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The Print
23-07-2025
- The Print
Hyderabad is no longer the better Bengaluru. Our roads are flooding and full of traffic
I was puzzled. I had asked her to travel around 10 kilometres, which for the longest time has been a 30-minute commute for us. Since when did my city become such a big pain to commute, I wondered. But the same thing happened with three others last week, and that's when I realised that Hyderabad is no longer the travel-friendly city it used to be. I never thought distance mattered much in Hyderabad until I called up a friend who lives in Secunderabad to catch up. 'No way I am coming that far in the evening because I won't be able to reach home until night,' was her reply. Any time there is a civic catastrophe in Bengaluru, the whole country laughs and lampoons its infrastructure problems, be it overflowing lakes or mad traffic jams. It is also usually followed by 'Hyderabad is so much better' memes because our city and its people are always trying to show that we are a better destination for everything. But I think it's time we stop fooling ourselves and accept the fact that we are are bad as or worse than Bengaluru now. Just last week, heavy rains lashed the city for over an hour, leaving several roads flooded and with floating vehicles. Also read: 11 years after state formation, where's Telangana's history? Govt must fix information gap Barely functioning city Hitech City, the pride of Hyderabad, was such a terrible mess that it took someone I know two hours to go across the city. Just so you know, it takes about an hour on a regular day. Just one heavy downpour and Hyderabad is done for. We have some amazing flyovers, but what's the point if those also get flooded? Last week was such an embarrassment for Hyderabad. Bikers had to literally swim with their bikes during the rain. Our city historically had over 1000 lakes, most of which have disappeared due to urbanisation. Many areas across Hyderabad literally stand on areas that were once water bodies—anything that ends with the Telugu word Kunta or Katta is a former lake. Even our roads were generally good, but even that isn't true anymore. In fact, half the reason why Hitech City is always jammed and a terrible mess during the monsoons is because of the bad roads. I wonder how the current government thinks it can talk about building 'Future City' in Hyderabad when even the present city itself is barely functioning. Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy proudly launched the Hyderabad Disaster Response and Assets Protection Agency (HYDRAA) to protect lakes and help the city deal with infrastructure issues. HYDRAA has been going after builders who have encroached on lakes, and has even supposedly been reviving lakes, but I doubt that will be enough to actually tackle our infrastructure issues. Also read: Stop telling South Indians to learn Hindi. In Hyderabad, languages coexist without imposition Skyline isn't enough Roads and civic infrastructure were much better under the last BRS government. Which is why it managed to win most of the seats in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation area in the 2023 state elections despite losing power in the state. This government needs to actually do something about our roads. Maybe it can take some time out from making grand announcements about building new things. The people of Hyderabad are suffering thanks to a lax government that has only focused on building a great skyline. Post Independence, we kept expanding the city and constructing newer buildings, but forgot to create infrastructure to support it. Hitech City should have been the jewel in our crown to actually show the world that Hyderabad is a great place for people to live in without any problems. Hyderabad will soon not be an option for anyone who wants to get away from Bengaluru. Hyderabadis have a 'sab chalta hai' or anything goes attitude because of which we keep quiet. But I don't remember my city being affected this way in the last two decades. It is embarrassing, honestly. So it's time we stop this comparison and actually fix our problems first before gloating about being better than another city with its own problems. Yunus Lasania is a Hyderabad-based journalist whose work primarily focuses on politics, history, and culture. He tweets @YunusLasania. Views are personal. (Edited by Theres Sudeep)
NDTV
19-07-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
" Dubo-Dubo Ke Maarenge": Raj Thackeray Slams Nishikant Dubey, He Responds
New Delhi: BJP leader Nishikant Dubey, responding to Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray's " dubo-dubo ke maarenge" threat, with a question: "Did I teach Hindi to Raj Thackeray?" On Friday, Raj Thackeray publicly responded to Mr Dubey's earlier comments, where the BJP leader had said, " Marathi logon ko hum yahan pe patak-patak ke maarenge (We will thrash Marathi people repeatedly)", with a warning of his own: "You come to Mumbai. Mumbai ke samundar mein dubo-dubo ke maarenge (We will thrash you, drown you in the sea in Mumbai)." Speaking to news agency ANI, Mr Dubey defended his earlier statements and said he would not retract them. "I am proud that my mother tongue is Hindi," he said. "Raj Thackeray and Uddhav Thackeray are not some great monarchs. I'm an MP, and I do not take the law into my hands. But wherever they go, people will respond." मैंने राज ठाकरे को हिंदी सिखा दी ? — Dr Nishikant Dubey (@nishikant_dubey) July 18, 2025 He added that "if you beat up the poor, they will retaliate one day." Referring to past MNS actions against non-Marathi speakers, Mr Dubey stated: "They protested against Gujaratis in 1956, then against South Indians, and now they are doing it against Hindi speakers. Their history is such that everyone is angry at them." Raj Thackeray, addressing a crowd at Mira Bhayandar, said he had no problem with any language but objected strongly to the "imposition" of Hindi. "I will not make any compromises over Marathi and the people of Maharashtra," he said. "Those who live in Maharashtra should learn Marathi as soon as possible. Wherever you go, speak Marathi." The controversy stemmed from two government resolutions issued in April, under which Hindi was to be made the third compulsory language for students in Classes 1 to 5 in Maharashtra. Following opposition, including from Raj and Uddhav Thackeray, the Maharashtra government withdrew the resolutions. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis later announced that a committee would be formed to review the policy. "The three-language formula will be implemented," he said. "But whether Hindi should be taught from Class 1 or Class 5 is to be decided by a committee." At a rally last week, Raj Thackeray warned Mr Fadnavis that any move to reintroduce the policy would lead to a complete shutdown of schools. "When they tried it once, we had shut down shops, and now we will not hesitate to shut down schools if Hindi is imposed (from Class 1 to 5)," he said.
The Print
16-07-2025
- Politics
- The Print
Stop telling South Indians to learn Hindi. In Hyderabad, languages coexist without imposition
Despite being well-versed in Hindi, Dakhni still rolls off my tongue when I converse with someone from the North. As South Indians, we don't need to learn Hindi at all. Urdu—once the official language of the erstwhile Hyderabad state—is as close to Hindi-speaking as we get in my city. But in retrospect, I realise that Hindi never really served a purpose for me here. Even the Khadiboli Hindi taught as part of the state school curriculum wasn't of much use. We never spoke it, and Telugu, as expected, dominated conversations outside of Hyderabad. Having grown up in Hyderabad, I never gave much thought to learning Hindi as a first language. Given that people here also speak in Dakhni and Urdu apart from Telugu, Hindi has never been much of an issue—because it doesn't sound alien to us. The migrant workers who come here from Hindi-speaking belts benefit from Hyderabad being a multilingual city. That said, this linguistic diversity doesn't mean that we Hyderabadis undermine Telugu or its importance in any way. So, I was surprised when Andhra Pradesh minister Nara Lokesh and Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan both advocated for Hindi—at a time when states like Tamil Nadu and Karnataka have been opposing its imposition on South Indians. Kalyan and Lokesh are clearly in the wrong. While it is understandable that Lokesh's Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Kalyan's Jana Sena are desperate for central funds and will do whatever the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) wants, this instance marks a new low. South Indian states have their own culture, language, and literary history—none of which is, in any way, secondary to Hindi. The TDP was founded by Tollywood legend NT Rama Rao on the basis of Telugu pride. The fact that one of his family members today has advocated so passionately for Hindi is rather unfortunate. Also read: 11 years after state formation, where's Telangana's history? Govt must fix information gap Why must we learn Hindi? South Indians are always told that they should learn Hindi to be able to converse with North Indians. But will our fellow countrymen be open to learning southern languages? Given that lakhs of migrant workers and even blue-collar employees come down to cities like Hyderabad and Bengaluru, southern languages should be ideally taught in other states as well. The only benefit of us learning Hindi in South India would be for easier conversation with migrant workers, or with office colleagues in the North, if we end up working there. Hyderabad/Telangana, in any case, isn't as homogenous as Andhra Pradesh, where not knowing Telugu would make it difficult for someone to navigate on the ground. Learning Hindi might actually cause us to become distant from our own literary cultures. Just a few weeks ago, I spoke to a trustee of a major Telugu publication. And she told me that the quality of readership and literature in Telugu has come down in the last few decades due to the impact of social media and a decline in interest in serious literature. If that's true, then Hindi will certainly become an additional burden on our future generations. I have nothing against the language, but people need to understand that South Indians won't learn Hindi simply because it's convenient for North Indians. What are we getting in return? Better jobs? Better access? None of it. While I don't agree with the extreme reaction against Hindi in Karnataka and even in Maharashtra of late, I do think we should stringently focus on preserving our regional languages first. Hindi can remain an option for those who wish to learn it. There are so many cities in South India that are multilingual. Take Karnataka's Bidar, for example. Most people I met there can speak Kannada, Marathi, and Telugu because the city borders Maharashtra and Telangana. Hindi can be easily understood there too. But do they really need to formally learn it? There is nothing wrong with learning Hindi, but is there any use for it – especially for South Indians who don't intend to go to the North? A vast chunk of migration from Kerala, for instance, is toward West Asia. Similarly, people from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh generally look to the United States for better career opportunities. If the government really wants to have some sort of linguistic parity, then it should also make North Indians learn southern languages, or at least offer that option. The burden of understanding and learning a new tongue cannot be ours alone. And hopefully, there will be more sense among political leaders to not dig the graves of their own languages. Yunus Lasania is a Hyderabad-based journalist whose work primarily focuses on politics, history, and culture. He tweets @YunusLasania. Views are personal. (Edited by Zoya Bhatti)
NDTV
11-07-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
About The Shetty Community Insulted By Sena MLA Sanjay Gaikwad In Slapgate
New Delhi: Shiv Sena MLA Sanjay Gaikwad has added xenophobia to his barbaric display from three days ago - when he punched a canteen staffer over 'stale food' and bragged about it on live TV - after he blamed communities from the southern states for having "defamed" Maharashtra's culture. Speaking to NDTV Friday, Gaikwad accused the 'Shetty community' - a common surname in the Bunt community that comes from coastal Karnataka - of "playing with our lives for a long time..." "... my stomach isn't good. I have been disturbed over it for the last 20 years. The slightest mistake can give me a stomach ache," he complained to NDTV, "... these Shettys of the south have defamed Maharashtra's culture, be it in terms of dance bars or ladies bars..." READ | Sena MLA Who Slapped Canteen Staff Targets South Indians "These things have been going on for a long time and are being done by the Shetty community... it is not written on his (the canteen owner's) forehead but it belongs to them..." he raved. Who Are The Shettys? The Bunt community, members of which often use the surname 'Shetty', come from coastal Karnataka's Tulu region and claim descent from the Alupa (also called Aluva or Aluka) kings who ruled from modern-day Gokarna to areas around Mangaluru for about 1,200 years. Scholars believe the Bunts were largely a warrior-aristocracy class with a matrilineal system, and live on today in people with surnames like Shetty, Rai, Hegde, and Chowta. Today Mumbai is home to over 10 lakh Bunts with the Shetty surname alone, as also large numbers with Rai surname, the more famous among which are Bollywood stars Suniel Shetty, Shilpa Shetty, and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, as well as filmmaker Rohit Shetty. Actor Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is a member of the Bunt community (File). And an estimated 6,000 people with the Shetty surname operate restaurants, canteens, and other eateries in Mumbai, including, reports indicate, that which was assaulted by Gaikwad. Shilpa Shetty, for example, owns the high-end hospitality brand called Bastian that launched a Peruvian-Asian restaurant - called Inka - in March. The community is also known for running lunch homes in the city. The connection between the community and the restaurant business is strong, and is widely seen as the result of entrepreneurial skills and a love for food and hospitality. Sanjay Gaikwad's Shocking Rant Gaikwad - who faces a police case, albeit with non-cognisable charges, which means he is unlikely to be arrested - had raged about non-Marathi communities running 'dance bars', the polite name for establishments that offer sexual services for money. "The people of Maharashtra have never run a dance bar or a ladies bar... they have never done such acts. Only outsiders do such acts," he declared to NDTV. WATCH | Sena 'Slapgate' MLA Walks Out On NDTV Over Tough Questions The Sena MLA - who remains unabashedly unapologetic about his shocking actions - on Thursday walked out of a live interview after NDTV tried to hold him to account, demanding to know what gave him, or any other politician, the right to assault someone or take the law into their own hands.
Hindustan Times
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Mumbai Police to file case against Sena ‘slapgate' MLA Sanjay Gaikwad
Mumbai Police have initiated proceedings to register a case against Shiv Sena MLA Sanjay Gaikwad after a video showing him allegedly assaulting a staff member at a Maharashtra legislature's canteen surfaced online. In the now-viral clip, MLA Sanjay Gaikwad is seen slapping and punching a staff member at the Akashvani MLAs' canteen.(Raju Shinde/HT Photo) According to ANI, the Marine Drive police station took suo motu cognisance of the incident after the video went viral on social media. In the now-viral clip, MLA Gaikwad can be seen slapping and punching a staff member at Akashvani MLAs' canteen for allegedly serving 'state food' reportedly over dissatisfaction with the food served. Also Read | Sena MLA Sanjay Gaikwad stirs fresh row after slapgate: 'South Indians run dance bars' Gaikwad can also be seen infuriatingly making everyone smell a packet of dal. Eventually, he makes the contractor smell the packet and then slaps and punches him. The incident drew widespread political condemnation from the government and the opposition. Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis reacts Amid the ongoing backlash, Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis denounced the incident, saying such behaviour sends a "wrong message" about legislators misusing their power. He also ordered the police to initiate the probe without a formal complaint. Fadnavis said there was no need for the police to wait for a formal complaint to initiate a probe into the incident. Also Read | CM seeks master plan to resolve Hinjewadi's civic woes Deputy chief minister and Shiv Sena supremo Eknath Shinde also said he reprimanded Gaikwad over his behaviour. 'I told him he should have resorted to league measures, like lodging a complaint. What he did was wrong. I cannot be justified, even though he was expressing anguish over the poor quality of food in the MLA canteen,' Shinde said. Earlier, Minister of State for Home Yogesh Kadam said the police cannot take any action against Gaikwad as no complaint was filed against him in this connection. Meanwhile, the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Wednesday evening suspended the licence of the caterer that operates the canteen, saying violations of the food safety norms were found during an inspection at the facility.
