OPINION

Subsequent to the judgement on the PIL on December 11th, 2012, the Chief Electoral Officer and BBMP organisations are undertaking intense cleansing activities of electoral rolls of the 27 constituencies of Bangalore Districts.A few steps:They have accepted close to 10 lakh applications for registration and have restored about 1 lakh voters to the rolls by verifying that the deletions were incorrect.They have identified about 12 lakh instances of errors and have corrected about 80% of them.About 65,000 duplicate records have been identified and deleted.More than 30,600 voters who shared their ID with some other voters are now allotted new IDs.Now,…

Manufacturing units (aka factories) come under the purview of various chapters and sections of the Factories Act, 1948 which provides detailed regulations concerning health, disposal of waste and effluents, lighting, drinking water, safety and other aspects relevant to working conditions. The legislation also governs working hours, rests, overtime for extra hours, the welfare officer et al. And the responsibility for compliance is on the ‘Occupier' who should be a director of the company and the factory manager.While the above provisions are grossly inadequate even for today's manufacturing industries, they barely cover the conditions prevailing in Information Technology (IT) and Information…

Stack three matchboxes, and they'll stay stable. Add a dozen more on top, and the pile will topple. Perhaps this ‘tipping point' is what we as a society have now reached, as we begin a new year, where our responses are shaking up apathetic administrators.Slowly, but surely, and with increasing frequency, we are hearing of action by individuals or small groups, raising protests and making a difference. A few such initiatives in namma ooru are worth taking note of.Last month, the High Court ordered a review of BBMP's record of granting permission for commercial buildings in residential areas. It took…

In one of the articles in his weekly column for the Times of India, brand consultant Santosh Desai examined the psychology behind the increase in rape cases. He attributed it to the increase in power of women leading to insecurity in males. Some women hold positions of extreme power. And a few large firms such as Facebook have women as their COO's, CEO's, CFO's, etc. The previous President of India was a woman. These are major factors contributing to the atrocities against women, according to Desai.The government usually passes the blame to women for their dressing and mannerisms as the…

The good news is that at least half the number of diabetes patients can prevent or delay the onset of diabetes by simple lifestyle modifications. The bad news is: at least 50% of diabetics are not aware that they have diabetes. They are not aware of signs and symptoms which can help them recognise if they have diabetes, and manage it accordingly before it causes damage to vital organs. Pic: wikimedia commons What then should alert you if you are at risk of diabetes, or have diabetes. Some of the common symptoms that should alert you are: Increased appetite Increased…

It's an image stuck in my head from a long time ago. My friend, 19, is helping her mother roll out chapattis in the kitchen. Nothing wrong with that, except that her brother is comfortably slouched on the sofa, yelling for water. She yells back that he should get it himself and the mother adds lovingly but in all seriousness: Bhai ko paani de do, usko aadat nahi hai lene ki (Give a glass of water to your brother, he isn't in the habit of fetching it himself).The recent discussions in the light of the tragic gang rape case in…

So the protests have stopped and the political games have begun. The 23-year-old girl continues to battle for her life. What now?The immediate reaction from Delhi Police after the incident was to pull up all the drivers and see to it that they have valid public service permits. People started tweeting about buses with dark windows or curtained and saying, be wary of them. Yes it is a good thing to have these in place because it helps us catch the culprits when a crime occurs. But this is not a preventive measure is it?Closer home Home Minister R Ashoka,…

By now you've probably read, discussed and formed your own opinion about the case of the Indian couple arrested in Norway and sentenced to 18 and 15 months jail respectively. Their crime? Of physically abusing their son by beating him with a belt and burning him with a hot spoon as punishment. It seems the child was ‘hypersensitive' according to newspapers here. The psychiatrist treating the child has termed it Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder(ADHD). If the reports are true, instead of understanding the condition, his parents resorted to beating the child and threatening to send him back to India. Pic:…

Bangalore is projected as an emerging "City of Opportunities". It is the most favoured destination, not only in India, but also globally. Unfortunately, there is minimal co-ordination between interconnected government departments and delays in commencement and execution of most infrastructure projects. Recently, the Federation Of Karnataka Chambers Of Commerce and Industry had invited N. Sivasailam, MD, BMRCL, to address its members. Based on various observations, I have the following suggestions to make the Bangalore Metro passenger friendly and improve overall city infrastructure: 1. Asphalting of roads a few roads below the underpasses of Namma Metro across the city need asphalting. We…

"Bad Pati." - said my twelve year old granddaughter.This was her reaction to my dumping milk bags into the kitchen waste bin that contained only ‘wet waste'."Sorry dear, I won't do it again." - I said feeling proud of my eco-friendly grandchild. Yes. I felt ashamed. It is true that grown-ups should show more concern about such things in the presence of the younger generation. If we ‘pooh-pooh' their remarks and continue to be callous it would be shameful.I was walking in the park in our neighborhood and was rather upset when two youngsters threw the paper plates in which…