Singapore has no minerals. Japan was bombed to rubble in 1945. Vietnam was at war for decades. All three built cities with parks, public squares, functional public transport, and green urban spaces that serve their people.
Walk through Accra, Lagos, Nairobi, Douala, or Kinshasa and find somewhere to sit that is not a shop, a bar, or a church. You will not find it.
These cities sit inside some of the most fertile, green, tropical land on earth. And somehow every trace of it was designed out of the urban experience. No parks. No shade. No public squares. Nowhere a person can simply exist without spending money.
The geopolitics argument runs out when you look at who recovered from worse and built better. We are collectively and embarrassingly disorganized and we need to start saying that out loud.
Change does not start with governments. It starts with enough people refusing to accept this as normal. Share this if you agree. Talk about it. Demand better from your city.
Hyderabad's Jawaharnagar landfill is ranked the 4th worst methane-emitting dump yard on the planet, releasing the climate equivalent of one million SUVs every hour. Gachibowli's IT corridor, one of India's most recognisable business districts, is sitting next to 15 lakh tonnes of uncleared construction waste. And Necklace Road, one of the city's most visited public spaces, still has no dustbins.
We talk about development. We host global summits. We beautify what people can see. But the garbage stays, the methane rises, and the green cover keeps shrinking.
This World Environment Day, we went to look at what's actually happening on the ground in this city.
#Hyderabad ask your representatives for a better quality of life because we are being robbed of something priceless. The way our city is functioning right now - our homes, our workplaces, our transport, our leisure - everything is being built for 💴 💰 💵 and not for our benefit
An IISc study on Bengaluru’s Yellow Line shows something important: commuters are walking an additional 10-15 minutes every day, experiencing lower stress levels, and reporting better physical, mental, and social well-being.
This is how great public transport transforms cities. Countries like Japan, where public transport is widely used, have long benefited from healthier and more active lifestyles.
But the study also highlights a serious concern. Metro fares for 10-20 km journeys in Bengaluru are often ₹60-₹70, making them among the highest in the country and unaffordable for many families.
The way forward is clear:
• Expand the Metro
• Reduce fares
• Improve last-mile connectivity
• Ensure safe pedestrian access
• Strengthen intermodal integration
Building Metro lines is not enough. We must make public transport affordable, accessible, and commuter-friendly. I hope this is the approach the Karnataka Government adopts.
@NewIndianXpress
https://t.co/cjjWN3mqPo
The hostility and opposition towards BRT has always been about power politics.
BRT reallocates scarce road space from a minority travelling in private cars to a majority travelling by public transport. For some, the idea that a bus full of workers should move faster than a luxury SUV is simply unacceptable.
Look at this BJP minister.😭
At a site where 21 people were burnt alive inside a hotel, in an area where BJP-controlled MCD has allegedly ignored all safety norms for years, & he cannot even walk on a muddy road, where citizens walk daily.
He seems more worried about his clothes getting dirty, visit for formality.
An entire family from Gurugram was wiped out, yet the priority appears to be optics, not accountability..☹️
Daily reminder that public transport is not intended to be "in profit". No public transportation system anywhere in the world is or ever will be "in profit".
The existence of funded public services are essential to the functioning of cities, states and societies.
fun fact: in New York City, emergency vehicles literally use the bike lanes to get out of gridlock. Well-protected bike lanes can serve as an emergency lane that actually reduces response times.
don’t believe me?
here’s proof from last week
Gated communities/apartments already have all or most of these:
Own water supply (rainwater + borewells)
Own sewage + water treatment
Own garbage management
Captive power (diesel/solar)
Standby ambulance/society vehicle
Part/full time clinics
Some have tie-ups with a nearby private hospital
Own parks/open space
Feeder community vehicles for last mile to transport hub
Private schools mushroom near such residential clusters
Private security, bouncers even in Noida/Gurgaon
Not surprisingly - fire response will be added to this.
Question: so what exactly does your tax money get you?
True for #hyderabad as well. Why do you think there’s so many trees in #JubileeHills prime areas but immediately outside Borabanda is just concrete. Whose job was it to plan development here?
If we’re going to insist on building concrete ovens with terrible materials, the absolute least we can do is plant more trees and grass to absorb the heat. Greenery shouldn't be a luxury, it’s urban survival at this point.
Buses/metro should be free/nominal cost in the city to make it easier for most citizens to take them instead of using roads.
It's a win-win, traffic reduces, pollution reduces, road maintenance improves, the will of the government to ensure public transport is good goes up.
Every tax rupee spent on great public infrastructure is rupee well spent.
1,942 trees.
7 flyovers.
7 underpasses.
And ZERO public hearings. 🌳
The H-CITI project around KBR National Park has quietly resumed with alarming aggression. By splitting one massive ecological threat into fragmented “linear” packages, critical environmental scrutiny appears to be bypassed.
When governance hides behind technicalities, citizens have every right to demand answers. Hyderabad has waited long enough for transparency that never came.
We are publicly asking @TelanganaCMO@CommissionrGHMC and @GHMCOnline@revanth_anumula place the following facts on record:
1️⃣ Where are the Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) and structural design alignments? Why are they hidden from public scrutiny?
2️⃣ Where is the raw data from the Traffic Simulation studies being used to justify this ₹1,090 crore project?
3️⃣ Where is the independent cumulative Environmental Impact Assessment for the ENTIRE loop — not fragmented junction-wise clearances?
A world-class city is not built by suffocating its last green lung under concrete. Real development values urban science, environmental preservation and community consultation.
The silence has gone on for too long. Hyderabad deserves answers.
👉 We request fellow Hyderabadis to:
• Save this post
• Quote/repost it
• Tag @TelanganaCMO & @GHMCOnline@revanth_anumula@CommissionrGHMC
• Keep asking: “Who allowed this?” (1/2)
#SaveKBR #Hyderabad
Such a scene is often framed as proof the Dutch are superhuman—they’re not.
The real miracle isn't the Dutch cyclist. It's the environment that allows ordinary people to do extraordinary things. Build the infrastructure, and you'll find your city is full of capable cyclists too.
After taking oath at Lok Bhavan, #Karnataka minister Krishna Byre Gowda chose to walk to Vidhana Soudha for the Cabinet meeting instead of adding to #Bengaluru’s traffic woes.
A small gesture that stood out on a day of high-profile movement across the city.
@timesofindia
📌All builders who got land near IDL lake , Kukatpally got the land registrations completed & started earth works / submitted HMDA permissions for Highrise projects ( ~ G+23 , G+25) !!