Civic

Bengaluru Development Authority (BDA) has come out with the draft plan for Bengaluru, and has displayed the Revised Master Plan-2031 (RMP-2031) in its website. It's time for interested citizens to understand and decode the RMP and comment in it, raise objections or give suggestions. For starters, read all the chapters – www.bdabangalore.org/TPMRMP2031.html , or http://www.bdabangalore.org/RMP2031.html. The pages are in the high triple digits and it is heavy reading – so it will take time. But it is a necessary first step so that unlike the protests about Padmavati, we are commenting based on knowing about what’s contained in the document. I…

The draft master plan for Bengaluru is finally out. This important document will shape how the city will develop and function for next 15 years. A press note from Bengaluru Development Authority mentions that ecological sustainability, mobility, inclusive growth and streamlined governance are the four pillar stones of the Revised Master Plan (RMP) for Bengaluru 2031 (Draft). The note states that the BDA "has evolved the RMP-2031 passing through a journey of series of surveys and studies with the technical support from Haskoning DHV in association with Adapt Technologies." Edited excerpts from the BDA press note: The GoK approved the…

Clause 60 of The Karnataka Municipal Corporation Act of 1976 (KMCA) lists down the power and functions of the Mayor. The powers include: presiding over BBMP council meetings; conducting inspections and directing BBMP Commissioner to implement any resolution passed by the Corporation or the Standing Committees and produce records. Other sections of the Act also delegate more powers to the Mayor like barring a councillor from voting and casting a vote in case of tie while passing a resolution. However, the interesting aspect to note here is that the Mayor does not enjoy any executive powers and is mostly a…

In May 2017, members of the Sarjapura Residents Welfare Association (SRWA) initiated a project that turned out to be India’s first crowd-funded tree transplantation exercise. Since the initial months of 2017, scores of huge old trees – some even centuries old, were being axed to clear space for roads to be widened from Dommasandra to Sarjapura and beyond. Local residents couldn’t protest against this road widening, since getting good roads for their travel was indeed crucial for them. However, they could not bear the pain of losing these grand old trees and total annihilation of the lush green cover around.…

On a sunny-cool afternoon, joining more than a 100 “orange” rallyists to protest violence on women sounds a bit violent. However, it really can’t get more peaceful when you are standing in silence. At the Gandhi Square. With placards that shout out a word that may strike many men as some breaking news: NO! No to violence, No to tyranny and No to No. Does it spring a surprise to the guys who think it is witty and macho to attack women? Yes. Surprisingly. It does. Saying ‘No’ is a rule that men only recently discovered women can say. Even…

Rainwater Harvesting (RWH), an effective solution for flooding and water scarcity, is collapsing in the state that pioneered this conservation model in the country. RWH structures have a nominal presence in many households in Chennai, but rarely ever follow the guidelines that advise harvesting water from the rooftop as well as setback area (around the building). A Rainwater Harvesting Audit carried out by the Akash Ganga Trust for the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority in 2015 exposed the reality of rainwater harvesting in the city and it’s not something we can be proud of. A majority of households lack RWH structures…

Residents living near Shivananda Circle in Bengaluru have decided to protest once more on November 25th, against the 310-metre grade separator planned on Hare Krishna Road that connects Race Course Road to Sheshadripuram. The grade separator for which work has begun already, will start after the Railway Over Bridge near the petrol bunk and will end in front of the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce. The residents have been sounding alarm bells with petitions and protests for a long time now. On Saturday November 18th, residents from various Resident Welfare Associations including Kumara Park East, Srikanthan Layout, Kumara Park West,…

Two years ago, many of us came together with an idea - to save the local lake that we lived near. The situation was dire. Rachenahalli Lake located near Srirampura Cross, Jakkur, Bengaluru, like many other water bodies in the city, is part of an interconnected system both upstream and down. Though the Bengaluru Development Authority (BDA) had spent a substantial sum of public money to rejuvenate it about eight years ago, it had turned into a drain for the sewage water being released by the upscale apartments that surrounded it. The situation had taken a turn for worse because…

The four empty plots behind the Rathnagireeswarar Siva Temple near RBI Quarters in Besant Nagar had become an eyesore for residents of the locality. Owned by the Government Officials Cooperative Housing Society (GOCHS), these lay vacant for years and had been reduced to wasteland, prone to misuse by miscreants, creating a pain for those living in the area. In August 2015 a set of senior citizens, all members of the GOCHS, led by Colonel Krishnaswami, the President of the Society, decided to pool in funds from individuals and use those plots to create a citizens’ park. It was said that…

If I were the Mayor, I would let data and metrics shape the future of the city. The city has grown exponentially and beyond the expectations of everyone to a point where it is becoming unmanageable. Well, as Peter Drucker famously said: You can't manage what you can't measure. If you can't measure it, you can't improve it. The above would be my mantra to improve this city. Everybody has been saying there is no planning, but the intent to improve it has been very few. Unfortunately,for long amounts of time, there is hardly any data that is made available…