The real Madrid and the unreal New Delhi

2010 is significant for New Delhi and India, 2016 is important for Madrid and Spain. But it is interesting to see how the two are preparing for their big days. India hosts the Commonwealth Games and Madrid gets serious about its bid for 2016 Olympics.

At a recent meet in Delhi, the Ambassador of Spain dwelt on the strides Madrid has taken to carve out its cosmopolitan profile on the world map. The meeting was ostensibly to update Indian authorities, corporate world and media on ‘efficient city management’ but the brief extended to tourism and public private exchange and co-operation. It was definitely a build-up to the claims of Madrid as a city, ready for the world’s greatest sporting event. As the headquarters of the World Tourism Council, it has the right credentials too. After a very successful meet under the aegis of Asian Development Board, the city of Madrid has decided to share its success story with Indian cities.

High on superior infrastructure, Madrid’s efficiency didn’t come about easy. The city had its own issues of red tape and bureaucracy, not unlike India’s with a similar multiplicity of authority.