My Solution

One of Delhi's toughest challenges is the ever-increasing number of people flocking into the city. Edwin Lutyens had envisaged a populati...

One of Delhi8217;s toughest challenges is the ever-increasing number of people flocking into the city. Edwin Lutyens had envisaged a population load of one million people but today we are confronted with an estimated 13, or probably even 14, million inhabitants. No city can bear the burden of 14 times its carrying capacity. We need to understand what attracts people to the city and do away with some of those provisions. None of us who lives here will like it, but the only way out is to stop the subsidies being doled out in the city. Take petrol, for instance. It is cheaper in Delhi than in any other metro. And kerosene, in particular, is highly subsidised.

In fact, petrol is cross-subsidising kerosene. Diesel is similarly subsidised on the plea that our goods move on diesel-run vehicles. However, that happens only because we cannot depend on our trains, which is why we fail to make optimum use of the biggest rail network in the world. It is, therefore, imperative that we look at the entire situation in a holistic manner.

If everybody wishes to flock from the villages to the metros, it is also because our Public Distribution System PDS works only in the metros. So we need to extend the efficacy of the PDS to the rural areas. We also need to create employment in the villages. In the long run, that would also mean taxing the rich farmers. As of now, farming is a losing proposition for the small farmer, which is why he gets lured to the city, with all its attractions like the ration card, cheap kerosene and so on.

However, he only ends up becoming a labourer and a slum-dweller, gets entrenched as a political vote-bank, steals water and electricity, and makes a mess of his life. He can neither live decently nor return to his roots. Slum clusters, where nearly one-third of our population lives, have thus grown as a slur on humanity and an impediment to progress.

Contrary to Delhi, even in Mumbai, people are increasingly preferring to live outside the city. It is by no means an ideal situation, though, because so much money, time and energy is spent just on commuting. That8217;s not what we want. We want that people should stay outside Delhi and also work outside Delhi. It is encouraging that many people are now moving out to NOIDA and Gurgaon. More importantly, many offices are also moving out to these suburbs. It won8217;t help, though, unless people actually move out, instead of just the new migrants settling there. We need to create incentives for people to live away from the metros and make living in Delhi more expensive.