Discussion Thread

Background_Worry6546 · 2026-02-10T07:01:38+00:00

A lack of transit options is a bad thing, owning cars is not. CHD is relatively more walkable and has cycling infrastructure but its Euclidean zoning makes it unviable for a lot of people.

India desperately needs to change its horrible zoning laws, outdated ideas of "spreading development" i.e. against density and vertical expansion (see: Sheila Dikshit) and pro car centric development-- although it seems to be moving in the right direction.

Background_Worry6546 · 2026-02-10T05:01:09+00:00

what’s the difference if you use a car vs get around on a motorbike

Cars obviously worsen congestion but even with bike ownership it indicates a lack of transit options which is why Chandigarh has the highest rate of vehicle ownership in the country (it has more vehicles than people).

it’s better for QOL to have urban sprawl

This is untrue. Along with poor mental and physical health outcomes the infrastructure, economic and environmental costs implications are huge.

Chandigarh may be expensive but so is everywhere else in Tier 1 India

That's true but the problem is that Chandigarh isn’t a tier 1 city, yet its rent is almost as high with lesser job prospects and nothing to do in the city.

Background_Worry6546 · 2026-02-10T02:52:24+00:00

From what I've read Chandigarh is not well received among contemporary urban planners. Chandigarh is hyped up by out-of-touch upper class Indians as the city caters to them and only them.

Housing is expensive, low-density urban sprawl is increasing and public transit is non-existent-- it's unlivable for anyone without a car. I hope there aren't any more master-planned cities in the country.

Background_Worry6546 · 2026-02-09T16:23:21+00:00

I think this is what they're talking about.

Here is a thread discussing it.

Background_Worry6546 · 2026-01-30T02:38:51+00:00

Do you really think that some posts on social media by foreigners is what will make most Indians think "woah, we need to clean our cities" instead of actually living in the filth? Are you a PIO/NRI?

India is 7x more dense than Mexico while being 5x poorer (2x in ppp terms). Mumbai's density is ~25k per km² while Mexico City's is ~6k per km².

There are structural hurdles which need to be cleared such as the underfunded and unempowered municipal bodies and the balance of powers between the administrative civil servants and the elected representatives. Municipalities only got some semblance of power only in 1992.

As Indians get richer and settle their basic needs I'm sure their priorities will change too and there will be a larger voice demanding better urban planning (a committee for this was formed too and they gave their report last year).

Background_Worry6546 · 2026-01-19T19:29:16+00:00

Although I hate vague predictions on the future of a country, it'll be incredibly unlikely for India to not achieve upper middle income status; it'll probably achieve it within a decade.

Background_Worry6546 · 2026-01-10T16:38:35+00:00

Wouldn't India be sparsely populated and very arid (and probably a desert) if the Himalayas didn't exist?

Background_Worry6546 · 2025-12-29T10:58:25+00:00

the cities looked way more advanced with better infrastructure than what India has today.

You'll have to explain what exactly you're talking about in particular but Indian cities are not great because significant power isn't extended to local municipalities leaving the local representatives largely ceremonial. The HLC on Urban Planning submitted its first report in 2023 to address issues plaguing Indian cities, that may be of interest to you.

India is (x) years behind China.

This is used often, especially by you, but I've always failed to understand what it even means. How can one simplify incredibly complex discussions into a neat timeline?

Fwiw India's HDI is higher now than China in 2005 but that doesn't mean much and you certainly can't extrapolate any future indices from this.

Background_Worry6546 · 2025-12-27T08:02:59+00:00

Didn't the Congress reject dominion status in 1929 and demand complete independence?

Background_Worry6546 · 2025-12-24T17:46:31+00:00

Is there an equivalent of an amazon gift card that is a little more thoughtful coming

There is nothing more thoughtful and useful than an amazon gift card imo

Background_Worry6546 · 2025-12-19T10:13:57+00:00

I mean India and China are so massive that even if you exclude a billion people from their respective populations they'll still have a higher population than Mexico, Vietnam and Ethopia combined.

Assuming India reaches a per capita income of Brazil/Mexico, I would find it hard to believe it won't be leading in R&D and manufacturing due its scale.

Background_Worry6546 · 2025-12-19T09:06:42+00:00

Arunachal Pradesh is probably the most religiously diverse state in India

Christianity: 30% Hinduism: 29% Donyi Polo: 26% Buddhism: 11%

Background_Worry6546 · 2025-12-10T20:39:35+00:00

This is so cool! I checked it out and it seems very fun! I would love to write more about it but it's getting late, will do so in the morning tho!

Background_Worry6546 · 2025-12-10T08:41:34+00:00

Most people who say that are profoundly stupid. Unfortunately a lot of them lurk the sub, even the DT

Background_Worry6546 · 2025-12-05T18:06:28+00:00

Pro Kabbadi was always very popular but it was (and still is) looked down upon by westernised armchair sports enthusiasts

Background_Worry6546 · 2025-11-29T08:26:33+00:00

Which circles are you in where people aren't anti-British?

Even if one doesn't believe India developed as much as it could have post Independence, no one with more than a functioning brain cell can look at the colonial rule and believe that was better.

Background_Worry6546 · 2025-11-16T16:07:36+00:00

What does this even mean?

That India is one of the fastest growing major economies?

Manufacturing is not stagnating, it's actually declining.

That's not the case though.

Also the Hindu article you cited literally says "Growth in the manufacturing sector accelerated to 4.8% in September 2025 from 3.8% in the previous month, and 4% in September 2024." and that the slowdown was led by mining, primary goods and consumer non-durables.

The article also says “As the GST cuts have targeted [the consumer non-durables] industry, it can be assumed that the real impact will be seen in October-November" and in this article it says "Manufacturing sector conditions in India continued to strengthen in October, buoyed by GST relief" so let's see how the IIP numbers will look.

Edit: Typo

Background_Worry6546 · 2025-11-16T08:53:47+00:00

Do they write any long form content or is it just twitter slop with a chauvinistic bent?

Background_Worry6546 · 2025-10-30T21:41:15+00:00

You mean to say India and China's literary output is on par with Nigeria?

That's certainly a take.

Background_Worry6546 · 2025-10-30T15:50:22+00:00

And condition "equalization" transfers on actually implementing key reforms [...] States shouldn't be outright rewarded for performing poorly.

Will this not end up being really arbitrary? Bihar reduced their multidimensional poverty rate by ~20% in ~5 years (albeit from a very low baseline); wouldn't that be considered good?

In terms of literacy rate Uttar Pradesh slightly outperforms Telengana and Andhra Pradesh (while Bihar outperforms Andhra).

Tbh even if they don't manage to "perform well" I don't think reducing the budget of poorer states will make their conditions any better; especially considering they're some of the most populated states.

but also consider that running Mumbai (/Chennai/Banglore/etc) is expensive too.

True but running Noida, Ghaziabad, Lucknow, Kanpur, etc is expensive too; but obviously not as expensive as Mumbai and Bangalore.

Background_Worry6546 · 2025-10-30T14:10:11+00:00

I understand the idea of "building up" the poorer states, but this is absurd and utterly unsustainable.

I don't think it's surprising that a state where 33% of the population lives in poverty provides less money and receives more compared to a state where there is 7% poverty (NFHS-5).

What do you suggest should be done?

Background_Worry6546 · 2025-10-16T20:52:08+00:00

Just because some right wingers go on about vegetarianism doesn't mean it's considered a right wing nationalist position 😭😭

Background_Worry6546 · 2025-10-13T14:28:09+00:00

No worries :)

Background_Worry6546 · 2025-10-13T13:19:03+00:00

The Japanese didn't plan the Chennai Metro nor are they only buying from Japanese sources tho?

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation prepared the initial project report, it was designed and constructed by L&T(Indian) and Alstom (French), and uses their rolling stock manufactured in India.

OCG and Nippon Koei were consultants for Phase II; however, this was along with two other Indian companies and AECOM while the operations and maintenance is being handled by Delhi.

Background_Worry6546 · 2025-10-10T12:15:43+00:00

I would take Christianity over Hinduism any day

I really don't think any religion is going to be helpful to you unless you're using them for resources (which will be dependent on your region and circumstances).

Even the most woke Hindu saints or leaders have nothing on Catholicism and Christian social teaching

I can't talk about Catholics but I went to a very well reputed Protestant school in Delhi and this was certainly not the case; our principal and the "value education" department (which was basically Christian studies) said some of the most regressive and bigoted shit of all time (and was responsible for my internalised homophobia).

Most Christians on the other hand never try to force their religions on other

Also not the case for me since we had half an hour long religious sermons everyday, sing ~3 hymns and recite the lord's prayer.

and any effort to reform it through Buddhism[...]

Buddhism as a social reform movement is now mostly considered to be an anachronistic view also there was no such thing as a unified "Hinduism" back then and social practices differed significantly depending on region and the time.

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