CITIZEN JOURNALISM

Illustration: Narasimha Vedala On April 10th the Jayanagar police station in association with  Bengaluru  traffic police held an awareness programme called Pehle Aap (after you), to emphasise the need for vehicle drivers to heed the safety of others on the road, especially pedestrians, especially elderly pedestrians. Ironically, less than 24 hours later, I had occasion to visit the Jayanagar police station to file a complaint. I and another elderly pedestrian (male), were waiting  to cross the road at the busy intersection facing the shopping complex at 4th block, at 11 am  on Saturday April 11th.The signal turned  red for traffic flowing …

We stood around quietly, my brother and me, as Amma and Maami negotiated with the guys in the shop. The shop had bales and bales of cotton strewn all over the 10ftx10ft area, and housed three or four guys, in various stages of labour. After much bargaining from our side and patronising from theirs, we took home a pillow. It was grey with golden-yellow lines crisscrossing each other at right angles and turning black where they met. That night, my brother and I fought for rights to use the new pillow. Mysore Bedding and Furnishing. Pic: Vaidya R The place, Mysore…

Pic source: myprivatetutor.com Katerina Milkova, a working mother in Bangalore, wanted a personal tutor for her son who is in 5th grade. She tried a couple of home tutoring service providers, and her search ended when she found EON Education. They met her at her convenience and explained the process very professionally. They provided a demo class for her and arranged for a passionate teacher to come home. “The tutor writes what has been taught in a logbook, with the date and duration of the class. My son is also given tests by her and his scores are recorded. It…

As I walk to work, I pass by one of the intersections on 17th Cross every day. This is a one way road and therefore attracts a good amount of traffic. Luckily the road has still retained its old charm and has not deteriorated into the chaos that is 15th cross.  In the last few months, a house that stood at the intersection has been undergoing renovations. I did not pay much attention to it till it was completed. There is so much building and re-building happening in Malleshwaram that unless it is the demise of a grand old house,…

The one who strove relentlessly to fill in the state's coffers, himself has landed up in a coffin. Tragic. Shocking. The sudden death of an upright officer, DK Ravi, brings to the focus, the conditions, constraints and challenges of officers chasing taxes, evaders and hoodlums, in general, and upright officers like Ravi, in particular. We don't know yet the reason or the cause of his death, but conscious citizens like me ponder what could be behind it. And the most haunting question is, did his crusade cost his life? While that question is yet to be answered, this throws open…

DK Ravi interacting with students in Kolar. Pic: Basu Raju The news of the death of D.K. Ravi, former Deputy Commissioner of Kolar District, has come as an absolute shock. Ravi was transferred from his position in Kolar to Bengaluru, where, as Deputy Commissioner in the Commercial taxes (intelligence) wing, he launched a series of raids and investigations into Bangalore’s builder companies. It is said that these raids had discovered huge levels of tax evasion. Ravi is said to have committed suicide in his flat yesterday (March 16th 2015). However, as far as we know, there is no suicide note.…

Way back in 2007, a Comprehensive Traffic and Transport Proposal was given by Government of India. As per that, we had the Phase 1 Metro in Bengaluru, which is now being constructed, feeder Monorail / Light Rail, Bus Rapid Transit and Suburban Rail. This can be found here: CTTP 2007 From 2007 till 2015, the population has grown tremendously. So many vehicles have added to Bangalore Roads. New comers to Bangalore, especially bachelors who come from other cities come with some clothes  and documents after they get their first job or in search of the job. Initially they manage with…

From Sureshbhai Patel, who was left paralysed due to excessive physical force from overzealous policemen in the USA for being a “coloured” human being walking on the streets of a xenophobic town, to Nirbhaya who was brutally raped in a moving bus in New Delhi, it is apparent there is an erosion of the basic and universal values that we perhaps tend to take for granted. It is left to us to salvage this state of anomie by inculcating in children universal values such as respect, compassion, treating people the way one wants to be treated and helping those who…

Another Railway Budget has come and gone from the “acche din” government. However, there has been no mention of Commuter Railway for Bengaluru. The biggest beneficiary of these services are people of the city. The blame for this, however,  is not with the center, but with the State government. there was much the State could have done to facilitate Commuter Railway, which was not done. Here is the list of such issues: Lack of political will: The government of the day has the wherewithal to announce multi-crore elevated highways and induce more motor vehicle demand in the name of congestion…

Ongoing construction of the Kittur Rani Chennamma flyover at what is popularly known as Devegowda Petrol Bunk junction in Bengaluru has turned the area into a war-zone. Many beautiful trees have been brought down, footpaths are broken, streetlights have been removed and the fence between the pavement and the massive Rajakaluve (now a drain really) has been opened up. Pedestrians have to endlessly battle bulldozers, open drains and ditches, cement blocks with metal rods jutting out, no street lights (thus absolute darkness in the night) and a never-ending stream of heavy vehicular traffic, day and night. Footpath has been dug…