The city of Bengaluru has many reasons to be proud of. It is a megacity which boats of prestigious educational institutions, is home to the Kannada film industry and is rich in history that dates back to the era of South Indian dynasties. The biggest laurel in its hat, though, is the sobriquet ‘Silicon Valley of India’, referring to the city being the hub for information technology companies, and an homage to the original Silicon Valley in southern San Francisco Bay Area, United States.
And now, if news reports are to be believed, Bengaluru could be getting ready to boast of another counterpart to a famous American landmark!
On Thursday, at the reopening of Bengaluru’s newly relaid Church Street, city mayor R Sampath Raj announced that a revamp of the city was on the cards, and one of the tentative projects was Bengaluru Square!
Manhattan’s Times Square, sometimes known as the ‘Crossroads of the World’, is one of the world’s most visited tourist attractions. Named after the New York Times office that has its headquarters there, the junction is flanked with gigantic billboard, LCD screens, and is a shopping and entertainment hub.
According to TOI, Bengaluru Square, just like its NYC counterpart, Times Square, would be at a prime location in the city.
The Mayor announced,
“We want the city to have a Bengaluru Square similar to Times Square. We are planning it at the entrance of Brigade Road. Bengaluru is fast becoming a global city, and there should be something to celebrate that.”
The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) plans to have this new landmark replace a war memorial that currently stands on the intersection of Residency Road and Brigade Road in the central business district (CBD) of Bengaluru.
The chief motivation behind this move is to turn these streets and Bengaluru as a whole into a world-class tourist destination. And a Times Square replica isn’t the only thing on the list!
The redone up Church Street already has the honour of being the first handmade road in the country, where each stone was laid individually. And now, plans seem to be in full swing to turn some other streets into prime tourist attractions.
“MG Road and Church Street are must-visit spots for tourists. A lot of citizens have told us that they want Church Street to be a walkers’ zone. Church Street will also have easy access to the upcoming pod taxi service.”
Sounds exciting, doesn’t it? Ummm, not to everyone!
While the idea of having such an impressive landmark in our country sounds like a fabulous idea, not many are happy with it.
And to be fair, their reasons do seem to have some merit in them.
1. Is this a joke?
Bengaluru may soon have its own New York-style ‘Times Square’ https://t.co/oG5ig84txx via @TimesNow
I needed a laugh today and now I can't stop laughing.
— ᴍᴀᴅʜᴜ ᴍᴇɴᴏɴ (@madmanweb) March 3, 2018
2. Haaaaave you met the infamous Bengaluru Traffic? A Square might just add another roadblock to it!
Times Square of Bengaluru may remain a dream forever. Firstly the traffic of Bengaluru is playing havoc with citizens. Let the concerned concentrate on it .
— Suresh Ramu (@RamuSuresh) March 2, 2018
3. First order of business has to be improvement of roads.
#NammaBengaluruNammaHemme With the Pathetic conditions of the Bangalore Road, we hardly have time to spend at home. Now we are looking at Times Square. https://t.co/alanQwKUAX
— sunil (@Sunilkand) March 2, 2018
4. Can we prioritise what we ought to emulate?
Times Square in #Bengaluru? Great idea.
How about NY like drainage system in the city? Also proper garbage disposing facilities? I think these should be the priority now. @BBMPCOMM1 @siddaramaiah— Jimy (@jimypothen) March 2, 2018
This is a classic case of the “Bhai bhai bhai bhai” meme!
“Phele roads and traffic thik karo, and then maybe we can aim for Bengaluru Square!”
Koi Nagarpalika ko bulaao, please?