If you ever wanted to experience a live simulation of “Work in Progress,” welcome to Faridabad — the city where construction is not an activity, it’s a culture. You don’t “live” in Faridabad; you simply “navigate” it — like an obstacle course designed by civil engineers who ran out of caffeine and common sense at the same time.
Faridabad: The City That’s Always Under Construction
Welcome to Faridabad — the city that’s been “under construction” since forever. If you live here, you already know that no road is ever truly finished, and every new project comes with a promise and a pothole. It’s like living inside a never-ending episode of Roads & Repairs.
Roads to Somewhere (Someday)
Let’s start with the “fantastic” road network — the kind that would make even Google Maps sigh audibly. The city now boasts shiny new highways, underpasses, and flyovers that give an illusion of progress. You look at them and think, “Wow, finally!” Then you drive for five minutes and realize — the road ends in a crater big enough to qualify as a UNESCO heritage site.
Faridabad’s motto should be: “We build roads faster than we fix them.” In one corner, the municipal corporation is proudly laying down interlocking tiles; in the next, the water department is digging them up to check a pipe that didn’t even exist yesterday. The Public Works Department calls it “coordination.” We call it “teamwork between confusion and chaos.”
Here, the engineering brilliance is unmatched. Our talented civil engineers and contractors have mastered the art of placing sewer manholes higher than the road surface. The result? When it rains, the water flows beautifully over the manholes instead of into them. Not a drop gets wasted on actual drainage! The roads turn into mini swimming pools, and driving becomes an adventure sport.
Drainage — The MCF Masterclass
But wait, the Municipal Corporation of Faridabad (MCF) deserves a standing ovation. Their genius shines brightest during monsoon preparations. Weeks before the rains, they heroically de-silt the drains, remove all the debris — and leave it neatly beside the drain, waiting for the first rainfall to sweep it right back in. It’s a perfect system of recycling — only without any logic.
It makes you wonder if anyone is actually in charge or if the city just runs on autopilot. The process is repeated every year with a new tender and old excuses. Somewhere, a management consultant is taking notes.
Garbage: Our Unofficial City Mascot
No discussion about Faridabad is complete without acknowledging its most consistent performer — the piles of garbage. They are everywhere: on roads, near schools, under flyovers, beside temples, and sometimes inside your soul.
These garbage mounds aren’t just heaps — they’re landmarks. “Take a left from the second garbage hill, right after the open drain, and you’ll reach the metro station.” Urban design at its finest.
The government has put up boards saying “Clean Faridabad, Green Faridabad.” But the boards themselves are half-buried under trash. It would be funny if it wasn’t so true.
Encroachment: The People’s Development Model
In Faridabad, everyone believes in equal rights — especially the right to occupy public land. Pavements, green belts, and service lanes are treated like personal property. If there’s an open space, someone will build something on it.
The shopkeepers are no less creative. For them,
the footpath isn’t meant for walking — it’s a great place to set up a stall, park a scooter, or build an extra counter. After all, who needs space to walk when you can sell tea or momos instead?
And when the authorities finally come to clear the area, the shopkeepers simply move a few feet back and return before the dust settles. It’s like a local dance — two steps back, two steps forward, and business goes on as usual.
Traffic: Our Favorite Pastime
Traffic congestion in Faridabad isn’t a problem — it’s a festival that happens daily, twice a day, without fail. The roads are so jammed that even the cows have started using Google Maps.
Traffic lights exist merely for decorative purposes — like street jewelry. The average driver interprets red as “speed up,” amber as “horn loudly,” and green as “go whichever way you like.”
At every intersection, you’ll find a self-appointed philosopher uncle who insists, “Yahan toh sab chalta hai.” True, Uncle. Everything does chalta hai — except traffic.
Water, Water… Nowhere (But for Sale)
Scarcity of water is Faridabad’s version of seasonal depression — it comes every few months but never really leaves. Every summer, taps go dry, and people line up like it’s the launch of a new iPhone — only, this one doesn’t come with a warranty.
But here’s the twist — illegal water extraction thrives! Tankers roam the streets like black-market superheroes, selling back the same water they “borrowed” from under your feet. You call it theft; they call it “water entrepreneurship.”
So, while your society WhatsApp group debates borewell depth, someone nearby is running a full-fledged water start-up — “Startup India” style.
Brilliantly Engineered Accountability
Every few months, a new civic blunder emerges that deserves a documentary. Whether it’s manholes above road level, open drains beside schools, or the grand “drain-cleaning-but-don’t-take-away-the-debris” strategy — Faridabad’s decision-making process feels like a reality show called “Guess Who’s Accountable?” Spoiler: no one ever wins.
The creativity and intelligence displayed in these projects make one wonder — are these mistakes, or is this next-level innovation? Maybe Faridabad isn’t failing; maybe it’s conducting a massive social experiment on how long citizens can survive in puddles of bureaucratic genius.
Accountability in Faridabad is like clean air — everyone talks about it, but no one has actually seen it.
Development: The Eternal Work-in-Progress
Every few years, leaders promise a “New Faridabad.” And every year, we see the same old problems with new signboards. Roads are rebuilt, re-dug, and re-announced — a continuous loop of hope and repair.
But despite all this, the people of Faridabad never give up. They laugh, they complain, they honk, and they move on. After all, living here teaches you patience, flexibility, and the fine art of dodging potholes like a pro.
Conclusion: The City That Never Finishes
Faridabad isn’t broken — it’s just forever under construction. Every road, every drain, every new project carries that eternal promise: “Work in Progress.”
And maybe that’s what gives this city its charm — it’s not perfect, but it’s proudly unfinished.
Because in Faridabad, development doesn’t conclude —
it simply begins again.
Photo courtesy - Google
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