Civic

What would be possible if nothing came in our way of doing what we wanted? What if we dedicated our complete self, awake, asleep and in dreams, to work? What if we went all out and dived headlong into solving issues, with a bullheadedness and madness affordable only by those who are completely free? What then, would be possible? This is what got Bhaskar and I to start our initiative, Community Matters. Chunchaghatta neighbourhood. Pic: Sinu Joseph We started six weeks ago with little idea of what we should do, but being very clear of what we should NOT do.…

Almost all of us own a private vehicle, which means that we also visit petrol bunks frequently. But how many of us are aware of the fraudulent practices happening at these bunks? And how many of us are able to take any action against them?  A couple of months ago, I encountered a situation where I asked for Rs.500 worth of petrol, but got petrol worth Rs.200 instead. On questioning the employee, he said he had not heard it well and gave me petrol worth another Rs.300. On switching on the ignition, I noticed that my indicator pointed well below…

PRESS RELEASE Officials of the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation(BMTC) held a meeting with representatives of the Bangalore Bus Prayanikara Vedike (BBPV) at its Head Office in Shanthi Nagar on August 17, 2013. This followed many weeks of agitations, demonstrations and letters sent to BMTC officials following the recent steep increase in bus fares. It was unfortunate that BMTC officials had sought police protection during the meeting. Policemen were present throughout the meeting. From BMTC’s side, Prakash G ‐ General Manager (Traffic) (In Charge) and Veeregowda GN ‐ Chief Traffic Manager (Commercial) took part. From BBPV side, there were ten members…

The collapse of a five-storeyed building under construction in Someshwara Nagar behind NIMHANS, on 19 August, 2013, has raised several questions. Three people died in the incident, while eight workers were injured. As the Fire and Emergency Department is searching for bodies of the labourers who could have been buried under the debris, citizens are worried if the property they are investing in is safe or not. This is only a recent example. There have been six such incidents in Bangalore in last two months. The series of incidents, if not anything else, has forced the BBMP to undertake a…

Editor's note: This article is out of date, as Aadhaar card is now being given in selected centres in Bangalore. Here is the list of centres where you can get your Aadhaar card done: List of Aadhaar registration centres in Bengaluru. Updated on: January 28, 2015. Pic courtesy: myaadhaar.in There is no need to stand in a long queue and wait for your turn to enrol for an Aadhaar card. You can take an appointment with the click of your mouse. You can also get the address of your nearest enrollment centre or by making a phone call to the Aadhaar…

Muniratna interacting with SNNA members Rajarajeshwari Nagar MLA Muniratna met more than 350 property owners of the Sachidananda Nagara Lay Out in Rajarajeshwari Nagara, on August 4th 2013, Sunday morning. The meeting was arranged by Sachidnanada Nagara Nyayapara Andolana, (SNNA), a registered society, that is fighting to get khatas, building plans and layout facilities without paying a single penny as bribe to any of the public officials. SNNA movement started almost three years ago by a group of determined site owners who opposed paying bribes, and got the khatas and all other statutory papers from BBMP through Lokayukta, RTI and…

The programme was launched at Freedom Park in presence of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Food and Civil Supplies Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao, Bangalore In-charge Minister Ramalinga Reddy and others. Pic courtesy: BBMP The need to get rid of the tag of ‘garbage city’ finally seems to have made its way into the policies of government. Kasa Muktha ward drive was launched at Freedom Park on Wednesday, 24 July 2013, with the garbage clearance machinery geared up with 250 trained, dedicated Pourakarmikas and garbage contractors willing to make the programme a hit. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and BBMP Commissioner M Lakshminarayana kickstarted the…

Traffic congestion due to increased private vehicles and expensive public transport, respiratory diseases from polluted air, pedestrians' problems owing to poor roads and footpaths et al, have become a part of life of Bangalore. Here are some disturbing realities and possible remedies to these interlinked challenges. A joint discussion held by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) and the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB), in Bangalore on March 22, 2013 rated the Karnataka capital among 14 Indian cities which have high particulate pollution. They warned that it may enter the ‘critical’ category if the situation is not addressed…

A few months back, when Union Minister Jairam Ramesh made an observation that in India we have more temples than toilets, there was a general unqualified uproar among the political class who demanded an apology even regarding a genuine concern, as always.As a resident of a ‘so called' well planned and affluent locality like HSR Layout, my observation is no different than the Union Minister. Construction workers waking up as early as 4 am to answer their calls of nature in an empty site nearby or dark spaces away from the view of early morning walkers is a regular ritual.…

The buses never stick to timings and hence lose the faith of the commuter. File pic. Fares on Bangalore’s public transport buses (BMTC) were hiked last month, and the reason for justifying the hike was that diesel prices and staff salaries had risen. Following protests, the public have been promised that the decision would be “reconsidered.” But as a commuter I am raising a wider issue – the obligation in a public service undertaking  to ensure that all alternative avenues of closing the gap between rising costs on the one hand and revenues generated on the other, are exhausted before…