The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Multi-storeyed residential buildings needed

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Saturday, Oct 07, 2006
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Multi-storeyed residential buildings needed

Lakes and government lands must be protected, say our readers

Check encroachment

LAND SHARKS are more dangerous than their nautical counterparts.

What they gobble up is entire tracts of land, forests and lake beds. Unless there are checks on the growth of Bangalore, this trend will continue.

Self-contained satellite townships could be an answer, but the same story may be repeated there too.

Joshua S,

Langford Road

Protect lakes

STRICT VIGIL over government lands has become necessary. The green belt concept should be strengthened and lakes should be fenced before they are revived.

Growth is possible without damaging the environment too much.

The BDA and the Karnataka Housing Board should think in terms of more multi-storeyed residential accommodation instead of parcelling out plots. There can be more open space around these "tower blocks."

Neha Mendes,

Benson Town

Unplanned development

DEVELOPMENT AT any cost has to give way to sustainable growth. This means natural forests, parks and lakes should survive. Cities in Europe have shown that this is possible.

Unplanned development is affecting the microclimate of our city, a main attraction for investors from outside.

Our dependence on water from Cauvery means we need to keep the city population at a certain limit if all citizens are to get their basic needs.

D.S. Manjunath,

R.T. Nagar

Bigger structures

TAMPERING TOO much with the environment has serious repercussions. The record rainfall last year showed how layouts had come up right in the middle of lake beds and the city planners had no credible explanation for it.

New layouts should go for four or five storeyed structures that can support more residents within a limited space. Layouts with 20,000 or so residential plots can seriously affect the city's environment.

Radha Sharma,

Jayanagar

Affordable apartments

ENVIRONMENT-FRIENDLY urban growth is possible, if we only change our mindset. Instead of building tiny houses on tiny plots, 20 km or more away from places of work, let us opt for more spacious apartments within the city proper.

If the Karnataka Housing Board and BDA move in this direction, affordable apartments can be built for the middle income groups. The traffic situation may also improve to some extent in the peripheral areas.

Sudha Nagaraj,

Malleswaram

NEXT WEEK: Is bandh really the most effective way of protest? Apart from loss of productivity and lost income for many, there it the risk of unscrupulous elements indulging in vandalism of public and private property. Readers are invited to send their suggestions to The Hindu, 19 and 21 Bhagwan Mahaveer Road, Bangalore 560 001, or email bglreflections@thehindu.co.in

Langford Road

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