PEOPLE

A passionate environmentalist and cyclist who has earned the nickname ‘Go Green Rao’ for his years of activism, another deeply inspired by the French culture of cycling and its implications for urban health, a sustainable mobility activist working with NGOs on various public transport campaigns, a corporate executive who quit his job to embark on a solo cycling tour across India, a cyclist inspired by the tales of his grandfather, and a 15-year-old student planning to use his love for cycling to generate greater awareness for social causes -- these six people are vying for a title that is a…

Sathish M. Reddy, incumbent MLA of Bommanahalli constituency, did not get the time to give a proper interview for Citizen Matters, but did manage to squeeze in some time to share his work in the last 10 years. Excerpts: You have been an MLA in Bommanahalli for 10 years. When you started, this entire area was still developing, but today it has become a thriving, commercial, developed and rich area. What was your vision then? Have you achieved it? When I took over, HSR Layout was a part of BBMP. There were no proper water connections, sanitation or roads. After I…

Basavanagudi MLA L A Ravisubrahmanya, who is re-contesting hoping for a hat-trick, found some time to talk to us on his goals and work for last ten years in Basavanagudi. Excerpts of the interview: Basavanagudi is one of the oldest areas of Bangalore and you're contesting for the 3rd time. When you contested for the first time, what was one problem that was unique to Basavanagudi and what is the status of that today? During my first tenue the immediate problem that I could see was sanitation. The lines had become old and had to be changed. It was a…

Not many are aware that there is a post of nominated Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) in Karnataka Assembly meant for Anglo-Indian community, which is similar to the regular MLA, without voting rights for Rajya Sabha. Vinisha Nero held this post for last five years. Hailing from Bengaluru, she also was the sole woman MLA from the city for the term 2013-2018. We spoke to her to understand what her role was and what she could do during her term. Excerpts: Not many people are aware that there is a nominated MLA in the Assembly. Would you explain the process…

Jayanagar MLA BN Vijayakumar died of a cardiac arrest, on May 3, 2018, right in the middle of his campaigning. What did Vijayakumar leave behind? What was he trying to do, and what problems did he have? What was his opinion on his constituency's concerns like waste composting or cycle lanes? We had interviewed Vijayakumar a week earlier, to understand his vision for the constituency. This was a long chat and it highlights his legacy too, perhaps setting the direction for whoever takes his baton, and for those who want to pick up the fights he was fighting and carry them…

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is contesting in a few seats in Bengaluru, in which K R Puram is one. Lingaraj Urs has been campaigning hard to gain ground to take on the incumbent Basavaraj Byrathi. Here are the excerpts of an interview with him. You are a first time candidate in the Assembly elections and the people of K R Puram don't know much about you. Tell us a bit about your experience in public service and administration. I think I'll go back a little in time, to the roots of my career. I spent 30 years in IT and…

Sometimes, the juxtaposition of two things strikes the eye, as it did when I saw this gentleman, along with a book that a young lady had left open on another table. The caption occurred to me at once. As he got up, the gentleman called the attention of yet another man to the glasses he'd left behind when moving to another table. Such casual helpfulness, somehow, made me feel very happy! So much to see and observe even on a short visit to a Darshini (this one was Coffee Thindi in Jayangar 4th T Block)

A few months into my first job as reporter in The Times of India, Bangalore, in the 1990s, Gauri joined the desk, on transfer from the Delhi office. “Hello, mari..” (that's Kannada for pet, or little one) she said, and gold-flecked brown eyes twinkled with the promise of much mischief, great humor and the thrill of a million little rebellions. Gauri wasted no time in taking charge, and now I had two shoulders to cry on, which I did a lot of in those days, for the same reasons that most 23-year-olds need a shoulder to cry on that is…

Silver Talkies is an e-magazine for senior citizens, and one of the many useful articles I've seen is the one written by advocate Shiv Kumar about why one should write a will, and how one can do it. Shiv Kumar consults with the Elders Helpline in Bangalore and can be contacted via the Nightingales Medical Trust (NMT). You can contact NMT on 080-42426565 or reach the helpline on 080-22943226. Shiv Kumar is a Senior Advocate with 40 years of active practice at the Karnataka High Court. He has been actively involved with the Elders Help Line since its inception 10…

The sight of these posters, stuck all over one surface (and indeed, stuck all over all kinds of surfaces throughout our city) brought home to me that there are many people who live in circumstances very different from home or apartment owners or tenants. The usual demographic of someone who looks for, and lives in, a Paying Guest accommodation is usually someone young, and who has probably landed the first job in this city. The emoluments look very attractive in the small town where that young person may live; but arrival in Bangalore brings them face to face with the…