Environment

I have been pursuing a master’s degree in Sustainability in Helsinki for the past year and a half. Scouting for a thesis topic along with my interest in the intersection of water, communication and education brought me right back to Bangalore where I had studied and worked earlier in the areas mentioned above. This time, I was trying to look at how design interventions can enable public awareness and participation in the functioning of a sustainable urban water management system. My research was based around the Jakkur Lake — and this was for a specific reason. Bangalore and water Bangalore was once…

Report by Jesse Jonathan, United Way of Bengaluru On February 9, a beautiful Sunday morning, more than 500 children came together at their local Uttarahalli Lake, on a mission to raise awareness on the dire state of the lakes in the city and prompt action. United Way of Bengaluru (UWBe), under its “Wake the Lake” campaign along with the Uttarahalli Magekere Walkers’ Association engaged children of various ages from different schools by conducting a painting competition based on the theme Water. The children also participated in a lot of fun activities based on the theme. Education sessions were conducted informing…

                                  A young tree lover at Neralu. Pic credit: Suchi Govindarajan   NERALU, the crowd-funded 2-day Urban Tree Festival concluded at Cubbon Park on Sunday, the 9th of February 2014. Citizens of all ages participated enthusiastically in tree walks, and appreciated the specially curated movies and the display of Rumale Chennabasavaiah’s paintings of Bengaluru’s trees. Visitors listened to a range of talks by noted naturalists, ornithologists, and Urban Ecology experts. Children learnt about trees and their importance through a range of experiential activities such as…

The second walkathon in the Connect-the-Lake series by Save Bangalore Lakes Trust is scheduled to be held in Horamavu in northern Bangalore. (The first walkathon was held at Halanayakanahalli Lake in Jan 2014.)   In July 2013, this blog carried a post on the status of the two lakes of Horamavu, Jayanthinagar (Horamavu) Kere and Horamavu Agara Kere, which can be read here. The Save Horamavu Lakes Group has been working rectify the problems faced by the lakes and get them restored.    The present problems include:* Fencing broken in many places* Massive encroachment of the lake areas   - A recent…

Under its Wake the Lake campaign, United Way of Bengaluru (UWBe) works on a number of lakes in Bangalore, involving key stakeholders such as BBMP, LDA, BDA, residents of the area, corporate volunteers and corporate funding, to revive and maintain these lakes. One of the beneficiary lakes is Uttarahalli Lake on Uttarahalli Road in South Bangalore (Ward 184). The lake has faced many problems such as sewage, a dysfunctional STP, weeds, garbage dumping. Apart from corporate support, UWBe has mobilized the local community to join hands with it. With the routine day-to-day maintenance work at lake regularly monitored, the lake…

In December 2013, Justice Subhash Adi, the second Upa Lokayukta (appointed in Mar 2013), caught the public eye after he gave the BBMP and BWSSB three months to clear encroachments and sewage inflows at various lakes in Bangalore. Justice S.B. Majage, the first Upa Lokayukta has also been giving attention to lakes. After his inspection of Yelahanka’s Allalasandra Lake in October 2013, he set the agenda for BBMP and BWSSB to rectify the problems faced by the lake. To check the progress for himself, he followed it up with a visit to the lake on February 2, 2014, in the…

  Are you an ugly Indian? Why is India so filthy? Why do we keep our homes clean and our streets dirty? Why can’t we do anything about this pathetic lack of public hygiene? Who is to blame for our lack of civic sense? Is it our corrupt politicians, our dysfunctional governments, or ‘the system’ ? Or is it us, the people? Is it time to admit that many of India’s problems are because we are all ugly Indians – that we, the people, are as much part of the problem – if not, the problem. It’s about our rooted…

Come 8 and 9 February, Bangalore will play host to Neralu, a citizen-led Urban Tree Festival. The first of its kind in the city, and probably in the country, Neralu will bring together ecologists, artists, researchers, technologists, homemakers, professionals, adults and children in dialogue, to celebrate the spirit of Bangalore, its rich natural heritage and its trees. The event promises to have something in store for everybody and will feature a multitude of visual and experiential activities; walks, workshops, story-telling sessions, art exhibitions, movie screenings, children's activities - there’s plenty to choose from. You can have a look at the event schedule here. …

In September last year (2013), I quite fortuitously ran into a group of excited Bangaloreans who had begun discussing doing something around the trees of the city. This is where we began conversations about a possible tree festival for Bangalore. Anush, Arpana, Sangeetha, Uma, Mallik, Jahnavi and I met at Airlines hotel one evening. Janhavi Pai, a researcher friend had told me that these folks were interested in Bangalore’s trees and their stories and were discussing various ways to expand and share their experience. It almost seemed like a call and a dream come true. For over 8 years now,…

Lake encroachment is rampant in Bangalore. This time, it is the turn of Somasundarapalya Lake near HSR Layout. About three days ago, residents of HSR layout reported that several tractors were offloading debris into Somasundarapalya Lake, also called Haralukunte Kere. The once healthy lake is now headed the way of the many lakes that no longer see the light of day. Repeated complaints to the police have failed to bring any attention to the matter. Concerned residents have written to several administrative bodies, including the Chief Minister, local police authorities, the BDA, BBMP and BMTF, in the hope that some…