Governance

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…

Date: 17th May 2015Venue: In front of the South City Sewage Treatment Plant (STP)Time: 9:45 a.m. onwards Some 40 people - South City assn (SUGRUHA) Management Committee, members and staff, PNLIT trustees, BBMP and KSPCB officials, residents from the neighbourhood were waiting eagerly. It was a very special day not just for them but indeed also for the city of Bangalore.   The much awaited day   A milestone was set that morning when at 10:30 a.m., Dr Vaman Acharya, Chairman of the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) released excess treated water from the STP at South City to…

Date: 17th May 2015Venue: In front of the South City Sewage Treatment Plant (STP)Time: 9:45 a.m. onwards Some 40 people - South City assn (SUGRUHA) Management Committee, members and staff, PNLIT trustees, BBMP and KSPCB officials, residents from the neighbourhood were waiting eagerly. It was a very special day not just for them but indeed also for the city of Bangalore.   The much awaited day   A milestone was set that morning when at 10:30 a.m., Dr Vaman Acharya, Chairman of the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) released excess treated water from the STP at South City to…

PNLIT is delighted to announce that a long cherished dream of seeing our neighbourhood Puttenahalli Lake brim with water will soon be a reality! The Chairman, Karnataka State Pollution Control Board, Dr. Vaman Acharya will be formally inaugurating the pipeline to supply surplus treated water from the Sewage Treatment Plant of South City apartments (Arekere Mico Layout) to the Puttenahalli Lake tomorrow, Sunday 17th May at 10:00 a.m.  After the pipeline was laid, a trial to check for any leakages was done earlier this month, and it seems that all is fine. We are truly grateful to the South City Management Committee…

PNLIT is delighted to announce that a long cherished dream of seeing our neighbourhood Puttenahalli Lake brim with water will soon be a reality! The Chairman, Karnataka State Pollution Control Board, Dr. Vaman Acharya will be formally inaugurating the pipeline to supply surplus treated water from the Sewage Treatment Plant of South City apartments (Arekere Mico Layout) to the Puttenahalli Lake tomorrow, Sunday 17th May at 10:00 a.m.  After the pipeline was laid, a trial to check for any leakages was done earlier this month, and it seems that all is fine. We are truly grateful to the South City Management Committee…

Dear Chief Minister, I am writing to you about the public consultation held yesterday to discuss the Master Plan being prepared by the BDA. Frankly, the whole event was a disaster. The BDA was entirely unprepared, and apart from stone-walling the public on their legitimate questions, the authority had very little to offer. Even the conduct of the meeting was poor, with allegations from some in the audience that the event and its proceedings were a sham. But this was predictable, since the BDA is now functioning in a grey area of governance. Its planning authority has been vacated by…

Dear Chief Minister, I am writing to you about the public consultation held yesterday to discuss the Master Plan being prepared by the BDA. Frankly, the whole event was a disaster. The BDA was entirely unprepared, and apart from stone-walling the public on their legitimate questions, the authority had very little to offer. Even the conduct of the meeting was poor, with allegations from some in the audience that the event and its proceedings were a sham. But this was predictable, since the BDA is now functioning in a grey area of governance. Its planning authority has been vacated by…

Purnimaa Ranganath writes: "Thanks to BESCOM and its erratic power shut downs already this month my fridge's compressor packed up and had to get it replaced ....and yesterday the power supply went on and off every 5mins...nearly 6 times in an hour...God I hope something else doesn't blow too.." The sad thing is that there is no accountability. Direct switch-offs would not be as bad as the "brownouts" of low voltage, or surge of high voltage, which are deadly to expensive electrical and electronic gadgets, often bought with savings over months. How do we make BESCOM accountable?

Purnimaa Ranganath writes: "Thanks to BESCOM and its erratic power shut downs already this month my fridge's compressor packed up and had to get it replaced ....and yesterday the power supply went on and off every 5mins...nearly 6 times in an hour...God I hope something else doesn't blow too.." The sad thing is that there is no accountability. Direct switch-offs would not be as bad as the "brownouts" of low voltage, or surge of high voltage, which are deadly to expensive electrical and electronic gadgets, often bought with savings over months. How do we make BESCOM accountable?