The Observer An IIJNM Publication
Vol 18, Issue 21
Thursday, March 1, 2018
The Observer
@theweeklyobserver On the web: issuu.com/ theweeklyobserver/docs/the observer
Arecanut farmers in Hosanagara Taluk shift to other professions | P 2
Robot alternative to manual scavenging awaits deployment | P 2
Big turn: Haris, not Siddaramaiah, opens newly laid Church Street Work Missed Deadline After Deadline
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Ayushi Singh n a surprising turn, it was not chief minister Siddaramaiah but Shantinagar MLA NA Haris who inaugurated the reconstructed Church Street on Thursday. In an email to journalists, the Karnataka information department had said Siddaramaiah would dedicate a multi-storied vehicle parking facility at Freedom Park at 10am, newly built footpaths at 10.15, and the redone Church Street at 10.30. He was to then leave for Tumakuru district for an event. Because the chief minister was getting delayed, Haris was sent to open the road, a BBMP officer informed The Observer. A crowd had gathered on Church Street, which links the swanky Brigade Road and St Mark’s Road, to witness it being reopened by the chief minister. They, instead, saw people wav-
The inauguration of the newly reconstructed Church Street saw a large number of people wave the Congress flag and shout slogans in suport of Siddaramiah and NA Haris | Credit: Ayushi Singh ing Congress flags and shouting slogans in support of Siddaramaiah and Haris. The Congress legislator is in the news because his son Mohammed Nalapad Haris allegedly assaulted a youth named Vidvat L. along with his friends at a café on the night of February 17. Haris Junior was arrested on February 19. A court will decide on his bail petition on Friday. Asked why the MLA was
there, his supporter Shaheen, 35, said: “I don’t know…, but I have come because he needs our support in this time of trouble, just as we got his support when our houses were flooded during rains. He built houses and roads for us, so all we can do is extend our support to him.” Many others said they didn’t know why the MLA was there. Saajda Begum said: “We got to know that NA Haris was coming
Ex-top cop launches drive for a safer city
here, so we came here to see him and support him. I don’t know what he is here for, but he has been actively working for us, so must be here to announce some benefit for us.” Work on re-laying Church Street began in February 2017. After missing several deadlines, the BBMP decided to reopen the 750-metre road on March 4. The inauguration was then advanced by three days.Haris,
Cabs create jams at Mysuru Road Metro station
Rayan Mitra
Athul M
n reaction to the recent attack on a youth by an MLA’s son, retired IPS officer BNS Reddy has decided to start a movement for a safer Bengaluru. It will seek the participation of citizens to fight crime. The former ACP Bengaluru police on Thursday said a trust deficit is scaring people into submission. “They have become mute spectators to the reign of terror unleashed by Mohammed Nalapad. Bengaluru has to fight back, its citizen has to be assured that respect for law will be maintained,” he said He explained to The Observer: “This is about citizen participation. Police refuse to act on many cases, and people don’t get justice. Only when a group fights for a common cause will the pressure on them increase, else not. Terming the February 17 attack by Shantinagar MLA NA Haris’ son on Vidvat L. in an eatery, rowdyism, he asked:
aphazard parking of cabs at Mysuru Road Metro station hinders the movement of other vehicles, citizens say. During peak hours, two rows app-based cabs await people emerging from the station. “We park autos on a small stretch allotted to us on one side of the station. We are fined if we park our vehicles outside the area. But the cab drivers park their vehicles all over the place, hindering traffic on this stretch,” Manjunath, an autorickshaw driver at the station, informed The Observer. “This happens despite police fining them. Usually they are fined Rs 100.” Shiv Kumar, an Uber driver said: “Despite the risk of being fined, we station our vehicles here. On a bad day, we might be fined and end up not getting any bookings as well, which is a huge loss for us.”The cabs have become a major problem for bus travellers, Syed, a
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BNS Reddy launches Bhayamukta Bengaluru Drive | Credit: Rayan Mitra “Why did the restaurant staff remain mute spectators? What were the bouncers at the pub doing?” Stressing on his Bengaluru Nagarikara Surakshe Abhiyana, he said: “Give us a missed call, you will get a message to register in the movement. We need citizen participation to make it a success.” Reddy said he believes a court-monitored inquiry will reveal several dark secrets and also be a lesson for those who take the law into their own hands. Following the brutal assault, an embarrassed Congress expelled Nalapad Haris, a Youth Congress functionary, for six years. rayan.m@iijnm.org
under whose Shantinagar constituency Church Street falls, conducted numerous inspections of the work, the latest being on February 26. In October 2017, the BBMP had cleared a white topping project for 29 roads with a budget of Rs 800 crore. White topping involves covering existing asphalt concrete roads with a layer of Portland cement concrete to prevent potholes. White topped roads are said to have a longer life. The main criticism against thesewhite topped roads is that they can lead to clogged drains that add to flooding. A BBMP officer who requested he not be named anonymity informed The Observer: “We must look at the larger picture where the city is getting a solution for a serious problem like potholes. It is an achievement. These roads will also help reduce accidents. Since they have a longer life, maintenance won’t be needed.” The project is a priority of the Congress, which wants to rid Bengaluru of its potholes before the state assembly elections due to be conducted in two months. ayushi.s@iijnm.org
commuter, said. They hinder the movement of people entering the Metro station causing inconvinence. Srinivas, a driver who works for Ola and Uber, said: “We have a good chance of bookings here. So we take chances despite the risk of getting fined.” Naveen, a constable of the Bytarayanapura police station, said: “This is a problem during peak hours. It’s a great inconvenience to the people who travel by bus.” As Naveen spoke with The Observer, a towing van of traffic police passed by ordering the cab drivers to move away. The Station Control Room refused to comment saying that “these matters are happening outside the Metro station”. Bytarayanapura traffic police station assistant sub-inspector Doreswamaiah informed: “This is a recurring problem. We patrol regularly along the Metro stretch and make these cabs relocate to other areas, far from the station.” athul.m@iijnm.org
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The Observer Thursday, March 1, 2018
CITY
Students’ solution to manual scavenging awaits deployment
Twitterati’s take on Bengaluru
BWSSB chief engineer says that he is unaware of the Reva University Project
Sandeep Balakrishna @ upanishadist 0.7 km takes 32 mns in Bangalore. Total destruction of the city by @Siddharamaiah.
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Rachel Dammala hen a team of students from Reva University, Bengaluru, came up with an innovation that promised to put an end to manual scavenging, the BWSSB reportedly promised to support the building of its final version. It even said the technology would be deployed in the city. Three manual scavengers have died in Bengaluru since that promise was made in September 2017, but there has been no headway in putting it to use. Surprisingly, a senior BWSSB officer seems unaware of any such innovation or promise. BWSSB junior engineer M.Y. Hanumantharaju informed The Observer that “unless the head office clears it”, he could not talk about it. But chief engineer (project zone) KR Manjunath, citing a miscommunication, said he was unaware of the development. “If the students approach us and give us a presentation about the robot, we will be happy to consider it,” he added. Dr Jagadeeswaran N, associate professor, mechanical engineering, who guided the students in the making of the robot, said that because they have signed a patent, they are not allowed to divulge any details. The project
Sonam Mahajan @AsYouNotWish Bangalore’s Cubbon Park Police station Inspector who delayed taking FIR against Mohammad Nalapad Under the political pressure of Mohammad’s father, NA Haris has been suspended while Congress continues to keep Haris in the party for cheap electoral gains. This is so unfair.
Despite several innovations by students, the government has failed to consider sewage removal robots, resulting in manual scavenging continuing in Bengaluru. | Credit: Avijit Dutta is still in progress. The Sewage Blockage Removal Robot was designed by Suraj N, Santhosh Reddy KV and Vinay Kumar P. It won an award in the Best Demonstration and Presentation category from e-Yantra, an initiative of IIT-Bombay, in April, last year. The robot uses artificial intelligence and Internet of Things to detect blockages in sewerage. It deploys trays to remove material choking drains, making human involvement unnecessary.
Areca farmers shift to other professions
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Pracheta Panja scarcity of water has affected the cultivation of arecanut in Hosanagara taluk, Shivamogga district, forcing farmers to become construction workers. Umesha M started working as a daily-wages labourer after he could not earn money from agriculture. Similar is the situation of Vishwanath K, another arecanut farmer who said he has been facing difficulty cultivating arecanut. Sankar Prasad, an areca farmer, informed The Observer: “Cultivation needs adequate water and proper drainage. We have faced a water problem for years, but government has done nothing to solve it. Besides, the price is dropping. We farmers do not get back even a fraction of the price.” In the past four years, prices of arecanut in Shivamogga district have decreased from Rs 350 a kg to Rs 150-175 a kg. Farmers say the cost of transportation has increased after GST came into being. Old stocks remain uncleared, and farmers are not paid on time. The problem is spread over the entire taluk.
Arecanut is a major crop in Hosanagara Taluk Credit: Pracheta Panja Famer Vishwanath K said: “Here arecanut is the main crop. We have cultivated it for generations, but now we have started doing construction work because we have incurred losses in the past few years. Pointing to a dried-up well, he said: “This is the only source of water for us to consume and cultivate. This is the main reason why we are not being able to cultivate.” Brijesh, another arecanut farmer, said: “We all have shifted to other professions. We are unable to pump water most of the time because of electricity problems.” pracheta.p@iijnm.org
A similar attempt has been made by nine engineering students in Kerala. They have designed a spider-shaped robot that cleans manholes and seweage pipes. Called Bandicoot, the robot has successfully completed a trial run in Thiruvananthapuram after having unclogged five manholes. The Kerala Water Authority is reported to have decided to deploy Bandicoot in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. Despite a ban, on manual
scavenging, the atrocity continues unchecked, claiming lives and damaging the health of people involved in it. On January 7, three manual scavengers have suffered from suffocation leading to their death, while cleaning a blocked manhole in a residential block in HSR Layout, Bengaluru. The deceased men were identified as Madegowda, Narayanaswamy and Srinivas, all of them belonging to the 30-35 age bracket. dammala.r@iijnm.org
Docs use a tooth to restore woman’s vision
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Manikankana Sengupta n what is claimed to be a first in Karnataka, a team of doctors has restored a person’s eyesight by performing a ‘tooth in the eye’ surgery. The doctors, led by Dr Pallavi Joshi and Dr Vinay Pillai of Sankara Eye Hospital, Bengaluru, gave Mamata Mahanta, 35, her vision back after 10 years of blindness. A drug reaction had led to bilateral corneal blindness. The procedure that Mamata underwent – Modified Osteo Odonto Keratoprosthesis (MOOKP) – is a complex and time-consuming surgical process which comes with an inherent risk of complications. It took three surgeries over a period of nine months to restore 80% of her functional vision. Dr Joshi, a consultant in cornea and refractive services, informed reporters: “The toughest part was getting the equipment which took us six months to procure at a cost of Rs 20-25 lakh. We use the patient’s own tooth as a biological scaffold which is inserted into the cornea, through which the light passes allowing the patient to see. I don’t think there have been more than 300
such surgeries in India. The only drawback is that now Mamata’s field of vision is limited to 40-50 degrees.” Dr Umesh, chief medical officer at the hospital said: “This is a unique case. It is the first time this procedure has been performed in Karnataka.”Mamata’s husband, Satish said: “Even though this sounds like a very risky procedure, both my wife and I wanted to opt for it. Mamata has been suffering for almost a decade now. Many times we almost gave up and felt helpless when the hospital informed that surgery will not be effective to regain her eyesight. Today, the surgery has not only changed her life but also our lives.” Forty per cent of corneal blindness is caused by reasons such as birth defects, infection or trauma. These cases can be treated with corneal transplant. Another 10% of patients do not respond well to conventional transplants. These are generally those who develop corneal blindness due to chemical injury, thermal burns or post-drug reaction associated with dry eyes and bad surface – which was the case with Mamata. manikankana.s@iijnm.org
B. S. Yeddurappa @ BSYBJP Citizens of #Bengaluru have suffered from the misrule of @siddaramaiah govt for 5 years. The govt has neglected the welfare of the city and it’s people. #BengaluruRakshisi Padayatre will commence from tomorrow to highlight the sheer negligence of the govt. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw @ kiranshaw Karnataka Transport Department decision to intensify drive against use of shrill horns and defective silencers in vehicles could help reduce #Bengaluru’s #noisepollution
Today’s Weather Maximum Temp (degree Celsius):
33.2
Minimum Temp (degree Celsius):
18.2
Relative Humidity(%) 49 Relative Humidity(%) 13 Todays Sunset : 18:28 Tomorrow’s Sunrise: 06:35
Observer Team Editor: Pracheta Copy Editor: Rachel Dammala Page Layout: Manashaa G., Athul M. Reporters: Ayushi Singh, Manikankana, Rayan Mitra