GENRE: LN

The Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) has been serving illegal notices to apartment residents, threatening to disconnect electricity and water, with the malafide intent of extortion by corrupt officials, says a press note from Bangalore Apartment Federation (BAF). Apartment associations are reportedly refusing to bribe the officials who want to “settle” matters, and have joined hands under the aegis of Bangalore Apartments’ Federation (BAF) to fight against these unlawful and malafide practices, informs the notice. The KSPCB notices cite conditions which are completely against the rules laid down by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and Ministry of Environment…

Citizens demand immediate development of suburban railway network Civic collective Citizens for Bengaluru (CfB) first initiated the #ChukkuBukkuBeku campaign, demanding better suburban train connectivity, in 2016. A demonstrative rail yatra was held on August 31st as part of the revived campaign, now called #ModaluTrainBeku.  The yatra was aimed at highlighting the time saved in commute during peak hours for regular commuters from IT firms around the traffic-choked Outer Ring Road. Sloganeering techies, RWAs, first-time riders and activists embarked on a journey from Yeshwanthpur railway station to Heelalige station on the local train numbered 76523 between 2:55 pm and 4:04 pm. The train…

Two years ago when the Centre for Smart Cities, the same think-tank that came up with the idea of elevated corridors, formulated a proposal to concretise 29 Bengaluru roads, it was with the vision to build sustainable road infrastructure. Like many ambitious government plans, the execution of the project by Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) continues to be stalled by obstacles not taken into consideration during planning. The work has been held up in the absence of clearances from traffic police and due to the onset of monsoon as reported by the media extensively. However,  tender documents related to the project clearly show…

Concerned by the recent spate of allegations that have been levelled against Anna University, alumni of the College of Engineering, Guindy, one of the 596 engineering colleges affiliated to the university, have started a petition calling for the delinking of the college from the university. The petition outlines the various reasons for the call to break away from the university and had been signed by 5906 people at the time this was written. CEG and Anna University The College of Engineering, Guindy is the oldest technical institution in the country. It was established in 1794 as School of Survey and…

KSNDMC warns of possible flooding in September Bengalureans felt the ripple effect of floods in Kodagu District (where a rainfall of 768mm left villages ravaged) on August 24, when the city received 43 mm of rainfall till 9 pm. Areas such as Malleswaram, Rajajinagar, Hebbal, Sadashivanagar, Kengeri, Adugodi and Mysore road received very heavy rainfall. Once the rain started, Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre (KSNDMC) issued warnings by dispatching messages through their mobile application to certain key areas. The centre has forecast heavy rain in the immediate future, and has intimated the same to BBMP. Scientists warn that 80 mm…

If you are an apartment or home owner in Chennai, you would most likely have received a form for self declaration of Property Tax, from the revenue office of Greater Chennai Corporation. Most home and apartment owners were caught unawares, not only by the requirement itself, as there has been no such form to fill in the past twenty years, but also by the deadline of August 31st to fill and submit it. Here is a quick explainer about the form and its connection with property tax. According to a senior official from Chennai Corporation, there are 12.65 lakh home and…

Tiruvottiyur and Padur, two localities in north and south Chennai respectively, with very different socio-cultural identities, are bound by one thing in common today, something they can truly take pride in.  Both these localities have been able to adhere to and implement the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016  to a large extent.  Private kitchens with neatly displayed posters guiding residents on how to segregate waste into biodegradable, recyclable and reject waste; like-minded enthusiasts campaigning on segregation, and conservancy workers meticulously insisting on segregated waste -- such sights and action are common in Tiruvottiyur and Padur, thanks to the willingness of the people…

The week-long celebration commemorating Madras Day, which falls on August 22, is a fun way to learn about the rich history of the city. A plethora of activities are held over the course of a week (indeed, these days, it is almost a month) that are informative and engaging. The most popular among them are the heritage walks that trace the historical roots of Chennai, formerly Madras. The Dravidian Historical Research Centre organised a Social Justice Heritage Tour led by the editor of Nakheeran Magazine, Govi Lenin. The tour traced the origins of the Dravidian social justice movement in the…

B'luru ranked in 58th position on livability index Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri released the 'Ease of Living Index–2018’ on August 13th. Bengaluru was ranked in 58th place in the overall list, among 111 Indian cities surveyed, based on aggregated scores in four categories: institutional governance, social, economic and physical infrastructure. To ensure accurate reflection of the ease of living in Indian cities through this ranking, marks were awarded against 78 indicators in 15 sub-categories. Barring the category of open spaces, in which the former garden city fared reasonably well in 16th place, Bengaluru was at the bottom of the list…

Tamil Nadu has been a frontrunner in organ donation. Call it the collective effort between hospitals and not-for-profit organisations or the willingness of people, the state has the highest number of organ donors in India. The fact remains though that a majority of citizens are still ignorant about many aspects of donation, leaving a wide gap between organ availability and patients waiting for transplants. The NDTV-Fortis More To Give campaign indicated that an approximate 5 lakh people across the nation die each year, due to non availability of organs. The number reiterates the need to acknowledge citizens who are hesitant…