The Bengre Experience

Bengre is a small sandpit of about 2 sq. kms with river on one side and sea on the other, adjoining Mangalore town. It is a ward of the Mangalore municipal corporation (MCC). The population of 1050 households is mostly from the fishing community. The TIDE project involves locally responsive city governance through action planning techniques. We identified civic issues of interest to the local community. These included problems such as the absence of title deeds for the property that they were occupying, inadequate disposal systems (solid waste) and contaminated drinking water.

The TIDE team created awareness among the local community and Mangalore city corporation about the situation and brought the corporator and the concerned persons to the community through the jana samparka sabha. All the three issues are currently being addressed the MCC.