The Economist* has come down rather hard on Bangalore’s crumbling infrastructure, but says that India’s IT and BPO boom is just beginning. Priceless line: “India’s advantages are so great that, however bad its aim, it will be hard-pressed to shoot itself in the foot.”
But the verdict on Bangalore is rather bleak. It does say that Bangalore’s problems are not really terminal, but a recovery is possible only if the Government actually builds all the roads and flyovers it had set out to. But from the horror stories I hear coming out of Bangalore, Dharam Singh is completely uninterested in the task. He and his cronies are only interested in making money by controlling the allotment of land at the outskirts of Bangalore.
*Incidentally, that link is subscription only, so don’t bother to click on it unless you are a subscriber.
One reason seems to be that the IT sector is not much of a political constituency (at the state level) that it should be. I’m not sure of the data, but I ‘feel’ that a a large number of IT workers/bosses are not on the Karnataka voters list. [Such generalisations based on ‘feel’ may put me at risk of attack by Dilip D Souza]
This “Bangalore-is-doomed” meme dates back, to me at least, to this post by Tyler Cowen. Since then, I have seen stories in several Indian magazines (India Today, The Week, Outlook …) on the infrastructure bottlenecks in Bangalore. The Bangalore edition of the Hindu ran a story a couple of days ago about how air travel time (including waiting time at the airport) may actually be shorter than the time one spends getting to the airport!
As a citizen of Bangalore, what do I think? All of it is true! Traffic snarls are common, so are electricity cuts. Fortunately, we don’t have a port that could add to our woes…
However, the real question is whether all this will “doom” Bangalore, and my guess is that it will probably not. Bangalore has many assets, its benign weather being the most prominent. Firms are coming here in droves. Microsoft, Google, Bell Labs, Yahoo are all here, and so are Oracle and SAP, and they have all announced plans to expand their Bangalore operations. A major biotechnology convention is going on even as I type this comment, and reports indicate that all the biggies are here.
Bottomline: The current momentum could carry the city for another 2-3 years; now, if the politicians so desire, that is ample time to repair the damage, and put things back into shape.
I have returned to India after 3+ years in Singapore and find that life in Bangalore has changed entirely. What used to be a leisurely 20 minute drive into the city now is a stress filled 50 minute drive. A forty minute ride to the Airport now takes more than an hour-and-a-half. Flyovers were commissioned and abandoned – half way. The Outer ring road was opened and promptly got converted into a 24 hour truck stop. Property prices have escalated, once again, to unattainable levels with speculators abounding. Whitefield, a quiet, sleepy suburb, is now a major hub – which cannot decide whether it is industrial, residential, commercial or IT.
Truck/tempo drivers (on the outer ring road from Hebbal to ITPL) and other two and three wheeler drivers (across the city) have forgotten all the traffic rules. They dont think twice before driving down the wrong side of the road (just because the next break in the median for making a U-turn is a little down the road is a little too inconvenient for their personal liking). They park anywhere they choose to. The entire 76 km Outer Ring Road stretch has become a mechanics paradise (Zero investment – stupendous returns) and a truck/private taxi stop – most of these vehicles are parked such that they block the No parking signboards. They drive on the right most lane (the supposed overtaking lane) at the slowest speed – sometimes taking up two lanes at a time thereby delaying vehicles which are actually capable of (and need to) travelling at faster speeds.
The KR Puram ‘hanging’ bridge’ was designed and cleared by people not in full control of their mental faculties. One only has to negotiate their way under the KR Puram bridge once during peak hour to recognise this fact.
It is not only the infrastructure that is crumbling, it is the entire fabric of public services in this city is too. Traffic police (sometimes 2-3 per signal) is too busy guiding traffic at intersections (those with automatic traffic lights – pray why?) and for evening nakabandis to do anything concrete about the huge scale traffic violations that occur across the city. BMTC bus drivers have an allergy towards bus stops and choose any place 100-250 metres from the designated bus stops to stop their buses. Ofcourse since it is too much trouble to stop in the left most lane, they have to take up the entire two-three lanes that are available (supposedly for other traffic). After the stop, the bus drivers just have to move to the right most lane – again blocking traffic while they try to achieve their objective – and once again when they reach the place where they choose to stop, they again block traffic, first by trying to move to the left (ostensibly) and then by stopping without leaving enough space for the other traffic to squeeze past. Our politicians are too busy bickering amongst themselves to bother about the public. After all, their movement is not hindered – they have right of way any time they choose to drive down any road. Any delays for meetings are due to them having left for the meeting late. Every citizen can see thru the reasons behind any politician’s rejection or delay in commissioning of any and every infrastructure related project (whether it be the international airport, roads, flyovers or the metro rail, electricty or water).
The less said about private buses, the better – I have seen one private bus conductor actually fill fuel in his vehicle while stopped to drop/collect passengers – quite oblivious to traffic piling up behind on the narrow two lane road to Whitefield. I won’t even bother to say anything about the attitudes of auto-rickshaw drivers.
Is it any wonder that certain sections of the society are turning to crime? After all, there is no deterrent. Police (both crime and traffic) are too busy safeguarding VIP’s (and the automated traffic signals, remember?) to bother about anything else. Laws in this city, it seems, only applies to the law abiding.
It is indeed too late to repair any damage or try to put things back to shape. What providence provided us (booming economy due to outsourcing and IT) will be wrecked and soon enough – all thanks to the lack of integrity of our so-called ‘public servants’
U need to be more patient. govt.’s move around in cirlce
Is its so bad in Bangalore now.. ? I worked there frrom 2001 and 2002 and even visited last year july 2004 but it seems there is too much press on the infra story.. wonder if Kolkata even got 10% of such bad press we would have done wonders… time trapped as we are [with perennial bad roads and 6 km road travelling takes 45 mins… here in Kolkata]
I will be visting Namma Bengalooru during Oct 23rd to 31st.. hope things would be ok..
Arup
Sir
I wish to lay down following few lines for your kind consideration and favourable action please. I have been served in the defence 17 yrs as a Driver in the corps of ASC.
Yours Sincerely,
Govindraj.
i don’t forsee the government getting their act together anytime soon. things will change once all the foreign companies doing business their start threatening to pull out.
Sunita J
You choose be there in Singapore I suggest you also choose not to come to bangalore.
sunita
what you say is very true about bangalore traffic. why blame the system alone.
Hi Sunita I too definately agree with U, once you make yur trip to Singapore and come back to Bangalore you will you are back in hell with the traffic.. Bangalore is very soon going to face a day when all the MNC’s will move to a different city becoz of pathetic infrastructure in Bangalore
Hi Sunita I too definately agree with U, once you make yur trip to Singapore and come back to Bangalore you feel you are back in hell with the traffic.. Bangalore is very soon going to face a day when all the MNC’s will move to a different city becoz of pathetic infrastructure in Bangalore
I am planning to buy a house in Bangalore can anyone suggest if the residential market will see a drop in the coming months.
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