Let More Cities Bloom

For India to progress, urbanisation and growth of more cities will play a pivotal role

- SRIHARSHA MAJETY

SOME YEARS AGO, Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft, while admiring India’s economic success made a very telling comment, when he said that he would like to see entrepreneurs from SAARC nations setting up India’s next generation of unicorns. Giving his own example as an immigrant who succeeded in the United States, he highlighted that a quintessential feature of great societies is their ability to attract the best talent.

I have often found myself thinking over his quote and have realised over the years that what he has said is historically true. The economic and social growth of human civilisation has always been centred around cities, and in this context, great cities such as Athens, Florence, Boston, Rome, London, Madurai, Delhi, Mumbai, Istanbul have been the epicentres of culture and economy of their respective societies. This was primarily possible because these cities served as magnets of the finest talent from all across, and in the process emerged as a cauldron where human creativity and genius could thrive. In short, these cities became the centres of human civilisation.