GENRE: Voices

In every election, it has become standard to observe that the quality of our political leadership and governance is suffering because the educated, urban middle class does not turn up to vote. Now that we have another election before us - the BBMP Council- it may be worth asking, why is this, and how can this be changed?First, some clarification. While the overall voting percentage numbers certainly bear out the apathy of the middle class, there is still a section of this group that does turn out vote, in election after election.The more pertinent question, therefore, may be: "why do…

The traffic diversions from Sarajapur Road into HSR Layout, due to construction of flyover at Agara circle, have seriously inconvenienced the residents and shopkeepers of HSR layout.All main and some cross roads have been used mercilessly by all types of vehicles. Just a few months back some of these main roads were repaired and resurfaced. Due to poor quality of work (not supervised) and the last monsoons, roads have cracked and potholes have developed. This has been aggravated by heavy traffic on the main roads in this layout during these three to four months.There appears to be no controls in…

With due respect to Karnataka legislators, the ‘findings’ of the The Joint House Committee (JHC) about the Bengaluru International Airport can be termed irresponsible at the least and retrograde.The JHC report maligns famous business leaders and civil servants. These people don’t need to prove their credentials or expertise in managing complex projects or assignments in their long careers. The committee members have truly maligned Narayana Murthy, who had offered his services for free. The officers who were part of the original team are Karnataka’s best.The JHC will have a lot to explain if they are grilled by an independent body…

Just yesterday, I had my first run in with the Karnataka High Court. I was attending a court case involving the construction of a road through the GKVK - UAS campus by the BBMP and its subsequent challenge by ex vice-chancellors of that University (For an understanding of the case at hand, refer to this article written in Citizen Matters). Just being in that court room, seeing lawyers presenting their case, judges going through the evidence presented, petitioners and defendants arguing vehemently, nervous interns, curious onlookers - in short the entire package brought back interesting memories when I was involved…

We love them, we hate them, but we cannot ignore them. The ubiquitous yellow and black (now of course they are going green) auto rickshaws are part and parcel of this city. This is the taxi of the middle class. You get the first taste of what is to come when you get off in any of the Bangalore railway stations. If you are not careful you will end up paying Rs 160 from Bangalore Cantonment to Halasuru, even if it is after 6 AM.Random sampling for the sake of this column, tells me that six out ten passengers who…

Even as the Karnataka State Election Commission has announced the BBMP council elections schedule, one court case on ward reservation is pending at the Supreme Court. Alongside, the Chief Minister’s ABIDe (Agenda for Bengaluru Infrastructure Development) task force’s draft law, the Bengaluru Governance Bill 2009, is still hanging fire. This Bill talks of directly electing a Mayor and electing members to ward committees. But confusion looms large over this as some city politicos are not keen on having elected members on the ward committee. Transport Minister R Ashoka. Pic: Vaishnavi Vittal. Amidst all the election-talk, Citizen Matters caught up with…

The first dayOn Saturday the 12th of December, I left my house ready to reconnect with my childhood, at the Children’s film festival, part of the Bangalore Habba 2009. As I went up the escalator towards the movie theatre, the numerous posters and signs, left me in no doubt that I was in the right place. It was 9.50 AM when I reached the ticket counter.I excitedly asked for passes which were supposed to be available at the venue. The man behind the counter looked at me, somewhat amused and told me he couldn’t issue me a pass because I…

Standing outside his house, one feels quite dwarfed*. And that’s purely because of the sheer size of the house. Massive would be an understatement. The name plate in Kannada, bold and big, reads Katta Subramanya Naidu. A policeman and a security guard greet me at the gate, expecting my arrival and lead me right in. As I wait in Naidu’s office, his staff and I exchange pleasantries, as they begin the day’s work. After a cup of coffee, a gentleman informs me that “sahibru” will be down in about 20 minutes. “He came late last night because of work, at…

A Pune school has said ‘no' to processed food at school and has involved parents in choices of food for the children. A number of other private schools, include many in Bengaluru are considering similar positions. The idea of schools intervening in what is traditionally the domain of parents was the topic of a panel discussion recently in Bengaluru. The conference was held to spread awareness about the dangers of processed foods, genetically modified foods, chemical agriculture, factory farming and how our food system impacts climate change. Pic credit: Basavaraj Biradar The discussion was held at a Conference on Food,…

This is my response to Citizen Matters' article on 'Junctions where grade separators are to come up'. The thought of having the prolonged construction of yet another set of grade separators foisted on us is really scary. As everyone knows, the underpass on 24th Main, 15th Cross, J P Nagar is way behind schedule as was the case with Jayadeva circle flyover. When the Jayadeva flyover construction was going on between the years 2003-06, traffic was diverted through Bilekahalli Dollar Layout adjacent to Bannerghatta Road, where I live, for years on end.The decision to divert traffic through our layout, was…