Hebbal

Come February 16th and it will be a crucial day for the first Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) proposal for Bangalore. Karnataka's Directorate of Urban Land Transport (DULT) has called for a meeting of the BDA, BMTC, Rail India Technical and Economic Society (RITES) and Infrastructure Development Corporation ( Karnataka) Limited (iDECK) on that day to discuss the BRTS proposal. In BRTS, BMTC buses will run higher speeds than usual in part because of dedicates bus lanes, allowing commuters to reach destinations faster. If the BRTS gets the Cabinet nod, it will first be implemented along the Outer Ring Road,…

'Save GKVK' Campaign - Community ProtestDate: 10:00 am - 11:00 am, Sunday, October 11, 2009Venue: GKVK Main Gate on Bellary RoadProgram: Protest against proposed 80 feet link road through GKVK campusIssueProposed construction of a major 80 feet link road through GKVK campus entailing cutting of 3000 trees and destruction of several research plotsCurrent StatusGKVK has transferred the land to BBMP. BBMP has felled hundreds of trees and has initiated civil works. Court has issued stay order on further felling of trees. Forest department has filed a FIR and is investigating the issue. However, BBMP is still planning to carry on…

At the outskirts of Bangalore, many small-scale vendors try to beat the middlemen by selling direct-to-consumer....First one sees one basket of custard apples...Then a few..Then a few more...And if one takes the larger view, one can see that it is definitely custard apple season now, all down the road!I wonder..when the baskets are arrayed in serried ranks like that...is there a cartel that dictates the minimum price? How can the sellers hope to get a reasonable margin on their fruit? And an interesting point about those baskets is, they seem to be made from lantana twigs...surely a good use of…

Bangalore’s face is being reconstituted. Roads are being widened but elected representatives are not consulted on this process. The Oberois are given control of about 160 acres of land around Hebbal Tank and they go on to build a floating restaurant on the lake, denying free access to the lake for the publics. “So what is happening to the ‘commons’? What is this development that is done ostensibly in the name of ‘public good’ but the public is not being consulted?” These were the questions that Leo Saldanha of the Environment Support Group (ESG) raised to Michael Goldman, professor of…

In his report placed before the Karnataka High Court on 23 June 2008, the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Karnataka Dr P J Dilip Kumar has observed that the privatisation of lakes in Bangalore would be detrimental to the eco-system, the fallout of which would most affect communities living in the surrounding areas. Kumar heads the state's forest department and is the state's highest ranking forest official. The 91-page report was compiled at the order of the High Court in response to a writ petition filed by the Environment Support Group and others against the privatisation of lakes. Notice Board…

I met with an incident recently (13th April 2008).I was riding the bike from RT Nagar, I had to go over the Mekhri circle flyover to take a right from Hebbal road to turn towards IISC road. I turned right while the signal was changing from green to orange.I did not want to stop abruptly and since orange light is meant as a warning, I continued driving. If I had applied a sudden break, the auto right behind me may have hit me.A police constable jumped in front of me from the side of the road asking me to stop.…

Once a pleasing part of the landscape, Bangalore's lakes have now become scarce and valuable commodities in a burgeoning metropolis. Hebbal lake, which was in the eye of a storm last year over its acquisition by the Oberoi Group of Hotels, mirrors the changing mores of a city in transition. Created in the 16th century to function as a reservoir, the lake's extent is 150 acres. It has since sustained scores of local and migratory birds. The lake along with neighbouring Nagvara lake (which has already been turned into an amusement park) is part of extensive wetlands system in the…

Ever thought of a Bangalore without Cubbon Park and Lalbagh? What if M.G.Road disappeared one day? Or what if you woke up to headlines that read you would never be able to see another Gulmohur or Asoka tree in the city again? Thankfully, none of the above seem to be happening yet. However, going by recent developments, there is a strong chance that the Hebbal Lake will soon become a thing of the past. For in a few months from now a swank, new 'floating restaurant' may sit in its place. If you've been past the lake recently, you may…