GENRE: LN

Bellandur Buzz…Issue # 20October 10th 2014 Shared fortnightly by: bellandur-forum@googlegroups.com   Celebrate cracker-free Diwali Seven year old Nurba isn’t playing, she’s working because YOU want to buy crackers. Source As Deepawali approaches we would like to remind everyone about why we shouldn’t burst crackers. Besides the obvious side-effect, that is, air pollution (Did you know air pollution increases by almost 30% during Diwali?), noise pollution, injuries and various health hazards, there are several other negatives of firecrackers. Did you know that there are millions of underage kids that are exploited by the firecracker industry, and that many of them get killed in…

Bus submerged in the S C Road underpass. Pic courtesy: The Hindu Whenever it rains in the city, the drains in the city choke. It is a common sight to see the railway underpass near Anand Rao Circle on Subedar Chatram Road holding loads of water, not letting any vehicle pass through. Normal life in the surrounding areas goes out of gear. Now, as per the instructions of Ramalinga Reddy, Bangalore District In charge Minister, Mayor Shantakumari and BBMP Commissioner M Lakshminarayana, BBMP officials have prepared a plan to construct a new side drain, within four months. The Palike plans…

BBMP Council meeting held on September 29, 2014. Pic: BBMP The recent rains and the damage caused because of floods in the city was the topic of hot discussion in the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) council meeting, on Monday, September 2014. Peoples' representatives used the opportunity to put the blame on officials and to demand compensation for the 'victims.' Floods are a perennial problem in Bangalore in the centre of the city. The railway underpass near Anand Rao Circle that connects Gandhinagar, Freedom Park, Majestic, Race Course Road and other places. Jayamahal ward Corporator M K Gunashekar questioned the…

Every rain leaves the city battered, with no space for water to flow, showing lack of urban planning. The colloqium discussed possible solutions. Pic: Ishaan Raghunandan Following  the  downpour  in  Bangalore last week that left the City ravaged, Public Affairs Center (PAC) organised a colloquium on ‘Urban Resilience,’ on September 27, 2014. The event held at Hotel Capitol with the support of the International Development Research Center, Canada saw many concerned experts from various fields sharing their knowledge and advocating solutions on how to improve the resilience factor of the city. Addressing the conference, R Suresh, Director, Public Affairs Center,…

Trees cut on Kanakpura Road (Pic: Environment support group) If you are a person who worries when the city starts flooding during rains as there is no room left for water to go, with storm water drains and lakes continuously being encroached, or one who worries about the environmental degradation happening in the city of Bangalore, this is your chance to stand up and say what you want. The Karnataka Department of Forests, Ecology and Environment has issued a circular, inviting the public to participate in the public consultation organised in Bangalore on September 27, 2014, by the High Level…

Bellandur Buzz…Issue # 19September 26th 2014 Shared fortnightly by: bellandur-forum@googlegroups.com   Bhoomi Utsav at Prakriya School Like every year, 2nd october, Gandhi Jayanti is celebrated by Bhoomi network as a day long festival of organic food and produce, folk art and craft, music, dance and talk… Come connect with nature and hang out with friends amidst lovely trees and gardens! The festival features Stalls selling mouth watering organic eats and produce. Pollinated seeds and saplings for your kitchen garden. Talk sessions on composting, gardening and more. Crafts, music, dance and storytelling for kids. Venue: Prakriya Green Wisdom School campus, No:70, Chikkanayakana Halli Road,…

Pruned trees on podium. Pic courtesy: Rajesh Nair Two months ago, the residents of Prestige Shantiniketan in Whitefield, Bangalore, saw around twenty trees pruned down to 4 feet. Recently they also came to know that another 491 trees are waiting in the queue to be cut. They claim that the trees are 11-year-old. The plan to cut 491 trees was envisaged by the Management Committee of Prestige Shantiniketan, who are worried that 500 trees are on an elevated slab or a podium, and will damage the podium structure. They are concerned that the podium will not be able to take…

As many as 20 members were chosen from Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) for Bangalore Metropolitan Planning Committee (BMPC). However, newly elected Mayor Shanthakumari does not exist in the list. Former mayor B S Satyanarayana too did not make it to the premier list.Metropolitan Planning Committee is the planning body for every metropolitan area mandated by the constitution, which should have hyper-local level peoples’ representatives as its members, in addition to subject experts and executives from the government. This will plan the infrastructure requirements and land use for the city. After a High Court directive, Bangalore is now in the…

Bellandur Buzz…Issue # 18September 12th 2014 Shared fortnightly by: bellandur-forum@googlegroups.com Mandur Landfill closes on December 1st With barely three months to go for the closure of Mandur landfill, pressure is building up on BBMP to manage city's waste responsibly. Special Commissioner (Municipal Solid Waste) Darpan Jain is banking on citizen's co-operation and the top Palike officials’ efforts. BBMP has taken up segregation drive in Bellandur ward on pilot basis. Kasa Muktha Bellandur, citizen volunteer group is proactively working with the BBMP officials in this respect. He hopes this model can be replicated in the other 198 wards with time. A new…

A press note from the Information Department, Bengaluru, issued by Deputy Director to Government, Disaster Management, said that around 640 tourists from the state have been stranded in Jammu-Kashmir floods, out of which around 200 people have been saved. IAS officers Ramandeep, Commissioner of Hubli-Dharwad and Mohankumar from Karnataka Bhavan, New Delhi, have been sent to Srinagar in order to coordinate the rescue of people. As many as 30 people have been taken to Srinagar airport. Around 70 people have been sent to Delhi via flights. Around 200 people from Karnataka are at the Rajbhavan helipad waiting to be air-lifted.…