Dubai, University of Development!

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“An easy life does not make men, nor does it build nations. Challenges make men, and it is these men who build nations.”… Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

Well, I would have been surprised has this not been the attitude of the man who has said it i.e. "Thaliava”, means in Tamil “The Boss”, of a dream we call Dubai! Actually its dream for many but it’s a very much reality for the people who live there in Dubai. One of my friend who is hundred percent Hindustani by Heart said to me in my recent trip that, “I Live in Mumbai outside of India & I am loving it, more with each day” & do mind he is living there since last eighteen years! Well, about me Dubai is the only city I have been visited four times in last five years & every time I wonder what should I write & it’s not in negative way I am saying it! I do love watching Hollywood as well Bollywood movies & reading articles about the same as movies are after all reflection of the society only! As I remember here reading an incidence by a celebrity when he has been asked to choose top ten songs by the legendary Lata Mangeshkar (please don’t ask who is she) & another lady singer who was supposedly compared with Lataji in 90’s. I am not mentioning her name as that will be injustice to her as whatever it may be I personally believe every artist is great at his or her place. After being asked, the celebrity jokingly said, “It’s difficult to mention Lataji’s best ten songs but more difficult is to name that other singers top ten songs, though the reasons are different!” It indeed was hitting below the belt as what he meant was Lataji is so great that to choose between her all songs top ten is difficult while the other singer is so bad that even her ten song choosing is also difficult for that! Indeed a bad example but while I share my experiences about Dubai trips I want to compare with Lataji’s songs i.e. such is every trips experience that I don’t know what I should write & from where as Dubai just like forest keeps changing & keeps surprising you every year if not day by its appearance rather presentation, I should say!

This time I was visiting Dubai after 15 months, more than a year & the World Trade Summit 2020 (Twenty Twenty they are calling it) is on the door step which will be held in Dubai! Indeed with slow down crisis all across the globe, Dubai also is not exception & its impact is showing on many fronts. For e.g. the buildings on main Sheikh Zayad road of the city which were under constructions last year are still not complete; which by Dubai’s standard is a slowdown is what I feel or else the city which has witnessed building world’s tallest building in just five years, does knows what speed is! And then the huge model of even more ambitious (read taller) project than of Burj Khalipha i.e. Creek Tower still was there in atrium of Dubai mall but the work at site wasn’t even has come up above ground! As a civil engg by myself I take pride in my profession as by mere looking at any ongoing site I can tell the scene about speed of the construction & I saw many buildings in my four day city tour where the work is either stalled or too slow! And then you can’t miss many “To Let” boards hanging on the shops even on main road. The scene in the malls wasn’t different as on Sunday, the Outlet mall was deserted which otherwise finds no place for parking! I had taken my nieces (actually it’s for them I went this time) to IMG Studio & the entire parking lot which can accommodate nearly 2000 plus cars was empty! The taxiwala said, “Sahab bahot mahenga rakha hai entry ticket, kaun aayega intana paisa kharacha karke”! Means entry ticket for the amusement park is way high & that’s why this isn’t doing well, was the feed back! And do mind it’s not some general amusement park with Merry-G0 -Rounds & Roller Coasters but its Marvel Studio & Cartoon Net Work association! In Dubai best way to gather information is taxiwalas as they know the pulse of the city & as most of them are from Indian Sub-continent i.e. India, Pakistan, Bangladesh or Sri Lanka & they feel comfortable to speak with us & in Hindi & always are happy when enquired about the scene around! Most of these hasn’t visited back home in last two or three years as they were uncertain about getting leave & the job back again on return!

Well, the scene wasn’t much different from our Pune city (I am not saying about country) where you ask any person whether he is happy with his job or trade or profession or business (read earnings) & you will get only complaints but here is where the similarities ends between Dubai & Pune! Indeed political as well social conditions are different but then business or trade (read money) recognize only one thing & that is opportunity & Sheikh Mohammad Maktoum believes that the opportunities has to be created instead waiting for someone to bring them to you! He is like one man army on a mission to turn the tables or say reverse the tide of slow down & he is not leaving any stone unturned. This is what makes Dubai special as right from extending Metro routes (in time) to getting newest attractions, Bollywood Studio is one latest, Sheikh Mohhamad knows that just shopping destination won’t make Dubai’s economy survive & the success of any city lies in creating opportunities mean jobs as well trading for every segment of the society! Because how many times an average tourist family will visit Dubai if it’s just shopping, once at the most twice but then they will discard the Dubai name from their travelling agenda is a bitter fact. But if a person gets job here or finds way to his skills then he will be forever spender in the city & this is what Sheikh is working on! And do mind this isn’t easy job as on one side you have to assure job or income to the citizens & on other side you need to provide them something which they don’t get at their native place & this is why you see lots of people from Asia or African sub continent settling down in Dubai but less Europeans of far Eastern countries like Japan or Korea! Because as my friend said, he (read his family) gets everything in Dubai which he wants & leaving the bad elements aside which are part of our country; corruption & absence of civic sense are to name at top of the list which is long! As the very same people who in India don’t wear helmet riding two-wheeler (rather proudly oppose it) & jump red signals or drives in wrong direction of one way, but here they do stop on red signal in Dubai even its past late night & theirs is single vehicle on road! Its these people only who allows their dog to poop right on middle of footpath here in Pune, carries poop picker while walking their dog in Dubai. If this is about civic sense then the govt here (in Dubai) when says ease of doing business, it means what it says & all the permissions of building sanction are given in 24 hours if your architect knows the bye-laws & makes the drawings pertaining to the laws! Here the govt (read Sheikh) makes the Laws understanding the outcome it will give & make sure that citizen follows the Law once made. It’s said that the locals (read Arabs) as well Sheikh’s family are above the law, well but then in our country it’s not just some families but most families consider themselves above the law is a fact, isn’t it? And then do mind I am not comparing us with any civilized European country but a country whose citizens were tribal & most illiterate lot just some fifty years back! So, to make them develop in a civilized law abiding society wasn’t easy job even with Sheikh’s tag on head!

And then speaking about development I saw hundreds of towers residential as well commercial coming up all around main city even in dessert! But, this but is important as at the distance of some 30km from the city center where the development at present seems to be cut-off by patches of sand unless a well build motorable road to the project as well water & drainage & power lines has been developed (read provided by the Dubai govt) no development permission is granted for even Sheikh’s family project! On this back-ground look at the scene here in our Smart City where projects gets completed & occupied & still we are unable to provide the residents water or power as PMC has no water & MSEB (I don’t like MSEDCL) has no electric meters! This is what Sheikh has done i.e. spend millions on creating infrastructure that too with fight against nature as imagine with nearly 40 inches of rain per year still Pune cries about less water whereas Dubai gets hardly 7 inch rain fall a year & with a strata of sand which absorbs water like sponge & doesn’t gives even a drop back! And then it’s not just water, road or power which makes people to come & live in the homes you have build, it takes much more than that & that is surrounding, social life & leisure activities; well Mr. Sheikh Mohammad understands this & taking steps for the same in Dubai! Right from building a canal through the city center which has become a wonderful socializing place for the entire city to creating gardens, natural habitat for birds to malls on outskirts of city like Outlet mall everything is being done by which citizens can spend their week end or free ours socializing with each other! The canal (water front) development itself has become one of the man-made wonder in dessert with wonderful walkways on both banks & foot bridges across it & yes dedicated cycle tracks too! Then there are places like Frame of Dubai, a nearly 400 ft tall free standing frame which you can go to the top & see Old Dubai on one side & new Dubai on other. Here they have displayed complete 3 D virtual presentation about what Dubai will be in 2050! One more thing is Gold Souk redevelopment or say, face lifting. It was oldest bazaar area of Dubai with cramped lanes & buildings leaning on each other & with thousands of gold smiths shops aligned along. This entire area has been made “no vehicle zone’ & converted in wonderful walk way like a plaza! Many such initiatives has been taken & more importantly executed!  Another aspect is public health & education, during this trip I saw more Hospitals than Hotels coming up in the city & that’s an important sign as health & education are the two things any man will need for his family while he settles in any city! One thing Dubai is promoting seriously & that is cycles; and when Sheikh puts a board on a track of cycle track it meant only cycles! At airport terminals the wall clocks in public areas are of Rolex, telling you richness of the city but more important is when you come out of flight & walk towards exit gate the Cycle Paintings on passage flooring greets you saying “This Way to the Happiest City”. This is main difference I observed (read felt) in recent trip of Dubai as no more it’s just shopping or fun destination but the target is make the city happy & that’s possible only by making lives of citizens happy!  Many people comments, what we can do here, what’s point in mentioning all such aspects of Dubai as nothing will happen here in our country, “yaha kuch nahi badlega”! Well, this is why I visit Dubai as if at all change will happen here then unless we see what to be changed & how, how we can change yourself! And if I may not change the city or country I can at least try changing my sites or my office or make my close ones know that they only can change the things around! We may not have Sheikh’s crown on our head but we can have his attitude towards life! Somebody has said about Dubai that it’s an open book for development, I differ, Dubai is not just book it’s a University of Development, all one needs is to go there & absorb as much he or she can! Thanks Sheikh Mohammad Maktoum for gifting us this University of Development is all I can say!

And now you will understand why people like to be in Dubai as money you can get anywhere (with due respect to your earning skills off-course) but you can’t get the life style (read ease of living) with just money as it needs attitude of entire society & not just some Sheikh to achieve that goal; I think this realization & its implementation is what I will call as a Degree of Development from Dubai Open University!!

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Sanjay Deshpande 

Sanjeevani Dev.

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