The problem is not the American and the European response to Nano, but that of Indian intellectuals who ape those opinions. Pachauri and Sunita Narayan are neo-environmentalists who'd happily echo some white-skinned writer because it is fashionable to be 'green'. In a country like India where politicians have ignored common folk and their needs for decades, is any one asking the govt. how much forest cover politicians have depleted, how many new brands of big cars they have permitted entry into the Indian market, how many miles of roads they have built, what is the state of industrial and hospital wastes, how many towns have reliable mass transport systems?
If Ratan Tata gives India a Nano, don't tell him he ought to be building roads. Infra-structure is Govt.s responsibility, but remember the scooters they made to cut into Bajaj's market, ignoring roads, power-generation and water-supply? If the govt. agrees to keep off public works, Tatas will also build motorable roads, and power=plants. And look at the intellectuals deriding Ratan Tata for thinking of just one need of common man! If he were to build roads, our Pachauri and American Friedman would talk about soil blockage and loss of ground water absorption, soil erosion due to chopping of grass. Because Indian Govt.'s priorities have been wrong, it does not mean that all of India must struggle even for inexpensive transportation till new policies are made to create an extensive mass transpoprt sy
