GENRE: Explainers

Given that women are still unsafe in our public spaces, what options do they have if they are in danger? One option is Bengaluru City Police's Suraksha app. This app has been downloaded 1.5 lakh times since its launch in 2017. All you have to do is press the panic button on the app, which is directly linked to the police response team. Police say it'd take them only 7-9 minutes to reach your location. The police helpline Vanitha Sahaya Vani offers immediate intervention and rescue in cases of domestic violence and other forms of abuse. It also offers services…

What is the Corona Virus? Corona viruses have attracted attention for causing epidemics in the 21st century. However, their existence goes much further back in time. Human CoV (HCoV) in particular has been infamous for causing epidemics better known as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (2003, Guangdong, China) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (2012, Saudi Arabia). The novel Corona Virus (nCoV 2019), hitting current headlines, surfaced on December 31 2019 in Wuhan, China.  Baseline analysis has revealed that nCoV 2019 has some similarities (in amino acid structure) to SARS CoV.  This is a head start to understand the virus but active…

Vasudev Sharma, Executive Director of the NGO Child Rights Trust (CRT), who has overseen the growth of the child helpline 1098 in Bengaluru, has an anecdote about its reach. Once, his team members saw a family at Patna railway station with a child who looked as if he didn’t belong. They called Sharma, and he organised help from Patna’s 1098 team. The boy was rescued and reunited with his own family, and was not forced into child labour. That's just one example of how Childline can play a decisive role in the rescue of vulnerable children. Currently, 1098 is the…

Translated by Mukund Gowda ನಗರ ಭೂ ಸಾರಿಗೆ ನಿರ್ದೇಶನಾಲಯವು ಇತ್ತೀಚಿಗೆ ಬೆಂಗಳೂರು ಮಹಾನಗರದ  'ಸಮಗ್ರ ಸಾರಿಗೆ ಯೋಜನೆಯ  ಕರಡನ್ನು ತಯಾರಿಸಿದ್ದು ಇದರಲ್ಲಿ ತೀವ್ರ ಚರ್ಚೆಗೆ ಗ್ರಾಸವಾಗಿದ್ದ ಎಲಿವೇಟೆಡ್ ಕಾರಿಡಾರ್ ಯೋಜನೆಯೂ ಒಳಗೊಂಡಿದ್ದು ೯೨ ಕಿಲೋಮೀಟರ್ ನ ಈ ಎತ್ತರದ ಕಾರಿಡಾರ್ ನಿರ್ಮಾಣಕ್ಕೆ ಹದಿನೆಂಟು ಸಾವಿರ ಕೋಟಿಗೂ ಹೆಚ್ಚು ವ್ಯಯಿಸಲಾಗುವುದು  ಎಂದು  ಉಲ್ಲೇಖಿಸಿದೆ.  ಕೇಂದ್ರದ ಮೆಟ್ರೋ ಪೋಲಿಸಿಗೆ ಅನುಗುಣವಾಗಿ ಮೆಟ್ರೋಪಾಲಿಟನ್ ನಗರಕ್ಕೆ 'ಸಮಗ್ರ ಸಾರಿಗೆ ಯೋಜನೆ'ಯನ್ನು ತಯಾರಿಸಬೇಕಿದೆ.  ಈ ಯೋಜನೆಯ ಕರಡಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಏನೆಲ್ಲಾ ಇದೆ ಎಂದು ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಸಂಕ್ಷಿಪ್ತವಾಗಿ ಹೇಳುತ್ತೇವೆ :  ಮೆಟ್ರೋ, ಉಪನಗರ ರೈಲು, ಬಸ್ ಆದ್ಯತಾ ಪಥ ಮತ್ತು ಬಸ್ ಸಂಖ್ಯೆ ಹೆಚ್ಚಳವನ್ನು ಒಳಗೊಂಡಂತೆ  ಮೂರು ಹಂತದಲ್ಲಿ ಸಮಗ್ರ ಸಾರಿಗೆ ವ್ಯವಸ್ಥೆ ಕಲ್ಪಿಸುವ ಯೋಜನೆಗಳು ಈ ಹಿಂದೆ 2011 ಮತ್ತು 2015ರ ಕರಡು ಯೋಜನೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಪ್ರಸ್ತಾಪಿತವಾಗಿತ್ತು.  ಈ ಯೋಜನೆಯ ಹಳೆ ಮತ್ತು ಹೊಸ ಆವೃತ್ತಿಗಳ ಎರಡನೇ ಮತ್ತು ಮೂರನೇ ಹಂತದಲ್ಲಿ ನಗರ ಸಾರಿಗೆಯ ವಿವಿಧ ಆಯಾಮಗಳ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಪ್ರಸ್ತಾಪಿಸಲಾಗಿದೆ.…

This article is part of a special series: Safety of women in Indian cities The gruesome rape and murder of a veterinarian in Hyderabad recently shocked our country. But after the dust settles, the question that would be asked of a dead woman is “What was she doing out so late in the night?” As working professionals and contributing members of society, women shouldn’t have to answer this question at all. But we don't live in a perfect world. Hence the law needed to step in to protect women who work at night. In 2002, state government amended the Karnataka…

This article is part of a special series: Safety of women in Indian cities An alarming number of women have been subjected to violence and abuse in the private and public sphere over the ages, and the incidents reported are on the rise. Survivors of such trauma often require assistance on multiple fronts,  seeking medical, legal and emotional support.  State-operated emergency helplines that women can dial in times of crisis have been set up at various levels over the years, providing emergency services, police intervention, medical and legal assistance.  In addition to this, Chennai is home to various non-profit organisations…

This article is part of a special series: Safety of women in Indian cities In 2018 alone, there were 53 dowry deaths in Bengaluru, according to the National Crime Records Bureau. Bengaluru was also the metro with the highest number of dowry deaths in south India that year, and the city where the highest number of dowry harassment cases were filed. If you suffer dowry harassment, sexual abuse, or other forms of violence within or outside your home, what options do you have? There are many helplines in Bengaluru that offer services like shelter, counselling, legal support, help securing employment…

Bengaluru Traffic Police (BTP) is facing a personnel crunch. The city only has 4,638 traffic police personnel for a vehicle population of over 80 lakhs. As per a 2015 report of the Home Ministry's Bureau of Police Research and Development, there should be one traffic police personnel for every 700 vehicles. By that yardstick, Bengaluru has a traffic cop shortage of almost 54 percent. In addition to the challenges in managing traffic, this also means difficult working conditions for the constables who man our roads. Imagine standing eight hours in Bengaluru traffic, not following a regular timetable of shifts, with…

Picture this. You could sell your paper waste for the highest market rate; contact local scrap dealers and sell your discarded plastic containers, unused bags and slippers and even buy compost at dirt cheap rates. All online. Waste management and recycling in the city just got easier with the launch of India’s first web portal-cum-mobile application for waste trading, called Madras Waste Exchange . On December 3 2019, Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) Commissioner, G Prakash inaugurated the website that is developed under the Smart City Mission. Three weeks after the launch, Citizen Matters Chennai spoke to Azhagu Pandiaraja M P,…

Last month, the Directorate of Urban Land Transport (DULT) released a Comprehensive Mobility Plan (CMP) for Bengaluru. You have till January 5th to send in your suggestions and objections to the plan. Set in three phases, CMP is expected to be implemented between 2020 and 2035. What are the key suggestions and projects in the CMP? It's heartening that pedestrian infrastructure - which had been ignored in previous mobility plans - makes an appearance in this one. But what's most striking is that the elevated corridor project, which the government had shelved after major citizen protests, makes a sudden comeback…