Good morning, Bengaluru!
🌥️ Today’s weather: Mostly cloudy.
🧐 Did you know? Mohan Building is one of the oldest existing structures in Chickpet, constructed in 1909 by a businessperson, Haji Sir Ismail Sait. In 1945, it was purchased by the owners of Rex Theatre. The building was named ‘Mohan’ after their eldest son, Mohan Lal Kapoor.
🇬🇧 India-UK partnership
A new energy partnership between India and the UK targets decarbonisation challenges of the world’s transport systems.
Story so far: Innovating for Transport and Energy Systems (ITES) is a collaboration between India and the United Kingdom (UK) to facilitate a transition to net zero transport systems. It is steered by Energy Systems Catapult, a UK-based not-for-profit centre of excellence.
- Anchored at the Institute of Indian Science’s (IISc) Sustainable Transport Lab, it is the first such initiative to be announced after India and the UK signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to foster innovation.
- ITES will help in making seas, skies, roads, and railways less polluted. The collaboration will help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) scale up.
Why it matters? The world will benefit from ITES since it will help build greener and quicker modes of transport. It’s also an opportunity for researchers and industry stalwarts to come together.
🗿 Exhibition of Bengaluru’s statues
An upcoming exhibition of the city’s statues seeks to unveil socio-cultural trends.
What it’s about? An upcoming exhibition titled ‘On a Pedestal at Belaku Gallery’ on MG Road will attempt to capture and showcase Bengaluru’s socio-cultural transformation from a sleepy Garden City to a bustling business and start-up hub through the statues peppered across the city.
- The exhibition is being organised by Ravikumar Kashi, a Bengaluru-based visual artist, author, and visiting professor at the RV College of Architecture, Madhuri Rao, an architect and academic, and Salila Vanka, a professor of urban social theory.
- They conceived the idea while trying to discover how the city and its people expressed themselves through visual art through the ages.
Tell me more? Pre-liberalisation sculptures were mostly installed by the British or subsequent governments at the Centre. But after the death of Puneeth Rajkumar, several busts were erected in his memory by pro-Kannada groups. It marked a shift in trends. Statues were built to express not just political aspirations but sociocultural ones too.
🤝 HAL and IICA join hands
A new industry-academia partnership aims to improve competency in public sector enterprises.
Story so far: On Tuesday, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) signed an MoU with the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA) to deliver capacity-building, education, research, and consulting courses. It’ll help strengthen the bond between industry and academia.
- The programmes will be offered to HAL officers and members of other organisations.
- They will inculcate an exhaustive understanding of the area under consideration and improve overall competency.
IICA’s POV: The research institution views this as a way to equip public sector undertakings (PSU) to function efficiently in demanding conditions.
✈️ Kerbside leaks at T2
On Tuesday, a leakage at KIA’s Terminal 2 perturbed the sanitation staff and passengers.
Story so far: Spells of heavy rainfall on May 2 have caused the recently inaugurated Terminal 2 of the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) to leak on the kerbside. That night, passengers and the airport staff were quite strained.
- The leakage became noticeable around 9 pm after rains lashed the area. KIA saw 9.8 mm of rain.
- The sanitation staff was continuously sweeping the area to make it easier for the elderly to pass through.
Official response: The spokesperson of Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL), KIA’s operators, acknowledged that the airport is facing teething troubles. They have resolved to solve the infrastructural issue.
✨ Things to do…
Here are some fun and interesting things to do in the city over the weekend!
- Express your creativity at this pottery workshop by Hands in Clay on Saturday.
- Laugh along with Swati during her standup act ‘So Rude of Me’ on Saturday.
- Experience an ‘Anokha’ evening of eclectic folk fusion and Indian cinematic soundscapes.
- Sing your heart out at Marcopolo’s late-night Karaoke Night.
🛋️ Local Lounge
Yesterday’s Poll Results:
- I drive to work: 36.4%
- Public transport FTW: 63.6% 🏆
That’s it for today. Have a great weekend!