Increase delivery time, don't risk drivers' lives: Bengaluru top cop to pizza chains

Law and order

Bengaluru Commissioner Bhaskar Rao pointed out that that food executives risk they lives by breaking traffic rules in order to deliver within the 30-minute window.

TNM Staff

Have you ever sat looking at the clock eagerly, celebrating when your pizza delivery executive doesn’t make it to your door within the 30 minutes that many outlets promise? If the delivery doesn’t happen in half an hour, your food is free. However, in a move that compels one to look at the other side of the story, Bengaluru Police Commissioner Bhaskar Rao posted a tweet on Tuesday, appealing to pizza delivery companies to increase the amount of time for pizza delivery executives. “Do we have the heart to get a free pizza from a kid who is risking his life just because he crossed over 30 mins. Am seriously considering asking pizza companies to make it 40 mins as these kids risk their lives by breaking all traffic rules,” he said. Do we have the heart to get a free pizza from a kid who is risking his life just because he crossed over 30 mns. Am seriously considering asking Pizza companies to make it 40 mns as these kids risk their lives by breaking all Traffic rules. — Bhaskar Rao IPS (@deepolice12) January 21, 2020 While many users posted supportive and sympathetic replies, food delivery app Swiggy also replied, but clearly missed the point. Responding to a tweet which pointed out that Swiggy and Zomato delivery boys often jump signals, and overspeed, which can put them at risk, the food delivery app tweeted a reply saying, “Hi there, we understand your concern. We do not condone traffic violations of any nature. If you witness the same, please highlight it to us by contacting us at 080-46866699. Have a good day ahead.”/p> Mr Swiggy Cares, you are the biggest violators and have the temirity to tell me that you adhere to rules, your boys beg cops to let them go as you penalize them, next time a Swiggy kid bleeds on road, be sure, you management will be behind bars. — Bhaskar Rao IPS (@deepolice12) January 21, 2020 This wasn’t appreciated by Bhaskar Rao, who threatened to take action against the management next time a Swiggy delivery executive gets into an accident. “[…] your boys beg cops to let them go as you penalize them, next time a Swiggy kid bleeds on road, be sure, your management will be behind bars,” he said. Food delivery executives do not have an easy life, and often spend lunch or dinner hours for us, getting food to us while they eat at odd timings. A food delivery executive had told TNM for an earlier story, “I have lunch at 5pm and dinner around midnight. I feel hungry around the usual lunch time, but can’t do anything about it. We just cannot afford to take such risks during peak hours.” His 11-hour-day ends at 11 pm every day. Many others working in food delivery forgo time with their families and loved ones because of their odd hours, and because they cannot take time off on weekends as those days are peak days for restaurants and eateries. Added to this is the hours they spend stuck in traffic and pollution, and the mistreatment and anger they face from customers for being late. “All I can do is mutter a ‘sorry’ and assure them that I’ll be there as soon as I can. Often, I am caught in a traffic jam or in the rain. So obviously, I run late. But we cannot offer that as an excuse to the customer,” another delivery executive had told TNM. Read the full story here: Invisible heroes: Food delivery boys and their hunger for a better life

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Activists allege 1800 trees to be felled in Bengaluru for road widening, without procedure

Civic issues

The public has been trying to engage with due process to save trees, but officials are interested only in taking the project forward, activists allege.

Alithea Stephanie Mounika

Activists are accusing the Karnataka Road Development Corporation Limited (KRDCL) of flouting norms and going ahead with a controversial plan to fell over 1,800 trees for a road-widening project. The KRDCL plans to widen two major roads in the city, especially in East Bengaluru, which will cause the felling of more than 1,800 trees. However, activists following up on the matter said that officials have not followed the required procedures needed to go ahead with the project. The project includes the widening of existing roads: namely Attibele to Sarjapura (SH35) and Besthamanahalli (south of Attibele) to Hoskote Road (NH4), towards Bengaluru International Airport. However, activists say neither of the above projects has been issued a DPR (Detailed Project Report), which gives the detailed information regarding the project, the scientific basis for undertaking it and the cost estimate. A government official with knowledge of the matter said, “No major projects can take place without the DPR. It is a report that contains detailed information and cost estimates regarding the project. Even tenders cannot be called for without the DPR.” TNM had previously reported that residents who attended the public hearings regarding tree fellings were against the road widening project as there was not enough traffic to warrant the project. They were also opposed to the felling of trees in the vicinity. READ: 1800 trees to be felled in Bengaluru? Activists call public hearing a sham “This tree has been growing since I was a child, and people coming to our shop enjoy its shade and its beauty. Now some officials have come and painted a number on it to chop it down. We feel angry and helpless that we were not consulted about this. We do not agree with the plan,” said Keerthi, a local from Sarjapur, at the public consultation held regarding the trees to be cut in the vicinity of Sarjapur and Varthur. However, the KRDCL reports that the public consultations have taken place and the public had given their approval for the same. KRDCL officials also reiterated that the tenders have already been issued to private companies. TNM has reached out to KRDCL for comments, to no avail.  “This clearly goes against the due process that the KRDCL is supposed to do. How can they go ahead with the road widening project without public approval or even giving their final report on the matter?” asks one activist who has been keenly watching the proceedings. According to a High Court order in a case filed by Dattatraya T Devare, in cases where more than 50 trees are to be cut, the public needs to be consulted after looking at all alternatives to save the trees. TNM has accessed a preliminary cost estimate of one of the projects, namely the road widening on NH4. The report was by the private company Infra Support Engineering Consultants Pvt. Ltd. In it, they estimate that the project will cost Rs 254 crore for 20.11 km stretch, at the rate of Rs 8.44 crore per km. Speaking to TNM, Srinivas Aluvalli, an activist in Bengaluru, said that Bengaluru is a cash horse for infrastructure projects. “KRDCL is a Karnataka company that is supposed to make roads around the state, not just around Bengaluru. Why are they focused only on the roads around Bengaluru? There are roads in terrible condition between Hassan and Mangaluru but the KRDCL does not even bother about it. The fact is that making roads around Bengaluru is better for them because they can make a lot of money,” he says.

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Screening begins at Bengaluru airport over Coronavirus scare

Travel

Thermal imaging scanners were set up to screen passengers from Singapore, Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur.

TNM Staff

Authorities at the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru took precautionary steps by starting thermal screening of passengers from Singapore, Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur on Monday. The precautionary step was taken over concerns of the deadly coronavirus (nCoV) infection affecting more than 200 people and claiming three lives in China. Thermal imaging scanners can potentially detect if a traveller has fever. While Bengaluru has no direct flights to the affected cities in China, a help desk was set up at the international arrival section of the airport based on guidelines given by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Times of India reported. On January 9, the World Health Organisation (WHO) confirmed the outbreak of a new strain of coronavirus alled ‘novel coronavirus’ or ‘2019-nCoV’ in a person with pneumonia in China’s Wuhan city in Hubei Province. After this, the health body encouraged countries to "continue preparedness activities" to ensure that the disease does not spread. It causes respiratory problems and accordingly, countries have been told to increase surveillance for severe acute respiratory infections (SARI) and any unusual patterns of SARI or pneumonia cases.  In India, the Union Ministry issued a travel advisory asking citizens to take precautionary measures while travelling to China. According to the Ministry of External Affairs' (MEA) 2018 report, there are around 55,000 Indians residing in China. The Ministry had also advised screening of travellers from China at Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Tamil Nadu airports using thermal scanners. Now, this has been extended to Bengaluru airport as well.  A 45-year-old Indian school teacher in the Chinese city of Shenzhen was suspected to have a SARI-like coronavirus disease however, it was confirmed that she was being treated for streptococcal infection.

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Demolition of Bengaluru migrant colony over ‘Bangladeshi’ fears unauthorised, says BBMP

Civic

Many people, from different states of India, were rendered homeless as the BBMP demolished almost 100 huts.

Prajwal Bhat

The demolition drive which rendered many families living in makeshift homes in Kariyammana Agrahara in Bengaluru homeless was unauthorised, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has confirmed. Narayan Swamy, Assistant Executive Engineer (AEE), Mahadevapura Zone, had given the order for carrying out the demolitions despite not having the authority to do it on private land. He gave the order based on complaints by apartment residents in the area.  "We have relieved him (AEE) and sent him to his parent department - Public Works Department (PWD). We will also be writing to the secretary of PWD department to take action against him including that of suspension. The demolitions were unauthorised," BBMP Commissioner Anil Kumar told TNM. The Commissioner confirmed that the AEE did not have authorisation to force evictions and carry out demolitions on private land.  On Saturday and Sunday, the civic body engineer ordered the demolition of a cluster of sheds of mostly daily wage earners. A week ago, a video shared widely on social media, had claimed that illegal Bangladeshi immigrants were sheltered in the settlement. This despite the fact that most residents of the settlement were from different parts of India including Assam, West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and even north Karnataka. The video, reportedly taken in Bellandur, was also shared on Twitter by Mahadevapura's BJP MLA Arvind Limbavali, and it claimed Bangladeshi immigrants were illegally staying in the area. A news report by Suvarna News in the previous week had also claimed the presence of Bangladeshi immigrants staying in Bellandur. Read: After video claims 'Bangladeshi immigrant' settlement in Bengaluru, BBMP razes 100 huts However, the engineer does not have the authority to undertake a demolition drive, which he did with the help of the police on a piece of land not belonging to the civic body. BBMP commissioner BH Anil Kumar was not apprised of the demolition drive. Nearly 200 tin and tarpaulin sheds were destroyed in Kariyammana Agrahara and 500 such makeshift structures were razed to the ground at Deverabeesanahalli. "Since it is a private property, BBMP has no direct authority for eviction. I have asked for the suspension and repatriation of the assistant executive engineer to the parent department," the civic body's special commissioner D. Randeep told IANS. The occupants of the settlement were already living in fear of demolition when plainclothes policemen from Marathahalli appeared on Sunday accompanying the civic body officials to destroy their sheds. However, it is not known if any relief was provided to the evacuees. The residents in the settlement work as housekeepers, cleaners, and construction workers on daily wages.  The demolition drive over the weekend was reminiscent of an instance in August 2018 when the BBMP demolished 400 huts occupied by low-income group families in Kariyammana Agrahara. At the time, authorities said the huts had to be demolished as they apparently violated the buffer zone of the Bellandur lake, which is more than a kilometre away. Soon after, the Karnataka High Court had stayed evictions in the area after activists approached the court for relief.  With IANS inputs

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Bengaluru's 170-yr-old Modi Mosque opens doors to all, scores pay a visit

Religion

The event named 'Visit My Mosque Day' was the initiative of Rahmat Group, a charitable trust and the organisers said that it was an apolitical event focused on cultural exchange.

Prajwal Bhat

In a rare sight, hundreds of people including Hindus, Christians and Sikhs, spent time at the 170-year-old Modi Masjid in Bengaluru on Sunday. This, after the recently renovated mosque threw its doors open to people of all religions to promote interfaith dialogue and allow people to understand the procedures and functions of a mosque. The event named 'Visit My Mosque Day' was the initiative of Rahmat Group, a charitable trust. Even though the event was planned for 75-100 people, more than 400 people turned up at the mosque on Sunday. "We had planned for 100 people but social media took it upon itself and widely circulated the event. Around 400 visitors showed up which included people from all walks of life. There were men and women who were lawyers, doctors, students and authors among the visitors," says Sadiq Sailani, connected to the Rahmat Group. "It was an apolitical event and focused on exchanging culture. Most people have certain assumptions about Islam and have not gone inside a mosque. We wanted to break that assumption," says Suraj Chhabria, an activist based in Bengaluru who encouraged more visitors to turn up at the mosque on Sunday. An interactive session was also held in which the visitors were encouraged to ask questions to clerics in the mosque. "There were questions related to feminism including whether women were allowed in the mosque in Islam. To this, we were told that there were no restrictions placed on women to enter mosques," Rheea Rodrigues Mukherjee, one of the visitors said. She also noted that those in the mosque were hospitable and that lunch was arranged after prayers and observation. This is the second such event to take place in Bengaluru. The event was previously held in September 2019 by the Rahmat Group as part of a comparative religious study in which Christian students were invited to the mosque. "The visitors are shown what happens during prayers at the mosque and the explanations for procedures like ablutions and the postures that are seen while praying," Sadiq added. The organisers had made it clear to visitors that the discussions will be apolitical and will not reference the controversy over the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC).

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An adventure programme in Manipal Uni combines cycling with outdoor education

Education

‘The Adventurer’ programme is organised by Ganesh Nayak, an assistant professor in Manipal, who found recognition after his 8000-km solo-cycling expedition in 2014.

Prajwal Bhat

When the professor and adventure cyclist Ganesh Nayak started a cycling group in Manipal in 2015, it was according to him, an ‘informal’ group of people united by the love of cycling and adventure Five years on, in January 2020, the informal group has turned into a full-fledged outdoor education programme which combines cycling with workshops on first-aid, bicycle repair, sustainable travel practices and conservation ecology in Manipal.  ‘The Adventurer’, as it is now known, programme is organised by Ganesh Nayak, an assistant professor in Manipal Institute of Technology, who found recognition after embarking on a solo-cycling expedition in 2014 that saw him travel 8,000 km through Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Nepal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Goa and Karnataka. Ganesh Nayak, cyclist and author of 'Uncharted: My Journey into the Himalayas'  He is also the author of the book 'Uncharted: My Journey into the Himalayas' which was based on his travels in the Himalayas. He began his first expedition in an attempt to quit smoking but it formed the basis for starting a cycling expedition programme in Manipal in 2015. ‘The Adventurer’ programme is held twice every year in January and August for six weeks. The programme, currently open to students of Manipal University, trains participants in cycling long distances.  “Most students who took part in ‘The Adventurer’ had cycled less than 10 km before they started. We train them to climb the slopes around Manipal before increasing the intensity each week. In the 2019 programme, the cyclists climbed Agumbe Ghat (in the Western Ghats), which is a 100 km ride from Manipal. We teach the students braking techniques which help them effectively use the bicycle and cycle off-road,” Ganesh Nayak says. Arushi Jain, a student of Manipal Institute of Technology took up the programme hoping to change the monotony of her academic life in 2019. “We had to wake up at 5 am and begin cycling. Gradually, the intensity of the expeditions increased and played a part in boosting my confidence and adding to my knowledge of what’s around us,” Arushi says.   The latest programme started on January 7 while the previous programme was held in August 2019. Back then, the cyclists travelled 250 km and camped in Kudremukh, a popular hill range in Karnataka.  “It is important because students are going to venture out anyways. It is better when they are with safe and trained professionals and they learn how to handle themselves safely outdoors,” Ganesh says.   But he is quick to point out that the programme sets out to do more than introduce students to adventure cycling. The cyclists are given training to ensure that they are self-sufficient, even if they are travelling solo.  In the programme held in August 2019, there were workshops by professionals including the ecologist Madhushri Mudke on conservation ecology,  Dr. Fresten from Emergency Medicine on first-aid, CPR and snake bites, Rahul Narlanka, an engineering professor who is a bird watching enthusiast, and Regan D’Silva from St. Anthony’s Bicycle Works in Udupi who taught students the basics of fixing punctures and repairing bicycles. Madhushri says that outdoor experiences make students environmentally sensitive and aware of their surroundings. She adds that the students can also help scientists by contributing to citizen science programmes. “Students were shown a presentation through which they are trained to identify different species of amphibians. They were also shown how they can report data on the India Biodiversity Portal. Now, they can upload information on their own,” says Madhushri. India Biodiversity Portal a citizen's initiative for the collation of biodiversity information. Ganesh now has a team of people working with him to organise the programme. The latest programme started last week with 10 students including 4 girls signing up. This is an increase from the 8 students who signed up in the last programme held in August 2019. Ganesh says that four spots in the programme are reserved for girls and wants more girls to take up adventure cycling. “There may be a thinking that because students are cycling up a hill, it is not feasible for girls. This is not true and we do not want to encourage a ‘bro culture’ through these programmes. We want to encourage girls to take up cycling,” Ganesh adds.

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Bomb left at Mangaluru airport safely detonated, police release photo of suspect

Crime

Mangaluru Police Commissioner PS Harsha said that three teams have been formed to nab the accused.

TNM Staff

Hours after components of an improvised explosive device (IED) was found in a bag outside the Mangaluru International Airport, the police released CCTV image of a suspect on Monday. The man is seen wearing a white shirt, a white cap, a pair of glasses and black trousers but his face is not clearly seen in the CCTV footage. The suspect is also seen carrying a diary in his left hand.  Along with the man’s image a photo of the autorickshaw has also been released by the police. Police officials in Mangaluru also said that the IED was safely detonated at an isolated place. The controlled explosion took place in a large field in Kenjar, nearly a kilometre away from the airport. According to the police, bomb experts buried the components under the mud and surrounded the area with sandbags before triggering the explosion. However, police remain tightlipped about the nature of the explosive material used.   Mangaluru: Visuals of controlled explosion of IED found earlier today at the airport vip parking lot pic.twitter.com/PthWR8c5Wq — Soumya Chatterjee (@Csoumya21) January 20, 2020   A case under the Explosive Act and the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act has been registered in Bajpe Police Station. Mangaluru Police Commissioner PS Harsha said that three teams have been formed to nab the accused.  Police had on Monday morning recovered a suspicious bag with components of the IED outside the airport. The bag was left there by a man, who arrived at the airport in an autorickshaw, said officials at the time. The CISF personnel deployed at the airport saw the suspicious bag at around 8.45 am and called the police control room. By 10 am, the canine squad and the bomb disposal unit inspected the bag and the area was cordoned off. At that time, CISF Chief PRO Anil Pandey told TNM, "We found traces of an IED from a bag lying at the ticket counter at Mangaluru airport. It has been evacuated safely. The IED did not have any triggering material. The bag has been taken out of the airport for investigation." Following this, security was heightened in all airports of the state.  Speaking on the issue, Mangaluru Police Commissioner, PS Harsha had earlier said that all safety protocols were followed and a bomb detection squad was sent to the isolation bay in explosive confinement vehicle. All the people near the area were evacuated and police cordoned off that particular space.  The passengers who were waiting for their flights were sent away from that place to safety. While no flights were cancelled, air traffic moving towards Mangaluru was diverted. This incident occurred even though local police and the CISF were on high alert ahead of Republic Day.

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