I have worked in Gurgaon for 14 years and lived there for 6 years. For many years I resisted moving to Gurgaon despite my long daily commute from North Delhi. I felt Gurgaon was a concrete jungle and did not have a soul. When I eventually did shift to Gurgaon and got embedded deeply into the city, my views changed dramatically. I fell totally in love with Gurgaon.
So how did this metamorphosis happen in my views on Gurgaon. The answer is simple, the positive, action oriented communities I have experienced in this city. Gurgaon like other Indian cities has many problems – poor infrastructure, horrible pollution, depleting water table to name just a few. What is different about this young city is that citizens just don’t sit and complain but take personal responsibility and step up for social causes. I have been fortunate to be part of three such outstanding communities in the city: Nasscom Regional Council, CarFreeDay Core group and World Spa.
The key driver of Gurgaon’s economy is the IT and BPO industry and I had the privilege of leading NASSCOM Regional Council, the industry body for a number of years. This group is unlike other industry associations. It went beyond narrow concerns for the industry and conceived a powerful vision for Gurgaon – to develop Gurgaon as the Silicon Valley of the East. The group has lobbied tirelessly to develop a forward-looking IT policy for the state, taken initiatives to encourage start-ups and most importantly has championed the cause for improving Gurgaon’s infrastructure.
As we assessed Gurgaon’s competitive position, it was clear before we talk about a fancy vision we had to solve the more basic problems and ensure that Gurgaon was a sustainable and livable city. As we analyzed the root causes, we came to a conclusion that the greatest challenge the city faced was poor transportation infrastructure and the fatal fascination with cars. They occupy large volume for the number of passengers transported and have high pollution footprint. Our roads are bad and need to be improved, but no amount of road construction can keep pace with the growth of vehicles. There is no option but to embrace public transportation and multi-modal transportation in a very pervasive way.
This is where the Car Free Day core group and Nasscom Haryana joined hands. Activists, experts and the industry joined hands and started lobbying with the state government to make the necessary investments into public transport infrastructure – simple things like a public bus service, walking and cycling paths, and integrated approach to planning and execution. However, after a while we realized that the response from the government was very slow. We then changed tracks and decided that instead of worrying just about the infrastructure/ supply side where we had little control, we should focus more on awareness building and personal change. We felt the demand side actions were more in our circle of influence.
Over the past 2-3 years, we tried multiple initiatives from “CEOs walking to work” to producing a music video called “Walk On” along with Dr. Palash Sen and his band Euphoria to promote walking and cycling.
There are 35-40 companies from NASSCOM and other industries who embraced the idea of non-motorized transport. Corporates have made systemic changes in transport options they are offering to their employees (e.g., replacing cabs with shuttle buses). Recently corporates have also started experimenting with community based solutions.
Perhaps the most inspiring and enjoyable aspect of the non-motorized transport initiative has been the opportunity to work with some truly outstanding people. For example, CarFreeDay Core group are hi-achieving professionals who have committed themselves selflessly for a Better Gurgaon. They have faced bureaucratic apathy and lack of civic awareness yet managed to persevere and drive some pioneering initiatives. This group conceived Raahgiri Day and then the CarFreeDay. Both these initiatives have gone well beyond Gurgaon and have taken root in multiple cities across India.
And finally, World Spa my home, a wonderful, close-knit community. It is a pioneering community, which came together and pushed out the shoddy builder and took on the responsibility of running the apartment complex themselves. Having gone through this initial hardship together has bonded the community in a very special way. It is a model community with a distinctive “World Spa spirit” that residents fight to protect. Residents have very close relationships and are there to support each other. At the same time discipline is maintained and rules are followed. Residents association is taken very seriously and many residents invest significant time in being part of it. Most of all, it is a fun community. World Spa parties are legendary. Every festival is celebrated in style and there are a ton of social activities to keep the community engaged.
Gurgaon is truly the face of new India. It presents opportunities and challenges in equal measure. It is driven by the IT industry, which is such a big hope for the country. At the same time it faces severe urban development challenges that put a question mark on the future of the city. However, the many positive and action oriented communities in Gurgaon offer so much hope for the future. The problems of our cities are too grave for the government to be able to solve alone. It needs citizens to step up and take responsibility. So many communities in Gurgaon have shown that it is possible. This is a wonderful example for other cities to follow.
