Infrastructure

As our cities witness a construction explosion, find comprehensive reportage and analysis on the latest infrastructure developments, policy updates, and sustainable practices in urban planning. Read deep diving pieces on development and maintenance of roads and flyovers, public transit systems and housing projects. The articles highlight the challenges of unchecked urbanisation and growth in built-up areas, and connect the dots with ecological damage, traffic congestion, and issues of water supply and waste disposal.

The conflict between preserving the environment and providing housing for the masses is age old. Whether it is an urban sprawl or a concrete megalopolis, many of us get pained at the impact on the city's greenery. We pay the price with our health, our lifestyle and our culture. Are there alternatives that can provide affordable housing and yet allow us to be surrounded by trees? What about housing colonies like those of government quarters? DRDO Township, CV Raman Nagar (pic: V.Gopalakrishnan) India first gave a thrust to industrialisation during its first two five-year plans and a number of public…

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In the year 2008, discussion about power cuts was the talk of the town, among the city’s numerous other grouses. While everyone was affected by these outages, scheduled and unscheduled, and ranting about the same, Jayanagar Shopping Complex was least bothered to join the debate. Not because it never had these power cuts, but because it is suffering from the malady for the past 33 years. Jayanagar shopping complex (Pic: Supriya Khandekar) The well known Jayanagar IV Block Shopping Complex has been facing untimely and repeated power cuts since the time it came into existence 33 years ago. "We have…

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Hopes for the new year

In the past, Bangalore's infrastructure projects have been plagued by cost and schedule overruns. From the metro to grade separators/flyovers at Yeshwantpur junction, Gali Anjaneyaswamy temple, Malleswaram etc. to the elevated superway on Hosur road...We hope 2009 sees a change for the better.⊕

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Have you ever wondered why Rajajinagar and Jayanagar are well planned, but Madiwala is not? Why Malleswaram is planned while Srirampuram is a mess? How so many people lived crammed into narrow streets and bylanes in some areas with little or no drainage and roads, while relatively swanky 80ft roads run through HSR Layout? Why does Bangalore have so many illegal layouts? Why does the city fall apart during even a moderate downpour? What happened to all the drainage channels and valleys that originally used to carry water away?Illegal Layouts[Citizen Matters sat down with H B S Aradhya, former Deputy…

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Some of the cyclists of Bengaluru decided to organise an event called 'Critical Mass' on the evening of 27th November in the city. They would like to reclaim the roads of their city for cycles and other forms of non-motorised transport. All over the world, the Critical Mass (CM) is done on the last Friday of the month. Even though it was a working day, the idea was to spread the message in a live form to a large commuter base. If it were to be on a weekend, it would simply be a weekend leisure ride. CM helps in…

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Hongasandra area of the Bommanhalli constituency’s woes doesn’t seem to end. Year after year the rains wreak havoc in the lives of close to 2 lakh people. On 24th October rain has flooded the homes of the people living in around Hongasandra. The breach in the Begur lake was cited as the reason. The real reason is not just overflowing of the lake, but the encroachment of Rajakaluve, the main storm water drain. More than 2.5 km stretch of this drain has shrunk over the past years, say the locals. People walking through floods. Pic: Padmalatha Ravi.On 25th morning when…

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 Cartoon by: Narasimha VedalaSetback spaces specifies the space left between a building and the boundary of the plot. It is meant to ensure sufficient light, air and privacy to the occupants of the building and to the immediate neighbours. Space should allow for movement of vehicles around the building in case of an emergency, like a fire.Recommended setback rules according to the BBMP byelaws.BBMP byelaw setback According to a retired senior BBMP official, it is estimated that 50 per cent of properties show more than 75 per cent deviations from the sanctioned plan. ⊕

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In part 1 of this article, we saw the the various types of encroachments that hinder pedestrian mobility. Here we take a look at what is involved in finding a solution. Ward level staff will not be able to deal with these different types of encroachment without a sound operational framework and good training.The best starting point could be an official mission statement. This should emphasise that provision of encroachment-free pavements for pedestrians is an essential measure of public safety. It is not only pedestrians who will benefit, but it can go a good way towards making driving less stressful.It…

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"No power cuts for Bangalore", says H Nagesh, Director Technical, Bangalore Electricity Supply Company (BESCOM). The rains towards the end of July have helped increase the water levels of the reservors resulting in increase hydel power generation. He also sounded cautious about the coming weeks. "Presently the load shedding is stopped for Bangalore alone but if the rains continue in this way there might not be any need for power cuts throughout the state. But if there is irregular rainfall then scheduled power cuts will be implemented", he says. Last month, Bangaloreans all over were experiencing severe power cuts. Karnataka…

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In Metro vs Traders: legal test coming up, we explained how land acquisitions are being carried out under Bangalore's Namma Metro project. The acquisitions are premised on the notion of eminent domain and public purpose. The experiences of eminent domain cases in other cities across the world help us understand the nuances involved when the state decides to take away private properties in the name of public purpose. The Dutch jurist Hugo Grotius first explained the term eminent domain. According to him, the state has the right to take away private property for implementing projects that will serve public purposes,…

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