bangalore journal

Seven years after BDA laid out the first plan of Phase I of PRR (Peripheral Ring Road), the project is nowhere close to taking off, due to land acquisition issues. After many changes in length, alignment and cost made over the years, BDA - the executing agency for the project - gave the final alignment in 2007. BDA now plans to hold a meeting with the Chief Minister to discuss compensation for land acquisition. "We cannot acquire land or float tenders without arriving on a formula for compensation. This will be discussed in the meeting with CM," says BDA PRO…

Citizen Action Forum (CAF), a federation of Residents Welfare Associations in Bangalore, is starting a campaign to highlight what it calls “misplaced priorities of BBMP, BWSSB and the state government” and to propose a plan to resolve critical issues plaguing the city. CAF POSITIONSTAXES: BBMP should not increase property tax rates. It should first widen the tax base and increase the revenues from sources like rental income from BBMP properties, licensing fees, taxes on hoardings etc. It is estimated that only 40% of the properties are paying taxes amounting to Rs 900 Crores. BBMP should also demand 8% of the…

The collapse of a wall in a construction site in CK Palya off Bannerghatta road on February 2, which killed five labourers and injured four, has once again proved how easily government sanctions can be obtained for any poor-quality building. A Citizen Matters investigation has shown that the lives of Parbhu Yadav, 40, Sanjith Sharma, 25, Raju Podar, 60, Jugesh Thathi, 40, and Raja, 60, all from Biharm could have been saved. Preliminary observations after the tragedy had already indicated flaws in construction including poor quality of cement mix, poor foundation and lack of cement pillars to support the nearly…

With Patiala House, director Nikhil Advani, who debuted with Kal Ho Na ho, returns once again to the familiar background of the Indian Diaspora in the UK. The cast of Patiala House The film tells the story of a young cricket loving British Indian of Sikh origin Parghat Singh Kahlon (Akshay Kumar), whose passion for cricket falls in conflict with his father's desire that he should never represent England. As he settles into the life of being the shopkeeper Gattu, he is reminded of the dreams he left behind by the woman he loves Simran (Anushka Sharma). While the Indian…

Citizens of Sagayapuram (Ward 60) of Bangalore recently prepared their own programme of works for their ward.  They had wanted - among other wishes - community toilets, nursery school renovation and footpaths for 24 lakh rupees, but the BBMP sanctioned 27 lakhs just for street name-boards. This shows the stark lack of community participation in decision-making even 18 years after the passage of the 74th Constitutional  Amendment (74th CAA) or Nagarapalika Act, which  mandated "Power to the People" in urban areas.  Karnataka's Community Participation Bill Amendments that do nothing to strengthen community participation The 74th CAA was to bring in decentralisation, proximity, transparency, accountability…

The contractor who built the recently inaugurated JP Nagar underpass is now in the dock for poor quality of work. BBMP is planning to withhold Rs.2 crores of payments to pressurise the contractor to finish the work. JP Nagar's 15th Cross underpass. Incomplete and riddled with issues. Pic: Yogaraj S Mudalgi Poor quality of asphalting and water stagnation along drains of service roads have been among the many issues, along with a whole host of unfinished work. BBMP's technical vigilance committee (TVC) gave a report to Commissioner Siddiah in January. On Feb 2, BBMP's Executive Engineer inspected the site and…

If a new road in your neighbourhood is desperately needed or the local BBMP contractor is burning waste locally instead of transporting it, or if you want to use your ward's BBMP funds to spruce up a rundown local playground, what will you do? Where will you start? You'll likely talk to your residents association office bearers and then one of them or you directly will try to reach your BBMP ward councillor. But let's face it. There are roughly 25000-50000 residents in a ward. How many such requests will your councillor be able to handle? Besides, councillors have their…

On this Saturday, February 13, if you happen to be travelling to Mysore don't be surprised to see more than 50-70 cyclists who will take to this route for the Bangalore Brevets 300 km ride. This is part of a series of ongoing brevet rides in the city, held as qualifiers to the prestigious Paris-Brest-Paris event, an approximately 1200 km ride that happens once in four years. This year, the Paris ride will take place in August and a few lucky riders will travel from India to participate in the event.   A brevet is a self supported ride where a cyclist…

Yeh Saali Zindagi (Hindi) Any film that gets director Sudhir Mishra to the lens again, with the immensely talented Irrfan Khan and Chitrangda Singh as part of the cast that brings the film to life, automatically finds its way on to your ‘must watch’ list. But Yeh Saali Zindagi fails to live up to our high expectations. Even when unpredictable, the film still leaves you dissatisfied. While it’s a departure from Mishra’s previous work like Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi and Khoya Khoya Chand, there are commonalities with the treatment and thematic focus of his earlier films like Chameli and Iss Raat…

From February 7, infotech companies along Outer Ring Road are using a city-provided Common Bus System (CBS) to transport their employees to and from work. The system, initiated by Outer Ring Road Companies Association (ORRCA) - which comprises 24 companies including Cisco, Intel, AOL etc - is expected to get more IT employees to use buses instead of private vehicles. BMTC Managing Director Syed Pasha dressed in white shirt towards the back of the bus, and Seetharam Vishwanath, ORRCA General Secretary at the flagging off ceremony of CBS on February 4. Pic courtesy: ORRCA. ORRCA reached an agreement with the…