OPINION

It was the first thing on her to-do list as restrictions eased with Lockdown 5. Manjula recharged her phone for Rs 400. “I may have to skip a meal for this” she laments as the expense eats into her non-existent savings. “But my Amma should be able to call now” is her hope as she waits for her employers to call her back to work.  Working as a domestic help has been more than a decade of Manjula’s life.  She turned up at homes everyday like clockwork, to clean them without a day off. She stayed behind to help when they…

Bengaluru, predicted to be the fastest growing city in the world for the next 15 years, is already facing an acute water crisis. Its rapid infrastructural expansion has led to an ever-increasing demand for water, and local government bodies haven’t been able to keep up. The BWSSB (Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board), tasked with water supply, still doesn’t cover the 110 surrounding villages that had been merged into the city in 2007. Over the years, private water tanker operators have bridged this gap in water supply, playing a crucial role in the city’s daily life. However, they operate without…

Why do Shramik trains arranged after a 60-day long wait by workers have to be so carefully mismanaged? How do they end up taking extra-long routes? And why are passengers given such meagre amounts of water and food? Is this what ‘shramiks’ should get after spending days trying to satisfy all procedures, whims and fancies of the concerned departments and officials?  Why does everything to do with workers have to be a planned nightmare?  Let me share snippets from the journey of a worker from Bengaluru to Jampani village in Jharkhand, which led me to ask these questions.  The journey…

Over the last few weeks, the sight of garbage pickers and their trucks plying on empty streets in the early mornings has taught us the value of poor migrant labourers who provide essential services in our metros.  From the relative comfort of middle-class homes, we have learnt about their lives and have been moved by their plight.  But, there is another aspect of their predicament, which became clear to me only when I began supplying essential drugs and food packets to their families.  For some years, my friends and I, as volunteers of the Aam Aadmi Party, had held health…

[In Part 1 of this analysis, I discussed budget figures for 2020-21, and how resource mobilisation of the BBMP can be bettered. This concluding part is on suggestions to improve the finances of the civic body and how that can translate to efficiency.] A major source that the BBMP should tap for revenue -- after property taxes and leasing advertisement hoardings -- is to monetise its real estate through lease and rentals. Revenue from lease and rentals BBMP reportedly owns more than 20,000 properties across the city and most of them in prime locations. The rentals fixed are abominably low…

Karnataka’s Urban Development Department, through the Directorate of Urban Land Transport (DULT), has prepared a draft Parking Policy for Bengaluru city. Citizens can send their feedback on the policy to DULT until May 15. DULT says the policy has been formulated to achieve the following goals in a systematic and time bound manner: Move from chaotic parking to well-organised parkingMove from free parking to paid parkingMove from government-driven parking supply to market-driven parking supply and managementMove from passive and weak enforcement of parking regulations to active management of parking demand. Comments on the proposed parking policy The policy aims to…

The more important question is: What should they be doing? From what I can see, some are involved in the distribution of food and rations, some have taken a more proactive approach in organising home delivery of medicines and groceries, some are seen buying vegetables directly from the farmers and some are busy sticking labels on government-provided ration kits. Now, all this is good, but it doesn’t really fulfil their job description. Functions of MPs and MLAs MPs and MLAs perform two main functions:  Legislation: Pass laws Oversight: Ensure government performs as expected Oversight includes monitoring government programmes, identifying gaps…

An institution in decline is not a pretty sight.  Particularly when it is a civic body responsible for the quality of life of vast segments of the population.  This is what is happening to Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagar Palike, which has just presented its budget for the current year.   Of course, there’s more to development than figures.  Nevertheless, the Annual Financial Statement is a great way of assessing recent performance and future plans.  From both points of view, going by the BBMP’s figures, the prospects for Bengaluru are bleak. Budget analysis usually starts with three questions.  Have promises made in…

COVID-19 has caught us all unawares, but in the last few weeks Bengaluru has sprung on its feet to tackle the crisis. BBMP has set up a war room to centrally oversee the situation, police are working overtime, and so are hospitals and medical staff. Besides, innumerable citizens are doing their bit to distribute money, medicines, food and other essentials to those in need. It’s heartwarming to see how the city has come together yet again. But what we have now is an adrenaline-filled system - both formal and informal - that’s working overtime, doing whatever it takes to cope…

To lockdown or not to lockdown, that is the question. There are other questions too. To lift the lockdown totally in one go, to lift it partially, or to prepare a calibrated lifting of the lockdown, starting April 15. The pressure cooker comparison may not be far off the mark. As the lockdown continues, the slow build of pressure among people cooped up in their homes can be seen. As also the hope and anticipation of freedom. The social fallout if those hopes are dashed, are in no way predictable. The question is how to enable the gradual release of…