Governance

Wearing a plain school uniform, holding a banner in one hand and a lunch bag in the other, a young lad marched on the streets of Padur last year. Apart from the words on the banner -- ‘Kudiyai Vidu, Padikka Vidu’ (Give up liquor, let us study), it is the steely determination of the eight-year-old boy, A Aakaash, that caught everyone’s attention and spirited the anti-TASMAC agitation at Padur, a small hamlet on Old Mahabalipuram Road (OMR). Toys or clothes do not interest Aakaash. His worries belie his age. When a liquor shop in an inappropriate place needs removal or…

Electoral Rolls after the Summary Revisions have been published on 28 Feb 2018. However there is a last chance for citizens to register as voters. One can submit applications till 14th April, 2018. The Office of the Chief Electoral Officer, Karnataka is organising a mass voter registration drive on Sunday 8th April, between 10 AM to 5 PM owing to many complaints by citizens regarding the non-inclusion in mother rolls. All booth level officers (BLO) will be stationed at the respective polling booths to receive applications of the residuary voters.  This is the last chance for people to get registered…

On March 27, 2018, the Election Commission (EC) announced the dates of the Karnataka Assembly elections and Code of Conduct came into force. Since then, the police have seized cash, gold, vehicles and myriad freebies meant for distribution to the public by various party members. Be it the money offered by a party to the family of a dead worker, or the tradition of giving money to women who do Arathi, it is covered in the scope of the EC’s Code of Conduct, once the election is announced. Is seizing materials meant for influencing the voter a new thing? No.…

As wintry Bangalore closed in on her, Sheila (name changed) began to plan her daughter’s marriage. But her husband, from whom she had escaped after 20 years of a violent, abusive marriage in Pune, threatened to descend on her and kill both her as well as their daughter. In fear, Sheila almost called off the marriage, but it was a nearby doctor (who wishes to remain anonymous) who helped to stop her. “Don’t cow down. Connect with me, with your neighbours, with the SHO of the nearby police station and be prepared to fight your husband with all of us…

With summer approaching, the beaches in Chennai are expected to have more visitors looking to beat the heat but sadly, given the state of safety measures in these beaches, the safe return of the visitor is entirely up to chance and personal precautions. The lack of adequate safeguards is serious cause for concern among citizens and NGOs alike. A recent case, in which a teen hockey player in Chennai drowned off the Marina, spurred the Madras High Court (MHC) into action. The court directed the state government to install watchtowers and station lifesaving boats on the beach to prevent any…

Aravind Limbavalli, the MLA of Mahadevapura, may not have an easy time when he takes his election campaign to Kasavanahalli. The area which recently saw an illegal building collapse resulting in the death of five people is reeling under a plethora of problems. Having had enough, on March 10th, more than 1500 members of 28 RWAs who are part of the Kasavanahalli Development Forum, took out a silent protest and made 2 km long human chain against official apathy towards the various civic problems in the area that has even resulted in deaths as well. It is a little difficult…

For slum dwellers evicted from the banks of the Adyar and Cooum rivers in Chennai, currently residing in Perumbakkam, access to food rations under the Public Distribution System (PDS) is proving to be one arduous process. In addition to lack of educational facilities for children and infrastructural inadequacies highlighted in earlier articles in Citizen Matters Chennai, severe lapses in the functioning of the government-organised PDS, leading to insufficient essential commodities that families are dependent on, have also come to light. Inadequate numbers of PDS centres For the estimated number of 7600 families in Perumbakkam, there is only one PDS centre,…

It was in 1997 that Bangalore city corporation issued the first municipal bond in India, backed by a state government guarantee. The next year, Ahmedabad issued bonds worth Rs 100 crore, without government guarantee. But the momentum didn’t pick up - bonds worth only about Rs 1500 cr have been issued overall since then, and there have been no issues in the more recent years. Last June, however, Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) became the first city to issue bonds after a long gap. Bonds worth Rs 200 cr were issue to fund PMC’s 24X7 water supply project. Then again, in…

Maintaining the worn out ration book was anyway quite a task in every household. But it’s time to bid adieu to the age-old tradition. Smart cards are the digital version of ration booklets designed like an ATM card. Earlier this year, the Government of Tamil Nadu led by the Chief Minister, Edappadi K Palanisamy announced a move to issue smart cards in lieu of the existing ration cards. So far the government has issued 1,98,69,625 smart cards to ration card holders across the state whereas the total number of beneficiaries are calculated to be 6,70,65,374. Meanwhile, residents with old ration…

It was a tenet that helped two journalists bring down an American president. But the essence of “follow the money” is also sound advice for citizens to follow around their political representatives. The Karnataka Legislators’ Local Area Development Scheme (KLLADS) which are more popularly known as LAD funds gives an annual budget of Rs 2 crore to our MLAs to plug infrastructure gaps in their constituency. An analysis of its details gives the electorate a fair idea of what their MLA has prioritised over the last five years of his/her tenure that allow the electorate to make an informed opinion…