IT is not all right

IT is not all right
Hindustan Times




THAT H.D. Deve Gowda is perhaps not the best man to represent India's IT capabilities, especially that of Bangalore, is clear to everyone -- except, perhaps, to the former PM. This is the man who, only a few days ago, publicly brawled with Infosys chairman Narayana Murthy and accused IT firms in Bangalore of trying to wrangle land for real estate. So, for Mr Gowda to be the chief guest of the eighth Bangalore IT.in, the nation's premier annual information, communications, media and technology event starting tomorrow, seems exceedingly strange. The organisers have explained that the chief guest was decided by the CM, so if there's a dark cloud hovering over the event, tough. But beyond the Gowda-Murthy slanging match, and perhaps even beyond the issue of whether Bangalore is ITfriendly or not, is the bigger question: is Bangalore a city on a downward spiral?

It's not only pictures of waterlogged offices of IT companies and the wrangle about a city airport that one is basing this query on. The Garden City is buck ling under pressure that is a result of it taking more than it can chew. To correct it, urban infrastructure has to be revamped. In other words, Bangalore is facing a crisis not unlike other metropolitan cities. Unfortunately, Mr Gowda has been too busy proclaiming his identity as a mannina maga (son of the soil) to be concerned about its problems. In this situation of politicians either cheerleading urban development (N. Chandrababu Naidu) and paying for it electorally, or tomtomming rural development (with cities like Bangalore left to fend for themselves), no balance is struck. Perhaps, it's time cities like Bangalore are given more local power to decide what's best for them, rather than lumping them with the more `vote-rich' regions of the states.

Mr Gowda has, in the past, shared his `expertise' on defence matters (in procurement of tanks) and accused anyone doubting his judgment of harbouring `political motivations'. This time, it seems, it's the turn of IT. The victim: Bangalore.