Governance

Contract workers working in Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanakara Palike have decided to take to streets on March 8, International Women's Day. A press note from the BBMP Contract Workers Union demanded that the employments of contract workers be regularised. The government has revised their salaries but the benefit is not being enjoyed by the workers, says the press note. Here are the edited excerpts of the press note: Bangalore sees several events to mark women’s day – protests, celebrations, marathons, art and culture events etc. This year, we are asking Bangaloreans to mark women’s day by asking you all to come…

A quick glance at the BBMP budgets of the recent past show over-estimated revenues - check them out and learn how keep track of city budgets using our Open City platform. BBMP has just set up an online budget feedback form, but before you communicate views make sure you have all the information you need!   On March 28, 2016, Chairman of BBMP Taxation Committee M Shivaraj gave a speech on the 2016-17 BBMP budget. An analysis by Bharathy Jayaprakash - an analyst with Janaagraha Centre for Citizenship and Democracy - showed that the budget was largely over-estimated, a consistent phenomenon over the…

Pic: Praful Residents of Bengaluru might have noticed in the media, that recently the BBMP has commenced issuing notices to many commercial/non-residential establishments in residential areas to shut shop. Whilst this may come across to many as a sudden and arbitrary act by the BBMP, for those conscientious citizens and Residents Welfare Associations (RWA’s) that have spent numerous hours over the years (mostly behind the scenes) seeking to improve the quality of life of the residents of the city, this is only a long overdue first step towards implementing regulations/orders that have stood violated repeatedly for over 5 years right…

Why is the BBMP issuing closure notices to commercial/non-residential establishments in residential areas? The Revised Master Plan 2015 (RMP – 2015), the master plan in force amended in 2015, restricts non-residential uses of land in residential zones (so classified under the RMP 2015). As per the amended RMP – 2015, 1)    No commercial activities of whatsoever nature are allowed in any of the three Rings (of the Bengaluru Metropolitan Area) in Residential Main and Residential Mixed Zones if the road width is less than or equal to 40 feet. 2)    Ancillary usage (uses mentioned in the notification only) are permitted…

Hon’ble Chief Minister Govt. of Karnataka Vidhana Soudha Bangalore 560001 Dear Sir, Current situation of Bengaluru Bengaluru city has reached a population of 1 crore already.  It is finding it difficult to provide drinking water to half its residents.  The city has 60 lakh vehicles (a vehicle for every two persons), congesting roads and making it impossible for buses to ply and for pedestrians, street vendors and cyclists to have an equitable amount of road-space. Garbage mismanagement in the city has necessitated the intervention of the Karnataka High Court to ensure that MoEF Rules are followed and mafias controlled.  Lakes…

The increasing emphasis by the government on the Aadhaar framework as the basis of a developing social security net for the citizen makes it ever more relevant and important to have. Despite Supreme Court rulings to the contrary, the Central and several state governments have made Aadhaar mandatory for citizens to avail a range of services and to get benefits of various government schemes. Even the Union Budget presented by Arun Jaitley on February 1st indicated an obvious push for Aadhaar, with recommendations for various facilities linked to the unique identification number. Yet, the ordinary citizen continues to have privacy…

With the kick off of the year 2017, the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) put up a 35-page brochure [1] highlighting its plans for preparation for Revised Master Plan 2031 of Bengaluru city. The brochure is divided into 10 parts, including legal provisions, population projections, rationalization of jurisdictions of planning district and transport sectors, water and waste water, solid waste management, and power supply projections. As per the revision process of the Master Plan, the Revised Master Plan 2031 is the fourth revision following those made in 1984, 1995, and 2007. Citizens of Bangalore are confronted with plans on the future…

Women from Ambedker Colony, Ullal Upanagar (A suburb in south west Bengaluru) talk about the problems associated with their Ration cards. Their problems relate mostly to ad hoc cancellation of the Ration Cards and non issue of houshold rations from active ration cards. Sometimes they have to go to a designated ration shop far away from their homes, to collect thier rations and involves travel cost and time away from work.

Let there be no disasters today. That is the prayer every firefighter begins his day with. Having said that, they have to be prepared for every emergency, every contingency. Central to their efforts and success is their training, discipline and the equipment at their disposal. Karnataka State Fire and Emergency Services is the agency that handles fire rescue and other disaster management operations in Karnataka. We visited Jayanagar fire station in Bengaluru to understand how the department works. Among the fire stations in Bengaluru, Jayanagar fire station in Bengaluru South Range is among the largest and busiest. It has a…

Wherever BDA shows its Master Plan, there are strong objections to it. People point out that it ... (a) .. is autocratic, having been developed with no input from the people of the city. It is almost as if it is being shown to us after everything is done and dusted, and only to comply with the legal requirement for 'consultations'. (b) ... is ill-conceived. The idea that the existing BDA region can / should support twice the population we now have is foolhardy, besides being environmentally tenuous. (c) ... is unconstitutional, having followed none of the statutory processes for…