LOCAL

The greatest challenge today before Indian cities, smart or not, is garbage. Walk through any neighbourhood in a big city and if you don’t spot at least one public bin overflowing with mixed waste, or mounds of the same dumped on the sidewalks or streets themselves, you are mighty impressed. And so I was when I recently spent a few hours in Manali, to understand the work being done by zonal officers and conservancy workers in the area. Chennai North is made up of five zones - Tiruvottiyur, Manali, Madhavaram, Tondiarpet and Royapuram - spread over about 130 sq km.…

Shivany Dowlat, a 7th grader at GEAR Innovation International School, concluded the presentation of her project on miscible and immiscible liquids with a trick question. “Do you keep our lakes clean?” If the answer was yes, she would quickly point to the lake directly behind her, Soul Kere off Sarjapur Road, and rebut. Soul Kere looks cleaner than many of Bengaluru’s lakes, but it still had small trails of trash visible from where Dowlat was standing. Pic: Kate Clark “Look at the plastic,” she said. “People come in and throw it, why? There’s a dustbin right there… You don’t keep…

A view from the street in Kodichikkanahalli, Bengaluru. Only the front side of this property was demolished. Another view of the same property. Properties on the Raj Kaluve are technically government-owned and can be demolished at any time. In Kodichikkanahalli, and in other Bengaluru neighborhoods, residents are claiming BBMP has given them no notice before coming in and demolishing their homes. A clear view of the Raj Kaluve seeping into a residential area in Kodichikkanahalli where several demolitions have occurred over the past month. These demolitions are of properties encroaching on the Raj Kaluve. Rubble can be seen strewn about…

Perhaps the best idea to come out of the Government of India in recent times was to set aside 2% of the post-tax income of companies (beyond a certain size) towards investments of social value. Used properly, this can be a powerful fuel for localities and their corporate denizens to collaborate to solve local problems. Nooraine Fazal (left) of Inventure Academy, hands over the keys to a traffic signal to Police Inspector Narasimhamurthy. Pic: Anu Parekh We’re seeing some of that happening in Whitefield, home to a good many companies. Interestingly, CSR is now being used to directly address the…

Whitefield residents have beautified another spot formerly entrenched in garbage. The blackspot near the Whitefield outer circle, like many dirty spots in Bengaluru, had become a watering hole for rats and stray dogs and attractive to snakes. A glimpse of the recent spot fix in Bengaluru's Whitefield neighborhood. Pic: Kate Clark This particular 'spot-fix' was organised by Whitefield Rising, who have been conducting 'spot fixes' since 2013 after being inspired by the The Ugly Indian. ('Spot-fix' is a term coined by The Ugly Indian group for this process of beautifying dirty areas.) Over two weekends, dozens of volunteers gathered to…

File picture of a slum near HSR Layout. Pic: Akshatha M International Symposium on Health in Slums 2016 was held in Smrithi Auditorium, Bangalore Baptist Hospital, Hebbal on April 30, 2016. This was a first-of-its-kind event provided a platform for health researchers, BBMP Medical Officer and NGOs involved in various aspect of health in slums. The population for study involved migrant and non-migrant populations. This was an opportunity to connect the investigators, with questions pertaining to the health and wellbeing of the slum dwellers, with those willing to offer solutions in the form cost-effective options of fuel, energy, technology and…

Pic: Rajesh Shah Varthur and Bellandur lakes have been in the news over the past one year due to froth and fire. These lakes were last desilted in 1970. As part of the rejuvenation efforts, scientists from Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and other experts have been recommending wet dredging to remove the silt and sludge. To estimate the amount of silt and sludge that have accumulated over the years, Prof. Ramachandra of IISc recommended a bathymetric survey. IISc and MEG Teams at KK English School Citizens who took into consideration the recommendations of teh scientists seriously, joined their hands…

Amidst the complaints raised by residents of HSR Layout, Gas Authority of India Ltd (GAIL) is busy laying pipelines across the city to provide piped natural gas to households in Bengaluru as a part of its City Gas Distribution (CGD) project. However, many people are unaware of what is going on - as we see roads dug up, trenches and warning signage in front of homes. GAIL's map for the City Gas Distribution Project in Bengaluru. Here is all you should know about CGD. What is City Gas Distribution Project? Control Room for GAIL Gas Ltd 080 6888 8081 City…

A 35 metre long cycle lane laid on a pilot basis at HSR Layout. Pic: Akshatha M HSR Layout in Bengaluru is in news yet again for the proposed cycle lanes. A 35-metre long green lane painted with images of cycles is arousing curiosity among people. What’s going on? Has this been tried elsewhere in the city? What were the results? Will HSR Layout plan survive the test of time? Bengaluru got its first cycle track on public roads in 2012. Separate cycle tracks were laid on about 40 km stretch in Jayanagar with the Department of Urban Land Transport…

GAIL has begun the pipeline laying work for its PNG project in HSR Layout. Pic: Akshatha M Within months of the GAIL Gas Ltd initiating work on its ambitious City Gas Distribution Project in Bengaluru, it has attracted the wrath of residents of HSR Layout. A few days ago one of our readers had written about how HSR Sector 7 residents are caught between GAIL and BBMP. The author had complained against the contractors for doing a shoddy job and not restoring the trenches properly. Now it is the turn of HSR Sector 2 residents. HSR Layout is the second…