GENRE: Voices

In today’s fast-moving world, convenience is leading to consumerism. The convenience of getting things delivered to our doorstep and the abundance of choice has turned us into impulsive buyers. What we fail to realize is that every order placed, every return initiated, every dish cooked, every fruit eaten is generating some waste. In cities, due to higher population density and higher spending power, the quantum of waste generation is also high. Therefore, decentralization of waste management is something which makes the entire exercise easier and more sustainable for cities.  But what is decentralised waste management? It refers to a system…

Note: The edited version of the article, published on 14 Oct 2020, has been replaced by the version submitted and subsequently modified by the author himself. The author had contested the copy edits made by Citizen Matters prior to publishing. A revamp of the city government was long overdue; our freedom fighters had led a long struggle for Swaraj, ie., Self Rule, which has eluded entire generations, due to the centralized nature of government adopted by our constitution. Cities and towns in India, have in administrative terms, remained colonies of their respective State Govts, giving the residents of the cities…

The last few weeks have seen a renewed debate on whether the State needs a new capital. This is of course one of those topics that are periodically dusted, discussed and then put back on the shelf. But nevertheless, it is a matter that merits attention, especially in the present circumstances. It must however be pointed out here that after having been aired, all talk on this has died out for now, but we never know as to what can take focus, especially with state assembly elections due next year. Concentration of development The ongoing COVID crisis has shown that…

While COVID-19 is causing fatalities across the world, it also brought to focus our frailties when it comes to collective action problems. There were forced lockdowns across India, starting late March, that highlighted clean air gains from the lack of vehicle emissions. Social distancing measures and closure of gyms kept people indoors, which meant lack of activity would take a mental and physical toll after a while. Across the world this was a perfect opportunity to promote a clean, healthy and socially-distanced personal transport vehicle called the bicycle. The window of opportunity presented itself and some of us in Bengaluru…

​​Recently, my Gandhi Nagar area WhatsApp group was abuzz with messages. The topic of discussion was the recently-announced Mega Streets Project.  The Mega Streets Project is an effort to transform arterial and sub-arterial streets to “ensure greater mobility, livability and utility.” These aims are set to be achieved through widening of footpaths, cycle-sharing systems, improving last-mile connectivity. Six streets have been chosen for the project, based on factors such as high intensity of visitors, potential for transformation and streets along transport corridors. Mixed reactions The news that our street had been one of the chosen ones was not universally well-received.…

In August, two workers died when a suspended scaffolding they were standing on fell. They were at an under construction building in Vikhroli. Accidental falls from high rise buildings can happen not just during construction, but also during renovation and maintenance. When people work along the walls of buildings (like Spiderman) at heights of some 200 feet above the ground (for cleaning, painting, water proofing, netting or any other reason), it is expected that there would be something tied to them (such as a rope) and/ or something put below them (such as a net) that will save them if…

Bengaluru has more than 50 lakh two-wheelers on its roads. Let that number sink in. These two-wheelers make up ~70% of all motorised vehicles in the city.  This staggering number of two-wheelers is often attributed to Bengaluru's inadequate and inaccessible public transportation system, whose modal share stands at a meagre 48% in comparison to 80% for Mumbai.  In a 2019 survey conducted by Bangalore Political Action Committee (B.PAC), 24% of respondents who don’t use public transport cited lack of first-mile and last-mile (FM-LM) connectivity as the major hindrance. Given the need for better connectivity to public transportation and the ubiquity…

When most of us think of “critical infrastructure” or “essential services”, public spaces don’t really feature in that list. Post-COVID this notion has been challenged globally, prompting multiple sectors and disciplines to collaborate and leapfrog urban policies and technology. When the Government of India announced its first 21-day lockdown in March, cities and corporations were forced to think outside the box to accommodate essential functions and social distancing norms.  It took a pandemic to roll-out the ambitious bicycle and pedestrian friendly streets programme, and the recent nationwide Streets for People challenge, initiated as part of the Smart Cities Mission in…

"Education is what remains after one has forgotten what one has learned in school.” - Albert Einstein. Whenever I read this this quote, I always joke that our Indian education system, being evaluation based, makes sure that we forget most of what we learn! But the same quote takes on a new meaning in the present context when children have almost forgotten what they used to take for granted – to learn in a physical classroom with a teacher supervising and teaching them, in person. Schooling in times of COVID-19 It will soon be six months since schools shut and…

October 2. Gandhi Jayanti. Swachh Bharat Day. It was three years ago on this day that  the Greater Chennai Corporation mandated that all residents must segregate their waste at source, and only segregated waste would be collected by the workers of either GCC or Ramky, depending on which zone one lived in (I live in Zone 13- Adyar, one of the largest zones in the city.) The ensuing three years have been a journey of mixed experiences.. In many areas, citizen groups and resident welfare associations (RWAs), took upon themselves the task of ensuring source segregation of waste in their…