Civic

Last October, 23-year-old Soundharya and her nine-month-old daughter lost their lives to electrocution by a Bescom live wire in Hope Farm, Whitefield. In August, a Christ University student was burned by a live wire from an electric pole that fell when a vehicle accidentally pulled on an OFC illegally put up on the pole. What are Bescom's responsibilities in terms of preventing accidents? And what can you, as a citizen, do if you see a safety hazard, or if you suffer injury/property damage? Here is a guide. According to data Bescom shared with this reporter, 134 people died in Bescom-related…

GCC to prepare white paper on stormwater drains The Greater Chennai Corporation faced a lot of backlash over the state of stormwater drains during the recent floods. In response to that, Corporation Commissioner J Radhakrishnan said in this news report that the GCC will prepare a white paper, which will include an explanation of the much-criticised '₹ 4,000-crore-worth storm water drain works', the status of the project, where the drains worked and where they did not, and why. A flood audit will also be done by the GCC and the reports will be submitted to the government, he said. Source:…

KSRTC to induct 2,000 buses The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) plans to add 2,000 buses, of which 500 will be e-buses. It will also introduce Vehicle Tracking & Monitoring System (VTMS), a mobile app, and cashless travel. There will be 1,000 refurbished buses too. As the Shakti scheme had increased the demand for KSRTC buses, especially in rural areas, it is expected that 1,000 Karnataka Sarige buses will improve rural connectivity. Meanwhile, passengers will soon be able to pay through smart electronic ticketing machines (ETMs). Source: The Hindu, Bangalore Mirror Read more: Looking back at 2023: A review…

Toll for Mumbai Trans Harbour Link set at Rs 250 After much speculation over the amount of toll on the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link, the state government has finalised the toll amount as Rs 250 per car one way. Earlier it was expected that a one-way journey, which cuts the travel time considerably between Navi Mumbai and south Mumbai, would cost as much as Rs 500. The 22-km long road, will connect Sewri in Mumbai and Chirale in Raigad and will have three exits. The longest sea bridge in India, it will reduce the travel time to 15 to 20…

Ennore gas leak: Residents demand closure of factory Residents of Ennore continued their protests against the Coromandel International Limited, after leakage of ammonia gas from the company's pipeline late night on December 26 left many people giddy and gasping for breath, while others fainted. While 52 residents from Periyakuppam, Chinnakuppam and surrounding villages were hospitalised, many have already evacuated from the area because of the strong smell and eye irritation. The fertiliser plant has temporarily downed shutters after a notice for closure was issued by the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) to suspend operations. However, residents from the affected…

Mumbai Trans Harbour Link opening on January 12th After being delayed at twice in the past year, the much awaited MTHL is all set to connect Mumbai and Navi Mumbai early next year. It is the longest sea bridge in the country at 21.8 km. It will connect Sewri in south Mumbai to Chirle in Navi Mumbai with a total of three exits. Reports said that an invitation had been sent to the Prime Minister and if all goes well, it will be inaugurated by PM Narendra Modi on January 12th. Considered to be an engineering marvel, the construction costs…

KSRTC ventures into logistics business Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC)-the state-owned transport utility-is stepping into the logistics sector, sensing a great business opportunity there, Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy told Economic Times. The business started on December 10th, and 20 fully-equipped trucks were launched to enhance the non-ticket revenue of the corporation.  The KSRTC also entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with KMS Coach Builders Pvt. Ltd. for lending its cargo truck services on a rental basis for a period of two months. It has also entered into an agreement with S. M. Kannappa Automobiles (P) Ltd. for a…

Another year goes by and most of us, who are not directly affected, are watching the world in turmoil helplessly from a distance. Whether it is extreme violence and massacre of human rights in Gaza or the tepid COP 28 commitments for climate action. Closer home, there is a record number of suspensions of members of our parliament and passage of bills without debates, raising disturbing questions about India's democratic structures. And then in Mumbai, one has almost gotten used to the fact that the city has not had the municipal elections so as to expect our elected representatives to…

Mask up but no need to worry, say docs  Just as we were gearing up to celebrate Christmas and New Year, a new Covid variant called JN.1, has been reported. As of now Mumbai has the maximum number of cases in the state.  Chief minister Eknath Shinde informed that the decision to form a task force to manage isolation, medication and other requirements in case of increase in the cases, will be taken soon. He emphasised that people should reinforce “Covid Appropriate Behaviour” such as masking up and testing. Maharashtra has not imposed any restrictions as of now.   Doctors…

Bengaluru sees 30 COVID-19 cases in 2 days The state government has constituted a four-member cabinet sub-committee, headed by state Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao, to monitor the measures to contain the spread of COVID-19. The other three ministers in the panel are Social Welfare Minister Dr H C Mahadevappa, Medical Education Minister Dr Sharan Prakash Patil, and Higher Education Minister Dr M C Sudhakar. The state reported 24 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, according to the latest update from the Union Health Ministry. The total number of active cases has risen to 105.  Bengaluru restaurants are…