BBMP receives international honor in energy-efficient street lighting; residents call it a ‘pseudo achievement’

street lighting

By Qamar ZJ The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has won the silver medal for its energy-efficient street lighting project under the ‘Best Utilities Project’ at the Partnerships Awards 2020. The judges included 80 individuals representing public and private enterprises. However,  netizens are dubbing the honor as a ‘pseudo achievement’ as most of Bangaluru is … Read more

Anti-Corruption Bureau: How to nail the corrupt

anti corruption bureau

By Aratrika Dey   Do you want to take action against the ever-persisting problem of corruption? Or have you been subjected to malpractices and become a victim of corruption? Have you been asked to pay a certain sum to the police inspector assigned to you in your passport verification process to get the job done quickly? … Read more

Found a messy toilet or broken footpath? Report now for end-to-end solution!

my city my budget

By Chandrima Mazumdar To reduce public urination and fix the broken footpaths within the year, Janaagraha, a non-profit organization, has teamed with Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) in their annual budget campaign called MyCityMyBudget. And every citizen can play a role in beautifying the city. In the last five years, over 50,000 citizens gave 90,000 … Read more

BBMP promises compensation to victims of bad infrastructure; Twitterati responds 

bbmp notice

By Aratrika Dey On December 1, the BBMP published a public notification in the papers, promising to  compensate citizens injured due to bad roads or footpaths with a payment of Rs 15,000. In case of death, the family of the victim will be paid Rs 3 lakhs by the BBMP, while minor injuries will merit … Read more

Shocking First Person Account: RTO giving permanent driving licences without proper testing!

RTO

By Ruchika S We have an expose by a 21-year-old communications student in Bengaluru about the corrupt ways of the Koramangala Regional Transport Office (RTO). She applied for a permanent driving licence through her driving school, and found that the RTO officials were granting the permits without proper tests. Here is her first person account … Read more

RTI: How to make public sector banks answerable to you

RTI

By Aratrika Dey The right to information should be a fundamental right of every citizen. Given the lack of transparency from the public sector banks in the country, the citizens need to know how to file an RTI (Right to Information) application. Banks serve as a part of the foundation of any economy. But much … Read more

‘Smart Cities Mission’ is anti-poor, non-inclusive, and against the constitutional mandate: Experts

smart cities mission

By Qamar ZJ & Chandrima Mazumdar While the 2015 idea of ‘100 Smart Cities Mission’ promised improved standards of living, the reality is that it has forced many people into poverty. Instead of acting as a role model for the tier 2 and tier 3 cities, the governance and financial implications of this urban renewal … Read more

Blood donation camps: Should you donate during the pandemic?

blood donation

By Aratrika Dey Hospitals are overburdened with patients and cannot admit more due to the lack of beds and shortage of medical personnel. Blood banks are facing an acute shortage of blood units. The demand for treatment has increased, while the number of blood donors has decreased, due to the fear of virus transmission. No … Read more

Know your neighbour: Former top order batsman is now chairman of KSCA’s state selection committees

Fazal Khaleel

By Aratrika Dey Bengaluru boy, top-class batsman for Karnataka, your next-door neighbour (if you’re from HSR Layout), and now Chairman of the men’s state Senior and U-23 selection committees, Fazal R Khaleel has had quite the journey in the world of cricket. The Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) announced early this year that Khaleel replaced … Read more

Citizens remove 383 nails and 2000 pins from one peepal tree

tree nails

By Aratrika Dey The other day, Bangalore Political Action Committee (B.PAC) member Raghavendra Poojari tweeted that he and a group of friends single-handedly removed 383 nails and over 2000 stapler pins stuck to a peepal tree near Vijayanagar bus stand… there are still many more to be removed. “Every time I went on morning walks … Read more

Draft electoral roll 2021 released, citizens can check their names now

electoral roll

By Chandrima Mazumdar The Election Commission of India has published the draft electoral roll 2021 for the state of Karnataka. According to the revised schedule of the Special Summary Revision 2021, the period for filing claims and objections. They have been revised and now extend from November 18 to December 17, 2020. The date for … Read more

Don’t feed pigeons; their poop can cause more than 60 diseases

pigeons

By Chandrima Mazumdar  Residents, unaware of the health hazards, are unwittingly feeding pigeons that frequent the Swabhimaana Park in Sector 3, HSR Layout. The other neighbourhoods in Bengaluru are no exception either. However, while feeding the birds is a noble deed, having them around in the neighbourhood is counter-productive. According to scientists, pigeon poop is … Read more