Theka sharaab desi — that ubiquitous liquor vend found in almost all cities — is conspicuous by its absence in Chandigarh. The city hasn’t been adapted by Alcoholic Anonymous and maintains a hearty appetite for all things intoxicating. Some months ago, the Union Territory Administration issued a dictum that liquor shops in the city should do away with their hideous desi appellations. They were to call themselves Taverns, just like they do in London!

This is one example of a series of measures announced by the UT Administration in the last two years, which has been copied from first-world cities. Per se, there is nothing wrong in adapting measures that can ensure a better standard of life for people, but qualitatively, the life of the people of Chandigarh hasn’t improved, as they continue to grapple with problems that remain unaddressed. As such, the administration’s new fangled schemes appear hollow and exclusivist.

For instance, no one objects to the introduction of New York’s poop-the-scoop law, which requires city denizens to clean-up after their pet has soiled the road. But, such laws appear superficial when the administration has been unable to control the menace of street dogs and loose cattle that not only dirty the streets but also cause casualties and injuries.

Similarly, authorities show a zealous obsession to maintain the congruity of buildings in terms of shape, size and colour. Two days ago, when DAV Sector 10, the city’s best-known college, changed the paint of its facade, the administration showed amazing alacrity in issuing it a notice. Taj Hotels had a harrowing time to get approval for their building plans as the height of their hotel contravened the city’s idea of symmetry. This suggests an attempt to maintain and guard the architectural legacy of Le Corbusier, the French architect who designed the city. In fact, the administration went to the extent of filing an application for grant of world heritage site status by UNESCO to the city. But the same administration also showed such a blatant apathy to furniture designed by Corbusier that they were sold as scrap. These items were subsequently bought by connoisseurs for several thousand dollars at international auctions.

... contd.