GENRE: Explainers

After a recent discussion on TV, I got the feeling that people hardly know what corruption is and generally share a feeling of despondency and lack of hope about reducing or eliminating it. However, corruption is a systemic failure like many others and can be and has been cured in many countries, and within countries, in many sectors. Over the last four years, anticorruption has been a significant part of my consultancy portfolio. Starting from my experience in ipaidabribe.com, a site that began to crowd-source corruption-related experiences of citizens, I have since worked in several countries and authored reports on…

It’s 7 pm on a Friday evening in Bengaluru; you have just visited a friend. You want to go back. Your family vehicle is unavailable, you do not want to commute by bus and the cab company you have called says they are booked till 10:30 pm. Your friend agrees to drop you off to the auto stand, but the drivers refuse to come or ask you to pay more. What can you do? It’s no state secret that most folks who commute by auto are skeptical of auto drivers. Of course, there are a good number of honest ones.…

Think of sugar and it brings sweet memories to everyone’s mind. Sweet memories of chocolates, payasams, laddus, cakes, milkshakes and all the lovely treats that are ‘oh so sweet’! Can you imagine a day without eating sugar? Not unless you are a diabetic. A day without sugar is something unimaginable for most of us. Imagine drinking that cherished cup of tea or coffee without sugar! Well, thankfully most of us don’t have to eliminate sugar all together, but what we need to do is keep a watch on the amount we consume every day. Back in 2009 the American Heart…

My write up last week attempted to quell some of the qualms one might have had about cycling to work in Bengaluru. In this sequel, we discuss some of the practical aspects. Okay, I am convinced - what do I do next ? 1. Visit a bike shop. There are a number of bike shops in Bangalore where you can get good quality bikes. Among the shops are: Decathlon - www.decathlon.in - Sarjapur Road - White field - Mysore Road. Pro Cycle - www.procycle.in - Indiranagar Bums on the Saddle - www.bumsonthesaddle.com - Jaynagar. They have recently opened a branch…

You get an emergency text message late in the night, seeking help in getting a specific blood group. You start wondering how you can be of help. Do you know, Namma Bengaluru has many resources where you have ready blood of all groups? You can also check where exactly it is available, and seek help, or forward it to the concerned person who might be busy battling the emergency situation. Here is a guide for you. Where can I find blood? The Karnataka State Drug Control Department maintains an online public portal which provides details of blood types available in…

After lot of search, finally you zero in on an under-construction apartment to buy. Your decisions are based on cost, location, developed, accessibility, quality, reputation of builder etc. The builder as usual promises moon to every buyer and buyer gets impressed by glossy brochures and sugary words of so called sales managers. So you start dreaming about living in your own dwelling. The builder then sets the terms for payment - 20% advance, 70% for slabs (for a typical G+3 Apartment), 10% after sale deed registration. After paying the advance (20%), you will apply for a bank loan. If your…

Did you know that there are committees in BBMP to decide the budgeting and requirements related to various issues of Bengaluru’s governance? These committees came into existence after the Karnataka Municipal Corporations Amendment Bill - 2010 was approved. A gazette notification by Karnataka government dated July 30, 2010 mandated that the BBMP should have 12 standing committees to cover various aspects of city governance. Each has a clearly defined role and responsibility. Standing Committee for Taxation and Finance: This deals with all matters relating to finance and taxation and all other matters not specifically assigned to any other standing committee.…

  October 13, 2012. A student of National Law School of India University (NLSIU) was abducted and raped by an eight-member gang inside the Jnanabharathi campus of Bangalore University, adjacent to NLSIU, when she was with a male friend. She bade goodbye to Bengaluru after the incident and returned to her hometown. She is not the only one - there are hundreds of cases of violence on women that go unreported for various reasons. Such mindless violence can be countered with intelligent precaution and sufficient safety measures. What if the victim had some sort of alarming or alerting system handy,…

Buying a car can be a harrowing experience. With all the various models and makes that are currently available on the Bangalore market, it is not always the easiest of tasks selecting what you want. One of the key point to be looked at while choosing a car is to look at your routine. For example, if the primary use of your car would be to get to work and back and not much else, you might consider getting a smaller car like the Maruti Alto 800. If you need the car to haul a large amount of cargo, consider…

I bought a resale apartment from an individual who had not taken possession of the flat from the builder (The Confident Group) and had a loan going. The builder was my point of contact for this purchase and I had absolutely no interaction with the seller. In fact, the senior executive from The Confident Group, refused to share the seller’s contact details. The builder helped me in getting the housing loan through Axis bank and ensured that all the documents related to the apartment were handed over to the bank executive for verification. The builder demanded that I pay Rs.30,000…