Governance

Most of us are so self-centred, we take all the people providing us various services, for granted. One such group is the group of Pourakarmikas or municipal sweepers. Think what would happen if these people went on strike! Think of the garbage that many citizens throw on the road, into empty sites and at corners of pavements. Non-segregated, stinking garbage. Plastic bags torn up by street dogs and garbage strewn all over. Yet, we do not spare a thought for these poor workers performing a thankless task, and often abuse them. In an effort to sensitise the next generation to…

On September 7th 2010,  the Bangalore Mirror reported BDA Commissioner Bharat Lal Meena as saying that gated communities are illegal. Meena was reported saying every layout is required to earmark space for parks, roads and areas of common use. "When roads and parks inside the community are controlled by civic authorities, how can such layouts be called gated communities?" Meena is reported to have asked. Ashok Haranahalli, Advocate General of Karnataka Pic: Vaishnavi Vittal. In May 2008, the BBMP issued a public notice with regard to barricading layouts and preventing use by general public. The notice says that there is…

The following are the phone numbers of BBMP control rooms across their zonal offices. BBMP Control Room Phone Numbers by Citizen Matters ⊕

Here's a complete list of the names and contact numbers of your ward corporators. Source: www.bbmp.gov.in Names and Phone Numbers of 198 BBMP Corporators 2010 The following is a list of the names and postal addresses of the 198 ward corporators in Kannada. Source: www.bbmp.gov.in Names and Postal Addresses of 198 BBMP Corporators 2010 - In Kannada ⊕

The BBMP has approved a budget of Rs 8848 crores for 2010-11. Additionally each of the 198 corporators have also been given Rs 2 crores (old wards) and Rs 3 crores (new wards). But after complaints from several corporators about the ward grants being insufficient, separate grants have been allocated for each ward to undertake special works and build ward offices. These are the grants in the budget which can directly be used by a corporator to decide on projects. This also gives a chance for citizens to interact with their corporator to prioritise what works need to be carried…

Special grants, ward-wise for each corporator Ward 172 - Rs 100 lakhs. Ward 176 - Rs 100 lakhs. Ward 177 - Rs 200 lakhs. Ward 178 - Rs 300 lakhs. Ward project plans Allocation for works as mentioned in draft annual BBMP budget: Madiwala (Ward 172) Purchase of equipments to Madiwala Hospital - Rs 1 crore Construction of dhobi ghat at Madiwala Machideva quarters - Rs 1 crore Additional loops to Central Silk Board Flyover - Rs 25 lakh BTM Layout (Ward 176) Development of parks - Rs 3.9 crores (this includes allocation for parks in Ejipura and Koramangala too)…

More than a week after BBMP proposed Rs 8488 crores as the budget for 2010-11, the corporation on Thursday went a step ahead and announced an additional Rs 350 crores to the budget through revenue projections. Mayor S K Nataraj and Chairman of Finance and Taxation Committee Chairman P M Sadashiva, addressing the media after the BBMP budget was approved in council. Pic: Vaishnavi Vittal. The Rs 350 crores is an increase in revenue projections through the following: a Rs 70 crore increase in betterment charges (earlier estimate was  Rs 120 crores), Rs 150 crores more of property tax (earlier…

I was lucky to avoid myself and family getting mugged on Monday late night near Devanahalli. It was around 1:15 am last Tuesday. I was on my way to my in-laws place, after picking up my cousin from the Bangalore International Airport. I took a turn from National Highway-7 towards Devanahalli. I wasn't sure of the exact turn towards H-Cross (This is the junction where four roads – Devanahalli, Bangalore, Kolar, Chintamani – meet. It is around 22 kms from Devanahalli). So I stopped near a Tata Indica and asked my wife Sandhya to lower her window to ask the…

G Manjunath Raju. Bangalore's city budget, presented by the BBMP at the city council session on August 30th raises more questions than answers. The steep revenue projections BBMP has cited are themselves a whole topic. Citizen Matters spoke to G Manjunath Raju, corporator of Kadu Malleswaram (Ward 65) and member of BBMP's Taxation and Finance committee that prepared the budget. Discussion on the budget at the council is scheduled for September 2nd. There is a several fold increase in revenues compared to last year. How are you planning to manage that? There are total 15 lakh properties in the city.…

Government Notification on Senior Citizen ID card. Click on image to enlarge. Directorate of Welfare of Disabled and Senior Citizens, Department of Women and Child Development, Government of Karnataka has authorised Dignity Foundation, an NGO promoting welfare of the senior citizens, to issue "Government ID Cards" to senior citizens of Bengaluru. Those who are 60+ can apply for ID cards producing simple documents like photocopy of age and address proof along with their two recent passport photographs, with a processing fee of Rs 25 and also furnishing blood group. The ID cards will be issued within a fortnight of submitting…