City: Bengaluru

Pic: Abhilash Matlapudi Pic: Abhilash Matlapudi A new school initiative is in the offing in Whitefield. Troubled by huge hikes in school fees, a few Whitefield parents under the name Citizens Gurukul have decided to setup a school. An account of their recent event by founder trustee Abhilash Matlapudi. When we have good intentions and stay committed, everything will fall in place. This was proven once again, during our 1st-ever Symposium event. We got speakers/panelists, venue, volunteers and required support to pull off a public event like this. It was a pleasant Saturday morning where about 50 parents predominantly from Whitefield and even from…

It was a hot mid-afternoon on March 22nd, 2017 - just a few days after the residents of Somasundarapalya and surrounding areas called off their protest demanding the closure of Karnataka Compost Development Corporation (KCDC) waste processing plant - that I visited this plant in Bengaluru. Days after the protest, the work had resumed at the waste processing plant and trucks were lined up to unload waste collected from Bommanahalli and BTM Layout constituencies. It was business as usual at the KCDC plant - a four-decade-old wet waste composting unit developed on a six acres of land (total area owned…

Somasundara Palya lake was recently flooded with sewage water. Pic: WeAreHSRLayout Twitter handle. The Government of Karnataka and BBMP has been actively promoting composting as the way of managing organic waste at home. Composting also has been tried out in Bengaluru at bigger scales now and then, but not with much success. The Karnataka Composting Development Corporation (KCDC) in HSR Layout was commissioned by the government way before HSR Layout became a part of Bruhat Bengaluru. The plant processed waste through vermicomposting methods years ago. Now with the increasing quantity of waste, the plant has adopted regular composting methods along…

Theatre changed her lawyer dreams Ranjitha Surya Vamshi talks about how, when and why she got into Theatre even though her childhood dream was to become a lawyer. She talks about the various people who encouraged and supported her through her journey. She also shares her views on why women should not limit themselves to the four walls of their houses.   For the love of acting Nayana Sooda, a native of Dakshina Kannada / Karnataka has lived in Bangalore for over 20 years. She shares how she entered the world of theatre. Many people encouraged Nayana to take up…

The Kengeri Satellite Town adjacent to Mysore Road is now a busy township. Kommaghatta road is one of the major roads in this area. It connects this region with Tavarakere in Magadi Road. If you go along this road, or on any of the adjoining roads, past NICE road, you will see the latest site development project of BDA called Nadaprabhu Kempe Gowda Layout. Look a little deeper, and you will see that it is an environmental disaster in the making. Pic: B V Rajarama Bhat This has been a green belt providing valuable oxygen supply to the city and it is…

Rains in Bengaluru summer bring the greatest joy in us, they also create traffic woes, and have people stranded all over the place, often creating utter chaos. A recent spell of torrential rain reminded me of a day when I had gone to Ridhani's production unit and was going to be late from work. A perfect sunny summery morning had changed to a dark cloudy afternoon and within an hour or so, it started pouring - so much so that in about two hours there was waterlogging and severe traffic jams along the way. It was around 8.30 pm and…

The National Green Tribunal (NGT), in a hearing held on April 12 2017, has warned of passing restraining directions against the State of Karnataka, if discharge of untreated sewage into the Bellandur Lake in Bengaluru is not stopped immediately. The NGT also directed the Chief Secretary of the state to be present before the Tribunal during the next hearing. The Tribunal also pulled up Karnataka Lake Catchment Development Authority (KLCDA) for allowing the situation to reach a stage where lake catches fire. The State government, KLCDA and other authorities have been directed to apprise the court of the measures taken…

Mysore Bank at the Mysore Bank Circle is a thing of past - it's going to be just State Bank henceforth! Pic: Malempati Ravi/ Google Local Guides After 104 years, the name State Bank of Mysore was relegated to history. “Mysore Bank” which held a place of pride among Bengalureans no longer exists. There won’t be any boards dotting the city with the blue symbol. And like with many establishments, the name will continue to live on in Bengaluru, hiding in plain sight among other spots of history – in the city’s bus stops and junctions. The latter cannot be…