Reels, rap urge city to recycle right
OB Bureau
The city is getting a musical nudge to clean up its waste habits, with a new culture-led campaign using rap, reels and humour to push simple recycling practices, putting the spotlight firmly on the city’s waste pickers.
The initiative, titled “Recycle Resolutions”, features short-form musical reels by comedian–creator Shraddha Jain, popularly known as Aiyyo Shraddha, and musician Vasu Dixit. The aim is straightforward: encourage citizens to handle waste better so recyclability improves and the work of informal waste pickers becomes safer and more dignified.
Built for social media, the reels use music and rhyme to drive home everyday actions, washing food containers, separating old clothes and marking hazardous waste, in a format that is easy to watch, remember and repeat. The campaign’s creators say the content is already gaining organic traction online, helped by its simplicity and strong cultural connect.
Each reel links household behaviour directly to the conditions in which waste pickers work, underlining how careless disposal can endanger lives, while small habits can make a tangible difference.
The campaign builds on earlier initiatives that showed clear results. A drive urging residents to wash containers before disposal saw about 60% adoption among those exposed to it. A clothes-reuse push led to the collection of 1.8 tonnes of garments across 16 dry waste collection centres in a month. Another campaign encouraging people to wrap and mark sanitary and hazardous waste prompted safe practices among 41% of exposed audiences.
Musician Dixit said the message was rooted in everyday action, not grand promises. “Real change doesn’t need grand gestures; it’s in the small, daily acts. When we handle our waste responsibly, we make the work of our waste pickers safer and more dignified,” he said, calling Recycle Resolutions a reminder to stick with habits that already work.
Comedian Shraddha, associated with the initiative since 2021, struck a familiar New Year chord. “Most resolutions fizzle out by February. But these are simple – wash your dabba, send old clothes to dry waste centres, and help make waste pickers’ jobs safer and dignified,” she said.
Those behind the campaign said the timing was deliberate, tapping into the New Year mindset to turn familiar actions into lasting routines. The idea, they said, was not to invent new habits but to amplify existing ones at the right cultural moment so they stick beyond the lifespan of a campaign.
The broader effort is part of a city-wide collective initiative involving multiple partners working to ensure waste pickers lead more secure and dignified lives, with greater agency. The campaign is being rolled out through digital platforms and outdoor spaces across Bengaluru, including prominent public transit locations.
With music as the hook and dignity as the message, Recycle Resolutions is betting that small habits, repeated daily, can quietly make the city cleaner, fairer and safer for those who handle its waste.
HL: The curious case of disappearing underwear
OB Bureau
A 23-year-old man from Kerala was arrested by Bangalore police midweek for allegedly stealing women’s undergarments from residential homes and filming himself wearing them.
The accused, identified as Amul, was residing within the limits of the Hebbagodi police station. His movements had raised suspicion after CCTV cameras captured him frequenting residential lanes, particularly areas where clothes were hung out to dry, a senior police officer said.
Investigators said Amul would scout balconies and houses, wait until the surroundings were clear, and then make off with women’s undergarments. His arrest followed a review of CCTV footage tracking his repeated movements in the neighbourhood.
During interrogation, police recovered a large stash of stolen undergarments from his residence. A forensic examination of his mobile phone further revealed multiple videos allegedly showing him wearing the stolen clothes. Amul reportedly told investigators that he felt “intoxicated” while wearing the garments.
The Hebbagodi police registered a suo motu case against him under Sections 303(2) (theft), 329(4) (house trespass), and 79 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, which relates to acts intended to insult the modesty or intrude upon the privacy of a woman.
The arrest comes amid a spate of similar incidents reported in Karnataka in recent months. In March 2025, Tumakuru police had arrested a 25-year-old software engineer for stealing the innerwear of female students.
CCTV footage backed his confession, in which he admitted to committing thefts across several parts of the city. As the victims chose not to file formal complaints, he was released on bail with a warning. Police later said the accused was addicted to watching pornographic content.
In another incident earlier this year, Hebbagodi police arrested a 23-year-old man on January 19 for allegedly wearing women’s innerwear and roaming in public places, triggering fear and outrage among women. The accused was seen posing obscenely in public areas, prompting complaints of public nuisance.
Police said investigations in the latest case are ongoing, as they seek to determine the full extent of the thefts and whether more victims are involved.
HL: Rs 460 cr trail: ED adds more MUDA assets
OB Bureau
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has tightened the noose in the MUDA scam, provisionally attaching 10 immovable properties, including six illegally allotted Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) sites, with a combined market value of Rs 20.85 crore.
The attachment, carried out on January 21 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, is part of the high-profile case involving Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and others. With the latest action, the total value of proceeds of crime attached so far in the case has touched a staggering ₹460 crore.
According to the ED, the properties attached include six MUDA sites, three other immovable properties and a commercial building. The agency initiated its probe based on an FIR registered by the Lokayukta Police in Mysuru, which flagged large-scale irregularities in the allotment of sites by MUDA.
Searches conducted on October 28, 2024, revealed that the allotments were made in gross violation of statutory rules governing compensation and voluntary surrender of land. Investigators said the sites were allotted in breach of the Karnataka Urban Development Authorities rules amended in 2015, as well as the incentive scheme rules of 1991.
The searches also exposed what the agency described as a deep nexus between MUDA officials and real estate businessmen. Evidence gathered during the probe pointed to cash payments made for the allotment of sites as compensation and for securing layout approvals.
Earlier, the ED had attached 283 illegally allotted MUDA sites along with three personal properties in the same case. Former MUDA Commissioner G.T. Dinesh Kumar, accused of making large-scale illegal allotments, was arrested under the PMLA on September 16, 2025, and remains in judicial custody.
Further investigation revealed alleged routing and layering of undue gratification obtained by Dinesh Kumar, with the proceeds used to purchase immovable properties and construct a commercial building in the names of relatives and associates. The probe also found that former MUDA Chairman S.K. Marigowda allegedly received gratification in the form of MUDA sites for facilitating illegal allotments.
Meanwhile, the legal battle continues to simmer. The Special Court for MLAs and MPs in Bengaluru has posted to January 28 the hearing of an appeal challenging the filing of a closure report by the Lokayukta in the MUDA case against Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and others. The appeal has been filed by activist Snehamayi Krishna and the ED.
With fresh attachments and the money trail widening, the MUDA scam investigation shows no signs of slowing down, as agencies dig deeper into what they say is a sprawling web of illegal allotments and illicit gains.