Governance

So BESCOM wants us to pay 75 paise extra per unit of electricity consumed, as per its proposal. Some citizens are opposing this and registering their dissatisfaction, but the  majority of us apparently  can't be bothered or don't care, or  are not even aware of the proposal - the last, however, is no excuse because  the proposed hike has been in the news and the BESCOM authorities have also issued notices inviting reactions (and objections if any) from citizens. Three months ago, the Consumer Care Society of Banashankari bemoaned the fact that the initial announcement inviting citizens' comments, brought in…

On Monday midnight, 120 residents of Sachidananda Nagar got their khatas from the BBMP zonal office at Rajarajeshwari Nagar. “This is a great victory for us. It was ‘freedom at midnight’,” gushes Nethrakere Uday Shankar, 54, one of the leaders of the protest. Shankar is Chief Sub-Editor at a Kannada daily in the city. "I bought a plot in the layout in 1992, and planned to build a house there in 2001. I have been waiting for khata since 2001," he said. It was around 1.40 am when khatas were given away to all. This rare act by the BBMP…

After the episode of a senior government official assaulting an elderly resident of Panduranga Nagar, off Bannerghatta road, near Arekere layout, residents in the area are only more determined to take ahead their fight against illegal constructions. Vijay Kumar Patil, BBMP Additional Director of Town Planning, had assaulted 63-year-old Parameshwar Bhat, Secretary of Panduranga Nagar Residents Welfare Assoiation (RWA), on October 23 at 1 am. The attack is said to be retribution against residents, who had dared to take steps against illegal constructions and against Patil who had sanctioned these buildings. Patil was arrested soon after and allowed out on…

Less than three weeks ago, my friend received a phone call from the constable at Hulimavu Police Station (off Bannerghatta Road), informing her that her police verification form for issue of her passport had reached the police station. She needed to go in person with photos and id-address proof. All of us have heard of tales of requests for "coffee money" (amounting to a few hundred rupees) at the time of police verification. A bit anxious and unsure of how to tackle the situation if it arose, she requested that I go along with her. The police station is located…

The breakdown at the Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru on the unruly Monday, October 11th, was broadcast over and over again on television channels last night. The city dailies of October 12th have a veritable gallery of pictures: everything from broken glass and a ripped off shirt, to police pushing back on legislators, and more. The High Court today continues hearing arguments on the controversial disqualification of the 11 dissident BJP MLAs and five independent MLAs. In case coverage in the media has left you confused or you have not had time to catchup with the core of the issue, here…

Also read Citizen Matters' article Call these helplines to report domestic violence cases Nirmala (name changed), a resident of Bengaluru, was subjected to repeated sexual torture by her alcoholic husband. Despite belonging to the Lingayat community, wherein people abstain from eating meat, Nirmala's husband not only ate meat but also forced her to cook it for him. She was a victim of both his sexual and verbal abuse. He regularly beat her up and locked her up in a room, while he spent all his income on liquor. In October 2007, Nirmala filed a case against her husband under the…

If you are a victim of domestic violence, there are a number of helplines available in Bengaluru, to report your case. One of them is being run by the Bangalore City Police (BCP), called Vanitha Sahaya Vani. Their helpline number was set up in 1999 to help "women in distress", across class, creed and communities. The BCP website says the helpline is operational between 8 am and 8 pm. An abused woman Who is or has been living in a shared household An abuser could be Husband Male - Live-in partner, Relatives of husband Any adult male with whom she…

In July'09, one year before former BBMP Commissioner Bharat Lal Meena left to head the BDA, he issued an order to shutdown the Technical Vigilance Cell (TVC) call centre. The centre was available for citizens in Bengaluru to blow the whistle on illegally constructed buildings (also called plan sanction violations, in government parlance).  BBMP went ahead and shut it down. [Click on Image to enlarge]. Former BBMP Commissioner Bharat Lal Meena’s order stating that the call centre will be shut down on July 12th 2009. This week, Meena denied issuing the order itself and claimed the call centre was functioning…

The arrest of Katta Jagadish Naidu, ward councillor from Vasanthnagar, by the Lokayukta last week is a milestone; some years from now we will look back on this as a key moment in the emergence of a new politics in the city. Already one other corporator is in the dock on similar grounds, but that was - fortunately for him - before the Lokayukta acquired new biceps. Katta Jr. faces an altogether different challenge. The politics of the city and the state have revolved around 'land' and its development for many years now. Mining, akrama, notification and denotification - these…

Ahead of the judgement at the Lucknow High Court, regarding disputed property in Ayodhya (Uttar Pradesh), steps have been taken here in Bengaluru to keep a check on the law and order situation. While the state government has declared that schools and colleges will not function for two days, September 30th and October 1st, many private companies have chosen either declare a holiday or work half-day. Prohibitory orders have been clamped on the city, with effect from 6 am today till 6 am on October 3rd. This means public functions cannot be held and groups of five or more people…