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| DOES INDIA NEED A BULLET TRAIN AT ALL? | | | Rajeev Ahuja
Some experts worry that the new high-speed trains will come at the cost of the Indian Railways. However, the Modi Government has made clear this isn't the case
Even as the Modi Government's aspirational bullet train project continues to gather steam, questions about whether high-speed trains serve India's interests and make sense within the Indian context persist. In fact, even E Sreedharan, former Delhi metro chief engineer and chief architect of Konkan Railway, has expressed concerns about the feasibility of the project.
In light of this, what can be the arguments in favour and against India going for a bullet train? There can be at least three different arguments with regards to this:
Limited execution capacity: That India has a huge infrastructure deficit is well-known. To launch a massive infrastructure drive, the country will need unparalled project execution capability. While the current capability needs to be enhanced, it ought not to be squandered in building such prestigious projects that will invariably take away disproportionate attention and capability. The same logic also applies to funding of the project: Economise on the use of infrastructure funds that are scare relative to the needs of the country. Hence, both execution capability and funding need to be used more judiciously.
This will, indeed, be a very powerful argument against a bullet train if one were rolling it out at national scale. The fact is that it is only a pilot project which is miniscule in the overall scheme of things whether from the perspective of Indian Railways or from infrastructure development perspective, recognising that technical assistance as well as substantial share of funding, which is project-specific, is coming from Japan as a soft loan.
A new social divide: Travelling by a bullet train will definitely be costlier which means only richer segments of the population will be able to afford it. Will it not create a new kind of social divide between the haves and the have-nots? This argument doesn't hold merit as one can say this for virtually any kind of semi-luxury good. Moreover, the 505km Mumbai- Ahmedabad sector on which the bullet train is planned, is frequently travelled by the rich business community.
The train which is expected to reduce travel time from eight hours to about three hours is bound to become a huge hit and will, therefore, not only pay-off for itself overtime but can also generate significant revenues for the railways! So, behind this project there seems to be a shrewd business sense that is likely to benefit the country.
Pragmatic technical perspective: The country is not yet prepared as institutional and social factors are not conducive for proper use and maintenance of such sophisticated public assets. Politicians love ribbon-cutting - launching of new projects and dedicating completed projects to the nation. Incentives that politicians face promote one-time capital investments over maintenance of projects which is a recurring affair and spans over a long period.
How well the public assets are maintained depends on the institutional factors and behaviours of its users. While these concerns are not entirely misplaced, we've by now a decent number of examples and experiences (Delhi metro is one of them) to build upon in ensuing proper use and maintenance of such assets.
Let's not forget that development is a deliberative act which means that one has to pro-actively jump-start things rather than wait for things to happen. Further, development is hardly a smooth process; it happens in a zig-zag manner. Innovations and reforms create pulls and pressures which in turn produces tension that forces the system to change. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's push for bullet train is to be seen in this light.
Lastly, going by Modi's remarks made in his last trip to Bihar, where he expressed confidence in achieving, in a very short period of time, a complete transformation and modernisation of railways. It seems Modi is thinking of having a bullet train not at the expense of improving the overall standards of the Indian Railways, which is probably Sreedharan's concern. In fact, Modi seems to be wanting both - much more from the Indian Railways - as a means to promote, transform and serve as one of the growth engine for the economy.
(Courtesy@dailypioneer.com) |
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