EDITORS' PICK

Mumbai’s coastline and green spaces are under threat from a series of infrastructure projects that could impact the marine ecology, flora, fauna and the last remaining green lungs of the polluted megapolis. Over the past five years, large-scale road, highway, metro and other infrastructure projects have been sanctioned to keep up with the growth of India’s booming financial capital. However, as these markers of development criss-cross through the city and nearby areas, the forests, coastline and ecology faces collateral damage. Currently in the spotlight is the Mumbai coastal road project, a 30-kilometre long road connecting the south and north of Mumbai,…

This summer, apartment communities in Bellandur have struggled with water scarcity as their borewells dried up and private tankers cut down supply. In a recent workshop organised by the RWA network Bellandur Development Forum, the communities here decided to take initiative themselves to improve groundwater levels in the area. Several communities have started digging recharge wells in their own premises, at their own cost. One of these is Mantri Espana. Seven recharge wells are being dug in the premises of this apartment complex. The complex has had a rooftop rainwater harvesting (RWH) system for many years. This, along with their…

The three-year war of attrition between the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government and Lt Governor Anil Baijal over installation of CCTV cameras across the capital appears to be over. Work has now begun on the plan to install 2000 cameras in each of Delhi’s 70 assembly segments, one of the flagship programmes of the Arvind Kejriwal government. The objective is crime prevention. As per police records, Delhi sees one murder, six robberies, as many rapes, nine molestations, 19 snatchings, 126 vehicle thefts and 17 fatal road accidents every day, besides the ever present threat of terrorist attacks. Making the security…

Residents of Shenoy Nagar, especially those who live in the lanes around Thiru Vi Ka Park, all speak fondly of the time the park truly belonged to the people. They remember walking in the park as children, hosting events that were enjoyed by the community and taking refuge from the harsh Chennai sun in the cool shade of its many trees. But all this changed with the arrival of the Koyambedu-Shenoy Nagar-Nehru Park metro station. The park that was closed to residents in 2011 remains so after all these years, leaving only a yearning for the past and a fight…

Two retired bureaucrats -- IAS and former commissioner of Bhubaneswar Municipality Corporation (BMC) Aparajita Sarangi (BJP) and retired IPS officer and former Mumbai Police Commissioner Arup Mohan Patnaik (BJD) -- along with Janardan Pati, the CPI (M) candidate supported by Indian National Congress (INC) were among the 13, mostly fresh, faces in the MP elections in Bhubaneswar. The city voted on April 23rd to elect both MLAs for the Odisha Vidhan Sabha and MPs to the 17th Lok Sabha. However, the primary legislative role of an MP notwithstanding, many voters in the Odisha capital, are still looking at their elected…

Manasi Dighe (name changed) rises before the sun, changes into a sari, plaits her thinning hair, and sets out. At the crack of dawn, her eyes begin searching the road, hoping to find plastic, metal or glass items which, at ₹20 a kilo, could earn her ₹100 in a day. Manasi covers 20 to 30 kilometres daily, when barely a kilometre from her Bhim Nagar hut in Mankhurd, an eastern suburb of Mumbai, is Asia’s largest dumping ground—the Deonar landfill. Mumbai’s 12.4 million citizens send 9000 metric tonnes of waste to this 134-hectare dumping ground every day. If one corner…

Manasi Dighe (name changed) rises before the sun, changes into a sari, plaits her thinning hair, and sets out. At the crack of dawn, her eyes begin searching the road, hoping to find plastic, metal or glass items which, at ₹20 a kilo, could earn her ₹100 in a day. Manasi covers 20 to 30 kilometres daily, when barely a kilometre from her Bhim Nagar hut in Mankhurd, an eastern suburb of Mumbai, is Asia’s largest dumping ground—the Deonar landfill. Mumbai’s 12.4 million citizens send 9000 metric tonnes of waste to this 134-hectare dumping ground every day. If one corner…

This election season, Factly.in has put together a series of videos that seeks to deconstruct various aspects of the massive democratic exercise to make every citizen aware of its history, processes, rules and other relevant information. Political parties are key players in the democratic process and yet they were never mentioned in the Constitution when it was drafted. Why do we need political parties at all? Do they do anything to reduce chaos in the existing electoral system? How do these political parties form government? What is the difference between regional and national parties? What role do regional parties play in forming…

As the campaigning ended on Easter Sunday for all 20 Lok Sabha seats in Kerala, the big question is whether the BJP will be able to get its first ever MP from the state. Intermittent summer showers did nothing to cool the campaigning fervour of the three main contestants - the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) working to keep its 12 seats intact, the CPM-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) hoping to not lose any of its current eight seats, and the newly-energised BJP which is hoping to cash in on the sentiments raised over Supreme Court’s Sabarimala temple verdict. The…

Hop, skip, jump or dance—follow any of these strategies and you may be able to navigate across Bengaluru’s footpaths! The Constitution of India guarantees its citizens the right to move freely throughout the territory of India. However, in cities like ours, enjoying that right seems to require a motor vehicle! As a pedestrian, you may be knocked down as soon as you start your journey. The National Urban Transport Policy, formulated in 2014, calls for “universal accessibility” and transport services for all including children, the aged and disabled. It goes on to say, “Walking is a zero-emission mode of transport…