January | 2020 | | Citizen Matters

Delhi Report Card 1: Has the AAP government lived up to its promises on power?

January 31, 2020 Vijaya Pushkarna

Across Delhi, from those living in small tenements to residents of big bungalows, everyone has gained to some extent from AAP’s promise to reduce power bills. How was this made possible and is it even sustainable? The first in our special series leading up to elections in the capital

Coronavirus outbreak: Don’t trust social media ‘forwards’, here’s what you need to know

January 29, 2020 Dr Rifa Tazyeem Khan

The novel Corona Virus that surfaced in December in China has affected thousands in that country and claimed over a hundred lives. Confirmed cases have been reported from other Asian countries too. What is the reality in India? How can we protect ourselves?

Will congestion pricing help Mumbaikars add an hour and a half to their day?

January 28, 2020 Hepzi Anthony

A year-long survey done in 2019 conducted by ITDP found that Mumbaikars spent an average of 85 minutes daily stuck in traffic. That also means an estimated productivity loss of over Rs 3600 crores per annum. Is congestion pricing the solution?

Amaravati and the many dreams that lie shattered with it

January 27, 2020 Lalita Iyer

Launched amid much fanfare during the previous political regime, the greenfield Amaravati project has fallen apart. With it have disappeared all promises made to farmers who had pooled in land — rent of Rs. 50,000 per acre for ten years, jobs for family members, reimbursement of children’s education fees etc

Dehra’s Rs 295-crore nerve centre to integrate and coordinate civic service delivery: Smart city chief

January 24, 2020 Rishabh Shrivastava

Smart roads, smart parking, green markets, water ATMs and the most celebrated Doon Integrated Control & Command Centre (DICCC) — hear about the various smart city projects underway in Dehradun from the CEO of the city’s smart city mission.

Privacy: The missing link in the discourse on sexual harassment

January 24, 2020 Ashok G V

Explicit jokes, sly innuendos or gender-specific insults — do these really amount to sexual harassment? Should employers adjudicate on such cases as such? To understand why and when, one needs to understand the concept of privacy in all its facets. A lawyer explains.

Nostalgia: No more frolicking on the ice in Shimla

January 22, 2020 Ashwani Sharma

Even as it celebrates the centenary of its creation, Shimla’s iconic natural ice skating Rink seems to be dying a slow death, primarily due to environmental changes and unplanned urbanisation in its surroundings.

Kolkata plans its first biomining project at Mollar Bheri landfill on eastern wetland

January 21, 2020 Mou Chakraborty

The Rs 21-crore project will be implemented in 55 acres of land near Mollar Bheri, a shallow fishery located in the East Kolkata Wetlands, that has seen a 12-feet-high mountain of waste build up over the years.

Op-ed: A few simple steps towards designing safer public spaces for women

January 20, 2020 Suchitra Deep

For too long, we have lived in and accepted cities built by men, for men. But as more and more women need and want access to public spaces within their cities, we need paradigm shifts in design to make these safer for them. Here are some simple first steps.

Helping boys and men become change agents in the gender equality movement

January 20, 2020 Aruna Natarajan

Continuing our special series on women’s safety, we present a list of NGOs and initiatives that are working towards sensitising boys and men on gender issues. Using resources, toolkits, workshops and lectures, they enable men to play key roles in preventing violence and discrimination against women.

HawkEye, Bharosa, transit dorms and more: Women’s safety initiatives from Telangana police

January 18, 2020 Kolla Krishna Madhavi

In this interview, Swati Lakra, IPS, IGP Law and Order and In charge of the Women’s Safety Wing of the state, talks about the various steps the police have taken to help women in distress. Continuing our special series on women’s safety

How have Indian states put the ‘Nirbhaya Funds’ to use?

January 17, 2020 News Desk

The Nirbhaya Fund was introduced in the Union Budget 2013, with a view to ensuring that states could take adequate measures towards the creation of a more secure environment for women in the long term. But have states utilised this? In continuation of our special series on women’s safety

Why ‘Fast Track Courts’ have been slow to ensure justice for women and children

January 16, 2020 Bindu Gopal Rao

The main intent behind the setting up of Fast Track Courts was to speed up trials and decide cases relating to serious crimes, especially against women and children. In most states, however, these have failed to achieve anything. A look at the reasons behind such failure.

Op-ed: Gender safety starts when we look beyond statistics and cases

January 15, 2020 Kirthi Jayakumar

Gender-based violence is as old as the hills. To change something that is so deeply embedded in our thinking, we need to respond, rather than react. Awareness and introspection are the keys to changing mindsets and culture.

Have cities really made it easier for women to report crimes against them?

January 15, 2020 Satarupa Sen Bhattacharya

As India strives to ensure faster delivery of justice in cases involving crimes against women, several steps have been taken to improve ease of initial reporting. Here are some reports from different cities that indicate how these are functioning on the ground.

How released female prisoners in Kolkata are trying to build a new life

January 14, 2020 Gurvinder Singh

Shunned by families, often deeply scarred and traumatised by experiences in prison and ostracised by society at large, women convicts can rarely expect a normal life in the city after release. These cases from Kolkata, facilitated by state and NGOs, however raise hope.

Mumbai’s housing conundrum: Unsold houses, sky-high prices

January 11, 2020 Hepzi Anthony

6.48 lakh houses remained unsold across India’s top seven cities in 2019, and Mumbai alone accounted for nearly a third of these. Yet scarcity of affordable housing pushes people further and further away from the city. What could explain this?

From boom to bust: Bhiwandi’s textile industry woes

January 8, 2020 Azkeya Tase

During its heyday, Bhiwandi, in Thane district, had the highest cluster of powerlooms in the country, and was a huge employment hub with workers hailing from different states. Today this once-thriving business is facing extinction. What does Bhiwandi tell us about small scale industry in the country today?

Turning fridges to agricultural fields: Mangalore school kids’ unique urban farming experiment

January 5, 2020 Harsha Raj Gatty

The ‘thermally insulated’ compartments of unused, discarded refrigerators are being used as eco-friendly pots for growing a variety of vegetables on the ‘rooftop garden’ of Sayyed Madani Urdu Higher Primary School. The produce contributes significantly to mid day meals prepared in the school.

18000 crore rupees, nearly 5 lakh jobs lost as Kashmir reels under internet suspension

January 3, 2020 Abid Bashir Wani

Those are just the figures since August 5th, as quoted in a report from the Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Underlying these figures is the angst of thousands who did not get their salaries, students who struggled to prepare for crucial exams and many more.