In a lot of my posts last year I have been mentioning the superior infrastructure in my home city of Ahmedabad compared to some of the cities like Bangalore, Chennai and Mumbai, where I have lived within the last decade.
I am truly amazed by the amount of development work that has happened in the city. Some of it is of course very apparent. The roads are great, wider than ever and no potholes. The BRTS has been a success. I saw a note in this morning's papers that the old city is going to get the Monorail on an experimental basis for 15 kms. The Kankaria lake has been transformed and marketed in a big way. You can feel the buzz of progress when in Ahmedabad. And I am told that this focus on development is not only restricted to cities like Ahmedabad. The interiors of the state are also witnessing a change. Some of the captains of the Indian industry seem to agree with me as they have endorsed Gujarat as the country's premier investment destination by committing investments of 250000 crores within an hour of the first day of the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit 2011!
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| Industry captains @ the summit. |
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| Vibrant Gujarat campaign |
How has this transformation been possible from the ravages of the riot ridden state a few years back? Good governance is the only answer. However, it is also important to understand the background and the context in which this transformation has been achieved.
Chief Minister, Narendra Modi has been projected as the main catalyst and change agent for this transformation. However, just a decade ago, Modi was the face of communal politics for his hard line views on Hinduism and his antics in the Godhra massacre aftermath. I am no fan of his, because of exactly these reasons. However, I have to admit that Modi has successfully diverted the attention of the classes as well as the masses from his narrow focus on communal politics, to the larger vision of driving the agenda of development in the state. There has been a deliberate attempt to 'let bygones be bygones'. Modi, in this process, has transformed himself into a CEO of the state. Political stability since 2002, in the state has helped matters. Something else that has made this work has been the image of the CM as well as his government. This government is seen as a honest one; integrity being one of the cornerstones of Modi's image itself. On top of all of this, the decision making process has been super-fast! A good example is the Tata Nano factory at Sanand. The land for the factory was allotted in 3 days flat, after Ratan Tata was hounded out of WB by Mamata. And, last but not the least, the state was the leader in the agriculture sector as well last year, with a growth rate of 9.9%.
All of this makes me very happy. I hope this good story continues and Gujarat truly becomes the engine of India's growth in the next few decades. I am still not a supporter of the political views of the CM and his party. However, I am definitely impressed with what he has been able to achieve on the development front.
And, there is still a lot to be done. For example, offer me something which will make me move back to my hometown!
Take care!
8 comments:
'Ravages of a riot-ridden state'? Only Ahmedabad and Baroda, and some obscure towns in that region.
Rajkot, Jamnagar, Surendranagar or Bhavnagar never had much communal tension, even in the bad old Congress KHAM days.
Very nice to read !!!
Though we get a solace hearing about the good governance and high GDP rate in a little corner of the nation, over the last 2 years, I guess NaMo( as he is referred to by his charmers )is earning the wrath of youth, some rural masses and small business groups. Lets wait and watch for more in the coming days. But, really hats-off to his courage to counter-face the ruling Congress simultaneously fetching himself international accolades and developing Gujarat to a level what we witness today. The other states have not even reached this level.The credit goes to him alone and not the BJP as evident from the cynical growth in other BJP governing states.
Cheers!
I thought Kankaria, BRTS, etc. are a result of the local government and administration's efforts. What does Modi have to do with any of these?
@Great Expectations: Please identify yourself! Gujarat, was always a riot prone state. A communal riot at the slightest provocation, pre or post KHAM days. Ahmedabad and Baroda are two big cities and the biggest commercial centers in Gujarat; the maximum impact zones. No wonder they were the focus of the instigators of the riots.
@Nalini : Tend to agree with your comments.
@Samir : Do you even know who the local administration in Ahmedabad is? Modi is the de-facto mayor of Ahmedabad. He is the driving force. Of course, he has a bunch of able administrators who make it all happen in the state government and the city administration.
I don't know how the administration in Ahmedabad is run now. But back in the day, there wasn't a whole lot that the state government messed with except for security (remember our TeenTaal days?), and that too only when the s*^% hit the fan. :)
The administration in Ahmedabad, and for that matter all the BJP ruled municipalities, is run by the state government, driven by the larger than life image of Modi in the state. It appears to me that almost all of the ideation happens in Gandhinagar and is executed faithfully by the municipal administrations.
I read this after few weeks after it has been written. But it is still an interesting piece.
I am from Tamilnadu, and what I keep hearing about Gujarat, it is really a wonderful show by Narendra Modi. As Nalini wrote, the credit should go to him alone and may be not for the party. But his ability to hold his ground against the party big-wigs is an achievement by itself. And that too a piece like this coming from Suresh is a tribute to Mr Modi.
History is replete with instances of excesses on human rights by every party and every dynasty, if you want to go a little farther than Independent India. Who can forget the 1984 Anti-Sikh riots by Congress goons in Delhi and many parts of N India. We still keep calling Congress, the secular party! That is to me is a sheer stupidity.
What is more heartening is the 9.9% agriculture growth. I am convinced that unless we develop our agriculture to take care of the 110 crores of hungry Indians, we are going to go around in another 10 years with the begging bowl!!
Very valid points, Venkat. You are right in saying that Congress' cannot project itself as a secular party. I think it is not even about being secular or otherwise; I think it is all about power; raw power. Whoever sees the opportunity to get access to that power, finds and adopts all possible means to get it. In the case of our political establishment and its players, means is definitely not a deterrant to the end.
But yes, it looks like the people have started realising that development should be the only agenda. Bihar is a good example, Gujarat is another. It is high time the politicians also realise this.
Cheers!
Suresh
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