Bangalore region - Track doubling & electrification

07/31/10 14:12 - idontspam

The below figures should speak for itself. Except for the line from Mysore towards Chennai via city & Tumkur, all other lines around Bangalore are single track. I cant think of any other major city (even tier 2 towns) which is in such a pathetic situation?

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Do Water & Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Acts cover housing complexes?

07/31/10 10:07 - murali772

When the KSPCB sent us a notice for the first time in May, '07, I, as the then President of the association, raised a query with them as under:

Ours is a high-rise apartment complex comprising 126 dwelling units, situated at the above address. The only waste we generate is the sewage from toilets which is discharged into the BWSSB sewage line running below the main road adjoining our complex, for which BWSSB is levying us a 'sanitory charge', as a part of the monthly water bill. As such, please advise on what basis your organisation should be levying any annual 'consent fee' on our complex.

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Ads Volvo buses illegal; but, BMTC carries on unmindful

07/31/10 06:15 - murali772

Regional Transport Authority officials never had it so tough. While they have managed to stop all private and government vehicles from displaying advertisements, they've found the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) a tough nut to crack. They're armed with an Act of law, a high court ruling and a Road Safety Authority (RSA) decision which prohibits display of ads on vehicles as these could distract other drivers. However BMTC buses, especially the Volvos, continue to display huge ads. What's worse, government ads with large photographs of chief minister B S Yeddyurappa and transport minister R Ashoka are on almost all buses plying towards IT corridor areas like Whitefield and Electronic City. Interestingly, BMTC managing director Syed Zameer Pasha says he's unaware of this blatant flouting of rules.

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Pollution Control Board - the government's cash cow

07/30/10 08:31 - murali772

Even as BWSSB, KPCL, KPTCL, BESCOM, etc are desperately strapped for cash, there is another government agency that's just rolling in money, viz the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB). A cursory glance at the financial statements, provided on its web-site ( http://www.kspcb.gov.in/ - though not quite in a reader friendly way as one would have liked it, which but is quite the norm with most government agency web-sites), shows the revenues at Rs 190 cr for total expenses of just Rs 23.54 cr, a mere 12% of the revenues, with the direct costs being just 5%. And, it's not as if they are being very frugal in their practices or anything like that.

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BWSSB - story of unclaimed dues

07/30/10 06:01 - murali772

Though fund-starved, BWSSB is doing little to claim dues running into crores of rupees from Govt agencies. Says Board chairman P B Ramamurthy: "Since bill collection is the main source of revenue for BWSSB, we have been continuously pressing both the government and semi-government bodies to pay their bills.''

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ROB at between Whitefield KR Puram and Byappanhalli approved in BBMP

07/30/10 03:41 - Sanjeev

Palike approves nine projects without debate :

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Namma Railu Meetup, on the Hosur Train

07/28/10 13:28 - idontspam

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Problem - accidents on Kadugodi Railway bridge

07/28/10 06:54 - swamy

About the new Kadugodi railway bridge near Whitefield station, some problems already!

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Corporate Social Irresponsibility

07/28/10 05:08 - murali772

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has long been a hot topic globally. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has lectured companies on it. Some corporations have won acclaim and awards for CSR. Two of them were BP, the oil giant, and Goldman Sachs, the big investment bank. Every year, the World Economic Forum lists the "Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations". BP has made the list many times. So has Goldman Sachs, for its work on climate change and carbon trading.

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Atal Sarige buses

07/27/10 17:35 - ss87

Last week  I waited at Kanakapura road for a bus to Banashankari. There came a AS1(Atal sarige 1) and I boarded it. This bus had some advantages:

1. The fare charged between Jaraganahalli and Banashankari, a distance of about 2 1/2 kms was just Rs.2/- in a situation where all other buses charge Rs.4/-

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