Forward Bellandur

It has been about three months since an update on the status of Iblur lake rejuvenation was shared. So here is one. As the picture suggests, there is water! That is a great news indeed. It is far from full, but to get to this point required a fair bit of work. Copious rains over the lake body were not enough. We had to find ways to clean up inlets of roadside drains that could feed the lake. We now have 4 such inlets and we will add a couple more once the current roadworks are complete. Here are some…

The fifth edition of the habba is the most talked about community event in the neighbourhood of ORR-Sarjapur Road. Kere Habba or Lake Festival is an annual day long conservation-focused celebration of the gorgeous Kaikondrahalli lake, planned this time on February 17. 2019. It is an amalgamation of music, theatre, fitness, art, design and fun - all talking the same idiom of ecology and environment. Some of the most prominent names in the world of conservation, ecology and science conduct pro bono sessions to raise funds to support and maintain this lake. Their sessions are jam-packed and draw huge crowds. One of…

On February 18th 2018, Kaikondrahalli Lake hosted a bunch of events for the 4th time with more than 4000 people from neighborhood participating in Kere Habba 2018 aimed at raising awareness, increasing community participation and fostering an appreciation of lakes in Bengaluru. This year, the team pushed for a green way to come to the Habba. They encouraged visitors to ‘Cycle to Kere Habba’, avoid parking blues and cut the carbon footprint of the Habba further. The rental cycles were sponsored by Zoomcar’s Pedl initiative. While many residents cycled to the venue, many more chose to rent the bicycles at…

‘Faire’, in French, means ‘to do’ or ‘to make’ and that is at the heart of what Vigyana Habba aims to achieve. The fair was aimed to encourage a scientific spirit among children that questions, probes and finds solutions. It was not just a show and tell event - participants as well as visitors learned by “doing” stuff. On Saturday, Aug 19th, 2017, over 44 teams participated in the second edition of the Soul Kere Science Fair - Vigyana Habba. The participating students were from grades 1 to 12 of various school and communities in the neighborhood of the lake.…

On Saturday, Aug 19th, 2016, over 45 teams will participate in the second edition of the Soul Kere Science Fair - Vigyana Habba. The participating students are from grades 1 to 12 of various school and communities in the neighborhood of the lake. The event is organized by MAPSAS and supported by Genpact,(Platinum sponsor), Infosys Science Foundation (Gold sponsor), Biocon and United Way Bengaluru. Entry to the event is free and open to all. The teams will demonstrate live experiments that explore the topic ‘Science in everyday life’. The fair is aimed to encourage a scientific spirit among children that…

This is not a picture of Kaikondrahalli lake. But if we could represent the lake of our dreams, we certainly will select this picture of Niagra falls raising a cloud of mist which rains down a faint drizzle in the surrounding areas. Add a few million gallons of murky coloured raw sewage, tonnes of plastic waste, a half submerged buckling lake fence pushed in by the surrounding construction activity, and gushing waters raising a froth and a din among the resident birds, overflowing through the diversion pipes and you have the real picture. It is still beautiful, but not as…

Citizen groups came together and organised the Bellanduru Lake festival with good participation from authorities and citizen stakeholders. The event was organised by citizen volunteers from Bellanduru. The event was sought to bring together all stakeholders and to raise awareness and participation from the general public and seek their ongoing support towards lake revival.  One of the core  organisers said “It is a great start to citizen engagement and ongoing involvement in the rejuvenation of the Lake.  Support and commitment from authorities was encouraging.  Citizens must engage more actively and own up our lakes”. The event was held at an…

The following post was shared by Praveen Singh, a runner. I decided on a whim one fine April morning in 1989 to visit Bellandur lake and I clicked a full Konica roll worth of pictures. I used to live in Indira Nagar and had visited the lake and surroundings for its beauty and also to watch aircraft land and takeoff from nearby runway. Here are some of the photographs. Last week, I took some time off over the weekend to do a "Then and Now" series of photo captures from almost the same spots I had clicked from over 28 years ago.…

Sobha Quartz in Bellandur, Bengaluru is a residential apartment complex with 146 families. Some families living here compost their kitchen waste in their own balcony-based mini composting plants. They also embrace zero-waste events, sustainable menstruation hygiene practices and other eco friendly practices. Here’s how a typical Sobha Quartz family, Naresh Sadasivan and his wife Shanthi Naresh, ensure their event was zero waste. Invitation cards, non-biodegradable decorations, plastic disposables, water bottles, leftover food, tissue paper and plastic bags create a mass of trash that go to a landfill, which is not only a waste of money, but a problem when the city…

On 2nd October 2014, Prime Minister Modi launched Swachh Bharat Mission in India as a national movement. Bengaluru that was buzzing with waste management activities joined the bandwagon. But three years down the line, the problems still exist. We still face many challenges. Garbage dumping in Junnasandra lake and example of a black spot Bellandur lake catches fire due to illegal dumping Feb 2017 Our lakes continue to be the victims of trespassing, sewage and more. At this point, we the residents of Bellandur area have these questions: Have the MLA and Corporator led from the front to stop the…