CITIZEN JOURNALISM

For a community to whom open spaces are a luxury, encroachment of our open spaces comes as a big pinch. In the past few months, we have seen two of our vital open spaces getting 'kidnapped'. This has affected our access to these spaces - a public library and a ground. So, on 18th May 2023, we, the residents of Govandi gathered in front of a library at the Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj Udyan to protest against the encroachment on the open spaces. Govandi is part of the M-East ward, which is one of the poorest and has the lowest Human…

“If you plan cities for cars and traffic, you get cars and traffic. If you plan for people and places, you get people and places.” This saying by urbanist Fred Kent holds true for Bengaluru in general, and Gandhi Bazaar in particular. Reminiscing the bygone days As Bengaluru grew into a burgeoning metropolis, due to unbridled urbanisation, it became congested. Haphazard, illegal construction and influx of migrants led to neighbourhood walkability being significantly reduced. This was seen in Gandhi Bazaar, one of the oldest parts of the city. Residents in and around Basavanagudi/Gandhi Bazaar area used to walk to the…

Chandivali is an upscale residential locality in Andheri East. It is isolated and connectivity to public transport is limited. The nearest railway station on the western, Andheri station, and on the central line, Ghatkopar station, are 6 km and 4 km away respectively. This makes the citizens of the area heavily dependent on roads for commuting. Unfortunately, the roads in Chandivali are one of the worst in the city. The DP road-9, Powai is an important road that connects the Chandivali Farm Road with the Jogeshwari-Vikhroli Link Road. The road is riddled with numerous potholes making it dangerous for commuters,…

Bengaluru City Traffic Police, as reported by the media, has initiated steps to book those guilty of three major offences -- driving or riding against the flow of traffic, riding on the footpath, and wrongful parking under Section 283 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Although the news reports did not elicit much reaction from an apathetic public, the change in policy has the potential to harm citizens by inflicting devastating consequences for relatively minor infractions. What is Section 283? Section 283 deals with “doing any act, or by omitting to take order with any property in his possession or…

It's a term Bangaloreans have become quite familiar with in the past one year—white topping. I have seen this work happening in certain areas and the disruption it causes to citizens living and working along that stretch of road. But last week, white topping arrived at my doorstep and since then my wife and I have virtually been under lockdown. The roads in front of my house have been closed to traffic. Which means I cannot take my car out. The cement surface laid is so high that getting onto it is difficult without some stepping stone. We always have…

Citizens and lake enthusiasts have reported more incidents of fishkill this year than in 2022. There have been reports of 11 fishkill within six months of 2023. While 16 fishkill incidents were published in the media from January to December in 2022, a whopping 11 incidents were reported on July 7th. This has led to concerns over the quality of water of Bengaluru's lakes. Fishkill in Bengaluru gets reported due to the efforts of aware citizens, who bring up the issue on social media. Many citizens also take it up with the concerned officers of BBMP's Lake Department. Sl. No. DateLake108-02-2023Kothanur…

Tamil Nadu generates a whopping Rs 44,000 crores in revenue from the Government owned TASMAC liquor stores every year. It is truly unfortunate that these shops have turned into a key source of revenue for the state as their adverse effect on the populace is not quantifiable. Making the entire situation even more unpalatable is the location of such shops across the state. Residential neighbourhoods which were once peaceful have seen great disruptions due to the presence of TASMAC shops.  One such area is in Perambur where three TASMAC shops operated within 100 mts, making the lives of residents increasingly…

Elliot’s Beach in Besant Nagar is one of the most abused natural spaces within the city.  The beach was in pristine condition until the early 1980s, with sparkling sand with two prominent structures, the Karl Schmidt Memorial and the governor’s Guest house with terracotta tiled roof. It was a scenic beach with scattered Ipomea patches.   Uca crabs could be seen busy de-silting their burrows at the same time being vigilant about their safety from their predators and humans.  There would be three rolls of ropes, used for dragging the net, stacked neatly in a circular pattern by the well-disciplined fishers.…

Key roads in Ashok Nagar have been subject to floods in recent years whenever there have been severe cyclonic storms in the city. An outdated stormwater drain (SWD) network was one of the key reasons for the flooding and the misery that the residents faced. Having seen the impact of the urban floods, the residents of the area organised themselves into a Residents’ Welfare Association (RWA) that has successfully managed to work with the civic body in creating infrastructure that will prevent future floods.  Read more: Perambur SWD construction: Sewage, exposed cables and other horrors Key roads in Ashok Nagar…

While much of Chennai enjoys the benefits of privatised Solid Waste Management (SWM), the Zones managed by the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) have faced issues such as a shortage of equipment and manpower. As different agencies have managed solid waste in these Zones over the years, the present state of affairs calls for a switch to a more efficient, privatised system of waste management for the greater good.  History of SWM in Perambur The conservancy services in Perambur in Zone 6 used to be handled by the government for several decades post-independence. As a young kid, I recall the conservancy…