bangalore

Roadwidening. Who thought that such a term would come into being and cause such a brouhaha here in Bengaluru. Anyways - the protests, the government and BBMP going back and forth on suspending roadwidening, TDR (Transfer of Development Rights) notices being slapped, red marks on the wall - all this has been talked about over and over. Now here's something new to swallow. Sources in the BBMP recently told Citizen Matters about 23 roads that are being widened. This is not part of the list of roads that are stuck in a High Court case. These are roads of newly-added…

The state government is doing a rethink on the Transfer of Development rights (TDR) scheme and announced a panel last week to be led by ABIDE-member Dr A Ravindra, according to the DNA. A public workshop is also going to held soon. This follows much citizen angst and resentment about roadwidening and BBMP's offering of TDR as compensation. (ABIDE is the chief minister's task force - Agenda for Bengaluru Infrastructure Development) This is a welcome move. Citizens will hopefully find their voices heard at this meeting. But the real issue is not TDR, as much as the state government may…

The Brahminy Kite (Haliastur indus) is named after ‘Brahmin', the highest Hindu caste, ‘Hali' the Greek word for 'salt', ‘Astur' - Latin for hawk and ‘Indus' the river from which India is named (which now happens to be in Pakistan !). Also called ‘Garuda' in Karnataka, the vahan or vehicle of Lord Vishnu the Preserver. However the name that most often comes to my mind when I see one is the Ice Cream Cone Bird. Anyone familiar with the bird will know why. Use of pesticides and pollution of lakes in Bangalore pose as threats to birds like this Kite.…

Where is the world's highest motorable road? And the nectar of seabuckthorn (better known as Leh berry)? In Leh, Ladakh, obviously! As many of us know, recently, terrible landslides and flash floods devastated this exotic part of India. Some of us have heard, seen and read heart rending accounts of the resulting death and destruction. And probably want to reach out to the people there. Feeling the same, a group of five friends in Bangalore, namely, Manjari Ranasaria, Christina Daniels,  Lakshmi Karanth, Swathi Chaturvedi and Mayur Jain pondered about various ways to do that. Not wanting to ask people for…

If you are a parent who wants her child to do activities that require her to think and use her imagination, you've probably scoured the market for suitable craft kits. Yes, there's a lot of stuff available but after a point, most seem similar, with instructions that are often hard for kids to follow. It was the search for safe activities and crafts for their kids to do, that drove sisters Anu Parthasarathy and Rupa Vijendran to launch craft kits for children that are not only easy to make but also introduce them to traditional techniques like Channapatna woodwork, terracotta…

Every evening when I walk my dog near Cookson Road (in north Bengaluru) where I live, I see at least four species of butterflies, hear/see five species of birds and of course spot the most commonly seen wild mammal - the squirrel or the three-striped palm squirrel. All this when I am not even looking for wildlife! The three-striped palm squirrel is one of the most commonly found 'wild' creatures in Bengaluru. Pic: Vikram Nanjappa Surprised? Yes, urban areas like Bangalore have a wealth of wildlife. Unfortunately, people living in cities are often unaware of their 'wild' co-habitants. One will…

Note from Ramesh Sivaram:Yesterday, some of the long time residents of Sarjapur Road, Lakshmish and Rajgopal of Swami Vivekanada Sevaabivruddi Samaste, a local NGO based in Kaikondrahalli, and Rajeev Manikoth, another long time resident from nearby Shubh Enclave, planted bamboo saplings at the islands inside Kaikondrahalli lake on Sarjapura Road and Ambalipura lake (adjoining Trinity Meadows and Mantri apartments). Tree planting. pic: Ramesh Sivaram. We are happy report that the saplings planted earlier in the kaikondrahalli island are all doing well. Tree planting. pic: Ramesh Sivaram. ⊕

The various communities in our ward celebrated Independence day with fervour and enthusiasm. Mantri Flora residents had a Saawan Mela after the Independence Day programme, where women participated in various events and put up stalls for food and games. Goonj, an NGO, had a stall where the residents contributed clothes for needy children. The function at Reliable Residency, Haralur started with flag hoisting by a resident and chief guest, Bhaskar Rao, followed by National Anthem. The chief guest spoke a few words about the celebration and words of advice to children to become responsible citizens of our nation,  followed by…

A childhood's memories Of looking and waiting For something exciting From the grove of coconut trees A busy woodpecker An agile tree climber Two young boys Who made little noise If we missed these We simply counted the trees What rekindled these memories Was Visthar's coconut trees! Situated in an eco-friendly campus in Dodda Gubbi off the Hennur Road in east Bangalore, Visthar is a treasure trove of nature's bounty that drives one to reflect inwards while celebrating life. A veritable hub of socio-cultural and environmental consciousness this organization turned twenty one recently. Famous for hosting annual festivals and events that…

We usually notice them at construction sites of private or commercial buildings or public infrastructure projects. They often speak different dialects of Telugu, Oriya, Hindi or a mix of these or other languages. And their kids (sometimes only partly clad) play in the sand or water lying around. A few of them live in tin shacks, thatched huts or tarpaulin tents nearby. Or in similar accomodation by the roadside elsewhere, commuting in open trucks or by walk to their place of work. These people are among those categorized as the unorganized sector. And are typically daily or weekly wage labourers…