Anagha Speaks

As a part of the Paud Road Mohalla Committee, 25 Paud Road residents have been initiating clean up action at one stretch of the Sutardara Nala, which crosses Paud Road at Shivtirtha nagar. The local corporator has proposed a garden along this nala, providing a natural recreational amenity for the nearby residents. The idea behind the nala clean up action is to trigger a symbolic gesture, where citizens spend 1-2 hours per week for the ci ty and let the government officials know that they not only care and keep a watch but are also ready to partner to help them maintain the local urban environment. I came across a similar initiative at Union City, at Fremont, CA. Union City has developed a jogging / walking trail along the entire stretch of the nala. This stretch is part of the Alameda Creek Trail, a historic walking / cycling trail that runs along Alameda Creek famous for its bird and other fauna habitats. Although a concretized waterway and currently dry, the restored nala (or the pr...

The day I opened the newspaper when Inlanded in California, this week, the headlines that greeted me were heart warming. The headline announced that California's Air Resources Board approved a first-in-the-world regulation to minimize the amount of Carbon in fuel...putting CA as the first region to promote alternative fuels in a bid to combat global warming. Its intereting to note that the regulation is applicable to automotive fuel manufacturers and they are liable to a stringent penalty if the carbon content in their fuels do not match the presribed standards. The idea is to reduce the Carbon content by 10% by 2020...lowering the amount of GHGs (Green house gases) released for every unitof energy produced. This is amongst the first of such targets being sent in the US towards reducing GHGs and thus initiating action against global warming. The regulation is framed not only to combat global warming, but to initiate innovation in fuel manufacturing, perhaps marking a shift towards ...

22nd April is celebrated as Earth Day - Vasundhara Divas! What will be our committment towards Mother Earth this year? As I started writing this blog, I started thinking about possibilities of my commmittment. What can I promise to Mother Earth that will cause her a little less pain and a little less pollution from my activities. In other words, how will I lighten my ecological footprint in this year? Last year, I had committed to stop asking for plastic shopping bags for groceries. To be fair, I would rate myself a 5 on a scale of 1 to 10. I avoided the plastic bag use wherever I could, but I should have tried a little more. So this year, I will continue on this committment. For this year, I will commit to make my home ZERO garbage! I will be composting my biodegradables and ensure recycling of my non biodegradables! One of my uncles, having spent the last year striving (and acheiving) to become a ZERO garbage home, has committed to be an environmentally Conscious and a Responsible Co...

Since the election code has been enforced, the city has seen the removal of the infamous flex banners hanging at every nook and corner...each one more garish and more colorful, with numerous faces wishing some obscure leader 'heartiest congratulations'! And in the background of all these local faces are the unfortunate faces of their party leaders, fighting for space in the limits of the banner. Where have all the 'best wishes' gone? Will we see them sprouting up again post elections? Frankly, just the other day, I realized that Punekars are really missing out on the hearty entertainment that these flex banners provide. For one thing, its entertaining to count the number of people lined up to wish their leader. Secondly, it is also very entertaining to note that the 'wisher' often occupies more space, with his face covering up most of the banner. Of secondary importance is the 'wishee' to whom the entire banner is addressed and the reason for the celebra...

The week before, Puneites woke up to find the city's garbage bins overflowing with three days garbage. The stink was evident when a waft of breeze flowed through Pune in those 3-4 days. having 'endured' this ordeal, Puneites saw the garbage collection resume its normal routine since yesteray and smiles appeared on our faces. The garbage was 'rightfully' being collected and taken away...away from our backyards! Today I had a chance to speak to a young leader from Devachi Urali. He started talking with an apology. He apologized to us Puneites for having inconvenienced us for the past week. after all it was the agitation led by him and his collegues that was stopping the garbage trucks from dumping the 1200 tonnes of solidwaste that Pune generates everyday. He then went on to explain how he and his entire village is putting up with Pune's garbage for the past 18 years! He told me a story of his neighbor, a middle aged woman that works as a daily labourer on a farm...