India Unravelled...
I just got back from a vacation in India. I spent my time in Bangalore (the Silicon Alley of the south), Kerala (God’s own…) and somewhere in between.
I flew BA via London to Bangalore. The flight to London was an hour behind when it landed. Then we had to wait for gates at Heathrow. After a while the captain said we will be bused to the terminus. The buses came but we were still stuck in the aircraft. Turns out they forgot to get the ladder. I barely managed to get on the Bangalore flight.
Castles in the air require no infrastructure
Bangalore was a shock. It looks like the bastard child of unplanned development and greed.
The roads are non existent. I remarked to my friend who grew up in Chennai but now makes Bangalore her home that the roads in Chennai are much better. And, she said – “I bet you never thought you would ever say such thing.” Almost all my friends claim to have one way commute of one to two hours to work. That, combined with long hours at work to handle the overseas calls meant most have no life.
And, what does the government do to improve the situation – rename the city. Yeah, right. That is one way to spend the precious little tax money – on new stationery and repainting the signboards in two or three languages. But, they are not the first – Bombay became Mumbai and around the same time everything there became known as Chhatrapati Shivaji something. Why won’t these ultranationalists build a railway terminus better than Victoria Terminus and then call it whatever they want. And, my hometown made a mad rush to transform from Madras to Chennai.
Kerala is a beauty – of a different sort. Since there has hardly been any industry or infrastructure development in this state, they are partly right in calling it “God’s own country.” It is pretty much they way god left it. Plus, a few temples, mosques, churches, big mansions and lot of jewelers.
Truth is relative, not absolute
This time around I was hell bent on using my cell phone in India. So, when I got to Bangalore I bout myself a pre-paid SIM. Of course, in India to get a pre paid SIM you have to provide your photo, tax id or passport information. This to take care of the terrorists’ tendency to go for this product (America take note). So, Rs 250 got me my SIM. Then, I had to charge my card – another Rs 250. I punch in the recharge code and I get this message – You have Rs 100 worth of talk time. Hey, wait a minute – didn’t I pay Rs 250 for the recharge card. I call the customer service and I am told that Rs 250 recharge card gives me Rs 100 worth of talk time and other Rs 150 is processing fee. Now, why would they be upfront about this?
A week later the same company introduced “Rs 999 Lifetime prepaid” plan. Now, I had already spent Rs 750 on my cell phone. So, I decided this offer to keep my prepaid number valid for life is too good. The offer comes with other goodies like “Full talk time on recharge” etc… I go to a reseller to get it and I ask him to explain the details of the offer. He says “full talk time means you will get about 90% of what you pay – Rs 225 worth of talk time on an Rs 250 recharge.” Great. I punch in the new code and I get a new message – “Your SIM card is valid until Spet 2008. You have time till Oct 2008 to recharge your card.” I guess “lifetime” is very short in India – wonder whether they were referring to my lifetime or the company’s.
Some days later I happened to meet a VP for this telecom firm at a party. And, I asked him why they couldn’t be upfront with their pricing and plans. His response – “Everyone does it.”
“Why should I pay my taxes? The government is corrupt”
A recent India Today issue covered the growth of “black money” with the booming economy. Apparently there are only 85000 people who have a declared income of Rs 1 million (or, 10 lakhs). Pretty much everyone I know earn more that. And, one afternoon in Ganjam (a Banglore jeweler) the person on my right was buying jewels worth Rs .5 million and one on the left was buying something worth Rs .8 million. You want me to believe that there are only 85,000 in India who make Rs 1 million?
Some try to justify their tax evasion by pointing out that the government is corrupt so why bother paying taxes when you know that they are going to waste it or pocket it.
Hey, you get only what you deserve – the roads, the infrastructure and the government.
“It is those darn autos”
We all have a way of laying the blame on others. The affluent, who travel in cars, blame the traffic congestion on the autos. I guess they don’t realize that autos serve the function of public transportation for the less affluent. And, thanks to them evading taxes the government has not made any efforts to improve the public transportation system.
Transport
Indian Railways continue to surprise me. I booked my tickets on the web from US. Even the small stations had electronic kiosks where you can check your reservation status. Of course, the trains were still running late. I am told that is because of the traffic congestion
The Bangalore airport last year handled about 5 million passengers. It is possibly the smallest terminal to handle that kind of passenger volume in the world. And, guess what the darn airport was not meant to be a public airport.
Tourism
I spent a day at Kabini Jungle Lodges. It is amazing – clean, neat, quiet and very relaxing. All this without the typical five star gimmicks.
“It is a constant assault on your senses…”
A week before I left for India I met an American woman who had spent a month traveling in India. And, when someone at the meeting asked her about the experience, she remarked “It (India) is a constant assault on your senses… visual, smell, touch.. everything. Some good, some bad. But, boy you will feel alive.” Very true.
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