EDITORS' PICK

For most of us, owning a home is an important goal and milestone in our lives. It is the largest financial investment we make in our life. Finding out if it is a good time to invest in real estate is one of the key questions for people who want to buy a home. This is a decision that will finally lead all of us to a housing loan with an average tenure of 15 years, making a significant dent in our monthly budgets, thanks to the loan EMIs. So what would be a good starting point that can help…

A recent gazette draft published by the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change proposed an ecosensitive zone for villages listed around Bannerghatta National Park in  Bengaluru. "The State Government shall, for the purpose of effective management of the Eco-Sensitive Zone, prepare a Zonal Master Plan within a period of two years from the date of publication of Final Notification in the Official Gazette, in consultation with local people and adhering to the stipulations given in this Notification for approval of Competent Authority in the State Government," said the notification, asking the State to prepare a master plan for eco-sensitive…

The clock strikes four on a December afternoon. A group of four muscular men speak in muffled voices inside a SUV, planning a rescue operation that is set to take place in half an hour. The vehicle comes to a halt before a spacious farm house in Chittoor, 150 kilometres away from Chennai. In the next three minutes, a series of shocking scenes are enacted and troubled voices rent the air. The team of four hailed from a de-addiction centre in Chennai and had arrived for the 'rescue' of a hardened alcoholic, who was sleeping. The victim’s family members left…

This article is supported by SVP Cities of India Fellowship When 80-year-old Rukmini Amma fell and broke her leg at her home in Rajajinagar, her husband, 86-year-old Srikantan, called their neighbours for help. Neighbours helped Rukmini Amma get admitted to hospital, and informed her son who lives in Pune, and daughter who’s in Canada. Both rushed home, and helped her get the best treatment and surgery, and brought her back home. When it was time for them to go back, they weighed their options. Finally they brought a new person home - 55-year-old Kuppamma, a trained geriatric care personnel, who…

Divya (name changed) was a successful 40-year-old HR professional from Bengaluru till such time as she lost her mother to a heart attack, suddenly, a few years ago. She herself was hospitalised a couple of weeks later, reason unknown. It was left to a psychiatrist to identify that she was suffering from depression. She was advised medication and grief counselling which she continues to this day. 'Accepting that I had depression was not easy. Anxiety attacks compounded the problem. I went through denial before I could finally accept that what I dealing with was an ailment which needed attention -…

There are cubes and cylinders here. But this is no maths class. There are bugs and a big scorpion too, yet this is no forest. Buddha and Christ almost facing each other, not in any place of worship though. This is Bengaluru’s most famous cake show, that happens at St Joseph’s Grounds every year, in this season. If you are a Bengalurean or have been here for a couple of Christmas seasons now, chances are that you would have visited this show. It was sheer chance that saw me near the gates of St. Joseph's School on a Thursday evening…

This article is supported by SVP Cities of India Fellowship How many people in Bengaluru use Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Company (BMTC) buses, which are perceived to be the lifeline of the city, everyday? BMTC figures say the ridership is 51 lakh. This means BMTC, with its 6650 buses, sells 51 lakh tickets daily from the 70,892 trips it undertakes. Each bus undertakes an average of 5-6 round trips per day. There are demands for increasing BMTC buses. But will more buses help? Look at the city’s roads - the traffic crawls at such a low speed that even walking can…

Hadu Bahera owns a ‘home’ for 12-hours every day. During this time, the 51-year-old loom worker inhabits a six-by-three-feet space in a dingy room on Ved Road in north Surat. His co-worker uses the same space for the other 12 hours – depending on their shifts, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. or the reverse. The occasional ‘holidays’ – when there is a power cut – are days to be dreaded. Nearly 60 workers must then fit into a 500-square feet room at Mahavir Mess, where Bahera is presently space-sharing. The summer months – when temperatures reach 40 degrees Celcius…

Death by food poisoning is back in the news in Karnataka. As of the last report 13 people have died and over 130 people fell ill by consuming the prasad that was served at a temple in Chamarajanagar. This comes just two days after 87  students took ill after finding lizard in their midday meal scheme. And the chief minister’s answer to this is to issue a circular, by the Religious and Endowments or Muzrai department of Karnataka, which states that all food served in temples, including those to be donated by private individuals, should be tested before being distributed…

When Heather Ramaswamy, a resident of Bengaluru, decided to construct her house three years ago, rooftop solar PV was the first thing on her mind. Following days of research over the Internet, Heather zeroed in on an American company. Committing to an upfront cost of Rs 4 lakh, Heather got four solar panels installed on her slanting rooftop and thus began her series of never-ending ordeals. “You think that you did something good for the environment till it backfires on you. We got an off-grid unit, which was supposed to meet our power requirements. We had the on-grid system in…