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Posts Tagged ‘Bangalore’

BWSSB contingency plans to tackle monsoon

Tuesday, June 15th, 2010

From January this year, the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) has undertaken cleaning up of manholes which get flooded during rain.The BWSSB has announced its contingency plans for the monsoon season. Many manholes that pose a threat to vehicle users have been repaired. In a release, it has said that it has undertaken cleaning up of manholes from January this year by identifying those that get flooded during rain. As many as 7,300 manholes have been cleaned so far and repaired manholes that pose a threat to commuters.

The release states that the board has 76 jetting machines to clean underground drains.The water board has started four control rooms in four locations of the city which will function 24 hours.The BWSSB has also stationed its engineers at Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) control rooms during the night following a directive of BWSSB Chairman P.B. Ramamurthy.

For any rain-related complaints,consumer can contact:
C.J.F-Malleswaram: 22945240, Hosahalli: 22946186,
Jayanagar: 22945150 and Indiranagar (HAL 2nd Stage): 22945163

E-stamping gains popularity in document registrations

Monday, June 7th, 2010

Gone are the days when people had to wait in serpentine queues to purchase a stamp paper. The efforts of the Karnataka Government in promoting e-Stamp papers with the support of the public sector Stock Holding Corporation of India has started paying rich dividends. Nearly 175 e-Stamp sale counters have come up across the State. E-Stamp papers sale has gained popularity in Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu as well.

“It is almost impossible to produce a fake e-Stamp paper. Each paper carries a code and the paper itself has several security features. The efforts are on to open 400 e-Stamp vending centres across the State and of them 200 will be located in Bangalore where the sale of stamp papers is one of the highest.Credit for this should go to K.R. Niranjan who until recently was the Inspector General of Registrations and Commissioner of Stamps.” says S.N. Jayaram, the incumbent Inspector-General of Registrations and Commissioner of Stamps.

E-Stamp papers are available in select branches of Syndicate Bank, Canara Bank, Souharda Cooperative Bank, Indian Bank and Corporation Bank while Punjab National Bank and Karnataka Cooperative Apex Bank have come forward to open sale counters. Apart from this the new variety of stamp papers are also sold in nearly 50 post offices and this will be extended to another 50 by the Postal Department.In the two years from March 2008, a total of 9.53 lakh e-Stamp papers with a face value of Rs 73.19 crore have been sold in the State.

The introduction of e-Stamp papers and the opening of sale counters across the State will not merely counter the circulation of fake document papers but also net a rich revenue to the State exchequer.




State government to bring control on private water suppliers

Tuesday, May 25th, 2010

Considering the situation related to water shortage and private water suppliers taking advantage, the state government is planning to bring control on private water suppliers who are supplying water through tankers. Government is planning to put a ban on the supply of water in tankers by private operators in the city. By controlling private water supply in city, the BBMP and BWSSB bore wells will get water which can be supplied to areas which are facing water problem.

“Water tankers are charging heavily from the people. We are planning to put a ban on the supply of water in tankers by private operators in the city. If private players want to supply drinking water, they must get water from outside the city. We are discussing with legal experts ways on how to curb private water suppliers,” said city in-charge minister R Ashoka.

Apart from this, the state has also decided to set up task forces in all the assembly constituencies in the city under the head of local MLAs. These Task forces will have full powers to take measures to solve the water crisis and to dig bore wells. “We have decided to appoint 150 men for each ward to supply water. In some areas, we will outsource the monitoring of water supply,” said Ashoka.




It is impossible to solve problems overnight

Thursday, May 20th, 2010

“It is impossible to solve problems overnight. We have more than six lakh connections and lines that are more than 30 years old. Water supply in Bangalore is much better than in other metropolitan cities. We are doing our best to efficiently manage the available resources and infrastructure. I will answer the questions after receiving complaints from corporators.” – Said BWSSB chairman P B Ramamurthy.

After the conclusion of the BBMP council meeting to discuss the water crisis in the city, Bangalore Water Supply and Sewage Board (BWSSB) chairman P B Ramamurthy said that the board has been working on finding solutions to all problems.




Rainwater Harvesting Deadline Extended and No Tariff Hike

Thursday, May 13th, 2010

Rainwater Harvesting is mandatory and May 27 was deadline to compulsorily fix rainwater harvesting in your house. All houses measuring over 60×40 ft were told to compulsorily install the equipment to save rainwater. The BWSSB has extended deadline of Rainwater Harvesting  by two months. The decision to extend the deadline for rainwater harvesting came after there were demands from residents to give them some more time to install the system.

BWSSB has postponed the move to hike the water tariff only after monsoon sets in. Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) in-charge minister Katta Subramanya Naidu said: “With the city facing shortage of water, we have postponed the move to hike the water tariff. We are now looking at implementing the hike only after monsoon sets in. After summer, you can expect hike in water tariff.’’

Stating that harvesting rainwater would be the best solution to mitigate water shortage in Bangalore, Katta said that recycled rainwater would be supplied to the city. To implement this plan, BWSSB plans to create six artificial lakes — two in Vrushabavathi Valley, two in Bellandur valley, one in Anekal and one in Hoskote. “Each lake will be developed in 1,300 acres. The estimated cost for the project is Rs 4,500 crore. Besides, the existing 135 lakes will also be used for this. Rainwater will be collected in the lakes and supplied to the city,” he said.

Source: Times of India




7 days left for availing rebate on property tax

Friday, April 23rd, 2010

BBMP property tax for the new financial year 2010-11 has already begun from April 1st 2010. The property owners who want to avail a rebate of five percent on property tax need to file and pay property tax 2010-11 in full on or before April 30. Property owners can fill up the form online and make an online payment or download the form, print it, and submit it at the nearest ARO office on the same day.

There are two different forms to be filled up – Form IV (white form) - in case of no change in usage or built-up area from the previous year. If there is any change in relation to these clauses, then the property owner should fill up Form V (blue form). If tax payment has not been made for the previous two financial years, then property owners cannot file their property tax for current year until they pay previous year’s property tax. For filing property tax 2009-10 and 2010-11, property owners should have the application number for tax paid for the year 2008-09.

For owners making the payment in two half yearly installments, two separate forms have to be filled up for each period. The deadline for the first half yearly payment is May 30, 2010. Any details that are missing or have been entered wrongly can be corrected and updated by contacting the nearest ARO office. Any problems with regard to the payment or receipt generation can also be addressed to bbmpsas@bbmp.gov.in. You can also call the numbers – 22247627, 22133029. Online payment can be made using debit and credit cards. The Card payments can be made without any transaction charges.

  • BBMP Helpline – 22247627, 22133029
  • Address problem regarding property tax to bbmpsas@bbmp.gov.in
  • Last date for availing a rebate of five percent on property tax is April 30, 2010
  • Last date for the first half yearly payment is May 30
  • Property tax for current year cannot be filed until payment of previous year’s property tax
  • Online payment can be made using debit and credit cards.



Right time to dig recharge wells

Thursday, April 8th, 2010

Now that rainwater harvesting has become mandatory in Bangalore, this is the time to dig recharge wells. The law states that the depths should be a minimum of 10 feet. In most parts of the city, a depth of 20 feet to 30 feet is recommended.

All individual households, apartments, layouts, industries and institutions can construct recharge wells and should appropriately include it as part of the design itself. In many cases the groundwater levels increase almost immediately after a rainfall year and this water is available for supplementary and appropriate use. In many cases borewells too are benefited as the shallow aquifer eventually recharges the secondary porosity from where borewells draw water.

A typical recharge well is one meter in diameter. It is then lined with pre-cast concrete rings with perforations to allow water to slip out from the sides. These rings are then gradually lowered into the well to line it from the bottom all the way to the ground level and above. A solid cover of steel or pre-cast concrete rings is placed on the top for security and safety purpose. This is very important.

The capacity of such a recharge well of one meter diameter and six meters depth is about 5,000 liters. Normal procedures for well maintenance, such as regular cleaning and disinfection annually, are recommended. Removal of silt regularly helps in greater recharge. By integrating rainwater harvesting with groundwater recharge each citizen can contribute to the cause by using water judiciously and ensure its continued availability for future.

Source: The Hindu

RBI to extend banking hours and conduct a special clearing on March 30 and 31

Tuesday, March 30th, 2010

To facilitate receipt of taxes from the public the Reserve Bank of India(RBI), Bangalore, and branches of agency banks conducting government business will remain open up to 5.30 pm on March 30 and March 31.

To realize and credit clearing instruments received from the public by March 31 , a special clearing will be conducted on March 30 and 31.

The Reserve Bank of India, Bangalore, and branches of agency banks conducting government business will remain open up to 5.30 pm on March 30 and March 31 to receive cash, deposits, cheques and instruments representing government taxes.

BBMP Election 2010 were marred by poor voter turnout

Monday, March 29th, 2010

The poor turnout in the posh areas of the city and the general voter apathy was cause enough for several politicians to spit fire at Bangalore, and to hint that if people did not turn out to vote they had no right to criticize the ruling class.The much-awaited elections to the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) were marred by poor voter turnout, with the State Election Commission pegging the voting percentage in the city at 44.6 per cent.

Not even a single vote was polled in polling station No 10 of Benniganahalli, situated in the defence colony C V Raman Nagar.Only 161 of 1,085 voters had cast their votes till 3 pm in polling station No. 6 of Seshadripuram ward, which falls in the most elite area of the ward.

“They have no right to blame politicians when they do not vote in the very important process of democracy,” Kumaraswamy said. Krishna Byregowda, MLA from Byatarayanapura Assembly segment echoed similar sentiments. Byregowda said: “These people always demand facilities from government but are not ready to spend a few minutes to exercise their franchise. I consider the poor turnout as the failure of the educated people.”  Going a step further, Transport Minister in-charge of Bangalore R Ashok scolded people for watching films and going to restaurants instead of voting and called for making voting compulsory.

“It is a shame on part of educated people. I don’t know why these people have no time even to come to polling stations to elect a right candidate.It is a pity and disappointment to see that educated people prefer to watch films instead of polling. Voting should be made compulsory,” the minister R Ashok said.

Several voters found their names missing from the voter’s list or mentioned in wrong ward numbers. Many voters were not allowed to cast their vote in spite of having valid election photo identity cards, as their names were missing. This included first time voters as well as holders of the new voters ID cards issued in 2009.

Reference:

expressbuzz.com

Voting is Your Right and Responsibility

Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010

Bangalore city goes to polls on 28th March 2010 and contestants are leaving no stone unturned to woo voters.It is only less than five days left for BBMP election and Campaigning modes like publicity material, announcements, radio and TV announcements, public meetings, rallies and door-to-door campaigning with handbills and pamphlets going to end by March 26.

The tech savvy contestants will canvas till the day of the elections through e-campaigning.The contestants especially those who have opted for the social networking sites campaign through SMS or social networking sites till the day of the elections.

Janaagraha Jaagte Raho campaign has teamed up with CommonFloor (www.commonfloor.com), an online application that provides a feature rich and private portal for residential community/apartment complex to ensure all Bangalore residents to vote.

Check out websites http://bit.ly/b5jFu8 for final list of candidates in your locality or neighborhood. Know about candidates whom you are going to vote before the day of election. Voting is your right and responsibility, on 28th March set aside your busy shedule or works and ensure that you and your family members vote. Volunteer to assist those with disabilities or transportation issues get to the polls. If you’re a student, educate your friends and others about BBMP election.

Source: Get Out The Vote – BBMP Elections 2010