VIZAG matters - Sohan Hatangadi's Blog

Whats your pole number? Do you know your pole number? You know ... that electrical pole outside your apartment or villa? If you do not know, then as a good citizen, go down and take a look. What do you see? Does it have a number on it?  I don't mean the number of the packers or movers, or the friendly local electrician. I mean the number of the pole itself as allotted by GVMC or EPDCL. Why would you need the pole number? Well, if the street light is not working in your part of town, you will have to call a GVMC  number to lodge a complaint. To do this you will first have to know the street light not working complaint number.  This telephone number is not displayed anywhere prominently for the general public to see. Going by how few people know this number I assume it is a top secret classified number . But, have no fear, I will reveal it to you. The number is   155304 . However if you call the number to lodge a complaint, they will ask you for your POL...

What does our Andhra University say about us? When we think of Universities, what generally comes to mind is, imposing buildings, green lawns, old trees, a dignified island of academics. Peaceful, distinguished and clean. But, when it comes to Andhra University what comes to mind is ramshackle buildings, poor maintenance, filth and dirt. Don't believe me? Just visit the Convocation theater  toilet. You would rather go in the bushes than go into the loo. Library Andhra University Library Compound The famous D.V.S. Krishna library is a poor imitation of its past. The structure needs urgent attention both inside and outside. Look around the lawns. A couple of vending carts have taken the role of a library cafeteria. Several people eat and drink here. Thousands of plastic tea cups and  plates are scattered all over the compound. What type of people create the garbage? What type of people allow this hideous apology for a canteen to run here?  Are they reall...

THE TOURISTS ARE COMING! THE TOURISTS ARE COMING! MAKE SOME ROOM DOWN THERE... There is a lot of hullabaloo about tourists coming to Vizag. The newspapers are talking about it. You even hear it at parties, chest swelling with pride, you hear someone say  "we have great tourist potential in Vizag, our beach is fantastic, we must get more tourists here". I shudder when I hear that. We don't even have space for Vizag residents and we want to inflict the crowds on the hapless tourist? Take a look at our beach road, you cant walk 10 steps before bumping into someone. Perhaps we can fit in some genuine domestic back-packers ...

I recently came across a news item which I have scanned and am pasting here: Do Vizagites have our priorities right? The news report says that Vizagites do not adopt animals, birds or reptiles at our Indira Gandhi Zoological Park. The report says that only 15 donors have come forward till date. I know that one of the 15 is myself. I made a Rs. 11,000 contribution in March 2012. Every few days we hear of people dropping crores worth of cash and jewelry into temple  hundis  as if to tell God  "here is a little something for you - help me to earn even more money and I will continue to give you a commission" .  While they attempt to appease God, they do not bother about God's creatures. A stanza of a poem by  William Henry Monk  which  I read in school comes back to me: All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful: The Lord God made them all It is a matter of great concern when those with ...

There is one place all of us are headed to   The end of the road, the last halt…the giant terminal-terminus in the sky, the point of no return. Yep, we are all going to die. They say we cannot escape death or taxes - unless its funds stashed away in Swiss banks, in which case you are safe till Baba Ramdev gets you - but cheat death? Naah! So, if we are all going to pop it, why does the after death experience become hell for those who we leave behind? Take for example a death in a Hindu family. Spouses, children or parents go into a numb state of mourning. A support group generally steps in and takes over the management of the last rites. Forms are filled and if it happens in a hospital - bills are settled. Relatives and friends are informed. A mortuary cooler is brought in, flowers are procured, a poojari is entrusted to perform the rituals. Typically on the day after, the body is moved to the Crematorium. The wise men of the past advised that only men should go...

The promise of trees everywhere If we go by what we hear in the papers, Vizag will have millions of trees planted by the end of this monsoon period. That will be quite amazing in the long run. In around 10 years time it will help reduce air borne pollution, improve precipitation and hopefully get more rainfall, improve groundwater retention and drop the ambient temperature in the city by at least 2 degrees centigrade.  A couple of winters ago I recollect walking from Dwarakanagar to Dabagardens. As I crossed the old jail area which still has a few old trees standing I could sense the temperature drop suddenly. God bless these wonderful large trees and God save us from misguided developers who would rather cut these trees down and build a mall there. VUDA's miserable green track record In the past our local administration has failed miserably in maintaining Vizag's green cover.  As is clear from any Google satellite image of Vizag, almost...

Expansion of ports - news reports In recent months, and as recently as last week, there have been news items in the press about the expansion of Vizag and Gangavaram ports. Reading these reports makes me feel like a prisoner being sent to the gas chamber! Please read these news items: 1. "Gangavaram Port in expansion mode". http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Visakhapatnam/article3348360.ece 2. "Gangavaram port expansion set to take off; funds tied up" http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/logistics/article3473764.ece?ref=wl_industry-and-economy VPT - The emperor of pollution  Visakhapatnam Port Trust (VPT) is the most notorious polluter of Vizag. The sea water in the port area which was full of marine life, now thanks to the oil, coal, ore, sulfur and  pollution supports no life at all. Their Coal and Iron Ore Dust spreads all over the city. From Soldierpeta to Gyanapuram. From Kotaveedhi to Suryabagh. From Jalaripeta to ...

Please visit the GVMC web site link: http://www.gvmc.gov.in/ Here is how it looks This site appears to be made more for the Corporation themselves rather than for the public for whom the corporation exists.  GVMC collects tax from us and is supposed to serve the citizens of Vizag. The GVMC web site should therefore be informative and designed to help the public. While the site does have some important information it is buried deep and difficult to find. For example  these questions are not easily answered: 01. What is the postal address of GVMC? 02. What is the phone number of GVMC? What is the Customer Service Number? 03. Who is the sanitary inspector for my ward? 04. Who is my Corporator? 05. Which number should we contact for garbage removal? 06. If my neighbor is throwing garbage on the road - who should I complain to? 07. Which number to contact for Water Problems? 08. If a water line is leaking on the road whom should I cont...

Further to my post about CII's magnanimous attempts to develop Vizag. Here is a typical "Development" story adapted from Oren Ginsburg's presentation courtesy "Survival International". Prequel : When I travel - and someone asks me where I am from - and I say "Vizag" - and they say "wow, heard its a great place" - I say "its a lousy place - don't bother visiting". This is a defense mechanism. I am doing my part in reducing influx into Vizag. For God's sake - why can't they leave us alone to enjoy our city? Do your bit - don't go around telling folk from elsewhere that Vizag is great. _________________________________________________________________________ O nce upon a time two management gurus decided to "develop" Vizag. They made their way into Vizag's heartland with their laptops and suits.  They wanted to do a survey. After a while they came to a beautiful habitation in Viz...