Why aren’t we celebrating the announcement of a new Task Force to improve the way everyone commutes?
Representational image. Pic/iStock
There has been a surprisingly muted response to the government’s latest plan for transport, which worries me because it makes me feel as if there is a lack of faith whenever promises about seamless travel are made. I thought there would be dancing in the streets, given that the project was announced barely a week after passengers fell from an overcrowded train and died. Then again, maybe it’s just a case of everyone hearing it all before.
For those who didn’t notice the announcement in question, a Task Force was announced to integrate all public transport in Mumbai and provide a seamless, single-ticket experience. Apparently, NITI Aayog — that globally recognised body responsible for some of the world’s most astonishing projects that many have never heard of — has proposed a concept for developing urban areas. These are to be referred to as G-Hubs (because ‘growth hubs’ doesn’t sound as complicated) and will be where ‘economic growth strategies’ are to be implemented. These G-Hubs will then be replicated across the country, eventually transforming India into one massive G-Hub that everyone will presumably look upon in envy.
Now I don’t know about you, dear reader, but it all sounds very thorough and realistic to me. Having said that, it also reminds me of a more ambitious plan rolled out a decade or so ago, where cities would be selected as drivers of growth, and turned into sustainable, inclusive, futuristic sites built on intelligence and innovation. I can’t remember what the project was called, but I don’t think NITI Aayog had anything to do with it, or we would have seen results by now. That amazing project was officially shut down earlier this year, after failing to make any noticeable impact on the ground.
To get back to the project of the month, Mumbai has been selected as the first G-Hub, and the Task Force will work towards implementing all kinds of recommendations that will eventually drive economic development. That’s not all, because whatever it does will also attract foreign investment, promote startups and employment opportunities, and ‘sustain momentum’. It’s a lot of words that appear to describe something good, even as they explain very little.
This may sound like an awful thing to say, but I have been hearing about foreign investment and employment opportunities since I was a teenager. Both are mentioned routinely, every other year, because few of us bother asking for facts or figures. When I was younger, we were promised so much foreign money that the transformation of Mumbai into Singapore or Shanghai was taken for granted. We were told it was just around the corner, even as Singapore and Shanghai became greener, flashier, and fancier, while we lost all the trees at Marine Drive. As for employment opportunities, I’m not sure if we really need them anymore. After all, it appears as if every young Indian today is either an Instagram influencer, content creator, or entrepreneur. Who needs jobs?
The last thing the Task Force will do is prepare an Integrated Bus Transportation Plan for the metropolitan region, with the aim of offering commuters a seamless, single-ticket experience. What this means is, you may have to wait an hour for the bus (the numbers have been declining steadily for years) and may even manage to enter one of them by pushing your way through, but when you do, you can rest assured that your ticket will be valid for any other mode of public transport you choose.
I suppose I ought to stop here because it’s starting to sound as if there is an unnecessary amount of scepticism when it comes to evaluating what the government proposes. In my defence, that creeping sense of doubt comes from personal history, and from decades lived in the shadow of other well-publicised plans and projects. There’s nothing wrong with making grandiose announcements, but I find it odd when a state government makes the expression ‘fake it till you make it’ it’s official policy.
It doesn’t take a Task Force to try and figure out that there are serious problems with public transport in Mumbai that have been identified and ignored for decades. Thousands of common people have lost their lives, and continue to die daily, because of successive governments that have the wrong priorities in place. Until we can acknowledge that and divert funds towards projects that benefit the majority rather than a car-driving minority, these plans will continue to be promises on paper, announced conveniently before an election is scheduled.
When he isn’t ranting about all things Mumbai, Lindsay Pereira can be almost sweet. He tweets @lindsaypereira
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