Topic:Write about any issue of importance to you.
Urgent review needed!!
NIMBY!
Beep! Beep! Stuck in a traffic jam, I was fed up of hearing continuous honking of cars. Tension of reaching on time for my Olympiad exam was so palpable on my face that even my cab driver could not resist asking me, "Why are you so tense?"
I was passing through Pedar Road, one of the most affluent areas in the city of Mumbai (previously known as Bombay). Yes, this is a city, which is known for many contrasts it embraces with ease. It is a city which boasts of many posh and high-rise buildings and at the same time is also known for Asia's largest slum, Dharavi. It is a city, which has prominent Indians, who figure in Forbes' global list of wealthiest persons and at the same time the city has many people, who struggle to get even two meals a day.
The city's infrastructure is woefully short of its growing needs. The situation is aggravated by continuous influx of migrants from all over the country, with a hope to make it big in life. With its coastal location, the city does not have large geographic area to grow and consequently faces high population density, congested housing areas, inadequate transport infrastructure, growing problems of water supply and sanitation. The city presents a typical problem of a growing Indian city, which is struggling to expand urban infrastructure. Developing infrastructure, especially in a growing urban location, is akin to changing wheels of a car while it is in motion. The challenges are many and the biggest one is the NIMBY i.e. "Not-in-my-backyard" syndrome.
The traffic jams on Pedar Road, have only worsened over the years. A vast majority of office-going population travels to offices in south Mumbai through this road. They suffer every day; waste gasoline (petrol); add to emissions and experience long delays. Yet the strong opposition from local population to the planned flyover over the Pedar Road, has never faded. While the city administration had developed a number of flyovers, a vast majority of these are in downtown areas mostly populated by city's middle class. This infrastructure development has been welcomed and used by one and all, whether rich or poor. But development of flyover on Pedar Road has only remained on paper, gathering dust in city's development plans. NIMBY attitude of Pedar Road citizens had come in for a sharp criticism from city's masses. They would question : Do you not use flyovers in our areas? Why should you oppose a flyover in your area? Just because it affects your view? Just because you are rich and influential?...As these thoughts were going through my mind, I felt the solution to this problem was not as difficult as it appeared...
...As growing children in our own housing complex, we had successfully handled NIMBY in our way. Perhaps that was my first encounter with NIMBY. When a proposal, to develop a tennis court with an enclosure, was mooted, many members, living in the vicinity of the proposed structure, opposed it. They feared that players will make noise; create lot of nuisance and enclosure to the court would obstruct their view. Initially I and my friends were saddened to hear this but we did not give up. We worked together; convinced many children belonging to families of those who opposed the tennis court; undertook a door to door campaign; and requested the architect to modify layout to minimize obstruction to the view. Finally, when the proposal was put to vote in the Annual General Body meeting of the society, it sailed through smoothly with a vast majority supporting it.
I could connect dots and felt that the solution to NIMBY problem in creating urban infrastructure could be developed on similar lines. What we needed was technology; transparency and governance.
Advancement of technology has continuously reduced costs and has made infrastructure more affordable. Telecom sector is a classic example of this. Cellular phones used to be a luxury around 15 years back and were affordable to a select few. Today, with continuous progress in technology, cellular telephony services have become extremely cheaper and cell phones are being used by even household maids! If construction technology continues to make strides, underground tunnels could become far cheaper to develop and NIMBY problem faced by city flyover projects could be avoided by planning for underground tunnels.
Transparency - is at the heart of establishing credibility. You require innovative and relentless efforts in building positive opinion about the project. You need to be upfront about the project; undertake public consultation at an early stage and work on shaping right perception about the project. Such efforts could even include debates in citizens' forum to help build broader consensus. This is an inescapable step in a project development, especially in a democratic society like India.
Governance - decision-making in respect of such projects, which have a potential of transforming city's infrastructure, ought to be broad-based. It must involve not only local administration but also involve elected representatives drawn from citizens of the city. The implementation agency should be held accountable to the people at large and must periodically share progress of the project; costs being incurred and benefits being generated for millions of citizens.
As I was deeply engrossed in thinking about a solution to developing city's infrastructure while dealing with NIMBY challenges, my cab driver almost woke me up and told me, "We have reached the exam venue". I got off hurriedly and rushed to the exam hall, beaming with confidence and with a smile on my face.
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