Vinod Mony puts together the
Bits and Pieces of his American,
Indian and European experience, bringing
out his opinion and reflections on events,
people and places .
Vinod graduated from College of Engineering,
Thiruvananthapuram in 1995 in Applied
Electronics . He currently works in US
as an ERP systems analyst .He is also
a freelance columnist
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The Road to Prosperity
Ever since I have heard
of the "Golden Quadrilateral" Project
linking the major cities of India, roads and highways
of the US have caught my attention, as never before.
The more I travel nowadays within the US, the
more amazed I am.
If you happen to be someone like
me, and not overly worried about wasting precious
time, take a drive from New York to Detroit, or
from Chicago to Dallas - relaxing your way through,
at a comfortable cruising speed - to see for yourself
how these roads and highways have shrunk the size
of this vast piece of land.
Along with improving conditions
to facilitate cross-country pleasure travels,
these roads have provided a smooth conduit for
the transportation of goods and services across
the country, thus boosting trade, commerce, and
productivity. A few other countries of Europe
and some smaller countries in Asia have more sophisticated
transportation systems; but the sheer size of
the highway network in the US, and the efficiency
of the road transport system, in spite of its
size, takes it easily to the top spot.
It is not just the way these roads
are constructed that is amazing, but also the
speed and efficiency of maintenance work. I have
been amazed many times to see that some parts
of the roads which are blocked - with minimum
hindrance to traffic - are fixed so quickly that
there exist no sign of any maintenance activity
when I return after a few hours.
The inspiration for constructing
the roads might have come from the history of
the Roman Empire - they build an effective empire
with the help of extensive roads as the saying
"all roads lead to Rome" reminds us
- but the practical ideas came from the experience
of American soldiers who fought in the First and
Second World Wars.
During the Second World War Gen
Eisenhower - who was later to become President
- saw the advantages Germany enjoyed because of
the Autobahn network. Though America won the war,
he realized that the mobility, the Germans enjoyed
during the war, due to their superior road system,
made life really tough for the allies.
Eisenhower had realized the importance
of good highways much earlier. In 1919, when he
participated in the U S Army's first transcontinental
motor convoy from Washington, DC, to San Francisco,
his unit experienced several mechanical difficulties.
On the way west, vehicles got stuck in mud or
sand many times; trucks and other equipments often
crashed through wooden bridges, and the travel
was extremely slow in most places. All these were
very common in the US in those days. So after
seeing the Autobahn system, Eisenhower realized
that the US needed a highway system modeled on
the same.
Even before the Second World War,
talks about a huge network of highways had started.
During the last days of Depression, President
Franklin D Roosevelt repeatedly expressed interest
in the construction of a network of toll superhighways
as a way of providing more jobs for people out
of work. But there was a need for a genuine plan.
No one had any idea how to do it in such a big
country.
So it captured the imagination of
Americans, when in the 1939 World's Fair held
in New York, an exhibit called "Futurama"
submitted by Norman Bel Geddes did exactly what
the Americans were badly in need of. Norman Bel
Geddes visualized and designed a network of superhighways,
with vehicles moving at speeds as high as 100
mph. Radio beams in the cars regulated the spacing
between them to ensure safety, and traffic moved
on several levels: lowest for service, such as
pulling into parking lots, and the highest for
through traffic moving at 50 mph.
This exhibit made a big impact.
Rather than hollow talk, there was something solid
to be discussed in the political circles. But
when various political interests started diluting
the central issue, the "highway discussion"
lost its content; rival apportionment formulas
divided the states who could not agree with each
other, or with the federal government; urban interests
battled rural interests for priority, and the
result was a total confusion . Soon America joined
the World War and the "highway community"
had to wait untill the war was over.
In 1953 when Eisenhower took office,
he was determined to give a boost to the whole
endeavor. On July 12, 1954 he announced a $50
billion highway program in 10 years - such a program,
over and above the regular federal-aid program,
was needed because "... our highway network
is inadequate locally, and obsolete as a national
system."
The highway project was never smooth
- Eisenhower's proposal was defeated in both the
House and the Senate in 1955; it was approved
next year when he pursued it with a renewed vigor
even making a reference in the State of the Union
Address. By sheer determination Eisenhower towered
over his critics. The key elements that constituted
the interstate highway program - the system approach,
the design concept, the federal commitment, and
the financing mechanism - all came together under
his watchful eye. Several key aspects of defense
like troop movement, and shipment of military
equipments were taken into consideration due to
the cold war threat of the time.
The project was completed in 1975 and covered
35,000 miles. Many additions and changes have
come after that. In October 1990, as an acknowledgement
of Eisenhower's contribution, President George
Bush signed legislation that named the system
"Dwight D Eisenhower System of Interstate
and Defense Highways." The highway Project
of the United States faced many engineering challenges
and unanticipate controversies, all the way through
. Nevertheless, it changed the face of America,
thanks to visionaries like Eisenhower.
Today India has embarked on a similar
massive project that could change the face of
the country. This ambitious project is the "Golden
Quadrilateral" project that aims to connect
the four metros (New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, and
Kolkata) via National Highways. Can India emulate
the achievement of the US in this aspect of development?
Judging by the newspaper reports,
I feel that the "GQ" is moving well
ahead of the schedule. The Atal Behari Vajpayee
government would make all Indians proud, if the
project is completed by 2004, as originally planned.
But even when we congratulate the
Indian government for a job done well - considering
the challenges the US went through in the course
of all this, it would be nothing short of a miracle,
if India, with its vibrant political scenario,
can manage to do this in such a short time - we
should not forget that the quadrilateral should
ultimately be extended to be a part of a bigger
plan which would serve the entire country.This
is what the Americans have achieved in a few decades.
If things go as planned, and
the Indian government continues with its development
efforts, Indians could hope, in the near future,
for a major economic face-lift, much like what
America has accomplished. The question is - Can
Atal Behari Vajpayee, L K Advani, Sonia Gandhi
or any other leader, stand up to the challenges,
and do an Eisenhower?
Send your comments to vinod@ekaumudi.com
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