I won’t be rebuked if I say that Bangalore is the IT hub of India. Well, it is and yea it is for the right reasons. Almost all the big MNC names have their presence here on this high rising plateau also called as the silicon valley due to the presence of electronic MNCs again .Bangalore in a way has embraced all this in a very subtle manner. However the Diaspora is felt by the people who shift in this city due to job requirements only to find that city has already reached its saturation point long back. By now you people would have guessed what this blog is about I am sure some of you are still clueless.
When I was being shifted to Bangalore I was said Bangalore is a costly city to live in, the standard of living is in Bangalore has reached dizzy heights. I was also told that it’s a happening city to live in and things like that. Well this blog is born out of my observation of people who live, thrive, praise and crib about the city. None of these emotions are wrong its just the way we see it. There is nothing wrong in praising this city or cribbing about the laws of this city, in anyways it’s not going to hurt anyone and therefore it’s absolutely normal to give a vent to one's emotions.
Bangalore is a beautiful city, so say the residents of Bangalore who have been living here for quite some time. They own houses here and have families settled here. Well it is , I do agree with it. In my short stay here in this traffic dominant city I have seen few areas of Bangalore that do stand apart, a lot of greenery is still left in Bangalore. What makes Bangalore stand apart is its pleasant climate. The basic question that pops put of the 5th grade text books in Indian schools is "Why is Bangalore, though not a not a hill has an average annual temperature lower than most of the other cities situated on the plains. The reason is Bangalore is situated on a plateau rather than a plain. Therefore this is the reason why Bangalore is much cooler than the other cities which lie on the same latitude as Bangalore but are comparatively warmer. Well that was for the gyan part of the blog.Every Indian city has some or the other part of it which is influenced by the British culture. There are a number of places in Bangalore which still have British names given to them; the strong British influence can be attributed to Bangalore being State Administrative HQ during the British rule in India. Under the British influence, Bangalore bloomed with modern facilities like the railways, telegraphs, postal and police departments. In 1881, the British returned the city to the Wodeyars. Diwans like Mirza Ismail and sir Vishweshwarayya were the pioneers to help Bangalore attain its modern outlook. I am sure old residents this city would have a lot of knowledge to impart. Therefore a person like me has every possible reason to get intrigued by the history of the lost beauty of this city. It’s absolutely normal for me to explore the numerous lakes that this city boasts of though seen none yet.
However it is the people who make a city the way it is. Bangalore may have a lot of things good here but then it’s a city for the rich and the pomp. If ones pockets are heavy and ones love to party and have fun it’s the best place. The Union Health Minister Mr.Ramadoss whose speech I recently attended had found a youth next to him on his flight to Bangalore complaining that Chennai does not have as many bars as Bangalore. Well for those whom visiting pubs everyday is a part of the daily routine would not find anything wrong with it but then one cannot overlook to the fact that a number of youths of the city are getting spoilt by the amount of money which they have access to and of course the negative impacts of globalization. .A lot of Hype is given to this city on lines of materialistic passions. I mean how many people would be ready to settle down in Bangalore just because there are more number of pubs, malls and places to eat than any other city. It does not sound practical. Television channels show Bangalore as a happening city, they hover across the cities capturing the happening events of the city. The “FOODIE” of Times NOW chose Bangalore for their “Dosa” special show.Dosa being a delicacy of Tamil Nadu is always prepared better there. I am sure u wont be surprised to see “FOODIE” in Bangalore for their special show on “DOHKALA” rather than being in Gujarat for that. Time and again the television channels show discrimination when they cover Bangalore for cultural events and not Chennai or Ahmadabad or for that matter Noida and Pune, these cities don’t seem to be far behind.Noida and Gurgaon are fast developing. However the point to be proven here is one should not judge the city by the amount of Hype given to it or the number of malls and pubs that cities have. This in turns results in people forming negative opnions about a city without even living in the city. Bangalore is more cosmopolitan than most other cities of India and more advanced too but then one cannot deny the fact that globalization has its roots deep in the society of Bangalore.
Almost every other person here works in an IT company but not every other person is rich. Recently one of my colleagues had to face a lot of problems in finding a house for herself. As the trend goes here one has to pay a years rent in advance to book a house compared to the other cities like Hyderabad where IT professionals follow the trend of paying two months of advance. For most of us who are unmarried and are starting our career have to make a living out of the pittance that we get, its a real difficult life out here. Landlords here have an obstinate mindset and the first question they ask is "Do you work in an IT company”. Once you say yes the rent automatically shoots up along with the expectations. A house holding an area of 660 sqft is placed for rent for ten thousand (INR J ) whereas the same house can be rented in other of cities of India for much cheaper rates. However the irony is that the professionals who work in and around the city are ready to pay that much .Again we ourselves are to be blamed for it. With Indian economy well poised to be one of the strongest economies in the coming years just after China’s, a lot of people have been benefited by the wave of globalization. Globalization in one way has helped the IT industry by creating numerous jobs in the country. Today higher ranked IT professionals have annual salaries soaring well above their counterparts in other sectors .This empowers some of us with a higher spending power and also increases the inflation rate which has become a matter of concern for the Indian economy in the recent times. No more practical laws of depreciation are followed as people are ready to pay a higher amount for things that they could get for less. The public folder of a reputed company advertises a "second-hand" Hero Honda splendor bike for 23,000.The bike being six years old and being second -hand is not worth that much. It was some 10 years back that we used to hear from our dads an grand dads that even if a new bike had changed hands once its price comes down to half rate of it plus or minus a few thousands. Practical thinking is absolutely not required for the higher salaried professionals of today. They don’t mind spending 200-400 bucks a movie or 50 bucks on a 150 ml of cola. Today Bangalore is the way people have made it.
Standard of living does rise with the increase in GDP.With India’s GDP soaring high at 7-8% does not license for the increase in inflation too. A lot has to be done on the municipal front. One has to battle out his/her way against the threats of traffic an pollution that this city offers as free entitlements specially to the people who work in Electronics city where most of the IT companies are concentrated. I might sound absolutely ridiculous when I say that my friend who boarded a bus from E-city at 6.15 did not reach the railway station in the city even after fours of traveling in the city and guess what he had to board a train to Chennai which is jus 6 hours away from Bangalore. This purely means that the city can’t take any more number of motor vehicles and might also need better planned roads. The irony is that once upon a time Bangalore was considered one of the best planned cities in India. India might start winning the FIFA cup someday but then the chances of the elevated project on Hosur road getting completed are bleak. Every other day some part of it is being renovated giving an opportunity to the bus drivers to show their extreme sports skills. The buses to avoid traffic sometimes changes lanes and in the process they sometimes have to treat the kerbstone as it was a part of the road. All this one has to go through to reach the city ,it does not stop here. The minimum rate that one has to pay to travel in this city is much higher compared to a lot of other Indian cities. I have never paid less that 10 rupees to travel a few kilometers. Chennai which boasts of one of the best transport corporation has tickets starting from as low as Rs 2 .There have been numerous occasions when I as a school lad would have helped old people and beggars by giving them a small amount so that they can reach wherever they want but in Bangalore one has to have a minimum of 10 rs to make it anywhere.
Its high time that the government started putting aside its ambitious gains started looking seriously into the matters that would help this beautiful city retain whatever is left. The crowd here is maddening and being a center for a lot of economical activity it’s an unavoidable destination for foreign tourists. However the sad state of the Bangalore airport does not help in any way nor does it give any rest to the commuters who face the problems of crowded buses and roads even on Sundays and late at nights. Bangalore can become a better place to live in but the challenge is a lot of nasty traditions have to be changed. This is a difficult task as it is us who have set these traditions wrong. A collective effort will surely make a difference if common sense and experience of some of us is put forth .This might in turn benefit a lot of new professionals like me coming into the city. Persistent negotiations and common sense packed with experience shown by the citizens will surely take us far in changing some of the costly traditions of this city. This has to be combined with municipality’s help, its clear now that the city is left with no space for more IT companies and therefore the permits should be stopped. The state of Karnataka ranks first among the highest power using states of India and added to it the state government is predicting an acute shortage of power this summer. Proper planning in advance will surely pave the way in at least saving whatever is left in this beautiful city. A few issue of concern are common to a lot of cities of India but then this blog is written by me an I spend most of my time in Bangalore.
Well I don’t want anyone to form negative opinions about the city. The above written stuff is entirely based on my observation of the city and the people living in it. The thoughts are born out of practical experiences of my friends and acquaintances. Well for me I live with G.K. Chesterton’s Philosophy J.You will have to wait for a while for me to gather thoughts to write a blog on Chesterton’s philosophy. Till then happy wondering on what could the philosophy mean.
Labels: The city where I dwell and work..
When I was being shifted to Bangalore I was said Bangalore is a costly city to live in, the standard of living is in Bangalore has reached dizzy heights. I was also told that it’s a happening city to live in and things like that. Well this blog is born out of my observation of people who live, thrive, praise and crib about the city. None of these emotions are wrong its just the way we see it. There is nothing wrong in praising this city or cribbing about the laws of this city, in anyways it’s not going to hurt anyone and therefore it’s absolutely normal to give a vent to one's emotions.
Bangalore is a beautiful city, so say the residents of Bangalore who have been living here for quite some time. They own houses here and have families settled here. Well it is , I do agree with it. In my short stay here in this traffic dominant city I have seen few areas of Bangalore that do stand apart, a lot of greenery is still left in Bangalore. What makes Bangalore stand apart is its pleasant climate. The basic question that pops put of the 5th grade text books in Indian schools is "Why is Bangalore, though not a not a hill has an average annual temperature lower than most of the other cities situated on the plains. The reason is Bangalore is situated on a plateau rather than a plain. Therefore this is the reason why Bangalore is much cooler than the other cities which lie on the same latitude as Bangalore but are comparatively warmer. Well that was for the gyan part of the blog.Every Indian city has some or the other part of it which is influenced by the British culture. There are a number of places in Bangalore which still have British names given to them; the strong British influence can be attributed to Bangalore being State Administrative HQ during the British rule in India. Under the British influence, Bangalore bloomed with modern facilities like the railways, telegraphs, postal and police departments. In 1881, the British returned the city to the Wodeyars. Diwans like Mirza Ismail and sir Vishweshwarayya were the pioneers to help Bangalore attain its modern outlook. I am sure old residents this city would have a lot of knowledge to impart. Therefore a person like me has every possible reason to get intrigued by the history of the lost beauty of this city. It’s absolutely normal for me to explore the numerous lakes that this city boasts of though seen none yet.
However it is the people who make a city the way it is. Bangalore may have a lot of things good here but then it’s a city for the rich and the pomp. If ones pockets are heavy and ones love to party and have fun it’s the best place. The Union Health Minister Mr.Ramadoss whose speech I recently attended had found a youth next to him on his flight to Bangalore complaining that Chennai does not have as many bars as Bangalore. Well for those whom visiting pubs everyday is a part of the daily routine would not find anything wrong with it but then one cannot overlook to the fact that a number of youths of the city are getting spoilt by the amount of money which they have access to and of course the negative impacts of globalization. .A lot of Hype is given to this city on lines of materialistic passions. I mean how many people would be ready to settle down in Bangalore just because there are more number of pubs, malls and places to eat than any other city. It does not sound practical. Television channels show Bangalore as a happening city, they hover across the cities capturing the happening events of the city. The “FOODIE” of Times NOW chose Bangalore for their “Dosa” special show.Dosa being a delicacy of Tamil Nadu is always prepared better there. I am sure u wont be surprised to see “FOODIE” in Bangalore for their special show on “DOHKALA” rather than being in Gujarat for that. Time and again the television channels show discrimination when they cover Bangalore for cultural events and not Chennai or Ahmadabad or for that matter Noida and Pune, these cities don’t seem to be far behind.Noida and Gurgaon are fast developing. However the point to be proven here is one should not judge the city by the amount of Hype given to it or the number of malls and pubs that cities have. This in turns results in people forming negative opnions about a city without even living in the city. Bangalore is more cosmopolitan than most other cities of India and more advanced too but then one cannot deny the fact that globalization has its roots deep in the society of Bangalore.
Almost every other person here works in an IT company but not every other person is rich. Recently one of my colleagues had to face a lot of problems in finding a house for herself. As the trend goes here one has to pay a years rent in advance to book a house compared to the other cities like Hyderabad where IT professionals follow the trend of paying two months of advance. For most of us who are unmarried and are starting our career have to make a living out of the pittance that we get, its a real difficult life out here. Landlords here have an obstinate mindset and the first question they ask is "Do you work in an IT company”. Once you say yes the rent automatically shoots up along with the expectations. A house holding an area of 660 sqft is placed for rent for ten thousand (INR J ) whereas the same house can be rented in other of cities of India for much cheaper rates. However the irony is that the professionals who work in and around the city are ready to pay that much .Again we ourselves are to be blamed for it. With Indian economy well poised to be one of the strongest economies in the coming years just after China’s, a lot of people have been benefited by the wave of globalization. Globalization in one way has helped the IT industry by creating numerous jobs in the country. Today higher ranked IT professionals have annual salaries soaring well above their counterparts in other sectors .This empowers some of us with a higher spending power and also increases the inflation rate which has become a matter of concern for the Indian economy in the recent times. No more practical laws of depreciation are followed as people are ready to pay a higher amount for things that they could get for less. The public folder of a reputed company advertises a "second-hand" Hero Honda splendor bike for 23,000.The bike being six years old and being second -hand is not worth that much. It was some 10 years back that we used to hear from our dads an grand dads that even if a new bike had changed hands once its price comes down to half rate of it plus or minus a few thousands. Practical thinking is absolutely not required for the higher salaried professionals of today. They don’t mind spending 200-400 bucks a movie or 50 bucks on a 150 ml of cola. Today Bangalore is the way people have made it.
Standard of living does rise with the increase in GDP.With India’s GDP soaring high at 7-8% does not license for the increase in inflation too. A lot has to be done on the municipal front. One has to battle out his/her way against the threats of traffic an pollution that this city offers as free entitlements specially to the people who work in Electronics city where most of the IT companies are concentrated. I might sound absolutely ridiculous when I say that my friend who boarded a bus from E-city at 6.15 did not reach the railway station in the city even after fours of traveling in the city and guess what he had to board a train to Chennai which is jus 6 hours away from Bangalore. This purely means that the city can’t take any more number of motor vehicles and might also need better planned roads. The irony is that once upon a time Bangalore was considered one of the best planned cities in India. India might start winning the FIFA cup someday but then the chances of the elevated project on Hosur road getting completed are bleak. Every other day some part of it is being renovated giving an opportunity to the bus drivers to show their extreme sports skills. The buses to avoid traffic sometimes changes lanes and in the process they sometimes have to treat the kerbstone as it was a part of the road. All this one has to go through to reach the city ,it does not stop here. The minimum rate that one has to pay to travel in this city is much higher compared to a lot of other Indian cities. I have never paid less that 10 rupees to travel a few kilometers. Chennai which boasts of one of the best transport corporation has tickets starting from as low as Rs 2 .There have been numerous occasions when I as a school lad would have helped old people and beggars by giving them a small amount so that they can reach wherever they want but in Bangalore one has to have a minimum of 10 rs to make it anywhere.
Its high time that the government started putting aside its ambitious gains started looking seriously into the matters that would help this beautiful city retain whatever is left. The crowd here is maddening and being a center for a lot of economical activity it’s an unavoidable destination for foreign tourists. However the sad state of the Bangalore airport does not help in any way nor does it give any rest to the commuters who face the problems of crowded buses and roads even on Sundays and late at nights. Bangalore can become a better place to live in but the challenge is a lot of nasty traditions have to be changed. This is a difficult task as it is us who have set these traditions wrong. A collective effort will surely make a difference if common sense and experience of some of us is put forth .This might in turn benefit a lot of new professionals like me coming into the city. Persistent negotiations and common sense packed with experience shown by the citizens will surely take us far in changing some of the costly traditions of this city. This has to be combined with municipality’s help, its clear now that the city is left with no space for more IT companies and therefore the permits should be stopped. The state of Karnataka ranks first among the highest power using states of India and added to it the state government is predicting an acute shortage of power this summer. Proper planning in advance will surely pave the way in at least saving whatever is left in this beautiful city. A few issue of concern are common to a lot of cities of India but then this blog is written by me an I spend most of my time in Bangalore.
Well I don’t want anyone to form negative opinions about the city. The above written stuff is entirely based on my observation of the city and the people living in it. The thoughts are born out of practical experiences of my friends and acquaintances. Well for me I live with G.K. Chesterton’s Philosophy J.You will have to wait for a while for me to gather thoughts to write a blog on Chesterton’s philosophy. Till then happy wondering on what could the philosophy mean.
Labels: The city where I dwell and work..
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