Being Bangalored

Time was when the phrase "Being Bangalored" was being bandied about by the western press to refer to the outsourcing wave. If you could get world-class quality at a huge discount in Bangalore they why would you not relocate there?

Well, many companies have. If the business press is to be believed many others continue to stream in to the 21st century version of the California gold rush. But for me the term is taking on a whole new meaning.

I was there yesterday and in all my years of travel in many parts of the world, have never come across a more chaotic, confused and utterly mismanaged city. It began from the time we actually reached the airport (see this: http://aadianuandi.blogspot.com/2007/11/bad-management.html). We were stuck in the aircraft for the longest time as there were not enough ladders to go around for us to get off. The baggage took much longer to come than it should usually do. Planeloads were hanging around the luggage carousel waiting for it to start. Part of this is always explained away by the fact that the new airport is getting ready and this one is too small to handle the load. But the major reason is sheer inefficiency and poor management at the airport. Mumbai and Delhi handle a much bigger traffic load and they have their own infrastructure issues. Chennai is also small but super efficient. The queues that formed when departing at the airport at almost every point (baggage screening, security and boarding) are scary. I wonder how the airlines manage to stay anywhere near their scheduled times in this sort of madness. There is a complete management meltdown at the airport. Moving to a new location will only work, if you get some sort of a workflow in place. Otherwise they will manage to mess that up as well.

Leaving the airport is another hassle. If you have a car to receive you, it takes at least 30 minutes to get out of the place. The city is also equally bad. Traffic management is a disaster and every major road is clogged beyond comprehension. It can take anything from 30 minutes to an hour to complete a journey that should not take more than 10 minutes. This city is an example of what happens in the face of unchecked and unplanned development. Why anybody would want to live and work there beats me.

For me, Being Bangalored is akin to being punished. As in "he is being Bangalored as he is not fit enough to work in Chennai/Delhi/Mumbai." What a sad state of affairs for India's Silicon Valley.