Good morning, Bengaluru!
☀️ Today’s weather: Nothing’s changed. It’s going to be sunny and breezy.
🧐 Did you know? The Bangalore Fort was pivotal in the storming of Srirangapatna. It was first built with mud by Kempe Gowda. Later, Hyder Ali turned it into a stone fort.
🛣️ Bengaluru-Mysuru expressway tolls
As the NHAI begins toll collection, commuters and the Congress party stage protests.
Story so far: Amidst many protests, toll collection for the Bengaluru-Mysuru expressway began yesterday. The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) announced a toll fee for vehicles travelling through the first stretch of the expressway from Bengaluru to Nidaghatta in Mandya district, which covers a distance of 55.63 km.
- Cars, jeeps, and vans will have to pay ₹135 for a single trip and ₹205 for a round trip completed on the same day. After the second stretch opens, this fee may rise to ₹250.
- All vehicles qualify for a 33% discount for making 50 single trips monthly. Commercial vehicles registered in the district will get a 50% discount. Vehicles carrying loads over permissible limits will pay ten times the fee rate.
Why protest? After Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the project, concerned citizens and the Congress criticised the government for opening it up before completing the construction of service roads and other incomplete parts. Some argue that tolls cannot be charged before the project is complete, and when it does, it shouldn’t be so high.
- BMTC drivers are unhappy with it too. The depots told them to access the service road until they received Fastag passes. However, they were denied entry there. Toll collectors allowed them to pass freely for a day.
- These protests turned into altercations between some outfits and the toll collectors. High police security engulfed the toll booth near Kaniminike, where a protestor broke a toll gate sensor.
🧊 Ice baths become trendy
Bengalureans see the appeal of ice baths for muscle recovery and immunity boost.
Story so far: Ice baths are no longer quirky training techniques that one sees in movies. The general public has begun to fancy it as part of daily routines. Bengalureans have picked it up too, especially for muscle recovery after intense workouts and sporting events. Ice baths are a valuable way to regulate the nervous system.
- City-based health expert Swetha Devaraj finds ice baths reduce stress and help overcome fight-or-flight physiological responses to everyday situations. These baths also regulate blood sugar levels.
- Physiologist and performance coach Rohan Matthew argues that ice baths increase immunity levels.
Cautionary measures: Every good thing in excess can turn harmful. Overindulging in ice baths can further stress the body and cause illnesses. It means checking the frequency of one’s baths and the time spent in the ice bath. It may also restrict muscle growth.
- Sports trainers suggest that people start ice bath therapy under the guidance of someone experienced.
🎵 Musician for environmental change
Ricky Kej will be the face of the World Wide Fund’s green event in March.
Story so far: Bengalurean multi-instrumentalist and composer Ricky Kej is set to be the face of the upcoming World Wide Fund for Nature’s (WWF) Earth Hour India 2023 on March 25. Kej has won three Grammy awards so far for his music. For a long time, he has worked with the WWF and practised environmental activism.
- Kej believes that overconsumption is the primary cause of environmental degradation. People live in a use-and-throw economy where consuming unnecessary things is like intuition.
- Earth Hour is a unique opportunity for people to reflect on their relationship with the energy they consume, the food they eat, and the fabric they wear.
Why it matters? Environmental activism is a fairly intellectual discourse, while the arts and music are fields of emotive expression. Kej believes that the emotional journey that music creates is a fertile ground for championing causes like this one. Sometimes when logic fails to strike a chord, emotions take up the mantle.
💡 Power workers go on strike soon
Power workers across Karnataka will go on strike to demand higher wages.
Story so far: About 60,000 employees from the Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Limited (KPTCL) and other electricity supply companies (Escoms) in Karnataka will launch an indefinite strike from Thursday, March 17.
- Their objective is to demand a wage revision. The workers provided the management with a notice fourteen days in advance. After a lack of response, they decided to go on strike.
- The workers have assured media persons that their abstention from work will not cause any disruptions in the power supply. They will simply be unavailable to answer calls and provide additional support.
Back story: KPTCL Employees’ Association and Federation, the organisation behind the strike, represents 60,000 working employees and 45,000 retired staffers. They have been demanding a wage revision since April 2022.
- According to the Federation’s general secretary, the power workers’ salaries should have increased by 22%, but the government has delayed it.
📊 Today’s Poll
(Only subscribers can participate in the polls)
Have you ever given someone a flower?
- Yes, I’ve gifted flowers.
- No, I’ve never given anyone flowers.
❓ Today’s Question
(Only subscribers can submit their answers)
What’s the worst lie you’ve told your boss/professors?
Reply to this email with your answers.
🗞️ In other news…
- Victims of last year’s Bengaluru floods await compensation.
- Ophthalmologists reveal that youngsters are becoming more vulnerable to Glaucoma.
- The Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) will build two apartments for ₹446 crore.
- AI-based systems can become the future of traffic management in the city.
- Karnataka sees an uptick in Covid hospitalisation, while the maximum cases are in Bengaluru.
🛋️ Local Lounge
Yesterday’s Poll:
- I like cafes more: 80.0% 🏆
- I like pubs more: 20.0%
That’s it for today. Have a great day!