAG has pulled up the Jaipur Metro and accused it of pushing through a ‘financially unviable’ project that has hardly benefitted commuters.

City Buzz: Manual scavenging deaths | Ganpati Visarjan in Mumbai | Hyderabad Metro honours…and more

September 27, 2018 News Desk

Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad and more … catch a quick recap of some of the important happenings in these cities over the last week.

Smart City or smart ideas: Where does Bhubaneswar stand today?

September 26, 2018 Revathi Siva Kumar

Bhubaneswar was not just the government’s first choice for its Smart Cities Mission, but has also featured in the list of top 20 global smart cities. But it has seen a number of setbacks recently. On safety, health, mobility, employment, how ‘smart’ is Bhubaneswar?

Banking on ‘liquid gold’: How breast milk banks are saving infant lives

September 21, 2018 Soumya Satyajit

While human milk banks are present in a few cities, it is still not a concept many are aware of. Bengaluru recently launched its first breast milk bank with the expansion of Delhi-based Amaara. How are these and other banks across the country helping mothers and their new-borns?

India’s café revolution: Helping the marginalised find their feet

September 19, 2018 Amrita Mukherjee

It really isn’t just about coffee anymore. A distinctive café revolution has taken place across cities, with several run by, or employing, people who would otherwise find it difficult to find a space in mainstream society — from those with special needs to the HIV positive to acid attack survivors.

With ‘upcycling labs,’ ‘safai banks’ and more, can environmental education save our planet?

September 18, 2018 Aditi Tandon

Right from pre-schools to online digital academies for adult practitioners, educators are coming up with many innovative programmes to promote sustainability and spread awareness about the environment. The question is whether these can really create impact in the long run.

City Buzz: Plans to combat urban floods | Bagree market fire | Parking charge in Delhi…and more

September 18, 2018 News Desk

A traders’ market in Kolkata is reduced to ashes. Delhi’s parking policy could mean costlier vehicles. Hyderabad gets a new city action force, while the urban affairs ministry eyes new plans to tackle flooding in cities. Catch all this and more in our weekly round up of city news.

Tête-à-tête with Mumbai’s own Bappa

September 15, 2018 Tejaswini Patwardhan

As Mumbai celebrates the 10-day festival worshipping Lord Ganesha, a citizen pens her imagined conversation with the god himself, revealing subtle changes in urban society and how it relates to and celebrates Ganpati Bappa today.

Notes from Hyderabad: In praise of the bus less taken!

September 12, 2018 Jasmine Singh

A young professional shifts from Gurgaon to Hyderabad and is pleasantly surprised by how her commute has changed. Her personal account raises important questions about how our cities view issues of mobility.

What do smart cities mean for the 99%? Nothing!

September 11, 2018 Satarupa Sen Bhattacharya

What do the commonest among the common men in our country really want? And what kind of space and acceptance do they find in the cities to which they migrate? A chance conversation with a young director of a National Award-winning film, who has filmed such people extensively, reveals stark urban realities that we often overlook.

“We oppose gay sex!”

September 11, 2018 Tejas A P

Well ok, not really gay sex, but the author objects to the interpretation of the landmark Supreme Court judgment as one that’s only about gay sex. As media and society are fixated on the verdict decriminalising same sex relationships, here’s a warning against viewing it through a narrow lens.

City Buzz: Kolkata bridge collapse | Section 377 verdict | Dengue menace in Delhi…and more

September 10, 2018 News Desk

A landmark judgment for the nation, yet another civic disaster in Kolkata, new civic rules for Mumbaikars and Delhi’s monsoon disease burden — catch your weekly dose of key updates from our cities over the past week.

Waiting to dance: What the queer community and supporters anticipate after Sec 377 verdict

September 10, 2018 News Desk

The LGBTQ+ community in India and all those who stand for their rights have been celebrating the SC verdict decriminalizing consensual homosexual acts. Amid the jubilation, we listen in to a few voices from the ground on what this landmark judgment really means for the people.

How an artist in Pune is trying to save the city’s dying ‘Muthai’

September 6, 2018 Aarti Kelkar Khambete

Pune-based artist Madhavi Kolte has always used her art for the cause of the environment and to raise people’s awareness about it. Her recent association with citizens’ collective Jeevitnadi has now made her stand up for the highly polluted Mutha river in the city.

Why are transport workers opposing the new Motor Vehicles bill?

September 5, 2018 Aruna Natarajan

Despite several voices in favour of the proposed Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, its passage remains stalled in the Rajya Sabha. What’s more, even transport unions and workers seem deeply opposed to it in principle. A look at the contentious provisions that have met with objection.