BBMP

Only one week after re-laying the road that leads to Ryan International School at Brookefields, the asphalt started pitting. Aggregate (jelly) started peeling, and undulations on road surface appeared. The road looked as though it tired of a couple of monsoons, although it was all of one week young. Demoralised but not defeated, Brookefields residents contacted Chief Engineer Parameshwariah, upon the advise of RK Mishra. In close tandem, Doddanekkundi's newly-elected Councillor, Vijaykumar, was watching. The new chief engineer is a dynamic man. He easily upsets when he sees shoddy quality in public works. He is widely recognised as the force…

The ‘I Change Indiranagar’ initiative has been formed by the residents to raise a collective voice against various issues plaguing Indiranagar, issues that have converted Indiranagar from a peaceful neighbourhood to an uncontrolled illegal commercial area, flowing with sewage and garbage strewn. We wish to invite you to a peaceful protest against encroachment of a public playground. The background of the issue can be read here: Public playground in Indira Nagar converted to private cricket camp? A peaceful demonstration has been planned by the residents of Indiranagar 1st Stage to reclaim the playground on November 28th 3.30 pm at the playground. We…

The ‘I Change Indiranagar’ initiative has been formed by the residents to raise a collective voice against various issues plaguing Indiranagar, issues that have converted Indiranagar from a peaceful neighbourhood to an uncontrolled illegal commercial area, flowing with sewage and garbage strewn. We wish to invite you to a peaceful protest against encroachment of a public playground. The background of the issue can be read here: Public playground in Indira Nagar converted to private cricket camp? A peaceful demonstration has been planned by the residents of Indiranagar 1st Stage to reclaim the playground on November 28th 3.30 pm at the playground. We…

BBMP Council on 25 February 2015, suo moto, passed a resolution,  wherein Startling Line Sports were granted permission ONLY to develop a cricket pitch in the BBMP playground located in Indiranagar 1st Stage, at their expense; for free usage of general public and students of nearby schools and colleges. There was no mention of subsequent maintenance of the playground in the resolution. The cricket pitch was developed by Starting Line and is being used for their own commercial usage. The public property, in clear violation of The Karnataka Parks, Play-fields and Open Spaces (Preservation and Regulation) Act, 1985, is beingused by…

BBMP Council on 25 February 2015, suo moto, passed a resolution,  wherein Startling Line Sports were granted permission ONLY to develop a cricket pitch in the BBMP playground located in Indiranagar 1st Stage, at their expense; for free usage of general public and students of nearby schools and colleges. There was no mention of subsequent maintenance of the playground in the resolution. The cricket pitch was developed by Starting Line and is being used for their own commercial usage. The public property, in clear violation of The Karnataka Parks, Play-fields and Open Spaces (Preservation and Regulation) Act, 1985, is beingused by…

I clicked this bus stop being constructed, and it seems like a good time to ask some pertinent questions. When there is so much space for advertising, why cannot BMTC (or BBMP if the bus stops belong to them) have two vital pieces of information prominently displayed; 1. The name of the bus stop, and 2. A list of the bus routes that stop there? Why does BMTC not give these essential pieces of information?

I clicked this bus stop being constructed, and it seems like a good time to ask some pertinent questions. When there is so much space for advertising, why cannot BMTC (or BBMP if the bus stops belong to them) have two vital pieces of information prominently displayed; 1. The name of the bus stop, and 2. A list of the bus routes that stop there? Why does BMTC not give these essential pieces of information?

If an accident is caused by the poor condition of a road, should the BBMP be held responsible? And should the corporation be forced to pay compensation to such victims? There's been a lot of heated debate about this following the unfortunate recent incident, in which a woman fell off a scooter and died as her husband swerved to avoid a pothole on the street. With the cops booking the husband for negligent driving, and the BBMP pointing fingers at BDA, it seems that we were only too ready to add insult to the tragedy, whereas what is really needed…

If an accident is caused by the poor condition of a road, should the BBMP be held responsible? And should the corporation be forced to pay compensation to such victims? There's been a lot of heated debate about this following the unfortunate recent incident, in which a woman fell off a scooter and died as her husband swerved to avoid a pothole on the street. With the cops booking the husband for negligent driving, and the BBMP pointing fingers at BDA, it seems that we were only too ready to add insult to the tragedy, whereas what is really needed…

Pic: Prashant Kamat. Keeping the roads free of potholes is quite simple. Everywhere in the world, cities do this all the time. How? By doing three or four key things. First, they build roads of high quality. We build roads of low quality thinking that they are cheaper. But that's actually not true. They keep crumbling in the rains, and we keep rebuilding them, and as a result the expenditure on the roads is actually higher in the long run. It is better to build roads once, at higher cost and quality. Look at Vittal Mallya Road - it has…