By Edelbert Kharsyntiew
The blueprint for NST is nowhere to be found. Will it be a truly modern city with iconic buildings, ethnic art and culture (something that the locals would be proud of) and landscape architecture? Will it take the best elements of London, Amsterdam, Seoul or Barcelona – with boulevards, malls, top brand hotels and chefs, numerous gardens, cycling tracks and walkways, and a thriving art and music scene? If yes, then its cool. We pay money these days to visit such places, walk those glistening marble floors and gawk at the water fountains and finely executed works of art. Wouldn’t it be nice to drive along smooth wide roads that are part of a total navigation grid plan where getting lost is an impossibility, congestion a thing of the past and individual elevated parking a security bonus? For busy people who have the money but not the time, to be able to shop in style, driving their trolleys along those big stores’ isles that have everything from vegetables to clothes, furniture and electronic items. A sort of merger between Iewduh and Police Bazaar. The difference? Cleanliness, ease and excellence of service from our well trained smiling boys and girls in uniforms. It’s a modern city alright, and so everything is modern. A complete city with metro system, world class airport, expanded educational facilities and healthcare services, where the idea of leaving the city for medical treatment outside ceases. MNCs bringing in jobs within swanky environment and ultra-modern housing, the very type that would woo our elite diaspora back home, since there is no more difference. Where locals could just swipe their cards to pay for taxis, metros or even convenience stores! Wouldn’t it be even nicer to be known everywhere as coming from such a modern city? No more condescending questions such as ‘do you swipe card’ or ‘ride escalators’?
The Four Models
There is a challenge nevertheless. It calls for a paradigm shift. The way we think has to change. We are responsible to define this change. There are four models, and personally, I have traversed through all four. Firstly, the ‘war model’ which is hostile and ancient, where as a tribe we see the whole world as enemy. The second model is a ‘zoo model’, ala Madagasgar – wildness tamed, instincts lost, caged and fed. The third is from our favourite sport, the ‘football model’, where we win only as the other team loses. And the last is a ‘franchisee model’ or a ‘business model’ where partners engage in a win-win arrangement. There are no losers. A franchisee model works this way. A five star hotel like Marriot, for example, partners with a local player, who owns land, builds according to their specifications and they run the business on a 60:40% profit sharing agreement. In this way, our people who have the money but not the expertise can meaningfully participate in the growth process. We do not lack youth who are trained in relational skills, with the confidence and articulation to bridge the gap between the two. The NGOs can play a constructive role in the area of employment opportunities for the locals and rural development. They have to accept that the stand-alone model is outdated. We would need world class expertise to build and maintain. We must be willing to reach higher, rather than going back or down. We have to be pulled up, at par with the very best in the world, and perform at the highest level. We owe it to our next generation to allow such an environment. When the city develops this way, it means many things. Firstly, it fits in the national as well as the international scheme of things, as projected in the Look East Policy of India. Which simply means that Shillong will regain its tremendous strategic administrative importance such as it had during the British period! Secondly, it shows that there is trust in the cultural and intellectual depth of the people. Sir James Beevan, the British High Commissioner who visited Shillong recently echoed this when he mentioned that the software among the youth is rich, due to the knowledge of English. Only the hardware still needs to be developed. Thirdly, there would be world class tourism infrastructural initiatives that would benefit not only the state of Meghalaya but the entire Northeast. Lastly, the region can grow to become the sporting hub for the world. In other words, many of the types of jobs we educate our children for, are coming to our doorstep.
Will this be the new Shillong? Or will it look like Singur? The writing on the wall is clear. (The author works as youth pastor and counselor in Bangalore. He can be contacted at [email protected])