BBMP

BBMP has announced a Vanamahotsav walkathon tomorrow, Sunday May 21st, to encourage the public to plant 10 lakh saplings in the city in order to increase green cover. It is seeking active public participation to make the drive successful. Just as #CitizensForBengaluru object and protest when trees are sacrificed unnecessarily, we will support and participate tomorrow, when the BBMP wants to re-afforest and build a sustainable Bengaluru. Citizen participation is key to ensure that the public money (₹5Cr) is well utilized. It should be noted that such planting of saplings is not a substitute for existing trees. Due to the…

BBMP's proposal to begin charging people to park on the streets can seem like a long-overdue scheme. But while the principle of charging for public space seems reasonable, we should do more than that. We should set targets for what we hope to achieve by charging parking fees. One direct result will be revenues to the BBMP. Each of the 85 streets on which parking charges will be introduced should produce several lakhs in income to the municipal corporation each month. But are there other results we wish to see? And if yes, can we connect those results too to…

BBMP's proposal to begin charging people to park on the streets can seem like a long-overdue scheme. But while the principle of charging for public space seems reasonable, we should do more than that. We should set targets for what we hope to achieve by charging parking fees. One direct result will be revenues to the BBMP. Each of the 85 streets on which parking charges will be introduced should produce several lakhs in income to the municipal corporation each month. But are there other results we wish to see? And if yes, can we connect those results too to…

BBMP likes to create regular, small contracts. This system is informally known as 'hale kallu, hosa billu', and is well understood by all the stakeholders !! Take the example of shoulder drains. To begin with, it is common sense that a drain that collects rain water from the road should be built adjacent to the road and not to the property walls. But what we do is the exact opposite. Thereafter, to connect utilities like water and sewage to the properties, we run pipes across the drains, and these pipes becomes obstacles that collect various things thrown into the drain. As…

BBMP likes to create regular, small contracts. This system is informally known as 'hale kallu, hosa billu', and is well understood by all the stakeholders !! Take the example of shoulder drains. To begin with, it is common sense that a drain that collects rain water from the road should be built adjacent to the road and not to the property walls. But what we do is the exact opposite. Thereafter, to connect utilities like water and sewage to the properties, we run pipes across the drains, and these pipes becomes obstacles that collect various things thrown into the drain. As…

At least this dug up part of Bannerghatta Road mentions that natural gas pipelines are being laid.   But in most places, roads are dug up without warning and with no information about why the surface is being broken up. Nor does the road get any re-surfacing once the digging has been covered up, resulting in bumpy, muddy paths rather than the roads that we are paying taxes for. When is the BBMP going to be accountable for the damage they cause, without reparation?

At least this dug up part of Bannerghatta Road mentions that natural gas pipelines are being laid.   But in most places, roads are dug up without warning and with no information about why the surface is being broken up. Nor does the road get any re-surfacing once the digging has been covered up, resulting in bumpy, muddy paths rather than the roads that we are paying taxes for. When is the BBMP going to be accountable for the damage they cause, without reparation?

Last October, we spoke about several instances of individual and community initiatives towards solving water problems of the city. Sewage water treatment and rainwater harvesting are tools households and communities can use for decreasing their water dependency. These are small initiatives in comparison with the water issues Bangalore faces, but aggregating initiatives at the city scale holds potential; such is the discourse, right or wrongly, held by some activists, public servants, businesses etc. Stretching the idea slightly we have: the water problem of Bangalore can be solved through collective action. Stretching it even further: the BWSSB can do its own…

Last October, we spoke about several instances of individual and community initiatives towards solving water problems of the city. Sewage water treatment and rainwater harvesting are tools households and communities can use for decreasing their water dependency. These are small initiatives in comparison with the water issues Bangalore faces, but aggregating initiatives at the city scale holds potential; such is the discourse, right or wrongly, held by some activists, public servants, businesses etc. Stretching the idea slightly we have: the water problem of Bangalore can be solved through collective action. Stretching it even further: the BWSSB can do its own…

Cattles die from eating plastic. While plastic may seem almost indispensable in our daily lives, we tend to remain oblivious to the harm that we cause to animals and the environment by using this material in almost every aspect of our lives. Plastic is not bio-degradable in that it cannot be decomposed into simpler chemical constituents. It remains in the environment for thousands of years, endangering various life forms. Therefore, this year, the state government of Karnataka took the momentous decision to ban the use, sale and distribution of various items of plastic across the state. As per the notification,…