Economic Highlights

New Delhi, 15 May 2010

Delhi& C’wealth Games

WHAT ABOUT HIDDEN LOSSES?

By Shivaji Sarkar

While the government is all gaga over holding the Commonwealth Games, Delhiites rue it. Different estimates of the government’s wasteful expenditure are available – ranging from Rs 10,000 crore to Rs 30,000 crore. But none has estimated the cost dumped on the poor citizens. Ill-planned construction has led to huge traffic jams all over the city and the National Capital Region. It has increased the average commuting time by at least 30 to 45 minutes one-way – 60 to 90 minutes a day at the least. The man hours and extra fuel spent needs to be calculated.

On an average about 50 lakh people travel to work every day. This translates into 50 to 75 lakh man hours lost per day – 150 crore to 225 crore hours lost a year, presuming that a person works for 300 days a year. The citizens are suffering this ordeal for the past three years and Delhi has lost almost 450 to 675 crore productive hours in this period. Even if it is calculated at Rs 12 per hour on the basis of the minimum wages paid to a labourer it would mean Rs 5400 crore Rs 8100 crore has been lost on Delhi roads.

However, this is a modest calculation as it does not take into account the actual losses in terms of people whose income is much higher; the ordeal, which cannot be monetized; increases cost on health due to higher pollution and dust. If all these are put together in their actual terms, Delhi must have by now lost over three times the estimate – Rs 16200 crore to Rs 24300 crore at the least.

This loss is being borne by the citizens of Delhi, who in addition are suffering several hours of power cuts, because it has to be diverted to the construction sites of the Games Village, stadia and other facilities, where they would never have an access. Even the drinking water supply is being diverted for these purposes.

The nation is also paying in terms of fuel lost for the extra commuting time by over 50 lakh vehicles at a speed of not more than five km an hour in most cases. It simply means that the citizens have burnt up thousands of crore of rupees of fuel during this period. More Delhi is discussing options of public transport more private vehicles are driving into the Delhi roads. The capital does not have enough vehicles for transporting people. The Metro is serving a very small and well-to-do section and that is what it would do even after construction of the full stretch. The slum-dwellers find the metro out of reach.

The buses are far fewer than they are required, taxis are unaffordable and auto rickshaws, the cheapest mode are not regulated to serve the people better. Instead, backed by the luxury taxi lobbies, the Delhi government is mulling over taking the auto rickshaws off the roads! It also does not explain why it had to purchase buses at Rs 38 to 45 lakh each with a maintenance contract of the like amount – i.e. Rs 68 to 90 lakh for a bus. The same buses were purchased by Indore and many other cities at only a cost of Rs 17 lakh. This also possibly explains why the Delhi government is preventing the initiative of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana governments to ply their buses in Delhi to help it ease the traffic situation.

This apart, Delhi’s traffic police does not know how to manage this overflowing traffic. Except creating long jams at every crossing and closing all right turns, thereby extending the jams and forcing people to travel more, they hardly have a concrete traffic plan. Few realize that it all adds to the cost of living in this city. One could recommend that the traffic police be sent to Chennai for training. That city manages its traffic the best in the country ensuring smooth movement even though the volume of traffic is quite high.

Additionally, the government is building flyovers where none is needed as it has done on the Nizamuddin Bridge Road and Akshardham-Noida Link Road. Interestingly, commuters found the traffic smooth on these stretches before and feel that it has worsened after the “initiative” to build these ‘useless’ flyovers. Similarly, jams have worsened at stretches such as Bhikaji Cama Place and other important crossings where “flyovers” have been built.

Besides, nobody has explained why the Delhi government had to demolish all those footpaths, which were constructed with much better materials six months to two years ago.  Obviously, what it has ensured is the floating of contracts for removing the debris that eventually costs the government over Rs 200 crore. Nobody realizes that it is the people’s money which is literally going down the drains. Of course, it is a different story that the contractor-builder driven development creates tonnes of stash money for many.

The conditions particularly in East Delhi have worsened. But those who build these useless “flyovers” do not consider building two or three new bridges over the Yamuna to ease the situation. Even the pontoon bridges, which were seasonally built every year, are no more put up. It is stated that there is a reason. It would affect the income of the Delhi-Noida toll bridge company. It is a different story now that the toll bridge is no more a flyway as it was advertised in its initial days. One gets into a jam no sooner one crosses the toll gate.

Sadly, the government does not recognize the losses the citizens are suffering. Worse, it has dumped upon them more taxes and demands. Clearly, the powers-that-be are making Delhi such that it goes out of the reach for the poor people and instead make it into a rich man’s haven. Is it trying to turn the medieval adage, “Yeh shahar Delhi, ya rahe badshah ya rahe faqir” (In this city Delhi, either a king stays or a beggar) into a reality? It might suit the rulers but it has not added to any glory of Delhi.

The government says Delhi is being beautified. In reality, the city has been turned into a grotesque place with ugly structures all around. There is no denying that Delhi was more beautiful and people-friendly before. ---INFA

(Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)