Good morning, Bengaluru!
☁️ Today’s weather: High: 27 ℃ | Low: 20 ℃ | A generally cloudy day ahead.
🧐 Did you know? When it was inaugurated, the Namma Metro became the first underground metro system in South India.
🌆 Memories of Yelahanka New Town
A new exhibition will map how Yelahanka New Town has changed over the past three decades.
What’s it about? ‘Mapping Memories: The Lost Spaces of Yelahanka’ will showcase how the locality has changed and evolved. Visual artist Lakshmi Nagaraj is behind the project and moved to the locality when she was in class 4 and saw how it has changed first-hand.
- The project is a culmination of several interviews with diverse people. Many residents noted that the greenery that was once there now gave way to urbanisation. Others reminisced about specific spots that were important to them.
- Lakshmi’s relationship with the locality has changed since many malls and shops came up. However, she began to appreciate the parks and lakes that are still around.
Specific landmarks: While the locality didn’t have theatre spaces, it did have the biannual Allalasandra Jatre and the circus season, but the latter has ceased to exist. The Sharavathi Hotel, which shut down years ago, is still fondly remembered by some with the Sharavathi Hotel Bus Stop.
👩💼 No more HR?
Startups in Bengaluru are moving away from HR, with founders willing to multitask.
What’s it about? Are HR departments a thing of the past? Some Bengaluru startups are moving in that direction. Here comes the rise of Chief Everything Officers – founders who assume multiple roles. It’s a time to move fast and break things.
- Shweta Jain, product owner at Fictiv, said several factors might hinder running a company this way. What if employees are from different time zones and cultures or speak different languages?
- Self-reliance has given rise to plenty of “solopreneurs”, who are ready to do a lot of work themselves. Bengaluru, in particular, has seen a rise in this phenomenon due to the city’s startup startup fever.
What happens to HR? AI is coming for it. Last year, many companies laid off several HR roles, citing upskilling reasons, and AI was able to handle most tasks. There’s a high possibility that the first one-person billion-dollar company will come from Bengaluru and won’t need an HR department.
🚇 Metro trial run
The Namma Metro will begin its trial runs on the Green Line extension from Nagasandra to Madavara.
What’s it about? The trial run on this route will begin next week. This line is expected to become operational by the end of September or the first week of October.
- The 3.7-km line has stations at Manjunath Nagar, Chikkabidarakallu, and Madavara. Since it’s an extension line and trains running on the Green Line will be used, the headway between trains will be longer.
- Nelamangala, Makali, and Madanayakanahalli residents and those coming to the city from Tumakuru can use the service at Madavara. It’ll also benefit people visiting the Bangalore International Exhibition Centre.
Delays: The original deadline for this line was August 2019. This had to be extended multiple times due to delays in completing the station at Madavara.
🛵 Harassment of bike taxi riders
The number of incidents of bike taxi riders being harassed by auto drivers has increased.
What’s it about? As the transport department cracked down on bike taxis, there has been an increase in riders being harassed by auto drivers at pick-up and drop-off points like metro stations and malls. On July 21, a bike taxi rider was assaulted, and his bike was damaged by six auto drivers near Byappanahalli.
- The rise in reported incidents has come in the wake of RTOs seizing some bike taxis. Many of the incidents go unreported to the police. For some drivers, it has affected their business.
- It has become a regular occurrence where auto drivers use abusive language and take the mobile phones of riders. It has also affected passengers.
Necessity: Some regular users say bike taxis are necessary for first and last-mile connectivity since they’re more economical than autos and taxis.
📊 Today’s Poll
(Only subscribers can participate in the polls)
Do you prefer reading books over watching movies?
- I prefer reading books.
- I prefer watching movies.
❓ Today’s Question
(Only subscribers can submit their answers)
How often do you use the metro?
Reply to this email with your answers.
🗞️ In other news…
- The Hennur-Bagalur road to KIA is in a poor state and has affected airport-bound travellers.
- Textile waste in Bengaluru has increased to 4% of waste generated, signalling the need for sustainable fashion.
- The Bengaluru police are using drug users as informants to crack down on peddlers and drug networks.
- Bengaluru’s office space absorption in the second quarter is mostly by AI and robotics companies.
- NGO Kanara Entrepreneurs conducted a day-long programme for entrepreneurs focused on upskilling.
🛋️ Local Lounge
Yesterday’s Poll:
- I studied in a Bengaluru school: 41.7%
- I didn’t study in a Bengaluru school: 58.3% 🏆
Answers to Yesterday’s Question:
What was your favourite childhood cartoon?
Santhosh: “Popeye, Dexter’s lab, Ed Edd n Eddy”
That’s it for today. Have a great day!