GENRE: Voices

Ninety-second showers, yellow water, no flushing, and ruckus caused by fights over water - does it ring a bell? It sure will, if you have read about the water crisis in Cape Town city in South Africa. For months now, the city has been grappling with severe water crisis caused by population growth and continuing drought conditions, leading to fears over 'Day Zero' when the city is projected to shut down water supply altogether. Such prospects have led the government to lay down strict usage and conservation rules, even for tourists. The everyday water usage for an individual is restricted…

My article titled ‘Bengaluru needs its green cover to remain liveable’, led to questions about what can be done. A mission for re-greening Bengaluru is the need of the hour - a time-bound exercise with goals to be achieved. For example the goal could be to increase tree cover in Bengaluru by 20% in the next five years. Step 1: Tree census For starters, the government, that is the municipal administration - the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) must undertake a tree census to establish a baseline. Trees must be mapped employing qualified experts backed by technology such as a…

Bengaluru is awaiting the release of Mater Plan 2031 (RMP 2031), after the draft master plan was closed to comments in January 2018. Many articles in the print media have discussed the highlights of the plan’s proposals related to transportation, housing, zonal regulations and other aspects, and provided a critique of the development strategies of the plan from various perspectives. Civil society groups and the media have made efforts to help citizens grapple with the complex contents of the plan, with the intent of explaining how to read and understand the plan in a bite-sized manner, and comment on it…

I am a mother, daughter, wife, sister, friend, animal-lover, community advocate, and victim of having a sweet tooth. I clearly do not mention these roles in any particular order of priority since “victim of a sweet tooth” is at the end. All my roles are incredibly important to me because each one feeds a part of my being. But, reflecting on it, I realized that seven of them can be described as being a part of the broadest one in there: community advocate. Being a mother, daughter, wife, sister, friend, dog-lover, and victim of having a sweet tooth all lead…

On Sunday, March 11th, a wave of 50,000 red-flag-waving farmers washed over Mumbai, the nation’s commercial hub. The 200-km march over six days not only highlighted the schizophrenic divide between urban India and rural Bharat, but also seemed to ring a wake-up call of sorts across the nation. Mumbai was tense as the scene was set for a communication flashpoint between both groups. The farmers under the All India Kisan Sangharsh Committee (AIKS), however, had already won the hearts of the ordinary Mumbaikar. They thoughtfully walked at night to spare exam-writing schoolchildren. Mumbai residents responded with flowers, food and footwear, as…

At the inaugural session of Mandram, Dr Balaji Sampath spoke about the need to help our children understand science through experiments using simple objects of daily use. He said everyone is born a scientist, everyone has  natural curiosity about how things work, but sadly this curiosity and scientific temperament is stifled and subsequently lost in the current education system. Watch the full video of his talk below. அன்றாட வாழ்வில் அறிவியல் பற்றி மிக சுவாரஸ்யமாக விளக்கினார் பாலாஜி சம்பத். இவர் ஆஹாகுரு என்ற தளத்தின் மூலமாக நடுநிலை மற்றும் முதுநிலை பள்ளி மாணவர்களுக்கு எளிய முறையில் அறிவியல் மற்றும் கணித பாடங்களுக்கு பயிற்சி அளிக்கிறார். குழந்தைகளுக்கு அறிவியலை எப்படி அறிமுகப்படுத்த வேண்டும் என்று அன்றாடம் உபயோகப்படுத்தும் பொருட்களை கொண்டு…

“We dug the land and let them throw, Soon we had dogs, rats and flies you know? Behind the rising smoke you could see thunderous clouds The rains came and came well and all got washed out, Here and there lay lumps on the road Sanitary napkins, diapers and plastics giving shelter to the microbes Collection vehicle, when will you come back to pick the loads? Enough is enough looks like there is no depending on you. We got to figure out what to do.” This was the situation in Vasanth Vihar, a gated community having 424 dwelling units including…

A day before Valentine’s, news broke that the Government of Karnataka had quietly tabled an amendment to Karnataka Tree Preservation Act of 1976. Under the proposed amendment, 50 trees were added to the list of 27 existing species that would no longer require permission to be chopped down. Many of these trees were favourites with Bengalureans - Gulmohars , Flame of the forest, Yellow Bells, African Tulips and even the humble Ashoka tree which lined many of the pavements in the city. Most of them were flowering species who’d bloom to their full glory in summer, adding to the beauty…

In a conversation with a colleague on the draft Revised Master Plan 2031, I was told that councilors of the BBMP (of the 198, less than thirty sat in on a presentation on the Draft RMP 2031) are convinced that the Master Plan is not a workable plan. When probed further, I was told that many councilors brought up issues that are technically not the concern/ mandate of the Master Plan. For instance, some mentioned that roads in their wards were in a bad condition. Others mentioned efficacy of water supply. Many others believe that the tool of Transfer of…

“Silambam is inseparable from me — I swing whenever I’m overwhelmed and also when I’m gloomy; it completes me,” says Kowshik Palanisamy who won the third World Silambam Championships held in China on February 20, 2018.  Kowshik moved to Chennai three years ago to pursue undergraduation in Bio-mining at the College of Engineering, Guindy (CEG). Citizen Matters caught up with him in the vast campus of CEG to find out more about his passion and the route to the top. This was the first time that Kowshik contended in the world-level championship and came out on top, outperforming competitors from…