Aleksa's Book Review: City of Lavasa

Usually, I don't review research papers, but rather books. However, in this case, I make an exception due to the raw quality and insight of the work. India is an absolute dark spot in my knowledge base, and it's high time that I'd started to read more about it. Boy, have I chosen a good work to start with - one about the construction of a private city called Lavasa.

The name "Lavasa" means nothing - it was designed to be easy to say and pleasing to the ear. This, among other things, is the advantage of building a city from scratch. Other aspects of it include its own governance charter, top-of-the-line sewage systems (a rarity in much of India) and architecture ripped from Milano and Venice. The paper speaks about a lot of the advantages contained in such a system.

Other than that, this work explains to no end the nature of government in India, the land-grab policies, front and shell companies, and other aspects of graft that punctuate the political system. I'm very happy that the work is as well-written as it is, because the knowledge contained herein is almost too useful to be without. Also relevant is the experience of the writer himself.

On more than one occasion, the writer veers into stories about how he had to use diplomacy and even subterfuge to gain the information he wanted from the relevant authorities. However, the private developers of the city were much more forthcoming with information. In closing, this is the best piece on India that I've ever read, and that alone makes it deserve the title of BANGER OF THE WEEK.
10/10