Varun Prabhakar's Journal

In my experience of living 24 years in India I have had a lot of time to experience and think (and whine?) about the pain of adjusting and tolerating the nuances of rapid development. Be it the pollution, the lack of civic amenities, the almost crumbling infrastructure, the unreliability of public transport…I could go on and on about the list of problems but today I don’t want to talk about these negatives. I want to focus on some signs of hope I observed in my recently concluded trip to Delhi. I saw a change that has happened and is continuing in an Indian city; a change worthy of not only appreciation but also possible replication in other Indian cities.

Here are some of the things that I think have helped Delhi reinvent itself:

Delhi Metro:

Delhi Metro (Delhi’s new public transport system) is one of the best examples of hi-technology making a difference in people’s lives. It is clear that people have embraced this technology-driven change and are increasingly getting addicted to it. I used the Metro for most of my commute in my two days’ stay in Delhi and loved it!

Here are the highlights that stand out:

• Trains are very much on time, operating at a frequency of 3 to 4.5 minutes from 6:00 to 23:00.
• In a country where public property is always at risk of neglect and vandalism Delhi Metro is very clean and is being very well maintained. People have been using it since 2005 and 3 years cannot be a fluke!
• Technology behind ticketing and efficiency of the staff is exemplary.
• Security is world class with security checks at every entry point. This is supplemented by more than 1200 closed circuit cameras.
• As per a billboard at a metro station about 700,000 people use the metro every day.
• The metro covers about 65 kms of Delhi but by 2010 another 128 kms would have been added and by 2010 the Metro will cover about 414 kms which means almost all of Delhi and suburbs will be connected.

The qualitative comments about the Metro are mine but most of the statistics are from Wikipedia.

Roads:

Most Delhi roads, especially the main ones, are in very good condition and the flurry of flyovers constructed over the last few years has changed the landscape of Delhi from an aging overcrowded city to a well organized modern city. Well, yes there are problems in Delhi and the increase in traffic may sometimes feel like overpowering any improvements in transport but from my personal experience Delhi looks and smells much better than let’s say 5 years back.

Lower-Emission Public Transport:

Delhi operates the largest network of CNG(Compressed Natural Gas) powered buses. Even the auto-rickshaws and taxis are CNG based and it has helped reduced air pollution in Delhi. Though Delhi remains high on the most polluted cities’ list and a more holistic approach is needed to solve Delhi’s problems but this certainly feels like a step in the right direction.

Relocation of Small Scale industries:

This is a sensitive subject because closure of small and household industries from residential areas to the outskirts of Delhi might have led to loss of employment for some people. I don’t know the full impact on livelihood of people because of this action but the relocation to more spacious locations has the potential of creating hundreds of thousands of more opportunities. For the city, the relocation was done to decrease congestion, prevent power theft and decrease air pollution. The idea looked good on paper when the Supreme Court passed a judgment on relocation in 1996. I couldn’t find enough research available to evaluate the pros and cons of this step but again it feels like the right thing to do.

I just hope Bangalore (where I am located) takes a cue from Delhi and initiates some of the changes which make Delhi more livable; hopefully these changes will start before it is too late here…

DISCLAIMER: I have written this piece mostly on my instinct and don’t mean to judge the city one way or the other and people in Delhi might completely disagree with me. So, feel free to comment here or write to me to take this discussion forward.

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