⭐Featured Post
News
CA
Civic Admin
17 Jul 2024
Bengaluru
National Policy Debate: The Mojo Story
Mithilesh Kumar joined Barkha Dutt on The Mojo Story to debate the economic viability of the proposed Private Sector Job Reservation Bill.
Our Stance:
We argued that the mandate is practically infeasible and risks diverting attention from the core issue—the urgent need for urban infrastructure reform to drive genuine economic growth.
710
⭐Featured Post
News
CA
Civic Admin
01 Oct
Bengaluru
Bengaluru’s Pothole Pandemic: Why Are We Still Stuck? 🚦
From endless traffic jams to potholes that reappear days after repair, Bengaluru’s civic issues are a daily struggle for millions. But why does this keep happening despite changing governments and big promises?
In this eye-opening discussion, SALAR NEWS speaks with Mithilesh Kumar from the Civic Opposition of India to decode the root causes of the city's crumbling infrastructure. We move beyond the complaints to understand the systemic failures—from the lack of coordination between agencies to the absence of quality control.
The video also tackles the debate on "big ticket" projects like tunnel roads versus the desperate need for basic amenities like walkable footpaths and proper drainage. Most importantly, it highlights the one missing ingredient in solving these problems: active citizen participation.
2356
Campaigns
CA
Civic Admin
05 Jan
Bengaluru
Bengaluru Cannot Be Dug Out of Congestion: A Citizen’s Appeal to Halt Tunnel Roads
To The Hon’ble Chief Minister of Karnataka Siddaramaiah Vidhana Soudha Bengaluru Subject: An urgent appeal to halt the tunnel road project and protect Bengaluru from irreversible urban harm Respected Chief Minister Sir, We write to you on behalf of Civic Opposition of India, a citizen-led public platform working on issues of urban governance, mobility, and environmental accountability. This letter is a sincere and urgent appeal to pause and reconsider the proposed tunnel road project in Bengaluru before the city is pushed further into irreversible ecological and financial damage. Bengaluru is not facing a shortage of roads. It is facing a collapse of planning, public transport neglect, and institutional accountability. The tunnel road proposal, projected to cost tens of thousands of crores of public money, attempts to treat congestion as an engineering problem rather than a governance failure. History shows that such solutions do not reduce traffic. They merely relocate it, deeper and more expensively. Around the world, cities that once embraced urban highways and tunnels are now dismantling them at enormous cost, having learnt that induced demand overwhelms every new lane, flyover, or tunnel. Bengaluru risks repeating these mistakes at a scale the city can neither afford nor survive. Recent experience in Bengaluru validates this concern. The newly constructed loop at the Hebbal flyover, instead of easing congestion, has merely shifted traffic to the next junction, exactly the pattern predicted by transport experts. This real-time evidence underscores that building more road capacity for cars does not solve congestion; it merely relocates it and deepens the city’s infrastructure distress. Why this project alarms citizens 1. It diverts scarce public money from real solutions At a time when Bengaluru struggles with broken footpaths, unsafe streets, poor bus frequency, unfinished suburban rail, and chronic last-mile gaps, committing massive funds to tunnels prioritizes private vehicles over the daily commuter. This is neither equitable nor sustainable. 2. It poses serious environmental and hydrological risks Large-scale underground construction in a city already suffering from groundwater depletion and flooding raises grave concerns. Tunnelling threatens aquifers, destabilizes soil layers, and increases long-term flood risk, especially in a city whose natural drainage systems and lakes are already compromised. 3. It weakens democratic and planning processes Projects of this magnitude demand transparent studies, independent peer review, and genuine public consultation. Citizens increasingly feel that decisions are being fast-tracked while dissenting voices, urban experts, and resident groups are treated as obstacles rather than stakeholders. 4. It locks Bengaluru into a car-centric future Every rupee spent on tunnels is a rupee not spent on buses, metro integration, suburban rail, cycling infrastructure, and walkable streets. Tunnel roads institutionalize inequality by privileging car owners while the majority continue to endure unreliable, unsafe, and overcrowded public transport. The larger truth Bengaluru’s traffic problem cannot be solved underground. It must be solved at the surface, where people live, walk, cycle, and commute daily. Cities are not saved by hiding cars beneath them. They are saved by reducing car dependence altogether. This city once led India in innovation and forward thinking. Today, it risks becoming a case study in how not to plan a metropolis. Citizens are not opposing development. We are opposing misdirected development that mortgages the city’s future for short-term optics. What we respectfully ask We urge your government to: 1. Immediately pause the tunnel road project and place all related studies, contracts, and feasibility reports in the public domain. 2. Constitute an independent urban mobility and environment review panel, including transport planners, hydrologists, climate experts, and citizen representatives. 3. Redirect priority and funding to public transport, especially BMTC expansion, suburban rail acceleration, last-mile connectivity, and safe pedestrian infrastructure. 4. Adopt a long-term mobility vision that reduces private vehicle dependence rather than accommodating its unchecked growth. A citizen’s appeal Chief Minister Sir, Bengaluru does not need grand underground experiments. It needs honest governance, people-first mobility, and the courage to say no to projects that look impressive but harm the city quietly and permanently. We request your personal intervention to ensure that Bengaluru’s future is shaped by wisdom, not by inertia or pressure from vested interests. This decision will define how history remembers this phase of the city’s leadership. Yours sincerely, Civic Opposition of India Citizen-led platform for urban governance and public accountability
1521
News
CA
Civic Admin
06 Dec
Mahadevapura, Bengaluru
Another Life Lost to Bengaluru’s Potholes: When Will It End?
It is devastating to read that a 30-year-old techie has lost his life simply because our roads are unfit for travel. This isn't an "accident"; it is a systemic failure.
Civic Opposition of India, has consistently warned that "Bengaluru's roads are killing people." Their words ring tragically true today.The cycle is predictable: a life is lost, outrage follows, a few potholes are patched, and then silence—until the next tragedy. We demand more than just patchworks. We demand accountability for the engineers and officials responsible for maintaining these death traps. How many more tax-paying citizens must die before we get safe infrastructure? Full coverage. #Bengaluru #RoadSafety #CivicOpposition #PotholeDeath #Accountability #UrbanInfrastructure #Karnataka
1364
Protests
CA
Civic Admin
20 Sept
Varthur, Bengaluru
High Taxes, Broken Roads, and Silenced Voices: The Bengaluru Techie’s Reality
We pay the highest taxes, yet our roads crumble within 15 days. When we try to protest, the police stop us. When we raise our voices, the government brands it as "blackmail." Civic Opposition of India, asks the question on every resident's mind:
"Why is life so difficult for techies in Bengaluru? What went wrong?"The frustration is no longer just about traffic; it is about a complete systemic failure. As Mithilesh points out, we must ask the uncomfortable question: "Has the system finally collapsed under the weight of 60% commission corruption?" It is time for answers, not intimidation.
4598
Protests
CA
Civic Admin
13 Apr
Varthur, Bengaluru
The Cycle of Repair and Despair: Is Bengaluru Broken Beyond Repair?
It is tragic to witness the sheer helplessness of honest taxpayers in this city. We pay our dues, yet we are met with zero accountability and what feels like open loot of public funds.
Civic Opposition of India, points out the uncomfortable reality of our infrastructure:
"Even if BBMP repairs a road today, it won’t last 3 months. Why? Because they are built substandard, far below the budgeted quality."
This isn't just about potholes; it's about a systemic failure where quality control is non-existent. We are paying first-class taxes for third-class infrastructure.
The question remains: Is #BrandBengaluru broken beyond repair?
363
Protests
CA
Civic Admin
26 Oct 2024
Chikkanayakanahalli, Bengaluru
The Bengaluru Techie's Weekend: Recover or Protest?
It is a sobering reality for thousands of professionals in our city: Work 10-12 hours a day, endure 4-5 hours of traffic, and then spend weekends on the streets protesting for basic infrastructure.
Today, the citizens of Gattahalli and Chikkanayakanahalli are protesting against substandard roads that have made commuting a daily hazard.
Mithilesh Kumar, Founder of Civic Opposition of India, questions the sustainability of this model: "How did we reach this point where tax-paying citizens have to fight for the mere existence of a road? Is this the #BrandBengaluru we want to project to the world?"
We appeal to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and the state administration to look beyond the headlines and address the ground reality. Our city deserves better than broken roads and lost hours.
#Bengaluru #WorkLifeBalance #Gattahalli #Chikkanayakanahalli #MithileshKumar #CivicOpposition #UrbanInfrastructure #Karnataka
700