GENRE: Voices

Speed bumps are the common name for a family of traffic-calming devices or designs that use vertical deflection to slow motor-vehicle traffic in order to improve safety conditions. Variations include the speed hump (or speed ramp), speed cushion, and speed table. Well - it sounds like a mission statement. But this is the purpose of the speed breakers or speed hump. These were discovered in 1906 and used in the US. Later in the late 70’s the British Transport and Research teams found that this was more suitable for private roads and not the public roads. However in Bengaluru, you…

We live in a city that brags of its achievements, of its IT sectors, of its socially aware and educated crowd. For a while now, I lived with thi impression, until an incident that took place on June 19th changed my very perception of the city and its people. It was just another normal day and I was off to meet a friend living less than three kilometers from my place. I commute by rickshaws most of the time, since I don't have my own vehicle. I got into an auto, the drivers earrings and strange looks did not bother me…

  On my way to office, which is located in Bagmane Tech Park, C.V. Raman Nagar, our office cab passed through the streets of Austin Town. On the pedestrian footpath, lay a helpless, old soul, wrapped in torn bits of clothes and plastic. On inquiry, her neighbors revealed that she has been lying in the same place for more than 10 years, all by herself. On December 19th 2012, after office hours, I decided to spend my evening with the elderly citizen. I held her tiny old hand to hear about her life and share her heart. She spoke to me…

Current scenario of water availability in Bangalore seems to be grim with ground water almost over and tanker mafia twisting our arms. Last year’s indication of dry weather prompted our apartment to find out an easy way of collecting rainwater as a proper rainwater harvesting system was not made initially. Zephyr Block of Suncity Apartments, Ibblur, thought of using the flat roofs of the building to collect rainwater. Roof rainwater pipes were attached to a main big pipe and then to a small tank. The initial water collected in the small tank and after a while the clean water starts…

  How efficient are the organisations working in the government sector, in Bangalore specifically? How easy is it for an individual to get something done - perhaps get a driving license or apply for an electricity connection? If we have to go by what some of our readers have had to say, it looks as if it is not at all easy. Why, sometimes even information is hard to come by. Time and again, we hear from our readers who share their woes about the city. Someone is fleeced on a BMTC bus, another has to make multiple trips to…

Part 1 of Chapter 11: Steal Proofing Part 2 of Chapter 11: Installing garbage bins can be a design challenge for city planners! Part 3 continues... Before and after photo of a spotfix in Banaswadi. Pic: The Ugly Indian X took some photos of the Spot, got them printed at another Spot neighbor, Tru-Images, a digital studio down the road, and created a small portfolio of five photos – one photo of “Before”, one photo of “After” and three photos of “During SpotFixing” (featuring the Wipro employees, the drivers, and Veliyamma). The studio owner was very happy to see the…

Having to commute by bus from Malleshwaram to Citizen Matters office - on Sarjapur Road, Bengaluru, has been a true eye-opener to me. The major learning has been this: Own a vehicle, and learn to drive, even if you would be adding to the mess already on the road, against your consciousness. Sarjapur Road is an "upscale," developing area where you see a lot of tech companies and residential apartments coming up. However, if you love to take on the challenge of walking on the road amidst vehicles, yet manage to be alive, the stretch on Sarjapur main road, from…

Today at 6.30pm Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike will interact with Spain on best practices for managing waste. I am not sure which adage passed my mind when I read the latest news report on BBMP and our garbage mess. “Grasping at straws” for seeking help from sister city San Francisco or “Making hay when sun shines” for possibly sending officials to Dubai to study waste management. Wasted BBMP trips on managing waste When Sharadamma was the mayor, a BBMP team led by her had visited Pune. In 2012, a team led by then-deputy S Harish went to Israel to study…

Part 1 of Chapter 11: Steal Proofing Part 2 continues... These are the realities of the Indian street that are often ignored by city planners and those who want a better city. Seemingly simple things that work overseas (like trash cans) don’t work well in India. McDonald’s tried its best on Brigade Road, Bangalore – and installed some 30 large fibre-glass dustbins, costing about Rs 2,000 ($40) each, and branded with their Golden Arches logo. They lasted barely a few weeks. Some were vandalized, some caught fire from tossed cigarette butts, many were stolen, and soon none were left. Many…

During the week that the newspapers carried reports about proposed curbs on lavish weddings, coincidentally, Jaya and Valli came to me announcing weddings of daughters in their families. Jaya works as cleaning maid at two commercial establishments in south Bengaluru. Valli is a roadside flower seller. Both are of course, indigent, leading a hand-to-mouth existence. Jaya’s 16-year-old grand daughter Asha used to work in a clothes shop but when her mother (Jaya’s daughter) was diagnosed as suffering from kidney failure and it was clear she would not survive for long, Jaya decided that Asha should be married off while her…