Infrastructure

October 2 brings the annual ritual obeisance to the Father of the Nation, but in the last six decades we have not had a repetition of the kind of protests against injustice on the scale that Gandhiji undertook during his salt march or Quit India movement. However, this time around, there is talk of a satyagraha, no less, by citizens of Bengaluru, because judging from the meetings I have been witness to over the last three months, patience is running thin. It is, many residents are now saying, time to undertake collective action, to make our voices heard. Not against…

When segregating the wet waste from the dry becomes a habit (to the extent that soiled boxes, plastic packets and tetra packs also are cleaned/ rinsed and dried before going into the dry bin), it becomes difficult to put all the waste into one dustbin, while visiting hotels and other homes. Often I’m tempted to carry my trash back to ensure it is handled appropriately. During a recent visit to Pune though, there was no such temptation. The friends we visited live in a large apartment complex called Camellia on the Baner-Pashan Link Road (about 300 apartments), and here segregation…

Chalet Hotels Private Limited, promoted by K Raheja Corp Group, has sued Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), for revoking the No Objection Certificate (NOC) given for the construction of  Raheja Vivarea, near HAL surroundings. The hearing of WP 37571/2103, Chalet Hotel V/s Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd, took place on 28 August, 2013. Revoking of NOC for Raheja Viverea by HAL has led to a law suit. File pic - representation purpose only. Earlier, residents of Koramangala, under the banner of Koramangala Infrastructure Task Force, had written to Defence Minister A K Antony urging him to take action regarding what was supposedly an…

Yelahanka Satellite Town was once a very peaceful little town. But the boom in the land prices due to the opening of the International Airport is turning this town into another messy metropolis centre.  Every other road is being converted into a commercial road and every vacant site is being filled with huge complexes at jet speed.  What is hurting is that the Karnataka Housing Board, which designed this beautiful township, themselves are causing this sudden spurt of construction activities.  A huge piece of land with nearly 70-80 trees is now being turned into a concrete structure of some commercial…

The Bangalore Development Authority’s ambitious project of selling apartments has no takers. The demand for a decent home does not seem to end in Bangalore, but people are not interested in BDA flats. The last date by which buyers had to apply for the flats was 31 June, 2013. Under Phase-I, total 4502 flats were constructed by the BDA, in Nandini Layout, Halagevaderahalli, Malagala, Gunjur phase-1, Thippasandra, Doddabanahalli Phase -I, Alur, Kothanur and Doddabanahalli units. Of these, according to BDA, only 700 have been allotted. BDA apartment constructed near Kengeri. Pic: Bosky Khanna Why did BDA get into apartment business?…

Help Survey Efficiency of Garbage Management in Bangalore   In light of the massive solid waste (garbage) management crisis in Bengaluru last year, the High Court of Karnataka in response to Public Interest Litigations by Environment Support Group and various individuals, directed the City and State authorities to adopt various clean up measures. In simple terms, the directions involved instituting a public education campaign to ensure segregation of waste at source became mandatory, that biodegradable waste would be locally composted, recyclable waste recovered, and only inert waste sent to landfills. In addition, the whole process was decentralised and Ward Committees…

Sale in properties across Bangalore has dipped in last one month. File Pic. Before the new guidance value was announced, brokers across Bangalore seemed to be in hurry to close various property deals. June 2013 saw highest real estate transactions, says a recent report by the real estate services firm, Jones Lang LaSalle India. However, after the new guidance values came into effect, the realty market has slowed down, in an effort to achieve an equilibrium between market value and guidance value. Builders and realtors are not at all happy with the new guidance value system. They point that the…

In spite of the new rules introduced by Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to address the issue of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW), Bangalore continues to be plagued by the problem of uncollected waste in the neighbourhoods. The rules instruct the citizens to segregate waste, but they do not deal with the burgeoning quantities of solid waste generated. More rich you are, more waste you produce! A research carried out by the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) in the field of behavioural economics has shown that the per capita generation of MSW is directly proportional to affluence and consumption patterns of…

After years of lobbying by apartment residents against the imposition of annual fees on apartments that operate Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs), Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) has relented and reduced the fees to Rs.250 per annum. The KSPCB has ruled that apartments be treated as an Urban Local Body and has revised the fee for Consent For Operation (CFO) to Rs 250 per annum. Earlier apartments had to shell out Rs 30,000 to 40,000 per year for the same. The KSPCB order dated 17 July 2013 can be seen here. The background STPs were made mandatory in 2010 for…

Members of the Peoples’ Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) voiced concerns about the term ‘encroachers’ being used to describe Ejipura evictees. To prove that they are not encroachers but original allottees, they shared documents of property rights of the evictees, at a press conference held on 9 July 2013. PUCL, in association with Housing and Land Rights Network, another international NGO focussing on housing for poor, also released a report titled ‘Governance by denial,’ which analyses the related events before and after the eviction. Ramadas Rao, a member of PUCL, said the allegations of MLA N A Haris that evictees…