Civic

Even as the Pune Municipal Corporation goes full throttle with its Smart City initiatives, the work in progress is causing major problems for Punekars. The most irksome being poor road conditions. Despite several measures taken by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and other civic bodies, Pune’s roads continue to be plagued with potholes, dim-lights, and ill-constructed speed-breakers and dividers. “Commuting via the potholed Choudhary Basti Road in Kharadi has become a nightmare for people, who are risking their lives every day to reach their destinations,” said Kharadi resident Anuradha Dubey.  Satish Mane, a resident from Kondhwa added: “The area sees…

Modernity is yet to fully destroy the centuries old flavours of downtown Srinagar. It is still the place to go to, to sample the real taste of Kashmir, known for its traditional craft skills, its architecture, its spiritual sense from some of Kashmir’s most revered shrines sporting pagoda like roofs, especially the historic Jamia Masjid, the seat of power and religious authority of the Mirwaiz family, whose current head Umar Farooq, delivers the Friday sermons here. And, of course, its bazaars at Borhi Kadal, Zaina Kadal and Mahraj Gunj, named after the Maharajas that ruled Kashmir from 1846 to 1947. …

As much as Rs, 8344 crore was announced for Bengaluru’s development in the latest state Budget presented by Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa on March 5. Here’s the catch: It is a carry-over of the previous year’s Budget – with an outlay of Rs 8015 crore for Bengaluru --presented by then Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy. What’s more, it bears a new name. The former’s grants came under the `Chief Minister’s Nava Bengaluru Kriya Scheme’ while Yediyurappa’s allocations for Bengaluru comes under the `Chief Minister’s Nava Nagarottana Scheme’. There are more similarities: From solid waste management to transport, mobility, water supply,…

Coronavirus impact: CSK practice suspended, flights cancelled, KG to Class V shut In view of the coronavirus pandemic, Chennai Super Kings suspended their practice matches at the M A Chidambaram Stadium. IPL 2020 has been postponed till April 15. As the government has issued travel advisories, flights are being cancelled and international passenger arrivals have fallen down by 22- 25%. In addition, officials state that arrivals in the domestic terminal have also fallen significantly. Primary schools across the state will be closed from March 16 to 31 to prevent the spread of coronavirus. Additionally, malls and theatres have been ordered…

Five COVID-19 cases reported so far Five COVID-19 cases were reported in Bengaluru as of Thursday. The first case, confirmed on March 9, was that of a 46-year-old IT employee who had travelled from US via Dubai. His wife (47), daughter (13), and a 50-year-old man were added to the list the next day. The fifth case, reported on Thursday, was that of a 26-year-old who returned from Greece. All five patients have all been quarantined in the state-run Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Chest Diseases (RGICD). They are responding well to treatment and are recovering, said RGICD Director C Nagaraj.…

Gairsain to be the new summer capital for Uttarakhand The Himalayan state of Uttarakhand is all set to make Gairsain in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand its new summer capital. Dehradun presently serves as the state capital. The demand for declaring Gairsain as the capital of the state has been gathering momentum since 1990s. Regional political outfits have carried out wide protests for over a decade to put pressure on ruling regimes to declare Gairsain as the capital. CM Trivendra Singh Rawat has dedicated the decision to activists who have been associated with the movement since early 1990s. Gairsain is approximately…

In 2010, a 10-yr-old school girl Vipasha Srivastava, wrote a moving letter to the Chief Justice of Himachal Pradesh High Court complaining about lack of recreational spaces in the state capital, Shimla. The letter triggered instant action. A Bench led by then Chief Justice Kurian Joseph (who later retired as a Supreme Court Judge) sent notices to the state’s Chief Secretary seeking answers to Vipasha’s questions. The bench termed the issues Vipasha mentioned in her letter as very important since it concerned the healthy, all-round growth of children. The Court also ordered Shimla Municipal Corporation to get funds from the…

The political establishment has been feeling lost ever since the High Court of Madras pronounced an outright ban on parties erecting digital banners and hoardings along the streets and roads of Chennai. And as is always the case, a minor adjustment when it comes to interpretation of the judgement will soon help in getting these public nuisances back. If the news agencies are to be believed, the Corporation of Chennai is of the view that the ban pertains only to political parties and not organisers of “marriages, birthdays and other social celebrations.” We are not sure if religious events are…

One corner of the open railway yard at Alambagh resembles a foundry. Strewn with pieces of scrap metal of different sizes and shapes, one can hear sounds of metal being hammered, sawed and cut and the intermittent crackle of the welding torch. But peep in, and you soon realise you are in a roofless studio where sculptures are being crafted from waste metal. In one corner you see an incomplete sculpture of Lord Buddha, and next to it, quite unexpectedly, a model of a fighter jet. Close to it, you can see artists giving final touches to a metallic dragon…

More H1N1 cases, suspected corona cases Two positive cases of H1N1 or swine flu were detected at the city office of the e-commerce giant Amazon. Sources said that, as a precaution, the company is sanitising its offices, but none of the workspaces have been shutdown. Another swine flu case was reported on Wednesday at Mercedes Benz Research and Development India on their Brigade Tech Gardens Campus, Whitefield. The office was sanitised, evacuated and shut down for two days. Five persons, who travelled from COVID-19 affected countries and showed symptoms, have been admitted to hospitals in Bengaluru, Udupi and Bidar since…