EDITORS' PICK

The Bengaluru In-charge Minister K J George launched the cycle stands and cycle sharing rental services in Sanjay Nagar on Saturday February 17, 2018. BBMP commissioner Manjunath Prasad, Corporators of wards 18 and 19, Anand and Indira Subhash and residents of Sanjaynagar were present in the event.       The Minister, Commissioner and the corporators took a ride in the cycle as a part of the launch. Minister K J George and the BBMP Commissioner Manjunath Prasad spoke supportive of the initiative and encouraged people to take up such initiatives in other areas. The commissioner requested the residents to partner…

A newly proposed amendment by the State Government to the Karnataka Tree Protection Act (1976) asks to denotify about 50 species/ subspecies of trees that currently need permission to be cut down. Simply put, if you need to chop these trees down, you no longer need the permission of the Forest Department. Media reports state that most of the species identified in this list are those which line Bangalore pathways and will deal a disastrous blow to the city’s already fragile ecosystem. The amendment however states that it is being proposed to “...exempt certain species of trees, which are grown…

According to the web site of the Greater Chennai Corporation, it is “headed by Mayor, who presides over 200 councillors, each of whom represents one of the 200 wards of the city.” The point is, where are they? The term of the last Council and, concurrently, that of the Mayor, expired in October 2016. Ever since, we have been administered by the Commissioner, in his capacity as a Special Officer. It is, therefore, more than a year since we have had elected representatives to handle civic issues. Not many in the city appear to be bothered, but in the long…

Long before television, it was the radio that caught your ear and put it to the ground of the world. Never mind if it was a word, a note or even just a sound byte that floated into your mind. It chimed around in your head and drove home special, or even just informal, messages.   The celebration of the legacy and experience of that special wonder gadget, then, resonated with the diverse audiences at The Radio Festival (TRF), hosted by the International Association of Women in Radio and Television, partnering with UNESCO on February 15th, 2018, at New Delhi.…

From regular meetings by political parties, to cultural festivals, panel discussions or programmes in schools -- hundreds of events are hosted in the Chennai metropolis every day. While they add much to the vibrancy of life in the city, it is undeniable that these events typically increase the burden of waste on our landfills. Starting from the promotional phase to actual conduct, piled up thermocol, flexi boards, plastic sheets and various other forms of waste, many of them highly toxic, are generated during the life cycle of any event. Ironically, even many environmental events use flex banners and serve food…

It works! It works! All ye skeptics, listen to this story. I am sure there are many more similar initiatives around the city, but this one I have personal experience of, having watched at close quarters, the week long-effort to bring a little smile to the face of namma ooru. On Saturday, February 3, the Ugly Indian, a group of volunteers trying to clean up Bengaluru’s streets, gathered at what used to be a long stretch of five vacant sites across the road from ISRO head office’s east side wall in Sanjay Nagar, and set to work. This used to…

In the increasingly consumerist world that we live in, not a day goes by when we don’t shop -- whether it is for small things like vegetables, fruits or chocolate, or bigger stuff like cars, refrigerators and phones. And it is quite maddening when the vegetable seller palms off some spoilt cauliflowers on us, or gives us stale fish that even the cat turns up its nose at. Your new refrigerator might stop working in the middle of a very hot day or the stitches of the expensive dress you bought at the mall may come apart in a day’s…

A recent article on British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) website listed Bengaluru among the 11 cities that will go out of water soon. The article said: " Local officials in the southern Indian city have been bamboozled by the growth of new property developments following Bangalore's rise as a technological hub and are struggling to manage the city's water and sewage systems. To make matters worse, the city's antiquated plumbing needs an urgent upheaval; a report by the national government found that the city loses over half of its drinking water to waste. Like China, India struggles with water pollution and…

Accessing information is very easy for many of us because our phones are the gateway to all that we need. Type keywords into google or youtube and voila – we have what we need. So the idea of setting up spaces to facilitate this along to include orientation sessions will seem a little silly. But for many people, the idea of learning from the internet is still an enigma. So in a first-of-its-kind experiment in Bengaluru, the Department of Public Libraries opened one of its spaces to three organisations – ATKINS, a company, and two nongovernmental organisations Defy and Headstreams.…

The thrust on sustainability at a citizen’s level has been evident over the last few years with a steady leaning towards greener lifestyle choices among many Chennaiites. The profusion of news highlighting the threats and signs of climate change has caught the attention of the aware and sensitive, making them realise that the adoption of earth-friendly products and practices is no longer merely an option, but an imperative. But for many others, a major stumbling block still remains: “But what can I do as an individual?” Thankfully, there are a large number of people and organisations who are trying to…