Governance

It was a heartrending sight. People sat or stood in groups watching their belongings being moved into lorries from the houses they had occupied for generations. The houses were being destroyed before their eyes, one by one. On Monday, November 20th, residents of the Thideer Nagar Slum on Greams Road had to vacate their houses under orders of the Corporation, the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board (TNSCB) and the Chennai Rivers Restoration Trust (CRRT). They are among the 603 odd families being moved to TNSCB’s new shelter at Perumbakkam as part of the Cooum River Eco-restoration Project. The TNSCB has…

It’s been close to two years since the first 20 cities were selected under the much talked-about Smart Cities Mission (SCM) of the Government of India, but progress under the mission has been slow. Let us just look at the top five cities. Selected in January 2016, these cities - Bhubaneswar, Pune, Jaipur, Surat and Kochi - are supposed to complete the proposed projects under the SCM by 2021-22. But most of these cities appear to be lagging behind schedule, both in terms of the number of projects completed as well as the works under progress. Surat leads, with works…

I was following the articles posted about Mayors of other cities outside of India, and how as Mayor of their city they could achieve a lot. Of course, the lingering question is, are we really comparing apples to apples? Does the Mayor in our country have the similar responsibility and authority like a Mayor in a Philadelphia OR New York City? So here are my practical reasons why I would NEVER want to be Mayor of Bengaluru, it is almost as close or worse than being the Chief Minister of Delhi! There’s a saying in kannada, ಆಟಕ್ಕೆ ಉಂಟು ಲೆಕ್ಕಕ್ಕೆ ಇಲ್ಲ…

Citizen Matters had published a story 'Bengaluru on poll mode: Get registered as voter for 2018 elections'. But unfortunately, CEO-Karnataka website is a mess and the authorities are defensive. Even when you use their URL, it takes you to some other site or gives 404 error. Only Kannada version of the new rolls is published. They are CAPTCHA-protected and are image files. Even if we download them after entering CAPTCHA, we cannot search for data in the file. Extraction is difficult. I have to work on the task once I get the English version. I cannot find my section (the…

Launched in 2009 by the Government of India (GoI), Aadhaar is increasingly becoming inevitable in every walk of life. While it has become mandatory to link your Aadhaar card with your PAN Card, PDS card, bank account, mobile connections etc., many city residents are finding it quite a task to get the Aadhaar card made, primarily due to ambiguities in information available online. Here is a quick FAQ that can help you get started without further delay. Q. Where can I get my Aadhaar card made in Chennai? First things first: it must be noted that application for Aadhaar Card…

The Karnataka High Court in an order issued during the court hearing on Friday, November 10th, 2017, said that solid waste should be managed at the ward level in the city of Bengaluru. This order was delivered by a bench of the Karnataka High Court in the ongoing case - WP 46523/2012 (Environment Support Group & Ors v. Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike & Ors connected with WP 24739/2012 and other Public Interest Litigations that are being heard by the Court since July 2012 in tacking the solid waste management crises). Ward committees were constituted across all wards in Bengaluru, in October…

I’m not sure why there is such a brouhaha about the Mayoral election. Being Bengaluru’s mayor is a prestige, no doubt. Beyond that I have only my sympathies to the person holding that role. (S)he is like a person commanding a cemetery. There are lots of people below, with hardly anyone to listen to the command. The problem is the structure of the municipality under Karnataka Municipal Council (KMC) Act, not the individual. Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has a huge budget. The Commissioner is the administrative head and the most powerful person in the BBMP. He can stall or…

What would I do if I become the Mayor of Bengaluru? That’s a very tricky question because it is always easy to sit on the opposite side and keep giving free advices and suggestions. Sitting on the hot seat means significant change. Anyway, for an old Bengaluruan, who has enjoyed the English climate of Bengaluru, the slow pace of life, the clean and beautiful avenues like Margosa Road, Sampige Road, Coconut Avenue, the lovely huge circles with beautiful gardens and the neat roads with minimum traffic, today’s Bengaluru is a shocker! Crime rate was low. People were friendlier. Every home…

We’d start from our quarters near Silk Board at around 8 am on my father’s Bajaj scooter. In 10 minutes, we’d take a turn near the erstwhile Elgin Mill and head towards Shanti Nagar to eventually reach Richmond Road near Pallavi Talkies. The route was dotted by Gulmohar, or Mayflower as we know them, fallen on the road, after last night’s showers. The fallen flowers and a wet-looking road were the only signs of overnight rain in those days. We’d hit the first busy signal at Hudson Circle (now known as Corporation Circle). At about 8.15 am, a car or…

Mayor is the first citizen of a city.  Members of the Council with elected body of corporators from various wards of the city, MLAs, MLCs, local MPs, and nominated members elect a Mayor. Bengaluru city has 198 wards and had a population of around 8 million in 2016. This has resulted in significant pressure on the city’s infrastructure, water resources, water supply, in meeting the basic needs of its citizens. Mayor should know his powers, responsibilities and play an important role to keep his citizens happy. Mayor’s term is short, and he must get into the act from the word…