Articles by Arathi Manay Yajaman

PNLIT will be receiving the  शहर GREEN करो - It's Our Turn to Lead Award at a special function at the Puttenahalli Lake premises on 16th July 2015, 11 a.m. onwards. The Chief Guest is Mrs. Karuna Singh, Country Director of Earth Day Network India, the organizers of the contest.  The contest was held in 45 Indian cities to commemorate the 45th anniversary of Earth Day and six winners were announced in May. The Jury found merit in our entry on the pre-monsoon cleaning of the lake bed by volunteers on 28th March 2015, most of whom live in the neighbourhood. Sincere thanks to each one of them…

PNLIT will be receiving the  शहर GREEN करो - It's Our Turn to Lead Award at a special function at the Puttenahalli Lake premises on 16th July 2015, 11 a.m. onwards. The Chief Guest is Mrs. Karuna Singh, Country Director of Earth Day Network India, the organizers of the contest.  The contest was held in 45 Indian cities to commemorate the 45th anniversary of Earth Day and six winners were announced in May. The Jury found merit in our entry on the pre-monsoon cleaning of the lake bed by volunteers on 28th March 2015, most of whom live in the neighbourhood. Sincere thanks to each one of them…

Last week, Madhurima, who regularly tracks the birds at Puttenahalli Lake had lots of "good news" for us. "We had a babies' day out at the lake. First the Coots brought one of their babies out. A Brahminy Kite spotted it and dived towards it, but unsuccessfully. So no casualties. Later the Coots brought out both their babies. Then the White-throated Kingfishers brought out two juveniles and the Wagtails also presented,  what looked like a juvenile.  And then, an Ashy Prinia brought out a tiny little Ashy Prinia! It was so tiny that we could not see it with our…

Last week, Madhurima, who regularly tracks the birds at Puttenahalli Lake had lots of "good news" for us. "We had a babies' day out at the lake. First the Coots brought one of their babies out. A Brahminy Kite spotted it and dived towards it, but unsuccessfully. So no casualties. Later the Coots brought out both their babies. Then the White-throated Kingfishers brought out two juveniles and the Wagtails also presented,  what looked like a juvenile.  And then, an Ashy Prinia brought out a tiny little Ashy Prinia! It was so tiny that we could not see it with our…

A summary of some key "Bangalore lake" news Encroachments – eviction and regularisation Encroachments on government land, including lakes, shot into front page news with the demolition drive at Sarakki Lake in JP Nagar 7th Phase, in April 2015. Eviction drives and attempted drives have been happening in Bangalore on and off. For example, in September 2014, Venkatarayana Lake was cleared of some illegal structures, and in January 2015 HRBR Layout residents received eviction notices as their homes were on lake beds. In both these cases, the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) was a common factor, being the reason for the…

A summary of some key "Bangalore lake" news Encroachments – eviction and regularisation Encroachments on government land, including lakes, shot into front page news with the demolition drive at Sarakki Lake in JP Nagar 7th Phase, in April 2015. Eviction drives and attempted drives have been happening in Bangalore on and off. For example, in September 2014, Venkatarayana Lake was cleared of some illegal structures, and in January 2015 HRBR Layout residents received eviction notices as their homes were on lake beds. In both these cases, the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) was a common factor, being the reason for the…

This write up has been compiled from emails received from Shubha Ramachandran of BIOME Over the past one year, ACWADAM, BIOME, WIPRO and MAPUNITY have been working on a project to map the AQUIFERS in the area around Sarjapura Road (8 MicroWatersheds spread across 33 sqkm in South East Bangalore which is completely dependent on ground water). They have also worked to see if they can revive and protect the 15 lakes in the watershed. People from the area have shared stories and data of their wells, borewells and STPs.  The approach to gather, share and interpret data has been participatory, involving varied stakeholders like borewell diggers, tanker operators, Citizen Groups, Government Agencies etc.…

This write up has been compiled from emails received from Shubha Ramachandran of BIOME Over the past one year, ACWADAM, BIOME, WIPRO and MAPUNITY have been working on a project to map the AQUIFERS in the area around Sarjapura Road (8 MicroWatersheds spread across 33 sqkm in South East Bangalore which is completely dependent on ground water). They have also worked to see if they can revive and protect the 15 lakes in the watershed. People from the area have shared stories and data of their wells, borewells and STPs.  The approach to gather, share and interpret data has been participatory, involving varied stakeholders like borewell diggers, tanker operators, Citizen Groups, Government Agencies etc.…

Thanks to the rain and the treated water, the level has gone up at the lake. Unfortunately though, the notoriously difficult to control alligator weed is also growing lushly. We hope when the level increases even more, the weeds will be submerged and rot. Well, we may be unhappy about the weed spreading but the birds are very happy about it. The number of birds frequently the lake has increased.    For the past few months, Madhurima Das, a "resident birder" from the neighbourhood has been regularly doing a weekend census of the birds at the lake, and taking pictures…

Thanks to the rain and the treated water, the level has gone up at the lake. Unfortunately though, the notoriously difficult to control alligator weed is also growing lushly. We hope when the level increases even more, the weeds will be submerged and rot. Well, we may be unhappy about the weed spreading but the birds are very happy about it. The number of birds frequently the lake has increased.    For the past few months, Madhurima Das, a "resident birder" from the neighbourhood has been regularly doing a weekend census of the birds at the lake, and taking pictures…