With the Lok Sabha elections right around the corner, Citizen Matters caught up with Prashanth Goutham of Arappor Iyakkam. In this freewheeling discussion with Meenakshi Ramesh, Prashanth details the roles and responsibilities of an MP and what voters must look for in deciding on the ideal candidate.
[Meenakshi Ramesh anchors the Chennai edition of Citizen Matters and is actively involved in many civic initiatives. She can be reached at meenakshi@citizenmatters.in]
“The road is broken, buses are overcrowded, traffic disrupts daily life, garbage piles up on the streets”—these are everyday complaints of citizens across Indian cities. In Bengaluru, these issues only seem to be worsening with passing time. Bengaluru’s built-up area grew by 85.19% between 2001 and 2020, resulting in commuters losing 168 hours (one week) annually to traffic congestion. As the city grows rapidly, governance systems, data frameworks, and citizen participation have failed to keep pace with its increasing complexity. What would it take to bridge this gap? A report by Janaagraha, a non-profit working to improve the quality of…
Cities are the heart of the Indian growth story. Vibrant. Crowded. Diverse. Multidimensional. And yet, as we look around us, we find that they are ridden with problems and face multiple threats to their ecology, habitats and human lives. The crises in our cities make it hard to imagine an urban future that is truly inclusive, sustainable and marked by high liveability standards. But as the oft-cited quote from anthropologist Margaret Mead goes, "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." That is perhaps the…