Colleges in Odisha are facing difficulties in maintaining safety measures. The government has made it mandatory for teachers to go to the colleges to hold online classes, which increased the number of positive cases among teachers. “Three teachers have tested positive for Covid-19 after they came to college”, said Dr. Pradip Kumar Samantray, the HOD […]
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The Centre’s One Stop Centre (OSC), or Sakhi, which is supposed to assist women who face trauma after violence, is itself looking for support. Four years after the launch of the scheme, the construction of a permanent place for OSC in Bengaluru has not begun. An official from Karnataka’s women and child development department who […]
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Do not have panels, boxes for complaints Many schools in Bengaluru do not have Child Protection Committees (CPCs) as mandated by the Karnataka State Child Protection Policy. Ditto for suggestion and complaint boxes. Some schools initially followed the rules but later gave up. Amruth Raj, principal of a school in Sampangi Rama Nagar, informed The […]
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Most cafes lack separate spaces for hookah fans Lack of restricted areas for hookah smokers in hookah bars has put non-smokers at the risk of inhaling second-hand smoke. “We can’t have a separate space for hookah users because the majority of our customers want us to serve hookah. So we never had a situation when […]
Continue ReadingStores unsure when supplies will come back Bengaluru has a shortage of face masks and hand sanitizers as a large number of people have started to buy them after the outbreak of coronavirus. Eight out of the ten medical stores The Observer visited on March 5 did not have masks and sanitizers. Salespersons at the […]
Continue ReadingNo unit has certification on pollution Soppamma D, a brick kiln worker in Shahpur, coughed continuously as she added water to mud clay and poured it into a stencil to make rectangular clay bricks. Her husband picked up the dried ones stacked them, and fired them using coal. This is the daily routine for the […]
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Schools just do not bother, says top cop Almost five years after the traffic police ordered fixing of CCTV cameras and GPS systems on schoolbuses, most of these vehicles do not have them. A reality check by The Observer at schools in Majestic, Seshadri Road, Cubbon Park, Vijayanagar and Shivajinagar revealed that most of these […]
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Despite Bengaluru having a high pollution level during peak hours, vehicular emissions have gone unchecked. Though it is mandatory, many owners of private vehicles have not renewed their pollution under control certificates. Saran K, a resident of Marathahalli, informed The Observer: “PUC (pollution under control) certificates are compulsory like insurance certificates, but not many have them because […]
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Residents frustrated with BBMP repeatedly saying pipeline work to be over ‘next week’. The schoolchildren, shopkeepers and residents of Gear School Road, eastern Bengaluru, have a common piece of attire: Face masks. Dust clouds caused by dug-up roads have forced the residents of Kadubeesanhalli-Doddakanelli road stretch to cover their faces. Two-wheeler riders contend with another […]
Continue ReadingChhapaak is a story of how sexual violence disfigures our lives, writes Ankita Mukherjee “Unhone meri surat badli hain, mera mann nahi” (He ruined my face, not my spirit). That, in essence, sums up the ethos behind Meghna Gulzar’s latest film Chhapaak, a story about acid-attack survivors who find the courage to fight, leaving their […]
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