[sustran] Re: World Bank loan for MUTP

[Bina CBalakrishnan]

Dr. George:

The letter you are referring to was preceded by 2 very long 
installments on the transport system and the MUTP, that I had 
warned, would be "cumbersome" . Apparently you found them too 
cumbersome to read. Had you done so, you would not have raised the 
points you have.

  However, when I said that Mumbai as a city is barely functional, 
I should have clearly specified that I meant the transport 
scenario. As a transport professional, and being a discussion on 
the transport system, I made the mistake of taking it as 
understood.

As for the rest of your connotations, after nigh on 26 years in 
this field, I do not intend to demean myself by addressing them.

Mrs. B.C. Balakrishnan
Consultant
Transportation Planning and Engineering


On Wed, 13 Mar 2002 varghese at krec.ernet.in wrote :
>Dear sustran
>
>     Let me refer to what Bina CBalakrishnan wrote on 10 Mar 
>2002,
>
> > As we will all readily admit, Mumbai as a city is barely
> > functional. These people try to do their best, despite 
>tremendous
>
> 	 Mumbai is the commercial capital of the country where 60% of 
>all
>commercial transactions are undertaken. It is one of the fastest 
>growing
>financial capitals of the world. To say that " Mumbai as a city 
>is barely
>functional" as Bina has construed is ridiculous.
>
>             Should the  email from Bina be considered as  a 
>'Self
>Advertisement Campaign' or is it realy borne out of a genuine 
>concern for
>Mumbai Transport Scenario?....  Or, is it aimed at providing  
>publicity
>to  NeTrA?...
>
>Bina says,
>"> Coming now to the much-discussed MUTP, we at NeTrA believe 
>in
> > trying the application of management solutions to solve a
> > transportation problem, before resorting to an engineering, 
>or
> > supply side, solution. "
>
>  It would be indeed beneficial if Bina could  elaborate  the 
>above
>line so that the recipients of this email would be in a position 
>to
>comment on the  "management solutions" recommended. I too was a 
>resident
>of Mumbai for a long time and had also been closely in touch with 
>MMRDA,
>BEST, etc. The solutions to problems are not just as easy as 
>providing
>management solutions. These solutions are efective only in the 
>initial
>stages of  development of a city  for improvement of traffic 
>scenario.
>
>"Management solutions" touch only the fringe of the problem. What 
>we need
>is a "comprehensive systems approach towards" solving problems 
>in
>transportation which involves input from various fields related 
>to
>transportation as most specialists in the field of Transportation 
>Systems
>Engineering would agree.   Also, the solutions  to transport 
>problems must
>be derived from all angles after proper study and careful 
>evaluation of
>the alternatives to the  problem  situation.
>
>Bina also says
> > Therefore,
> > I feel that those projects that have been identified within 
>the
> > scope of the MUTP are sorely needed, and the sooner they are
> > implemented, the better off the city and its residents will 
>be.
>
> > Be very assured, however, that we are not any part of the 
>"Car
> > lobby"
>
>    Whether the projects that were identified within the scope of 
>MUTP are
>sorely needed or not is a subject that has been discussed by 
>experts in
>various fields in various forum. Some agree to the projects while 
>some don't.
>Whether the residents will be benefitted is something that they 
>have to
>wait and see.
>
>   How can we claim ourselves to be not party of one lobby or the 
>other? We
>are all humans and we all have our biases. The bias always creeps 
>in in
>one way or the other in all our actions and delibrations.
>
>Dr. Varghese George,
>(Transportation Systems Engineering- Specialization)
>Dept. of Civil Engg,
>KREC, Surathkal
>email:  varghese at krec.ernet.in
>--------------------------------------------------
>
>On 10 Mar 2002, Bina CBalakrishnan wrote:
>
> > Dear Mr. Mehta, Ms. Salvi,
> >
> > Thank you for the gracious invitation to meet with you at 
>your
> > offices in Mumbai.
> >
> > Maybe I should tell you where I'm coming from, and where I 
>stand,
> > first.
> >
> > As I said earlier, I am an independent consultant in
> > Transportation Planning and Engineering, based in Mumbai. I 
>was
> > fortunate to do a study for Mumbai in 1999-2000, where I
> > interacted very closely with the senior officers of the MMRDA, 
>the
> > BMC, the Maharashtra Maritime Board, the Western and Central
> > Railways, and the then newly formed MRVC. I was impressed with 
>the
> > commitment I saw there.
> >
> > As we will all readily admit, Mumbai as a city is barely
> > functional. These people try to do their best, despite 
>tremendous
> > odds, funds crunch, and the sheer weight of numbers. But as 
>an
> > independent consultant, once I finished my job, I moved on.
> >
> > Last year, I was drawn into a very novel movement here in 
>Mumbai.
> > Aware of the problems facing the city, and also aware of the
> > Government's limitations in resolving them, a group of NGOs 
>had
> > come together to stem the city's rapid downslide. The most 
>obvious
> > problem was transportation, and the immediate fallout - apart 
> from
> > other issues- was the increased levels of pollution in the 
>city.
> > The group targeted this, therefore. They called themselves 
>NeTrA -
> > an acronym for Networking for Transportation Alternatives. I 
>am
> > now very actively involved with NeTrA, and guide them on
> > transportation related issues.
> >
> > NeTrA is committed to improving the transportation system of
> > Mumbai, and believes in working very closely with the 
>concerned
> > authorities in order to achieve this objective. 
>Confrontations
> > solve very few problems, and generally results in the waste of 
>a
> > lot of time. NeTrA therefore focuses on issues, and forces a
> > meaningful dialogue with the Government, getting it to make
> > commitments, and setting target dates for achieving these
> > commitments.
> >
> > Coming now to the much-discussed MUTP, we at NeTrA believe 
>in
> > trying the application of management solutions to solve a
> > transportation problem, before resorting to an engineering, 
>or
> > supply side, solution. However, having done the earlier job 
>in
> > Mumbai, I am aware of the limitations of the road network of 
>the
> > city, and also of the transportation system as a whole. 
>Therefore,
> > I feel that those projects that have been identified within 
>the
> > scope of the MUTP are sorely needed, and the sooner they are
> > implemented, the better off the city and its residents will 
>be. Be
> > very assured, however, that we are not any part of the "Car
> > lobby", but are actively trying to promote mass 
>transportation-
> > both road based and rail based, and if possible, water based
> > too!
> >
> > This does not imply that we have blindly agreed to whatever 
>the
> > plans involve. We have been attending the public 
>presentations,
> > and making suggestions, some of which have been included in 
>the
> > scope of the MUTP. Where we do not agree, we raise an 
>objection,
> > and it has been looked into. As I said earlier, the entire EIA 
>is
> > on the net, and available to anyone who may be interested.
> >
> > Having said this much, I would be happy to meet with you, 
>either
> > as an independent planner or as a member of NeTrA.
> >
> > My very best regards to you and Ms. Salvi.
> > Bina C. Balakrishnan
> > Consultant
> > Transportation Planning and Engineering
> > e-mail: binac at rediffmail.com
>
>--------------------------------------------------------------
>
>