On the 19th, last Sunday, the Open Air Theatre on the Manasagangothri campus was filled to capacity after a long time. It felt like I was at a well-funded rock show. There was a good sound, fantastic lighting and an air of excitement like you were expecting to see a rockstar. And we did see…
Taj again & again, but when ?
June 18, 2022It has been reported that Lalitha Mahal Palace Hotel will be taken over by the famed Taj Hotels, run by the TATA group. But will it? Lalitha Mahal Palace turning into Taj Hotel story has been played numerous times, for 22 years! It began in 2000 when late Union Minister Arun Jaitley, then the Disinvestment…
Undertrials’ Compensation and Punishment
June 4, 2022On May 27, Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan was cleared of all charges due to insufficient evidence in the infamous “cruise ship drug bust” case. Immediately after the verdict, Sanjay Gupta, a film-maker tweeted, “So Aryan Khan is and was innocent, says Bombay High Court. Who compensates for what he went through, his family…
Driving Crazy
May 28, 2022Mysuru is the No. 1 city in the country, and no, it’s not for being the cleanest city in India. We lost that claim a while ago, and now we are the No. 1 city in India for something else — for having the worse drivers! Zoomcar, India’s biggest self-drive rental car company, surveyed 22…
Anti-Conversion Bill & Caste Issues
May 14, 2022The Karnataka Government has decided to take the Ordinance route to introduce the contentious Anti-Conversion Bill. Congress party has opposed it. Do we need this law? Yes, but a tempered version. Today, religious conversion has nothing to do with faith; it has to do with vote-banks. Mahatma Gandhi recognised this very early and said, “Today,…
Flex-City
May 7, 2022Mysuru has been called a Royal Heritage City, but it feels like we’re living in ‘Flex city’ for a while now. Our city is suffering the menace of flex hoardings and banners everywhere — at Circles, on buildings, on footpaths and on trees. Now they’re climbing up the hill! Two weeks ago, the muhurat of…
Rains, weak trees and buildings
April 23, 2022We all love a good monsoon, but we also dread it. From mid-June through the end of September, the monsoon brings torrential rain, violent thunderstorms and high wind, turning trees and old properties into death traps. This year, the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) has been proactive and has surveyed to identify weak trees that pose…
Road to riches!
April 16, 2022Karnataka’s Rural Development and Panchayat Raj (RDPR) Minister K.S. Eshwarappa resigned yesterday as he was named accused number one in the suicide of a civil contractor Santosh Patil. The civil contractor had accused the Minister of harassing him for a ‘40 percent commission’ to clear payment of about Rs. 4 crore for road projects completed…
Sound of Loudspeakers
April 9, 2022Ah! It’s back again. The ‘Azaan’ decibel problem, for sure, is an election gimmick, but noise pollution from religion, all religions, must be curtailed. Now the Police have issued notices to Mosques to use their loudspeakers within the permissible decibel levels. It is a noise pollution issue. Just as playing blaring music from Lord Ganesha…
Scarring Chamundi Hill
March 26, 2022Every time there is talk of development in Mysuru, the first target is Chamundi Hill. Now the “evergreen” project of ropeway is back and also the “enhancement of steps” which will turn the hill into a hyper-tourist destination at the cost of the hill turning into a mound of muck. And Mysureans have a duty…
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