Prof K Srinivasan

It is with great sadness Mysore Grahakara Parishat condoles the death of Prof K.Srinivasan. In early years of MGP, he encouraged MGP to take several causes helping the poor and was ever ready to take part in MGP activities and protests despite his age. He used to attend MGPʼs monthly meeting and was a source of great strength whenever we planned any protest.

In 2004 when MGP organized a campaign “Save Mysore”, Prof Srinivasan came along with his friend Prof J R Lakshmana Rao as can be seen in the photo. MGP in recent years has lost several members (as can be seen from the photo) who helped it to serve Mysoreans by taking several causes to preserve the old charm of the city.

The above photo was taken during MGPʼs Save Mysore Campaign on 20-7- 2004. From left to right are Dr. H A B Parpia, Dr G T Narayana Rao, Prof  J R  Laxman Rao, T S Satyan, Prof K Srinivasan.

Bhamy V Shenoy, MGP

Post Card Campaign by MGP

There is no train from Bengaluru to Mysuru from 3.30 in the afternoon to 6.15 in the evening. As a consequence, passengers on the 6.15 PM Chamundi Express do not even have space to stand. To alleviate this problem, MGP wrote to concerned railway officials and elected representatives to introduce another train from Bengaluru to Mysuru at 5-5.30 PM, but received no response. To bring the issue to the attention of the MP from Mysuru, MGP is launching a post card campaign.

Interested persons can contact N.S. Pradeep Kumar (9844573173) or S. Yogendra (9964146494)

N.S. Pradeep Kumar and S. Yogendra, Mysore Grahakara Parishat

Consumer Justice Is Dying In Karnataka

The objective of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 was to provide consumers with speedy and inexpensive justice. The hearings were to be informal and judgments were to be given within 90 days of filing the complaint.

But the judges appointed to the consumer courts are judges who retire from regular courts. Slowly, procedures (such as too much formalism, adjournments, etc.) which cause huge delays in regular courts are making their way into consumer courts and causing similar delays in delivery of justice. Some cases in consumer courts have taken as long as 9 years to be concluded.

Railway Budget: A First Reaction

The railway minister Suresh Prabhu has presented his first railway budget. The budget differs from previous railway budgets in that it has very few numbers. It also does not take the populist route of announcing hundreds of new trains. It focusses on the vision Prabhu has for Indian Railways. It speaks of consolidation and implementing concrete steps to upgrade the existing infrastructure. Emphasis is given to increasing train speed, track doubling and tripling, gauge conversion and electrification. Trainsets are proposed to be introduced in a few lines on an experimental basis. A trainset is a set of 8-12 coaches with powercars at either end. They are fast in accelerating and breaking and no time is lost in the turnarounds.

Wake Up, Pollution Control Board!

Instead of transporting city's garbage to landfills, MCC workers continue to burn garbage on every street. In Chamundipuram where I live, you can see such fires every hundred feet. Needless to say, this is causing terrible pollution and releasing dangerous gases such as dioxin into the atmosphere. Since the garbage is piled up next to the nearest compound, the burning also causes disfigurement and damage to the compound. If there is no nearby compound, the garbage is lit next to a roadside tree, causing irreparable damage to the tree.

Good News For High BP Patients

Till now, any blood pressure value above 140/90 (systolic/diastolic pressures) was considered "high" and the person was put on medication to lower it. But the expert committee (called the Joint National Committee JNC-8) appointed by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of USA has recommended that persons older than 60 years should wait till the BP reaches 150/90 before beginning treatment. It went through all the published research and found no additional benefit to lowering the blood pressure below 150/90 in this age group in terms of coronary heart disease, stroke, heart failure or death. On the other hand, it noted that aggressive BP treatment in this age group does have several potential adverse consequences (such as impotence, dizzy spells, light headedness, weakness). If the recommendation of JNC-8 is followed, lakhs and possibly crores of BP patients will be spared the expense of treatment.

Another Welcome Decision By The Consumer Forum

It was recently reported in the media that Mysore District Consumer Forum sentenced A.L. Nanjundaraje Urs, managing partner of Chanakya Finance Corporation (CFC) to three years in prison for not returning the deposits of customers. Now, in a more sweeping judgement given on 17-1-15, the Forum has sentenced all the nine partners of CFC to three years in jail and also fined them 10,000 rupees for the same offence.

Railway Commuters Deserve Better Railway Services

MGP discussed the railway commuters’ problems in its monthly public meeting, second time within a span of one year because of its importance and relevance to the people of the city. Non-participation of officers from the Mysore Division of SWR in the public deliberations was overcome by the presence of Sri.Pradeep Kumar, Sri.Yogendra and Sri.  Vijeth Bhardwaj,  who are members of Facebook Page, "Karnataka Railway Development and News", and very knowledgeable in railway matters.