Austerity steps. Koramangala techies take to carpooling.

1) Governance
Residents in Koramangala 6th Block have diverse views on the performance of the state government.

Hanumanth Gowda, a resident, says: "The BJP government has done a good job. On the other hand, I feel it is too early to assess the government’s performance. Yeddyurappa must be given at least a year to bring in the change. I guess, the ministry is trying to improve matters."

Prasob K, a resident, says: "The change in power does not result in good governance. The BJP government has not done anything spectacular. It has not made a total mess either."

Jagadish V, a resident, says: "The government has done an ok job. The administration, however, has not taken any significant step to improve the level of governance compared to the previous regime. I hope the chief minister will able to raise the revenue for the schemes announced in the recent budget."

2) Livelihood
Fears of recession turning into a depression have techies adopting austerity measures such as carpooling.

Shravanth Siddarth, a resident, says: "It is very tough for young professionals. You need to have a minimum three years of experience to survive the choppy waters  of the job market. But pink slips could be given to anybody depending on the individual performance. The downturn has hurt the IT sector badly. Some of my friends have lost their jobs. I wonder what measures can the government adopt to revive the economy."

Meena Rao, a resident, says: "I work for IBM. We have been relatively recession-proofed. But some of us employees are into austerity measures such as carpooling. We are also conscious about saving power at home."

Chandrika K, a resident, says: "I have two years of experience as a software engineer. So far, things have been fine. But there is an element of insecurity at the workplace. I guess that is the norm."

3) Safety and security
Working women are a wee bit careful about planning their day so as to reach home as early as possible. Residents feel comfortable in the neighbourhood.

Kamakshi K, a resident, says: "I have been living in this area for a long time. There are few worries over the safety and security. However, at times, I do hear of incidents such as chain-snatching and mobile theft. I believe every citizen should be responsible for his or her own safety. You cannot expect the government to provide blanket security to all."

Smitha Abilashi, a resident, says: "I always take care to see that I leave the work place pretty early. In fact all my female colleagues leave the place by 6pm. We are worried a bit about attacks against women happening in the city."

Rajasekhar Reddy, a resident, says: "We are from North Karnataka. We have no safety problems here. Koramangala is a nice neighbourhood and we have few problems related to security."

4) Communal harmony
Residents say the neighbourhood is free from communal tensions and bickering.

Ramesh Lanka, a resident, says: "I have been living here for the last two years. I have never seen anyone, or any group, disturbing peace in the neighbourhood. The residents are all from differing religious and ethnic backgrounds. One can’t make out their beliefs and rituals during the normal interaction. Most of them are hardly bothered about other people’s affairs."

Karuppan Chetty, a resident, says: "Residents have little time to spare for each other. These days malls see more people than churches and temples. Luckily there is no communal friction here."

Priyanka R, a resident, says: "We live in harmony with people of different beliefs and value systems. We may have security issues but not religious tensions. I guess most of them are educated professionals and have little time for religious bickering."