bengaluru

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…

What a day! It was a treat to see people pouring out of streets and alleys to join the human chain, merge in seamlessly, bringing their own posters, chanting their own slogans, and through small acts of kindness, reinforcing each others' faith in the compassion that is at the core of all of us. One protestor brought biscuits and drinks for the rest of the gang. Another stepped off the bus unaware of the protest, but joined in spontaneously and started coordinating the walk towards Vydehi. Buses gave free rides to the protestors gathered at Marathahalli and Kundanahalli. Men, women…

What a day! It was a treat to see people pouring out of streets and alleys to join the human chain, merge in seamlessly, bringing their own posters, chanting their own slogans, and through small acts of kindness, reinforcing each others' faith in the compassion that is at the core of all of us. One protestor brought biscuits and drinks for the rest of the gang. Another stepped off the bus unaware of the protest, but joined in spontaneously and started coordinating the walk towards Vydehi. Buses gave free rides to the protestors gathered at Marathahalli and Kundanahalli. Men, women…

So, did you read about what happened in Mali; that, there were 27 dead bodies after Malian commandos stormed the besieged luxury hotel to free those trapped inside? Incidentally, there were 20 Indians among the roughly 170 people taken hostage by those terrorists. Did you read about it, exclaim over it, anguish over it? Neither did I. On the other hand, I found myself horror-struck by the Paris attacks, I even cried watching that video of a gunman mowing down innocent café-patrons; and I couldn't bear looking at photos of the pregnant woman who was hanging on for dear life…

So, did you read about what happened in Mali; that, there were 27 dead bodies after Malian commandos stormed the besieged luxury hotel to free those trapped inside? Incidentally, there were 20 Indians among the roughly 170 people taken hostage by those terrorists. Did you read about it, exclaim over it, anguish over it? Neither did I. On the other hand, I found myself horror-struck by the Paris attacks, I even cried watching that video of a gunman mowing down innocent café-patrons; and I couldn't bear looking at photos of the pregnant woman who was hanging on for dear life…

Can't find a clean public toilet? Consider using a vacant plot. Civic sense? What on earth is that?  Vacant plots in our city are considered as nothing but garbage dump yards.  And if they are under litigation, they are ignored by the concerned parties for obvious reasons. The civic authorities don’t seem to care, and irresponsible citizens and commercial establishments like hotels and pubs begin disposing their waste in these sites in the wee hours of the night or early mornings; sometimes even in broad daylight. This empty plot has become a garbage dump over the years. Pic: Praveen S…

Can't find a clean public toilet? Consider using a vacant plot. Civic sense? What on earth is that?  Vacant plots in our city are considered as nothing but garbage dump yards.  And if they are under litigation, they are ignored by the concerned parties for obvious reasons. The civic authorities don’t seem to care, and irresponsible citizens and commercial establishments like hotels and pubs begin disposing their waste in these sites in the wee hours of the night or early mornings; sometimes even in broad daylight. This empty plot has become a garbage dump over the years. Pic: Praveen S…

When you saw a teenager glued to a video game, did you think, "That kid is going to make seven million bucks!" That's what people like Felix Kjellberg (PewDiePie) and Sean McLoughlin (Jacksepticeye) are making today. They play video games all day and then upload videos of themselves playing to the internet. And you thought playing video games was a waste of time, didn't you? What these guys do isn't easy, by the way - getting subscribers is probably the hardest thing on earth. Editing eight-minute-videos to make them fun to watch for us—the average attention span is probably about…

When you saw a teenager glued to a video game, did you think, "That kid is going to make seven million bucks!" That's what people like Felix Kjellberg (PewDiePie) and Sean McLoughlin (Jacksepticeye) are making today. They play video games all day and then upload videos of themselves playing to the internet. And you thought playing video games was a waste of time, didn't you? What these guys do isn't easy, by the way - getting subscribers is probably the hardest thing on earth. Editing eight-minute-videos to make them fun to watch for us—the average attention span is probably about…

Whitefield. I know the very mention of that name is starting to remind people about all the things that are going wrong in that part of town. In my recent visits to that side too, I have been surprised by the degree to which the city has collapsed over there, and wondering what can be done to retrieve the situation. Rather than continue the litany of complaints, I thought I would put together the things that can be done to tackle the problem, initially focusing on roads and transport. A beeline of vehicles waiting on Varthur Main Road, near Kundalahalli…