[sustran] Re: No money for good PT or walk/bike infastructure?: India 'world's biggest arms buyer'

[Dr Adhiraj Joglekar]

I do not think its off topic. I have always held a view that monies are
finite and how its used has to be prioritised based on needs assessment
across sectors. Should money be spent on a metro when basic healthcare is
absent? My answer is NO.

Is the semantics anti-India? Really depends on whether we remain married to
history and paranoia thereof. More importantly which part of our faculties
is at play? Emotive yet primitive survial of fittest brain or conscious
frontal lobe?

While I risk digressing, its primitive structures rules by prevailing
emotive background that largely drives individuals and masses. This of
course affects us as emotions relating probable war run high and we respond
to fear and anger. But the same structures are taken by hedonistic
tendencies where posh & big seems better. No wonder how easy it is to get
masses to align with glamorous metro than a basic bus based transport
system.

Of course there is always the slim chance that conscious but corrupt ideas
are in play in the most singular, clinical and calculated manner. Businesses
have to thrive and forces are at play to ensure big spends - metro is an
example just as the industry that depends on actual or feared wars. Why
would then any one care if there were footpaths? In fact the lack of such
basics points to the dance of the psychological dynamic I attempt to
describe above.

Cheers

Adhiraj



On 15 March 2011 08:11, Sujit Patwardhan <patwardhan.sujit at gmail.com> wrote:

> Thank you Rutul for your timely intervention on this.
>
> My problem with Tom's email is not so much its content but the tone which
> can be interpreted (I'm sure unjustly) as anti-India. If one starts talking
> about expenditure on arms I can write volumes on the US and USSR and UK and
> France and many other countries that could use the money on health,
> education, the environment and so on... and now China and India are also
> joining their ranks, but I sincerely believe that bulk of the criticism
> against Government's spending on the armaments industry should come from
> the
> citizens themselves (where citizens have the democratic space to do so). I
> also admit that as citizens we (all of us, the communists included) are not
> doing enough in this area.
>
> Having said that-- in context of Public Transport and NMT facilities I
> think
> all (our) cities have enough money which is presently being spent on the
> wrong projects ones that will basically facilitate (even fuel) greater use
> of personal auto vehicles. As Rutul has points out, even with substantial
> amounts made available under the various urban renewal schemes, a
> favourable
> National Urban Transport Policy, insistence on preparation of City Mobility
> Plans before release of funds from the central Govt to the states and
> cities
> etc etc, we see PT and NMT schemes conspicuous by their absence. This is
> also being pointed out by many NGOs and independent experts.
>
> I feel the reason for this is the absence of proper monitoring and
> regulatory systems that need to be in place. There is evidence that
> presently this is being formulated by the central government and it may
> start functioning soon. However this should have been done at least 5 years
> back.
>
> --
> Sujit
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> On Tue, Mar 15, 2011 at 11:19 AM, Rutul Joshi <joshirutul at yahoo.co.in
> >wrote:
>
> > Why Off-topic? Would anyone care to explain?  (Before anyone label me, I
> > must add that I am an Indian but not a communist)
> >
> >
> > However, this view - money for weapons but not for sustainable transport
> -
> > might be a bit naive.
> >
> >
> > There is a lot of money with cities, states etc (400 million $ annual
> > budget of a 5 million plus city). There is a policy in place (National
> Urban
> > Transport Policy)... there is a program to implement this policy (JNNURM
> now
> > 'new' 'improved' JnNRUM)...there are plans (comprehensive mobility plans
> -
> > CMPs) then why is it so that even straight-forward projects like building
> > footpaths everywhere do not take off? Would anyone care to explain?
> >
> >
> >
> > Rutul
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > ________________________________
> > From: Cornie Huizenga <cornie.huizenga at slocatpartnership.org>
> > To: eric britton <eric.britton at ecoplan.org>
> > Cc: Asia and the Pacific sustainable transport <
> > sustran-discuss at list.jca.apc.org>
> > Sent: Tuesday, 15 March 2011 6:40 AM
> > Subject: Re: [sustran] Re: No money for good PT or walk/bike
> > infastructure?: India 'world's biggest arms buyer'
> >
> > Eric,
> >
> > I fully agree!
> >
> > Cornie
> >
> > On Tue, Mar 15, 2011 at 4:11 AM, eric britton <eric.britton at ecoplan.org
> > >wrote:
> >
> > > You are off topic Todd. Please.  Eric Britton
> > >
> > >
> > > --------------------------------------------------------
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> > --
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> > Joint Convener
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> --
> --------------------------------------------------------------------
> *“..each million we invest into urban motorways is an investment
> to destroy the city“*
>
> Mayor Hans Joachim Vogel
> Munich 1970
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Sujit Patwardhan
> patwardhan.sujit at gmail.com
> sujit at parisar.org <sujitjp at gmail.com>
>
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