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Time of India
29-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Consumers in Karnataka may have to pay more for cab rides, food deliveries and other services. Here's why
Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Popular in Bengaluru News 1. Bengaluru rains: Get ready for another week of rains as IMD predicts showers till May 31 Karnataka is preparing to bring in a new welfare law for gig and platform workers. According to a TOI report, while the move has been widely appreciated, it may result in consumers paying more for cab rides, food deliveries, and other app-based proposed Karnataka Platform-based Gig Workers' (Social Security and Welfare) Ordinance, 2025 includes a 1%–5% cess to create a welfare fund for nearly 30,000 gig workers in the state. Officials said the cost would be shared between customers, platforms, and the workers themselves, though the end user is expected to bear the Karnataka cabinet's decision to introduce the ordinance has been seen as a positive step. But the real challenge lies in how the cess will be collected and the law enforced on the Manjunath, Additional Labour Commissioner, said, as quoted by TOI, 'The Act has been framed in such a manner that all three stakeholders can contribute to the welfare fund.' He added that gig workers could also voluntarily contribute more to improve their social security. He said the rules will likely be finalised within a concerns have been raised about the fine print. Balaji Parthasarathy, Principal Investigator at Fairwork India and professor at IIIT-Bengaluru, told TOI, 'The legislation outlines the terrain, but implementation will hinge on rules, particularly how wage protection, dispute resolution, and algorithmic accountability are addressed.'He warned that there's no wage-floor guarantee. 'Transparency in deductions is a start, but without clear limits on payout cuts, platforms can reduce per-task payments to make up for the cess,' he said. Parthasarathy also noted, as quoted by TOI, that while platforms don't talk to worker groups, they have made collective representations through bodies like Nasscom and IAMAI to oppose parts of the a legal perspective, the law is a formal recognition of gig work. However, Vikram Shroff, partner at AZB & Partners, said as quoted by TOI, that some of the termination-related clauses may face legal challenges, especially if they clash with current agreements between platforms and also warned of possible confusion once the national social security code is implemented, saying, 'Two sets of laws may govern gig worker entitlements, potentially leading to regulatory overlap.'According to the draft rules, platforms will be placed in different cess slabs depending on whether they provide delivery, transport, or personal services. Officials expect to raise around ?150 crore a year through this the worries, some companies support the plan. Athira, Vice-President for Public Policy at Porter, called the ordinance a 'progressive and much-needed step' that recognises gig workers and their social security needs. 'We remain committed to working with both state and central governments,' she said, as quoted by from TOI
Time of India
06-05-2025
- Time of India
'Why Bengaluru landlords are such crap': Tenant living in a one-room kitchen apartment sparks debate on unfair charges
Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tenant claims rent too high for poor living conditions Sudden demand for borewell repair charge Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Online users react to the tenant's complaint Popular in Bengaluru News 1. Karnataka Dy CM DK Shivakumar's meeting to decide on fate of metro request for Hebbal land Growing concern over landlord-tenant disputes in Bengaluru A tenant living in a one-room kitchen apartment near Electronic City Phase 2 in Bengaluru has accused his landlord of unfairly demanding extra payments and ignoring repeated complaints about poor living conditions. The tenant shared his experience on Reddit, stating that he was unexpectedly asked to pay Rs 300 for borewell motor repairs, despite no such clause being mentioned in the rental to the Reddit post, the man pays Rs 6,500 every month for the rented space. He described the room as "crappy and crampy" and said the condition of the walls had worsened due to water seepage. Despite raising the issue multiple times, the landlord had not taken any steps to resolve the tenant also pointed out that the landlord owns a real estate company, which he found ironic given the lack of maintenance in the rented tenant said the dispute began when the landlord asked for Rs 300 to repair the borewell motor. 'This month, out of the blue, he asked for bore motor repair charges Rs 300. I have a rental agreement and nothing in that states about this kind of charge except if I damage anything,' the tenant he questioned the extra charge, the landlord reportedly told him to either pay or vacate the property. 'I know nothing can be done about this situation except to pay or vacate, but I just wanted to share the situation in Namma Bengaluru, where landlords are taking advantage of every situation,' he post soon went viral on Reddit, leading to responses from others who said they faced similar issues while living on rent in the city. One user wrote, 'You are tenant to parasite. They are like maybe 10% of landlords in BLR. I suggest u start looking for other places, as this guy will just keep leeching off you. Look to share a 2BHK with a room mate or something. In fact ur better off in a PG for the rent you are paying.'Another person commented, 'Land lords are very bad, same experience even I had when I first moved. We agreed on deposit money of 50k and paid him advance 10k. He told me rent 13k. But when I reached there suddenly there is 1k water charge excluded so it is now 14k, than I gave him 50k in hand he brought me rental agreement with 60k as deposit and argument happened and finally he accepted 50k than covid happened and had to leave, where he is crying coz there is agreement how can I leave in between? Never got a single penny back. Living on rent is headache in city like Bengaluru as per my experience.'The Reddit thread has brought attention to a larger issue of alleged landlord exploitation in Bengaluru. Several users said they had also faced surprise charges, sudden rent hikes, and trouble recovering deposits, raising questions about transparency and tenant rights in the city's rental housing market.
Time of India
27-04-2025
- General
- Time of India
Double-door fridge & steel vessels: Aerospace tech-powered weed-clearing machine uncovers bizarre finds in Bengaluru lake
Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Popular in Bengaluru News 1. Bengaluru woman breaks down her monthly costs on Reddit, says she saves Rs 1 lakh every month; post goes viral The Role of Jaldost in Lake Cleanup In an unexpected discovery, a double-door refrigerator was pulled out of Madiwala Lake on Friday evening during a routine de-weeding operation. The de-weeding team, known as Jaldost and operated by the National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL), unearthed the appliance while clearing out overgrown water weeds. This bizarre find was just one of many items retrieved, turning the lake into what locals describe as a "miniature junkyard", a TOI report Jaldost machine , which specialises in removing weeds and debris from water bodies, has been working at Madiwala Lake to improve its condition. Among the items recovered, apart from the refrigerator, were plastic bags, milk packets, steel vessels, books, and even pens. While the Jaldost machine is efficient at clearing large biomass, experts and local residents pointed out that proper waste disposal responsibility lies with the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP).T. Karthikeyan, Senior Principal Scientist at NAL, described the Jaldost machine's capabilities, stating, 'Each scoop can lift objects as tall as 6-7 feet and weighing up to 3-4 tonnes.' He went on to highlight the progress so far: 'We've pulled over 20 tonnes of waste, mostly hyacinth and garbage. This includes a wide range of materials, from metal to plastic and even a refrigerator. We're curious to see what else we might uncover when we finish cleaning the lake.'The process began when the Jaldost machine hit a "rock-like structure" while de-weeding a smaller section of the lake. On further investigation, the operator found it to be a heavy refrigerator surrounded by silt and weeds. Karthikeyan elaborated, 'When the operator tried to lift it, the refrigerator was much heavier than expected.'Once the waste is removed, the Jaldost operator dumps it near the lake's edge, where BBMP is responsible for proper disposal. Karthikeyan noted that the extracted biomass could be repurposed for various uses such as paper, cardboard, handwoven products, or even biofuels. However, without a clear plan for managing the large volume of waste, these opportunities remain BBMP has yet to take urgent action to manage the growing piles of garbage, residents continue to deal with the aftermath of years of neglect. Nithin Shetty, a local resident, expressed concern, stating, 'If refrigerators and steel vessels are coming out of the lake, just imagine what else is down there.' Another resident, Naveen Reddy, added, 'BBMP has ignored the lake for a long time. They should first monitor it and penalize those who dump waste here. We might find a sofa set next!'Regarding waste segregation, an official from Bangalore Solid Waste Management Ltd (BSWML) mentioned that while garbage is being collected, segregation is difficult due to the sheer volume of de-weeding machine used at Madiwala Lake, Jaldost Mark 2, was developed by NAL as a spinoff from aerospace technology. This lightweight machine, controlled by hydraulic systems, is designed to handle heavy biomass loads and is capable of operating in lakes as deep as 30 feet, although a minimum depth of 2 feet is needed for effective use. Jaldost was introduced in 2020 after BBMP approached NAL for a de-weeding solution, and it was officially launched in 2023. Its first deployment was at Gottigere Lake, where it cleared 35 acres of hyacinth in just a month. Following its success, BBMP rolled out Jaldost at Madiwala Lake last cleanup operation at Madiwala Lake is ongoing, but concerns about waste management remain. Without a clear plan for handling the large quantities of waste being removed, the potential benefits of the cleanup are not fully the cleanup continues, the community and experts alike are urging BBMP to take responsibility for the waste and ensure proper disposal to prevent further degradation of the lake.
