kspcb

It is literally the neglected backyard of Bengaluru. When you enter the ill-fated village of Mandur, the pungent smell of rotting garbage fills your nostrils. You will have to bear it, till you leave the village. When the winds are strong, the smell too becomes strong. The village is just a kilometre or so from the dumpyard. When we went inside Mandur past the police security on the main road, the sight of death welcomed us — villagers had gathered around the dead body of a resident, Narayana Rao, in front of his house, despite the curfew imposed. Rao had…

Read more

The garbage time bomb that Bengaluru was sitting on has exploded again. The villagers in Mandur near Bangalore, who had agreed to tolerate the mess for an year, have started protesting as they did not see any concrete action taking place to clear the mountain of garbage in Mandur. Starting the night of May 31, 2014, no waste is being allowed to be dumped in Mandur by the villagers, until further negotiations solve the problem temporarily. Besides, Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) has proposed the closure of Mandur waste disposal unit, following the failure of BBMP to comply with…

Read more

Karnataka State Pollution Control Board has monitored the ambient air quality using continuous ambient air quality monitoring system at two locations and manual monitoring stations at 13 locations (11 manual stations and 2 Continuous Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations [CAAQMS]) in Bangalore city on occasion of Deepavali festival 2013. To see the impact of bursting of crackers etc. on air quality, round-the-clock (24 Hourly) air quality monitoring was carried out. The measured SO2 and NO2 values during normal days (29.10.2013) and Deepavali days (2nd and 4th Nov-2013) have not exceeded the National limits (SO2: 80 µg/M3 and NO2: 80 µg/M3).…

Read more

The residents of Puttenahalli in J P Nagar 7th phase are worried about the increasing noise pollution in the vicinity and the lethargic attitude of Karnataka State Pollution Control Board officials. They are also living in fear, not willing to come out of their safe closets and complain openly. A resident who doesn’t want to be named says that repeated complaints made to the board, forced KSPCB officials to conduct a spot inspection and issue a show cause notice to the erring Pallavi Engineering company. The resident, through his email to Citizen Matters, says that nothing has changed since then…

Read more

This year seems to have been a slightly eco-friendly Ganapati festival, claimed various press releases from BBMP and Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB). But the statistics tells a different tale. The drive of the KSPCB and the BBMP to influence people to celebrate an eco-friendly festival seems to have done little in curtailing the pollution levels in the lakes. KSPCB and BBMP had publicised the importance of eco-Ganesha in a large scale this year, through various media including Facebook, advertisements and campaigns. This year around 1.2 lakh Gahesha idols were sold in Bangalore city - this is 40% of…

Read more

Number of Bengaluru-based citizens groups and NGOs have filed a writ petition in the High Court of Karnataka against government authorities and private firms over the Bellandur-Agara Special Economic Zone (SEZ) project. The SEZ project, which is being built in a sensiive area between Bellandur and Agara lake, has been in the news recently on questions over environmental and water clearances.  Citizen Matters is awaiting further details regarding first proceedings of the case. We will run a detailed report when we get more details.   

Read more

Traffic congestion due to increased private vehicles and expensive public transport, respiratory diseases from polluted air, pedestrians' problems owing to poor roads and footpaths et al, have become a part of life of Bangalore. Here are some disturbing realities and possible remedies to these interlinked challenges. A joint discussion held by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) and the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB), in Bangalore on March 22, 2013 rated the Karnataka capital among 14 Indian cities which have high particulate pollution. They warned that it may enter the ‘critical’ category if the situation is not addressed…

Read more

Bangalore has always been home to many locals and migrants. But this welcoming nature now seems to have become a costly affair for its residents. While  the number of trees and lakes have reduced considerably, the number of vehicles and pollution levels in the city have increased considerably, which is posing major health hazards to people. However, a recent study conducted by the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) reveals that the pollution level is the least during monsoons, and highest during winter. This study shows that the pollution level near CIty Railway station, which is at the centre of…

Read more

It was 10am in the morning. A torrent of unbearably loud music got me up on my feet out on the road. I saw many loudspeakers that had been installed overnight, from Nagasandra circle to Thyagarajanagar, all along the main road. Sound should not be audible beyond 200 feet, says the law. Pic: Shamala Kittane. Evidently, a nearby temple had decided to celebrate ‘Annamma Devi Festival' - a borrowed tradition from a village but now out of context and place. A local JD (S) politician, Adisheshaiah, however decided to keep the tradition going. The festive season in Bangalore begins in…

Read more

In a landmark decision, A S Sadashivaiah, Chairman, Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB), has directed BBMP and Ramky Infrastructure Pvt ltd, the private operator of landfill, to immediately stop dumping waste in Mavallipura landfill. This comes a week after BBMP handed over an acceptance letter to Ramky for setting up a power plant which produce power out of waste at Mavallipura landfill. Combust making technology at Mavallipura landfill. Pic: Sankar C G “Stop the supply of waste by BBMP to the Mavallipura Landfill site, at survey number eight, Hesaraghatta Hobli, Bangalore North, immediately till the entire accumulated waste is…

Read more