BCity Citizen Matters, Blogs

Dear Bangalore Blue Print Action Group, this is not the way to plan the city!

May 9, 2016 Ashwin Mahesh

Dear members of civil society, who are the members of the newly formed Bangalore Blueprint Action Group, I am writing to you today because, like you, I care about Namma Bengaluru and I want its

Tales from the South Side

April 12, 2016 Ritvik Mandyam

Hello, all. I apologize for my long absence (I vanish way too regularly, don’t I?). I’ve been a bit busy with things like my board exams. However, I am now back, although my skills (as

List of things to follow if you want to solve problems in your area

April 12, 2016 Ashwin Mahesh

So far, I have received expressions of interest from people in about 25 wards to work on local solutions for civic improvement and better governance. I’ll reach out to each of you individually and see

The epic India-Pak cricket match that can make a foreigner feel at home!

April 7, 2016 Noah Pilliongardnern

How do the cricketers keep a track of their team mates at the Malleshwaram ground? Pic: Rajesh Kallaje Sports encompass every aspect of life in the United States. From the time we can walk we

Some ideas on how the State can help Bengaluru in budget

March 11, 2016 Ashwin Mahesh

Here is an extract from my proposals to the government on things to include in the State Budget, 2016-17: (a) The Master Plan for Bengaluru and other cities being statutory, the State Budget each year

Lose-lose propositions on public expenditure need to change

March 10, 2016 Ashwin Mahesh

For the first time, I feel that the long-sought Commuter Rail System is within reach. The state government appears willing to fund this in the Budget, and an initial round of money should help create

The only city that has a TREE STORY to tell…

March 9, 2016 Kiran Keswani

How do you begin to like Bangalore when you have moved here from elsewhere? I remember when we first came here 8 years ago, I yearned for anything that would remind me of Bombay, where

Personnel in BBMP to contact if you see trees being chopped down

March 2, 2016 Deepa Mohan

Sudarshan Nityananda gives the following contact numbers: South Bangalore comes under Mr Ranganathswamy,DCF-BBMP.His number is 9480683842. His senior is Mr N D Sudarshan who sits in the BBMp premises.His number is 9480684566. The third

The Me, My gadget, My video generation

February 17, 2016 Shree D N

On a highway leading to a cold, cold city, a two-wheeler rider was mowed down by a speeding lorry on a hot morning. He pleaded for help, without even realising that his body was torn

13,000 to 15,000 buses – that’s what Bengaluru needs right now!

February 10, 2016 Ashwin Mahesh

“Better than nothing” is not progress. It’s just better than nothing. If we set our metrics so low, we can never develop. Take the example of buses. The city needs about 13,000 to 15,000 buses

Finding loopholes to escape the legal net

January 6, 2016 Ashwin Mahesh

Some interesting twists in law come up in corruption cases, revealing technicalities that need to be addressed to clean up the system. This morning’s news about Lokayukta-filed cases against former CM BSY is one such

When Varthur and Kadugodi elected their ward committee members

January 5, 2016 Arvind Keerthi

The Karnataka Municipal Act 1976, amended as per the requirements of the famous 74th Constitutional Amendment in 1994, stipulates that there “…be a ward committee for each ward … (that) shall consist of … the

When BBMP said the streetlight problem is ‘resolved’

December 28, 2015 Ramesh Sreekantan

Several months ago I wrote about my attempts to get a streetlight fixed on the `model street’ of 15th Cross Malleshwaram. First some `jugaad’ work had been done by BBMP. When I complained – nothing

Renewed hope after #SaveWhitefield protest

December 1, 2015 Whitefield Rising

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

Problems caused by rain in Bengaluru have different reasons

November 16, 2015 Ashwin Mahesh

As the rains continue to batter the city, it is easy to see that the infrastructure is of very poor quality. The potholes, the overflowing sewage, the flooding… these and many other observable things in