Early 1980s saw a young man from Mysore with a handful of his buddies, from IIT Mumbai included, doing something that made Bangalore a household name globally.
That young man was NR Narayana Murthy, who founded Infosys and sowed the seeds for Bangalore to be the Silicon Valley of India. Soon after, the city saw major industrial estates mushrooming on the city’s outskirts and which, for good, rid the city of its sobriquet, Pensioner’s Paradise.
That was Bangalore version 1.0.
In 2008, the city got a swanky new international airport much ahead of Delhi or Mumbai.
That was Bangalore version 2.0.
Cut to October 20, 2011 – today – when a historic event is set to unfold Bangalore version 3.0 before you very eyes – the launch of Namma Metro.
Take a bow, Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited. Take a bow, not just for giving us Namma Metro, but triggering a revolution-to-be in a city whose cup of transport woes has been full to the brim.
It’s a small beginning with just the Rs 1,400-crore Reach-1 (about 7km) of the estimated Rs11,609-crore Phase-1 being ready for commercial operations. But it will be a trailer, presenting us the nature of things to come for commuters traversing this city in future.
So, when crowds throng the MG Road Metro station this afternoon – when the first commercial ride of Namma Metro rolls out – it will mainly be to experience the ride, not to get to work or meet anyone.
And when they do that, they will get the first taste of a revolution in the making to change the way we commute, the way we look at society and the way we work – you will be tempted to use less of your private transport and more of public transport; you will see senior executives willingly commuting alongside construction workers; and you will see people being more punctual than ever before at work or otherwise.
All this had never happened to Bangalore. But it will now with Namma Metro spearheading the change on the lines of the local trains in Mumbai and the metro rails in Delhi and Kolkata.
So, raise a toast for Namma Metro and for a safer commute in your city.
