GENRE: Voices

This article is part of our special series on Delhi Elections 2020 In 2014, when the World Health Organisation declared Delhi as the world’s worst polluted city, the national capital became the face of air pollution for India. Since then, Delhi has been branded as a “gas chamber” by its own ruling government. Courts have called out the Delhi government for committing “genocide,” allowing a public health emergency of such mass scale. Every year since then, from Diwali and stubble burning season till the end of winter, politicians announce a slew of measures which fail to address the root cause of…

Translated by Ankitha Kamath and Katyayini ಬೆಂಗಳೂರಿನ ರಸ್ತೆಗಳಲ್ಲಿನ ವಾಹನ ದಟ್ಟನೆ ಸಡಲಿಸಲು ಸಾಕಷ್ಟು ಉಪಾಯಗಳು ಕೇಳಿ ಬಂದಿವೆ. #ಸೈಕಲ್-ಟು-ವರ್ಕ್ ಫ್ರೈಡೇ ಆಂದೋಲನ ಈ ಸಾಲಿಗೆ ಹೊಸ ಸೇರ್ಪಡೆ. ರಾಜ್ಯ ಸರ್ಕಾರದ ಬಸ್ಸ್ ಪ್ರಯೋರಿಟಿ ಲೇನ್ Bus Priority Lane (BPL) ಯೋಜನೆಯು ವಿನೂತನ ಪ್ರಯತ್ನವಾಗಿದೆ.  ಸಾರ್ವಜನಿಕ ಸಾರಿಗೆಯನ್ನು ಮತ್ತಷ್ಟು ಜನಪ್ರಿಯಗೊಳಿಸಿ, ಈ ಮೂಲಕ ಖಾಸಗಿ ವಾಹನಗಳ ಬಳಕೆ  ತಗ್ಗಿಸಲು ಉತ್ತೇಜನ ನೀಡಿ ಸಕಾರಾತ್ಮಕ ಬದಲಾವಣೆ ತರುವುದು ಸರ್ಕಾರದ ಚಿಂತನೆಯಾಗಿದೆ. ಈ ಯೋಜನೆಯ ಬಹುಮುಖ್ಯ ಉದ್ದೇಶ ಶಿಸ್ತಾದ ಸಂಚಾರ, ಮತ್ತು ಸಮಯ ಪಾಲನೆ.  ಬಸ್ಸುಗಳು ತಮ್ಮ ನಿಗದಿತ ಮಾರ್ಗದಲ್ಲಿ ಯಾವುದೇ ಅಡೆ-ತಡೆಗಳಿಲ್ಲದೆ ಸಂಚರಿಸಲು ಸಾಧ್ಯವಾದಲ್ಲಿ ಸಾರ್ವಜನಿಕರಿಗೆ ಸಮಯವು ಉಳಿತಾಯ, ವಾಹನ ಚಾಲನೆಯ ತಲೆ ಬಿಸಿ ಇಲ್ಲದೆ ನೆಮ್ಮದಿಯ ಪ್ರಯಾಣ.  ಆದರೆ  ಈ ನೆಮ್ಮದಿಯ ಪ್ರಯಾಣದ ಬೆಲೆ ಜನಸಾಮಾನ್ಯನ ಕಿಸೆಯ ಮೇಲೆ ಹಿತವಾಗಿರಲೂಬೇಕು.  BMTC ಬಸ್ ಶುಲ್ಕವು ದೇಶದಲ್ಲೇ ಅತಿ ಹೆಚ್ಚು ಈ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ತಿಳಿಯಲು ದೇಶದ ಇತರೆ ಪ್ರಮುಖ ನಗರಗಳ…

In the first part of this series, we looked at the patterns in pedestrian fatalities in Bengaluru. In this part, we look at solutions to the problem. Between 2010 and 2018, over 3000 pedestrians were killed in traffic crashes in Bengaluru. Since 2010, the number of deaths have gone down by around 31 percent, which is an average reduction of 3.8 percent per year. While the city has performed better than other metros like Delhi and Chennai, it is yet to make significant strides in improving pedestrian safety. That a large number of pedestrians continue to die is unacceptable, and warrants…

History says that the origins of the city of Madras lie in the north. But, for various reasons, North Chennai has remained one of the least developed regions in the city. Unmilled roads, lack of sewer connections and traffic congestion are among the many basic issues that plague the northern parts of the city.  “The problems faced in the city as a whole is generally aggravated in North Chennai. But there has been steady development,” said P Akash, IAS, Regional Deputy Commissioner (North) Chennai Corporation, in an exclusive interview with Citizen Matters Chennai.  Excerpts from the interview: What are the…

Enough and more has been said on the subject of stifling dissent and readers must be wondering as to whether yet another article on the subject is at all warranted. But even if we were to wish away what is happening elsewhere in the country, and we certainly cannot do that, the recent occurrences in Chennai have taken us by surprise and it is time we feel necessary to speak out on what the city stands for. But for those who are not aware, a brief recap is necessary. The Citizenship (Amendment) Act 2019 is the current subject of discussion…

It was October of 2018. We were on the road from Silchar Airport in Assam to Cachar Cancer Hospital and Research Centre. A distance of 30 kilometres took forever, especially after reaching the dusty and crowded roads of Silchar town. The traffic moved at a snail's pace. And then we sighted the hospital. It was at first sight an unimpressive plain building, parts of which seemed unfinished. The terrain was uneven, we negotiated the slopes and entered the building and were shown into the spartan room of the Director, who received us warmly. He showed us around the facility. He…

Shortlisted for the National Smart Cities Mission in 2017, Dehradun, capital of Himalayan state of Uttarakhand, inaugurated its most ambitious smart city project on December 25th, 2019. The Doon Integrated Control & Command Centre (DICCC), built at a cost of Rs. 294.41 crore, will be the nerve centre coordinating all the smart city projects and work towards unification and ease of delivery of civic and urban services. Dr Ashish Kumar Srivastava (IAS), Chief Executive Officer of the smart city mission in the city, is piloting the different smart city projects that include schemes like Smart Water ATMs (Rs 1.98 cr),…

This article is part of a special series: Safety of women in Indian cities The Sexual Harassment (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 was passed by Parliament to address gender specific discrimination in the workplace. The law codified the  Supreme Court’s guidelines in the Vishaka v. Union of India case, but has been marred by implementation and compliance challenges. Sexual harassment of women continues in the workplace, remains under-reported and when reported, is not immune from failed dispute resolution processes managed by the employers.. The reasons for the law struggling to deliver redressal to its intended beneficiaries are many.  But what…

For the past year, as part of my Peak Urban research, I have been researching the emergence of digital money and Uber-like online transport booking services in the auto-rickshaw industry in Bengaluru. I have witnessed huge gaps in provision to services, particularly for these low-income self-employed drivers who are marginalised from regulated banking institutions and are forced to seek alternative financial arrangements at exorbitant costs. They provide important transportation services for the public, that are designed to supplement the bus and Metro systems. Yet these drivers are not financially supported in terms of infrastructure investment, salaries, health insurance or retirement pensions.…

This article is part of a special series: Safety of women in Indian cities Every time a gruesome rape incident shakes the foundations of our belief in humanity, a few standard arguments make an appearance. Maybe I am being cynical, but my take is that the comments that follow a headline-grabbing rape seem like the script of a 70’s Hindi movie - standard, repetitive, predictable and, at the risk of sounding extremely insensitive, almost entertaining. “Make every rape punishable by capital punishment.” “We cannot ask the state to commit murder. It is barbaric and a violation of human rights.” “Justice…