Call it disbelief, lack of faith or plain suspicion. But over the years, the mind of an urban dweller and cityscape worrier has been trained to not trust that something might actually be for the common good and that a long-drawn, well thought out and sustained effort remains a pipe dream. We have every reason to stick to that belief.

Take for example the days when we, albeit somewhat foolishly, believed that spaces outside every suburban railway station would be spruced up and ‘chakachak’ after one or two locations got the lucky ticket. Or, when we noticed cleaner and pedestrian-friendly footpaths in some parts, and imagined, it would be a smoother, happily-ever-after for the weary-soled folk elsewhere. Another development that’s caught our eye—in not-so-cool-fashion—has been the lit-up installations that are perched alongside street lights across the city and suburbs. Clearly, briefs to whoever it might have been, appear to be as diverse as chalk and cheese, as far as aesthetics go. The subject of traffic island ‘art installations’ will require a separate column, I suspect because to call most of them as eyesores would mean to address the issue as a minor one.