Vol. 12 Issue 7
Indian Institute of Journalism & New Media, Bangalore
27 September, 2012
By Debanti Roy
Mothers forced to clean hospital toilets
One of the toilets in the children’s ward of Kidwai Hospital. By Debanti Roy MOTHERS of children battling cancer are forced to clean filthy ward toilets. Mums frantic with worry about the health of their children have even been forced onto a rota system as there are no cleaners available. There are fifty five children currently admitted in the pedi-
atric cancer department of Kidwai Hospital.The mothers are permitted to stay with their children in the ward. They praised the treatment of the hospital but said doctors would inspect the toilets and shout at them if they had not been cleaned. “Apart from taking care of my two year old daughter I have to clean the toilets and floors
everyday”, said Mrs. Rita Manna, mother of Chaity Manna “Every night one senior doctor comes and checks the toilets. They even shout at us if the toilets are found dirty,” she added. The toilets are dirty and often too unhygienic to be used by the children. The mothers clean the toilets everyday on a rotation basis. “It is sometimes so dirty that
14-year-old girl is city prostitute been going on for over 25 years. Prostitution during the day is only recent, earlier the activities would only start after 9 pm.” Bangalore does not have any designated red-light areas like Mumbai, Kolkata and Delhi, where sex workers cater to the needs of their customers. Majestic is fast becoming one. They start their work at 1:30
money,” she said. There are some 30 girls involved in this trade at Majestic, forcing men and children to shell out money, forcibly. A special meeting was held at the commissioner’s office at Infantry Road last month aimed at tackling the problem. DCP Siddaramppa was put in charge of the problem of pros-
Photo: Amrita Ray
By Nijhum Rudra A fourteen year old girl is working as a prostitute in Bangalore. The girl, Nandini, has been on the streets of Bangalore from the age of 11. She was arrested by Deputy Commissioner of Police, Siddaramppa, on August 26 for extorting Rs. 1000 from a student of KNMM Boys’ School, Bangalore. The girls are working in broad daylight in the Majestic area of the city. “She is the youngest prostitute I have arrested and she has no other criminal record,” said DCP Siddaramppa. Passersby, especially school kids and pedestrians, are targeted by prostitutes who snatch money from them. Police say they are upping patrols and raids but girls on the streets said that would only stop them temporarily. Prostitutes harrass pedestrians and demand cash, according to police. If they don’t have enough cash, the girls take their ATM cards or threaten to file a rape case against them, according to E. Narayana Rao Kate, a constable working the Majestic beat. He said: “The business has
Prostitutes wait for their clients around Majestic. pm and work till the early hours of the morning. Nita, a prostitute said: “I was born and brought up in Hyderabad.” “I had no parents and I used to stay with my uncle. He later sold me to a prostitute dealer called Karim. He is now in jail.” “We take money from pedestrians if we are in need of
titution around Majestic. He said: “Joint Commissioner of Police, Pronab Mahanty, advised me to take charge. I conduct raids twice a week.” Inspite of these raids, the menace continues in and around Majestic Bus Terminal and pedestrians are scared to pass through the area.
it becomes difficult for us to clean them,” said Shahida Sacadaq, mother of ten years old Ali. Ali Sacadaq said: “I feel bad when I see my mother cleaning the toilets of the hospital because of me. She doesn’t like cleaning it herself but she has to.” He added: “My mother has to look after me and clean the toilets as well. She gets tired.” Shahida said: “If cleaning staffs are appointed then we will definitely breathe a sigh of relief.”
“It (toilet) is sometimes so dirty that it becomes difficult for
Generic drug stores are on the rise in the city. >Page 2
The relationship between patients and doctors goes online via video chat. >Page 2
us to clean them.” When a doctor of the hospital was asked why the department does not appoint staff for the cleaning jobs, the doctor said: “This is their home and it is their responsibility to keep the home clean”.
Anganwadi centers in the city run dry By Debanti Roy NEARLY thirty thousand Anganwadi centres in Bangalore have no drinking water facility. Karnataka and central government provide an annual fund of Rs 3,000 crore to Integrated Child Development Services for the development of these Anganwadi centers. Despite this level of funding children as young as seven have to walk miles to fetch drinking water for themselves. Aditya Mathur, PRO of Pankhuru, a child development committee, said: “Water is a fundamental requirement of life and when the government is giving enough funding for the development of these Anganwadis, the committee should take some immediate steps.” He added: “Due to water problems in these Anganwadis, the number of health related issues are on a rise.” “Not all Anganwadis are affected, but yes there are a few. The Central government accounts for 90% of the funds for them, while the Karnataka state government provides the rest,” said Department of Women and Child Development official. Anganwadis still await response from the government.
Sale of junk food in school canteens is risking the health of students. >Page 3
A slum exists within a government school campus in Shivaji Nagar. >Page 3
Drug abuse cases in the city are on the rise. >Page 4
City
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The Weekly Obserer
ILLEGAL cellular towers continue to be constructed in residential areas posing a threat to pediatric and geriatric health. Apart from being illegal, these structures pose dangers to residents, especially children. Bhaskar Kumar, a resident of Indira Nagar, said: “The High Court has banned the setting up of cellphone towers but these companies pay no heed to the order.” The National Cancer Registry Program claims, in cities like Bangalore, Chennai and Kolkata around 9.5 - 10 percent of incidents of cancer are reported between the age group of four to fifteen years. Dr. C P Raghuram of HCG Bangalore Institute of Oncology, mentioned there are various theories revolving around the rise in
pediatric cancer such as maternal care during pregnancy, exposure to chemicals, mobile networks and others, but there has been no specific conclusion. Dr. Raghuram said: “There has to be a minimum distance of 35 meters between a residential establishment and a cellular tower but I see a lot of cellular companies breaking this norm.” Scientific studies have shown that the radiation emitted from the cell phone towers harm cardio vascular systems and respiratory systems of people who are exposed to the radiation. Dr. Vaishali Patil Dhande, a radiologist said: “The radiation emitted from the towers are potentially carcinogenic.” She added: “This radiation affects mostly the children. They may cause heart problems and cancers on prolonged exposure.”
According to Indian Journal of Pediatrics, Acute Lymphoblastic Leukamia (AAL) accounted for 25-30% of all childhood malignancies. Pediatric Oncologist, Ms. PP Babsy said: “AAL is the most common form of cancer detected in children these days.” Dr. Jayaprakash, trainee at Kidwai Institute of Oncology, mentioned environmental factors can be a reason when there is an epidemic growth of cancer in a particular region but Kidwai Hospital has children from various regions of Karnataka reporting cancer. He said: “More than 80 cases of Pediatric Leukemia have been reported in Kidwai alone, this year.” Dr. Dhande said: “This is a very serious issue and can lead to many major problems in the future if it is not tackled.” ”She added: “Children should
Doctors on call at the click of a mouse
Generic drug stores boon to the needy By Pushkar Banakar
Photo:Carey Goldberg
By Hansa V INDIAN doctors are gearing up to treat their patients through social media. Social network technologyhas attracted doctors keen to reach patients in remote areas. Doctors are already using the new-tech and more are planning to, ensuring patients are treated through video chats. Dr. Deviprasad Shetty, a heart-surgeon, said: “The doctor-patient relationship is officially moving online. “Whether they have that option will depend heavily on a doctor’s ability to get paid for their service.” Of late, the healthcare industry is trying to tap into the power of the internet to its benefit. Patients are requested to add their doctors to their friends list on Twitter, Facebook or Skype. Padmavathy, 67, said: “Even though technology has advanced immensely in the 21st century, it will never be safe to check on a patient through a web cam, a Skype chat. “Even though it is really fast and time saving it may, at times, get out of hand and lead to dangerous results as the doctor is not actually with the patient.” Recently, a number of medical websites have leased their space to get physicians to write about medical ailments and give advice on already written content. Online physician consultations, also called e-visits are already being used to treat patients for non-emergency con-
Cellular tower in residential area despite speculation regardnot be allowed to handle instruments which emit harmful radia- ing harmful effects, no efforts are tion especially cell phones to being made by the government to minimise risks. avoid health risks.”
Now doctors are treating through video chats. ditions and to answer questions space to get physicians to write about minor ailments, symptoms about medical ailments and give or medications. advice on already written conAccording to a study by tent.” Health Information Firm of ManHe added that the online hattan Research, about 42% of trend, though is setting in and is U.S. physicians say they have being applied as much as possidiscussed clinical symptoms on- ble, it is always safe that they line with patients, and more than meet regularly on a face to face 9 million consumers report hav- basis. ing had e-mail communication This is to ensure that the sitwith their physician. uation does not hang in air which This just simplifies the job for might, at a later stage, lead to clinic doctors and other physi- varied problems if mishandled. cians to maintain an online relaThe ‘Online Health: Assesstionship with their patient. It ing the Risk and Opportunity of gives them wider scope of pa- Social and One-to-one Media’, a tient lists. report, states that the use of Dr. Pinaki Biswas, Medical health-focused online social Director, Aditi Maternity & Gen- media will grow. eral Nursing Home, said: This will be due to increased “Though we cannot charge as health consumerism, the inmuch as we do for personal vis- creasing number and quality of its, it is still as good as face-to- health-focused Web sites. face meetings. “Recently, a number of medical websites have leased their
THE rise of generic drug stores is benefitting the poor by making medicines affordable. There has been an increase in generic drug stores by 14%. This has benefitted the lower class by making expensive drugs affordable. Drugs like Osteofos which cost Rs.345 for a packet of four tablets is being sold at a price of Rs.100. many such expensive drugs like Voveran, Livogen have become more affordable to the poor. A dealer in a Generic Drug Store, Janata Bazaar said, “We sell these medicines at subsided rates as we get subsidies from the government and we also get a feeling of satisfaction of serving the poor.” A patient of arthritis, Raghav, a hawker in K. R. Market said “It was very difficult for me to afford these medicines before the introduction of these stores. Now it is easier and I am very happy that the government has come up
with such a noble idea.” Another patient’s relative, Laxamma, a daily wage laborer added,” I am very happy with the government for coming up with such a scheme. My husband’s and my wages were not enough to treat my husband. Thanks to these stores, we can now afford for his efficient treatment.” The Karnataka State Co-Op Consumer Federation has introduced these kinds of stores in the city. Ingulambika V.S, ARCS (Consumer & Marketing), Karnataka State Co-Op Consumer Federation attributed the rise of these medical stores to the easy registration process. He said “There is no difficulty in getting oneself registered to start a generic drug store.I am very happy with the success of this scheme and I hope that more number of patients are benefitted from it.” He was also of the opinion that if the other states in the country resort to this scheme the medical landscape of the country would be largely benefitted.
Photo : Udita Chaturvedi
By Nupur Gour & Sneha Banerjee
Photo: Cherishma Shah
Cellular towers- a grave threat to children’s health
One of the many generic drug stores in the city
SMS lingo frowned upon in your bank By Hansa V USE of text speak in bank cheques has created problems for customers. Young people today are used to using SMS language no matter where they are writing. The same applies for bank cheques. People are facing problems because of the inappropriate use of words, which when misspelled lead to prob-
lems at their local bank branch.. Sharath Muralidharan, an employee of TVS Hosur, said: “I received my salary cheque from Nagpur. It is my misfortune that the amount was written in the wrong way. “Instead of ‘twenty thousand rupees’ it was worded as ‘twenty grand’ which the bank rejected outright and I could not do anything about it but wait.When the
cheque was resent, my name was spelt wrong and the cheque bounced back. Just because of these cheques, my salary was not credited for two months and created a lot of issues for me.” Bank leaves are not available free of cost and every mistake in the leaf counts as a big blunder, creating problem both for the customers as well as the
bankers. Vimala, an employee of Bank of India, said: “It is not a matter of concern, if the names or the amount are written in different languages as long as they are legible to the officers. “It becomes a nuisance when people misspell the names or write wrong account numbers or incorrect numbering. “Number of such cases
varies from place to place. We usually have around ten such cases in a week. Manjari, Assistant Manager, ICICI Bank, said: “The problem persists mainly while spelling payee names. Many a time, I have had to reject cheques simply because the names in the cheques and the names of the respective account numbers do not match.”
City
27 September, 2012 | 03
The Weekly Observer
By Udita Chaturvedi DOCTORS are worried about the rise in obesity among school children in the city. “The surveys conducted by the government and other aid agencies state that 30 million Indians are estimated to be overweight. Obesity among children has increased from 9.8% - 12% in the last three years.” He added: “This is a scary scenario for our country. We cannot afford to risk the lives of the children of our country,” said Rahul Verma, co-founder of a Delhi-based NGO, Uday Foundation. In 2010, a PIL was filed by Uday Foundation in the Delhi High Court. They demanded complete ban on the sale of junk food and carbonated drinks in and around 500 yards of any school campus. Rahul Verma said: “In recent times, obesity has increased tremendously, especially among children. Consumption of junk
Photo: Aiman S Khan
Junk food in schools risking children’s health
School kids indulging in junk food food is a major cause among packet of chips or samosa sold other reasons including change in their school canteens. This is in lifestyle of urban children.” very unhealthy,” said Tulika He added “In India, large Verma. He added: “Often school adnumbers of schools have tied up with fast food chains in order to ministration is not aware of what sell junk food and colas in their junk food is. They think only swanky canteens. At least one- chips and cold drink is junk food third of today’s children con- and not samosas or momos.” sume junk food more than thrice Mrs. Rekha Shankar, Front a week.” Office, Bishop Cotton Boys “Often the first meal of the School, when asked if junk food day that a child has is either a was available in their school
By Hansa V A slum within a school campus is creating problems for both the school and the slum. Hafiza school, near Shivajinagar bus stop, is facing problems as a slum was shifted into their campus grounds on the order of a local MLA and councillor. As there is only one entrance for both the school and the slum, it is creating a lot of disturbance for the school. Venkatarathnamma, Headmistress of Hafiza School, said: “These dwellers have been residing here for over two years now. “It is a real hindrance for us as there is only one entrance, and that too is right in front of our school. This makes it uneasy for us as they keep coming and going and making noises. “This happens during school hours and the children get distracted.”
“It is our misfortune that our house collapsed and we had to shift here.”
Photo:Hansa V
Slum occupies school ground
canteen, she said no but they a particular brand’s chips in their canteen. The High Court had directed Food Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) earlier this year to frame an effective policy with guidelines to ban the sale of junk food and provide nutritious food in school canteens to make available quality safe foods in schools across the country. Specialist in nutrition, Dr. Ujjwala Godbole, said: “Indian school canteens sell junk food like sodas, potato chips, chocolates, pizza, burgers, samosas, which are high calorie food with low nutritive values and low fibre. “Junk food served in school canteens for profits is cooked in contaminated cheap oil and prohibited materials like inedible carcinogenic colors. This affects the digestive system and other systems of their bodies.” She added: “Obesity is one of the main problems in Indian
children. Junk food slows their growth, causes teeth decay and promotes obesity. They end up with incurable diseases like diabetes leading to early ageing. Life expectancy due to obesity has reduced by 12 to 15 years.” Durga C., a student of St. Teresa’s Girls School said her school canteen serves chips and samosas on their menu. “Children should be encouraged to develop healthy eating habits and their food must be balanced with right amounts of carbohydrates, proteins along with vitamins and minerals. “Eat healthy live Healthy” is one of the essential goal for long life,” said Dr. Godbole. There are some schools in the city that have already banned the consumption or sale of junk foods.The NGO says that soon enough, once FSSAI lays down the guidelines, all schools across the country will have to follow suit.
Doubts raised over numerous cases withdrawn By Krishnaprasad S THE government has withdrawn 369 criminal cases since it came to power in Karnataka. Cases of communal violence and religious reprisal against 128 Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) activists alone were withdrawn.Though the cases against Kannada activists who fought for Karnataka have not been with-
According to the sources, 40 cases have been withdrawn in 2012 till July, of which two cases, were of communal clash. Excise minister, Renukacharya who was involved in a case was also freed. Among the people given a clean chit by the government by withdrawing the cases is Janardhana Reddy. He is already under the custody of CBI in the illegal
drawn, according to sources. The Haveri riot, Land Encroachment cases filed against members of Raitha Sangha- K S Puttaniah, Kuruburu Shanthakumar, H R Basavarajappa, Tejaswi Patel and Tumkur M.L.A B Suresh Gowda have been withdrawn. 97 cases that were filed against the farmers were also withdrawn. “The BJP government in Karnataka has become more famous for scams than the social work it has carried out”, said a spokesperson from a regional party.
mining scam and the cash for bail scam, as well as a murder case of a councilor. There are six more cases against him and Sriramulu in 2007. A recent development was the withdrawal of 12 cases against the opposition leader of the Congress, Siddaramiah who was involved in a clash in Jayapura of Mysore district. The Karnataka state BJP which was recently in a big crisis over the throne of Chief-ministership, finally saw Jagadish Shettar as the third CM of Karnataka in the five year tenure of the party.
A slum inside the compound of Hafiza School Residents of the slum are not complaining any less. Kumar, a resident here, said: “It is not that we want to stay here either. It is our misfortune that our houses collapsed and we had to shift here.” He added: “Bad enough that we don’t have proper area to stay- living in aluminum houses is not easy. And to make matters worse, the school people keep complaining for no fault of ours.” Zubeda, another dweller said: “What can we do if the entrance is common for both of us? Obviously we can’t stay inside our houses always. If the other entrance was not covered under garbage, then we would have happily used it. “Not only that, they also keep throwing trash inside our area, making it dirty and uneasy.”
Their houses at Nehrupuram is expected to be renovated by the end of this year. Kumar added: “I really wish our houses at Nehrupuram are given to us as soon as possible.” He added: “We are really tired of staying in a sty and also bearing the brunt of faults that are not performed by us.” Houses at Nehrupuram are being built by Roshan builders. They are taking care of all the necessary amneties required for sheltering these people. The school, on the other hand is eagerly waiting for the slum to shift back. The slum was asked to shift temporarily from Nehrupuram to this area as their house collapsed two years back. They now live in houses made of aluminum sheets.
By Reshma Tarwani APPALLING roads and chopped down trees have hit Karnataka hard in terms of tourism. In 2011, Karnataka ranked second from bottom in attracting foreigners, last being Himachal Pradesh. In 2010, it ranked fifth from bottom. The Indian Tourism Industry invested 9 crore rupees in 2011 as compared to an investment of 14 crore rupees in 2010. According to the Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation, this has been the worst downfall of the tourism department in the state till date. Paltry
Source:Tourism Ministry
Roads chaos hampers state tourism industry
profits have compelled the government to cut down on its investments gradually. A.Salaivasavan, Marketing Manager of India Tourism Development Corporation said: “Con-
nectivity and road infrastructure is a real problem for the state.” He added: “The government is doing its business but there are many loopholes in the system. Trees have been chopped
off for metro work minimizing the greenery in the city. Thus tourists prefer Kerala’s scenic beauty over Karnataka.” Hampi and Mysore are doing comparatively better but that
does not enhance the profit figures. Tourist Information Officer ,P.K Kunhan, agreed that the state has been facing severe loss in the tourism sector. Vital reason behind low out bond factor being not able to attend foreign tourists. He also added that lack of good hotels and variety in food preferences have contributed immensly for this damage. On the contrary, private online tourism companies are doing marginally better by adopting different marketing strategies and interactive technology.
04
27 September 2012| City
The Weekly Observer
Sky high bribes keep hawkers on the move
Hawkers vacating the market fearing bribes. enue Road for the last 50-60 By Kakoli Mukherjee years, and they comply with the & Debanti Roy unfair practice in fear of losing PAVEMENT hawkers on Av- their means of earning their livelienue Road are fleeced by po- hoods. Hawkers in other parts of the lice and BBMP officials city also face similar woes. multiple times every day. Those selling their wares on Harish, a tea-shop owner, said: “There is a nexus between KR Market also complain against the police and corporation offi- rampant corruption in the city pocials. They collect money from lice force. As we had a word with Imtiaz the pavement hawkers many Patel, sub-inspector of City Martimes every day.” He added: “If they do not pay, ket Police Station, and gathered they are not allowed to sell their some information about how they deal with the hawkers in the area, wares." He added: “We generally One of the pavement hawkers clear them in the morning and if who sells clothes, said: "We have they are found blocking the road no other option other than paying. I have been conducting business we fine them Rs 100 as per Karhere for the last twenty years and nataka Police Act.” But some interesting facts I am the sole bread earner in the came out as a local hawker, family." When a councilor in Town Hall Akram Khan said, “The police was asked about this menace, he fine us Rs 200 on charges of petty/doubt case and give us a refused to comment. Another shopkeeper, Badri- receipt of Rs 100 and pocket Rs nath, said: “The police do not col- 100.” Abdul, a fruit seller in KR Marlect the money themselves, but ket, said: “We have to clear the do so through a few collectors. They collect the entire money market place by 9:00AM or else the police takes our scale and to and hand over to the officials." The pavement hawkers have get it back we have to give them been conducting business on Av- Rs100.”
“Parents of children with special needs do not know their child’s condition” By Aheli Raychaudhuri PARENTS should be careful while nurturing children with special needs. Children with special needs such as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Autism and Cerebral Palsy get a raw deal in Bangalore. There are 15-20 schools in Bangalore to cater to children with special needs. According to the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, statistics show that there are 1.35 lakh children with special needs in Karnataka. Asha School Centre for Developmental Disability caters to children who suffer from Down’s syndromeand Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, among others. Unfortunately most parents do not understand the concept of their children having special needs. Dr. Deepak Tibrewal, a Homeopathy doctor said, “I receive around three cases per week and 10-12 cases in a month. There are not enough schools and facil-
ities for children suffering from autism and ADHD. “ “The cases I see prove that the parents of children with special needs either do not know of their child’s condition or are in a state of denial. They also refuse to acknowledge the gravity of the situation.” “It is pointless to expect anything from the government. There is a need for more awareness among schools and teachers. Normal schools need to be more compassionate towards parents of such children. They need to charge a little less for shadow teachers.” “In spite of acknowledgment from schools about a child’s difficulty in comprehension, parents do not seem to understand nuances of development disorder. Shadow teachers are supervisors who are recruited by mainstream schools to take care of children with special needs. According to Meera Ravichandran of Asha School Centre, their organization is pri-
Citizens and Pollution Control Board in stalemate over polythene waste By Sneha Banerjee RECYCLING the plastic circulated by retail outlets would help to reduce the garbage menace in the city. According to Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB), companies are given an End User Certificate on the basis of certain environmental guidelines. Under the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), retail outlets are supposed to recycle a certain amount of plastic that are circulated by them. The EPR says that the retail outlets are responsible for multi
layered plastic bags, sheets and containers circulated by must be removed by them “until the end of its life.” Officer in-charge of Recycle of Hazardous Wastes, Mr.Kumaraswamy said, “Every major brand in the city charges rupees 5 or less for a carry bag out of which they are supposed to invest fifty percent of that amount in re-cycling the waste.” KSPCB asked the corporation to seriously supervise over retail outlets that use plastic products in a judicious and conscious manner. He also mentioned that the corporation needs to keep a
Photo: Robin Sinha
Controversial police scheme sparks debate over legitimacy
SPININING A CONTRADICTORY WEB: The National Handloom Department has allotted 800 crore rupees for the development of handloom in the state as it considers its weavers to be in dire straits. Contradictory versions arise from the Karnataka Handloom Development Corporation which claims a turnover of 150 crore rupees and are expecting greater profits in the future. Silk Fab Bangalore during 2011-2012, received a grant of ten lakh rupees from the government and claims not to have spent a single penny as investment. This justifies the sorry state of the handloom industry in the state.
marily run by Army Wives Welfare Association. It is mostly for children from Army, Navy and Air Force backgrounds. However, they do include 30% of civilian children. But they will soon be reducing the intake to 20%. She said: “Government should do more for children such as provide them more monetary and emotional support.” However Esther Thomas of Divya Down Syndrome Development Trust said: “Parents are more aware of children requiring special needs. When they realize their child has difficulties they start developmental therapy by the time their child is six months old.” “As every one child in 800 suffers from autism in Bangalore, it is easy for parents to diagnose their ward’s condition, early on.” Once the awareness sets in on the home front, only then can there be a difference in the state’s attitude towards children with special needs.
By Rohan Prem BANGALORE Police want members of the public to inform on their fellow citizens. The under-strength force has devised a plan whereby members of the public pass on photos and videos of motorists flouting traffic laws. Pedestrians will also be asked to take part in the new scheme, labelled "Citizen's Eye." The controversial pilot scheme, to launch next month in the city, is being run by traffic police and has sparked debate across social media platforms as to the legitimacy of such police drives. Suriya P, a Bangalorean said: “It is disconcerting to think that members of the public are now being used to enforce law and order on the city streets.” Another resident, Vincent, said that he believed the campaign further reinforces the public’s perception that the Bangalore Police are incapable of enforcing traffic laws. The Bangalore City Police website also has a section titled “You are being watched”, dedi-
cated to informing the public of its 80 strategically placed cameras across the city. A content analyst from a private company in Bangalore, who declined to be named, said: “Though the initiative of nabbing traffic violations using technology is commendable.” He added: “I don’t think it helps the police in any way if the public perceive them to be a controlling force.” He also termed the wording on the website a “gross oversight” by the police. M A Saleem, Additional Commissioner of Police, responded to the concerns raised saying: “The police cannot be omnipresent. It is the duty of the public in maintaining law and order on the streets." With a population of 95,88,910, the city does not have the adequate numbers of police personnel. The department lacks enough policemen as there are only 11,701 officers, with 2447 positions still to be occupied in various departments of the Police force.
check on major grocery shops, fashion outlets and other big brands. In Karnataka, there are 195 plastic manufacturing units and 67 re-cycling units. According to Eco-watch; retail outlets are helpless in this case. It is not economically feasible for them to re-cycle their waste. He also added that the corporation should make sure that plastic is segregated by people at home. In the current scenario, if retail outlets invested a certain amount in cleaning plastic from the society it would help the city recover a little from the garbage menace. The Observer IIJNM PUBLICATIONS Opp. BGS International Residential School Nityanandanagar, Kumbalgudu Kengeri Hobli Bangalore - 560060 India Ph.No: +919035799393 Email: editor@iijnm.org Website:www.thesoftcopy.org For private circulation only Editor Krishnaprasad. S Chief Sub-Editor Nupur Gour Photo Editor Hasna. V Page Editors Udita Chaturvedi Reshma Tarwani Pushkar Banakar Debanti Roy Proof Readers Sneha Banerjee Satyajith GD Nijhum Rudra Aheli Raychaudhuri