The Insanity gripping Dehradun

 Yes, I am back after a self-imposed, lengthy absence. Ennui is to blame. Now, onto current matters.

We live on the outskirts of Dehradun, West of Rajpur Road, in a village surrounded by Sal forest. It used to be idyllic, now, not so much....

It was quiet. Single lane road, no traffic, we knew the neighbors well. My wife and parents were the first non-villagers to move into the Gaon. They bought .75 of a Bigha of land, roughly 675 square yards and built a cottage with 1 bedroom downstairs and one upstairs. When built, the home was surrounded only by farm plots. Horses and cattle used to graze outside their windows. In the beginning, water was brought from the village water tank in large jugs. It was the first home my In-Laws had ever owned after living all over India, North and South.

They paid 5.5 Lakhs in 2003 and built their home in 2005. That works out to Rs 815/sqyd. Granted, the seller needed money to cover his daughter's wedding, but the price was roughly in line with market rates. Today, this tiny plot goes for 2.84 Crores (Rs 42,000/sqyd). And that is the circle rate reported to the government, it is higher than that in reality. (By 50% supposedly...)

A flat in Pacific Golf Estates, comprising roughly of 2,000 flats in the Northern periphery of Dehradun and which I consider to be a very nice place to be, albeit surrounded with people, last year rented for Rs 25,000 per month for a 2BHK. Today, one year later, it is Rs 37,000.

Within the last 3 years, 3 very large hotels have been built on Mussourie Road, leading to Mussourie. Why? I am guessing that Hyatt, Marriott and Taj all have professionally trained people who can read the tea leaves of Dehradun and then bet millions and millions of money that they will be profitable? How so? Lets list the reasons:

• A six lane expressway connecting Noida to the outskirts of Dehradun will be completed within a year. It will take visitors 2.5 hours from Noida to the outskirts. (More on that later)
• The number of visitors is now being limited to Mussourie and they are being blocked at the entry point. Gee, if you cannot drive to Mussourie, where could you possibly stay at the same inflated rates you pay on the hill. And, possibly, could those hotels arrange buses to take people up, or ferry them to the 1200 people per hour ropeway being built in Purkul?
• North and West of Rajpur Road, there are presently sitting over 9,000 empty flats that were bought 5 or more years ago when real estate prices were going crazy. Their investments are not paying off so real estate companies are snapping these up at bargain rates and sitting on them. Do they know something we don't? Are they renowned for their patience?
• There is such a bad shortage of potable water that it is being trucked in to the occupied flats all over Dehradun. What? No pre-planning? No capacity studies? Nope.
• An entire new township is being planned on the site of former tea estates South of Chakrata road. 3,400 flats, 940 houses, shops, mini malls, etc. Where is the water coming from? Presently we are 4.5 meters below average groundwater levels already and starting to hit the salt from the former ocean that used to cover all this. (Memories of Gurugram, anyone?) Never mind, where there is a politician making plans, there are friends willing to make some money with them.
• We have ultra-modern hospitals with rates that make your eyes water. Why? Dehradun is the seat of state government, so I am guessing that those thousands of government employees have some kind of insurance, and these hospitals all accept it, don't they? Hmmm. Medical holidays from abroad for elective surgery, anyone?
• Rajpur Road has exploded with hyper expensive restaurants that seem to be constantly full. Too bad the government has decided to concrete between the old trees and now is putting in barriers to stop anyone from parking next to the road. I wonder, are there plans afoot to charge people for parking, as in the middle of Doon? Say it ain't so, please..
• Remember the 6 lane expressway to the outskirts? How are the 10,000+ cars per day coming on a holiday to the hill station going to get through Dehradun on slow, 2 lane roads that are already choked with local traffic? Flyovers everywhere maybe? Bet on it.

My wife loves to drive her father's old Omni van everywhere. It is now 17 years old, on its second motor and runs great. It manages to navigate our jungle roads despite the number of enormous SUVs clogging them up with out of state license plates who don't know how to use a horn on a curve and are driving at insane speeds. They give you a dirty look for impeding their rapid journey to the next boutique hotel spot cropping up somewhere.

We don't enjoy going out much anymore. As an aside, what happended to the trash bins? 2 years of no contracted trash pickup? No wonder the roadsides are littered with everything from building materials to dirty diapers. Green Doon, Smart City? Where, where exactly??