PEOPLE

I read this post...http://bengaluru.citizenmatters.in/articles/view/812-safer-footpathsDuring a walk from my home to IIM-Bangalore on Bannerghatta Road, a distance of about 2.5 kms, I met with the following obstacles:1.Open drains2.Missing granite slabs that would decant me instantly into the gutter beneath if I was not careful.3.Large piles of garbage stretching all the way to the road.4. Furniture and other wares set out by shopkeepers.5. Pushcarts parked randomly.6. Two-wheelers parked, and sometimes being driven, on the pavement.7. Transformers of BESCOM.8. Huge dug-up craters, sometimes with cables being laid, sometimes pipes, sometimes nothing that I could see to account for the digging.9. Families sitting and…

We've been moaning about the India Coffee House on M G Road shutting down soon, but when I went for the INTACH-organized Heritage walk on Avenue Road, I was astonished by the site of a van vending coffee and snacks to several people, early in the morning! Apparently it's there every weekend morning, I am not sure if it's also there on weekdays:The van is run by the "Coffee Mandali" or Coffee Board...five rupees gets one a china cup of piping hot coffee!Here are several people jostling (as usual, Bangaloreans seem never to have heard of the word "queue") for…

We've been moaning about the India Coffee House on M G Road shutting down soon, but when I went for the INTACH-organized Heritage walk on Avenue Road, I was astonished by the site of a van vending coffee and snacks to several people, early in the morning! Apparently it's there every weekend morning, I am not sure if it's also there on weekdays:The van is run by the "Coffee Mandali" or Coffee Board...five rupees gets one a china cup of piping hot coffee!Here are several people jostling (as usual, Bangaloreans seem never to have heard of the word "queue") for…

We went on the heritage walk on Avenue Road, organized by INTACH, this morning (watch Citizen Matters for a detailed report on how the shopkeepers of Avenue Road engaged with the walkers..a first-time combination!) and we took a bus back home. On the way home from the bus stop, we were amazed to see an entreprenurial iniatitive...a push-cart with pani puri! The young man, Raju, said that he was from UP and had come here to make a living. Since neither of us was in the mood for a full lunch after the excellent "prasad" of pulioygare and mosaranna provided…

Most of us agree that our tree cover is depleting alarmingly, and we cluck about it....but St Mark's School has done something...er...concrete, to choose an inappropriate word!They have planted 9 badam trees in front of their school in J P Nagar 3rd Phase.They had plenty of excuses NOT to plant trees. The Mini Forest, with lots of trees, is right opposite. There's hardly any footpath in front the school. But they went ahead and planted the trees anyway.And in a short time, the trees are providing shade on the hot street...Long live schools like St Mark's, which put their trees…

We went on the heritage walk on Avenue Road, organized by INTACH, this morning (watch Citizen Matters for a detailed report on how the shopkeepers of Avenue Road engaged with the walkers..a first-time combination!) and we took a bus back home. On the way home from the bus stop, we were amazed to see an entreprenurial iniatitive...a push-cart with pani puri! The young man, Raju, said that he was from UP and had come here to make a living. Since neither of us was in the mood for a full lunch after the excellent "prasad" of pulioygare and mosaranna provided…

Most of us agree that our tree cover is depleting alarmingly, and we cluck about it....but St Mark's School has done something...er...concrete, to choose an inappropriate word!They have planted 9 badam trees in front of their school in J P Nagar 3rd Phase.They had plenty of excuses NOT to plant trees. The Mini Forest, with lots of trees, is right opposite. There's hardly any footpath in front the school. But they went ahead and planted the trees anyway.And in a short time, the trees are providing shade on the hot street...Long live schools like St Mark's, which put their trees…

One of the things that make our Indian cities vibrant is the presence of several small businesses that eke their living by solving the everyday problems of the citizens, or making their lives easier in small and practical ways.One such tradesman is the locksmith who is found in every market area. Here is Mr Muniyappa of Jayanagar 9th Block:Mr Muniyappa has, he says, been in this spot for over 2 decades now! He has seen Jayanagar 9th Block market developing from scratch into a busy, crowded area.His shop is still on the footpath:But people for miles around know where, exactly…

One of the things that make our Indian cities vibrant is the presence of several small businesses that eke their living by solving the everyday problems of the citizens, or making their lives easier in small and practical ways.One such tradesman is the locksmith who is found in every market area. Here is Mr Muniyappa of Jayanagar 9th Block:Mr Muniyappa has, he says, been in this spot for over 2 decades now! He has seen Jayanagar 9th Block market developing from scratch into a busy, crowded area.His shop is still on the footpath:But people for miles around know where, exactly…

Many of us have been complaining about the increasing "facelessness" of the new Bangalore. Neighbour does not know neighbour, and we all seem impersonal cogs in the machinery...But I didn't realize that even the Railways felt the same way!The Cantonment station proclaims, "Bangalore Anon"...Anonymous, indeed, are the passengers who pour in and out through this station every day.Or, who knows...like Al-Anon (Alchoholics Anonymous), Bangalore Anon is going to get rid of its problems and set itself right..was that the message? I wonder. ⊕