The inauguration is the achievement

State, Market, Society

We can hear the sounds of an election long before polling day arrives. There is a lot of fanfare, as different parties carry out rallies to convince the voters -- or so they tell themselves -- that more and more people are on their side. This is done by all parties, but the one in power does something else. It inaugurates as many projects as possible, to convince the voters -- or so they tell themselves -- that they are good public servants.

And so it is with this election in Karnataka. Lots of new things have been inaugurated all over the state. An airport in Shivamogga, an expressway to Mysuru, a Metro segment, various medical facilities... clearly, a spree of launches. On Tuesday this past week, nine universities were inaugurated, along with seven government engineering colleges. Last week, Bangalore City University was upgraded by a quick visit to the auditorium to hold the event. All world-class, we are told.

It’s not a scam, but only because no one is fooled. For decades we struggle to set up even three institutions of global repute, and somehow in the next five years, we are going to have 16 that are world-class. What are the chances of that? And hundreds of new public health clinics in the city that will suddenly start dispensing the free care they haven’t delivered in all these years? Mostly, people know that the inauguration is the achievement.

The airport and the expressway are extreme examples, and are worth a study because they tell us so much. It’s a little over a month since the Rs 500-crore airport was inaugurated in Shivamogga, but there’s not a single airline flying to the place yet. Not even for the inaugural day’s sake. But don’t let that bother you. This is the first phase of the airport. In due course, there will be a second phase -- to handle growing traffic, we are told!

The Rs 500 crore is not something to dismiss lightly. It could have done a lot of good if used in other ways, even in Shivamogga itself. For the same money, we could have hugely improved tourism infrastructure at Jog Falls, which is badly needed, and we could have promoted adventure sports like rappelling, kayaking, and trekking all over the district. There would still be money left to set up a textile park for the handloom and power-loom industry, and build a horticulture research centre in Thirthahalli. But no, we got an airport. Without airlines.

The expressway is different, but also tells a story. A few days after it was inaugurated, there were some rains in the region, and a part of the road was flooded. It annoyed people that the shiny infrastructure couldn’t even hold itself up as a photo-op for a few days. But what really angered the locals was the decision to build the road in a way that bypasses all local places, as if beyond connecting the two end points, everything else is incidental. Local businesses quickly began to lose their customers, as the road that earlier brought them so many buyers now zipped past them.

As if to compound their misery, there are many long stretches of the expressway where local people cannot even get on it. There are only a few exits, so the message to the locals is, “If you don’t happen to live near one, you’ll just have to manage on the side roads -- whenever they’re completed.” That’s harsh. People have endured enough in the name of development that doesn’t ever seem to touch their lives, but why run things right by their doors and wave at them in the process?

There is a long list of things that are actually needed by the people. Things that can transform the lives of millions. It will take years to check them off one by one, even if we start in earnest now. But we now face the consequences of a political culture that has fallen so low that its principal actors believe that pomp without substance is enough. They are happy to inaugurate things and make promises they don’t intend to keep.

The politicians know why they’re doing this. It is much easier than real development work. And they know the public isn’t paying much attention, though people at all levels are paying a price. And for these reasons, they’ll not do much to change the status quo. In fact, each of the things being inaugurated without being ready is a gauntlet being thrown down. We have to pick it up.