karnataka

The pitfalls of an overly centralised governance structure, without adequate devolution of power and funds at the local level, was increasingly becoming grave. The 74th Constitutional Amendment was enacted to devolve powers to the Urban Local Bodies and to strengthen citizen participation at the local level. Local governments reflect the will of the people either by direct individual participation or through interest group action. (Reference)  However, various state governments have delayed holding elections to Urban Local Bodies and misused provisions to dissolve the councils due to political reasons. Jammu Kashmir, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh , Gujrat, are just few of the…

Demanding speedy BBMP elections, better administration and active citizen participation in the selection of urban local bodies, Namma Bengaluru Foundation and Bengaluru Residents Associations Confederation Ensemble-BRACE (a confederation of the more than 1200 resident welfare associations) today urged the State Government to uphold their constitutional right to periodically elect local representative and not delay the BBMP elections any further. Placing forth a citizens charter of demands, they reiterated that the Government’s move to deny Bengaluru an elected council is against the spirit of the 74th Amendment of the Constitution. Also read: BBMP Elections: A Backgrounder.  Charter of demands to the State Government…

Email to the bngbirds egroup: It was very pleasant to be able to go to Kaikondrahalli Kere after a long time and find that, apart from the dumping and levelling going on down one side of it, the lake is generally still well-maintained. An ambling walk of a couple of hours was very productive from the birding point of view, and we watched the nesting behaviour of the Great Cormorants, and the fishing by almost all of the waterfowl. Several juvenile Brahminy Kites, swooping at the surface of the water now and then, provided the raptor touch. The flock of…

A performer in Dasara celebrations in Mysore. Pic: Raghavendra K S Prathibimba is a photography exhibition, scheduled to be held on the 58th Rajyotsava of Namma Karnataka, at Chitrakala Parishath, Bangalore from October 31st to November 2nd. The exhibition is the culmination of the journey of six photographers from diverse backgrounds, who set out to have an intimate rendezvous with the state of Karnataka through their lenses. In an attempt to capture the myriad reflections of the grandeur of the state, their journeys took them from the explored to the unexplored jewels of Karnataka, framing the state that we live in and…

The Karnataka government introduced provision for self declaration in many services by various departments recently. The scheme is expected to be implemented in most departments by mid-July. However, here is the hitch: the mechanism to check the truthfulness of the statement made in the declaration is not foolproof yet. This calls for more transparency from the government, in order to prevent corruption. The first department to fall in line is the Revenue Department. An official from the Department of Administrative Reforms says, “Revenue department has already introduced this initiative with citizens getting most of the certificates (caste, income, profession etc),…

The first meeting of Eco-volunteers (those who took the Volunteer Training Program, or VTP), was held at ThoughtWorks, Koramangala, Bangalore, on 120414. It was as if Ganesha, the Elephant God, had waited in the foyer with a gesture of benison!     Raju KV took up the job of co-ordinating the meet, and conducting it:     Over 40 people turned up, showing their interest in volunteering for wildlife conservation:         Raju welcomed the gathering, and while the two Prasahanths set up their video presentation.     N C Mohan talked about patches of fragmented forest, which…

I've attended, and enjoyed, several of Bangalore Little Theatre's productions over the years, because it's Bangalore's oldest theatre society...but this evening's production of "The Court Jester: Tales of Tenali Rama" was very special for me, as my grandchildren, 5 and 1, were visiting me, and I'd been very keen to give Kavya (the elder) a taste of theatre...so having a children's play by BLT to go to was a wish come true! The whole family went to Woodlands Hotel to find that things were delayed a bit, but Vijay Padaki filled in the gap with great panache. He first invited…

November First is the date on which Karnataka was formed in 1956.

My friend Nitin Vyas has this experience to relate: "At9.00am on 22nd May on Kanakpura road, close to Thalgatpura Police station. KSRTC bus no. KA 42F 040 ran in to my car from behind. The rear  of my car was completely damaged . (The estimated cost of repairs is Rs 1 lakh.) The bus drove away from the scene as I took my car to the side of the road.. I went to Thalagatpura Police station at 9.15 am to file an FIR against the bus driver. Arun Thimme  Gowda was in charge of registering complaints. He did not respond…

We all know about chicory; that roasted chicory seeds are powdered, andadded to coffee powder, to increase the strength of the decoction. However, the Chicory plant is a very pretty one!   <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/86494503@N00/9015769793/" title="DSC09538 by mohandep, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3752/9015769793_79a6d22281_c.jpg" width="800" height="477" alt="DSC09538"></a>   That's the flower of a Chicory plant...almost makes one want to start planting it in one's garden! In some parts of the world, Chicory is just a roadside weed.