No ease of living in Karnataka, seven cities rank below 40, score low on all indicators

Bengaluru, Aug 14: The state of Karnataka, including its globally happening capital Bengaluru, have failed miserably in the country’s first Ease of LivingIndex announced on Monday. None of the seven cities in the state ranked under the exercise found themselves among the Top 40.

IT-BT-Startup hub Bengaluru, adjudged the most dynamic city in the world ahead of Silicon Valley and Boston by the JLL City Momentum Index, came a dismal 58 among the 111 cities ranked by the ministry of housing and urban affairs. Mangaluru (41), Belagavi (52) and Hubballi-Dharwad (57) ranked better than Bengaluru, while Shivamogga (67), Tumakuru (70) and Davanagere (83) fared worse.

According to the survey, seven of the 111 cities have a population of 4million or more. Bengaluru was in sixth position in the Ease of Living Index in this peer group, ahead of only New Delhi. Greater Mumbai, Chennai and Surat, in that order, were in the top 3 positions.

The Ease of Living Index has 78 indicators classified across 15 categories and organized under four pillars: Institutional (Governance), Social Institutions, Economic and Physical infrastructure.

Even in the sub-index category in its peer group, Bengaluru fared poorly in Institutional (Governance), Social and Economic categories.

Only in the category of public open spaces has Bengaluru performed better, landing 16th rank. The indicators in this category reflect the per capita availability of green space and public and recreational places. The study says livable cities have access to green and public open spaces such as parks, playgrounds and beaches. This helps promote physical activity, which has a positive effect on the mental and physical health of citizens, it adds.

Bengaluru fared worse

(107) under the safety and security category. Under the study, the level of safety in a city can be captured quantitatively by examining the number of crimes recorded, especially against vulnerable groups (women, children and elderly). The number of streets and public places in a city that are covered by surveillance systems is a way to assess the efforts of the city to prevent all forms of violence.

The city’s performance was abysmal in health, power supply and other categories. The city scored poorly in housing and inclusiveness and identity and culture as well.