Deborah Birx eyeing retirement after Biden transition

The White House coronavirus response coordinator says she will stay on as long as needed and will then step back.

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CDC warns that travel could spread British Covid-19 strain in U.S.

European officials have said the variant could be up to 70 percent more transmissible than other varieties.

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Fauci, Azar receive coronavirus vaccines at NIH event

The NIH was initially left out of receiving doses despite helping to develop Moderna vaccine.

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Over 300 trees to be axed to widen bypass to Bengaluru International Airport

Urban Planning

The Karnataka Road Development Corporation Limited will also transplant nearly 60 trees to widen the bypass.

TNM Staff

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The Karnataka government is set to remove 413 trees in Bengaluru to widen a bypass road that leads to the Kempegowda International Airport. The Karnataka Road Development Corporation Limited (KRDCL), the state agency responsible for the project, will widen the road between Belatturu Bridge and Kannamangala Cross in East Bengaluru Taluk. This road will serve as another bypass to the Bengaluru airport.  Incidentally, many of these trees are decades-old and are being axed despite objection from the public. While as many as 355 will be axed, others will be transplanted in the same locality. KRDCL has requested permission from the Forest Department to remove trees and widen the road. It also wrote to the civic body, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), to carry out the tree felling and afforestation process. The KRDCL will fund the BBMP for the same.  The road widening project is part of KRDCL’s larger development project of the stretch between Bestamanahalli (on State Highway 5 in Anekal taluk) and Hoskote Road (on National Highway 4 in Bengaluru East taluk). Several sections of the road will intersect with the Sarjapur-Whitefield corridor, reported the Deccan Herald. With the bypasses, the KRDCL also plans to develop the roads on the outskirts of the city in order to reduce the traffic congestion in Bengaluru. On December 5, the Bengaluru Urban division of the Forest Department had issued a public notice, allotting a 10-day deadline for citizens to raise objections against the felling of trees. Since the deadline is long over, the officials decided to commence with the tree-felling. “We did receive applications from some citizens objecting to the felling of trees,” an official from the Forest Department told TNM, without revealing further details. Three months ago, environmental activists had filed a petition in the Karnataka High Court against the tree-felling. They said that many are heritage trees, for which the KRDCL did not have the required permit. The court had then directed for the formation of an expert committee to assess if some trees could be saved from felling. The Forest Department official added that as per the expert committee’s decision, the KRDCL will have to plant 10 trees for one tree that will be cut, in the same location. The committee also said that the agency will begin the afforestation as soon as the Forest Department allots the land for the road-widening project.     

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Bengaluru’s new BBMP Act: How the city’s governance will change

Politics

Since the BBMP Act was tabled and passed on December 10, critics have said that it fails to address many core issues.

Soumya Chatterjee

With Governor Vajubhai Vala giving his assent to the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike Act 2020 and the same being published on Monday, Bengaluru finally has a new law governing the city that has been in waiting for decades now. Until now, Bengaluru, like other cities in the state, was governed by the Karnataka Municipal Corporation Act, 1976. The new law, which was vetted by a joint legislature committee, was already passed by the both the Houses of the state legislatures. The committee comprised legislatures of all the three major political parties of the state. Changes in Mayoral terms In terms of changes brought about by the new Act, Bengaluru will now have a Mayor with a tenure increased to 30 months from 12 months. This means that, during its five-year term, a council will see two Mayors who will each have a tenure of two-and-a-half years. The same will apply for Deputy Mayors.    Read: Tenure of Bengaluru Mayor to be extended: Cosmetic change without reforms? Also read: BBMP Bill 2020 passed in Karnataka Assembly: Hits and misses Increase in number of zones Further, Bengaluru will now have 15 zones as opposed to the current eight zones, which will further be divided into 243 wards. The city limits will be extended by a 1 km radius, to bring some parts of the IT offices within the city limits. For this, a delimitation exercise to draw borders of new wards will be carried out in the coming months. As a push towards decentralisation, the zones will be headed by respective zonal committees responsible for the execution of developmental plans. Each constituency will also have a separate consultative committee headed by the respective MLA, which will oversee development works of that constituency and will have members of resident welfare associations of the area.  Change in property tax and new cess In terms of revenue generation, the BBMP will now collect entertainment tax and levy fees for hoardings. In another likely avenue for greater revenue generation, the property tax will now be collected based on the net asset value of the property rather than the present system. Further a transport cess has also been proposed in the new law.  Role of ward committees in waste management With the new Act, ward committees will be responsible for overseeing daily waste management of the wards. They will also be required to prepare an action plan considering the requirements, budgetary allocations and infrastructure requirements as per the Ward Micro Plan and otherpolicies of the BBMP. A Heritage Committee The new BBMP law states that the state government shall constitute a Heritage Conservation Committee, which shall frame appropriate regulations for the protection, conservation and maintenance of heritage buildings and sites in the city. What the BBMP Act missed out Since the Act was tabled and passed by the state Assembly on December 10, critics have questioned the many core issues that the new law failed to address. These issues were in need of a thorough relook and already posed as a hindrance to the BBMP’s functioning as a capable self-sustaining governing body for the city. More importantly, as widely promised, the contents of the Act were never discussed with the public at large before it was tabled and hurriedly passed; nor were there any consultations held by the joint committee with focus groups. While the new Act has been put into place, critics say that the aim of such legislation has remained largely unrealised in the past. The new law has ignored the civic body’s necessity to have any powers with respect to spatial planning, land use pattern, efficiency in revenue leakage and administrative function. Moreover, the new law also missed the opportunity to bring various parastatals like the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB), Bangalore Electricity Supply Company (BESCOM), Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC), Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation (BMRCL) and the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) to become accountable to the Mayor and the council.  The lack of communication and coordination between these agencies has often led to distress of city residents, be it destruction of freshly tarred roads to lay water pipes, or ad hoc repair works by utility agencies flooding localities.

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Bengaluru airport launches round-the-clock COVID-19 testing facility for commuters

COVID-19

There will also be a special waiting lounge for those who await their test results, with strict adherence to COVID-19 protocols.

TNM Staff

The Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) has launched a round-the-clock COVID-19 testing facility at the Kempegowda International Airport. The facility will be available to both arriving and departing commuters, and they will be charged for these RT-PCR tests based on the time required for the results to be determined. This comes in the wake of fears of new strains of the novel coronavirus being detected in the UK, South Africa and other parts of the world. The union government has already banned incoming flights from the UK. Also read: Karnataka mandates quarantine, RT-PCR for passengers from UK after new COVID-19 strain fear International-arrival passengers unable to get a test prior to boarding their flight can make use of this facility on their arrival in Bengaluru. The service will also be available to departing passengers who need to undergo an RT-PCR test before travelling and produce a COVID-19 negative test report at their destination. “Until the test results are received, those tested would be required to wait in a specially demarcated area. Reports would be shared directly with those tested through digital platforms. As per government requirements, the results of all samples will be registered on the ICMR (Indian Council of Medical Research) website,” BIAL said in a statement. Commuters can also pre-book their testing slots at  https://ift.tt/3mFPcWd. For normal tests for which the results will be given within 24 hours, commuters have to pay Rs 800 and Rs 1200 if they are collected at the Aster Airport Medical Centre. For RT-PCR (special turn-around) tests, commuters have to pay Rs 2,500 and the results will be given within 5-6 hours. For express tests which will give results in 13 minutes, commuters have to pay Rs 5,000. BIAL, which is the operator of the Kempegowda International Airport, said that the testing facility is located  near the arrivals area of the terminal. The facility will be certified by the NABL (National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories) and ICMR, and will be operated by Bengaluru-based Auriga Research Private Limited.  In a statement, BIAL said that there will be a sample collection kiosk inside the terminal and a dedicated, state-of-the-art laboratory outside the terminal. The facility will have a waiting lounge with strict adherence to COVID-19 safety protocols as part of the facility.

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A surge of state aid for vaccinations may already be too late

The long-sought money is on its way — but state and local officials worry that it could take several months for it to reach communities in need.

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