Blogs

Hope all of you had a lovely Independence day weekend. Mine was full of dogs, just the way I would like it to be. I started out with a few families that had trouble communicating with their dogs. We worked on breaking down the 'language barriers.' Then I visited a rather troubled dog that has been rescued from a breeder. I wrapped up the weekend with a visit to my friend and her dog Sahana. Here is a very special picture that I’d like to share with all of you to start out this week on a great note -…

To mark the 66 years of India's Independence, Yelahanka Puttenahalli Lake and Bird Conservation Trust (YPLBCT) organised a clean up drive at the 10-hectare Puttenahalli Lake this morning. The event received an overwhelming response from the neighbourhood, with about 175 people sacrificing their Independence Day holiday morning and turning up at the lake. Notable by their presence were large groups of students from the Yelahanka Seshadripuram College and jawans from the CRPF. Students of Seshadripuram College with YPLBCT Trustee Dr Sangunni   The Honorable MLA of the Yelahanka Constituency, Sri S.R. Vishwanath and the Range Forest Officer of the Forest Department, Sri Appurao also…

If you find pigeons that have been injured or otherwise in distress,  please call Harsha on 9844396701 He lives in Basavanagudi. He is unable to come and pick up the birds himself, but if contacted, he will be able to give advice on what can be done.

It was with very deep sorrow that we heard the news of the demise of eminent bird watcher, long time Secretary of the Bombay Natural History Society, Padmashri Zafar Futehally last Sunday, 11th Aug., at Kihim, Maharashtra.    He had supported PNLIT at every step and we turned to him constantly for advice which he gave so readily. He had visited the lake in early 2012 with his wife Mrs. Laeeq, ardent nature lover and writer. When he heard about the presence of the migratory Garganey Ducks at our lake, he came to see them, binoculars slung from his neck. He later brought his granddaughter…

“The best time to plant a tree is twenty years ago. The second best time is now.” - Anonymous proverb. So if you haven't yet planted a tree in your lifetime, use the opportunity this coming Independence Day morning and visit Chinnappanahalli Lake (near Marathahalli). The Chinnappanahalli Lake Development Trust (CLDT), with the support of Strategic Outsourcing Services, has organised to plant about 200 saplings. Thursday 15th August, 7:00 a.m. onwards. For more information, please contact Mr Prabhashankar Rai <ps_rai@hotmail.com>. Those in the Yelahanka area can give a hand to the Yelahanka Puttenahalli Lake and Bird Conservation Trust (YPLBCT). Established as a formal trust in…

I like August. The weather is fine and the patriotic fervor is high in the air. I see people around me proudly sporting tri-colour pins. A far cry from the days when we were told to study hard, so that we can go “abroad” and chase certain coloured cards. Today we carry our Indian passports with pride. The “Made in India” label is cool and coveted. We support local art, local produce, local cuisine – just about anything local and native is ecofriendly and is in vogue. So, I think that a blog on “local native dogs” is would be…

BMTC is about to roll out the second generation of the Big10 system. In the first instance, the system shifted from destination orientation to direction orientation along the Big 10 arterial radials of the city (later expanded to 12). Then we added the BigCircle routes, and the cross-cutting routes of the K series. Now comes the next phase - a full trunk-and-feeder system to be deployed first on Hosur Road and then on the other arterials. Here are some of the key features (and I'll discuss each of them in detail in future posts).(a) Electronic City, Chandapura, and Attibele will be…

Being a parent these days is tough. Kids today are so opinionated or pampered that they not only choose what c­­lothes to buy/wear, but also invariably decide what is cooked at home! And you’re not alone. When you talk to other parents at school, park or playground, the topic inevitably turns to foods and vegetables that kids will not eat. That means slowly but surely they are missing from the parents’ plate too — eventually. After all, which parent wants to spend more time making another dish?  The tendency is to eat what the kids eat, and the dishes that…

My journey with gardening started about three years ago, when I brought home the Kambha from Daily Dump and started composting my kitchen waste. The feeling of empowerment that I got from doing my bit soon translated to a conscious decision to move towards organic foods. This then led to starting my own kitchen garden that first began with five containers of tomato and brinjal plants. Brinjal grown in kitchen garden I cannot quite describe the feeling of joy from a first harvest, but I can assure you that once you experience it you will be hooked to growing your…

If we think that with fencing the lake area to prevent further encroachment, planting trees and bushes and nurturing them, eliminating sewage, and getting more rain water into the lake, we have saved the lake, we're in for a surprise. That is just the beginning!     It was last August when a gentle green carpet started spreading itself over the dormant waters of Puttenahalli Lake. PNLIT trustees brought this to the notice of a few experts who said it could be a form of algae, and that the best way to get rid of it was to get more clean water…