Airports are just one example of where the  dysfunctions become much more than nuisances and irritants. They reflect a mindset that says “we don’t care” and “take it or leave it.” Surely, we can do better than that.

Even as we need big ideas to speed up our growth, governance and development, we also need small ideas that can improve daily lives – not just at airports, but all around us. What would it take to install GPS devices in buses and then broadcast “time to arrival” at bus stop displays? Our bus stops have stayed the same since my childhood. What would it take to have fast-track options at toll booths? What would it take to stop having odd figures like Rs 82.50 for toll payments – why cannot these be rounded off thus saving time for the driver and the toll collector?

If we just look around us, there will be many things we will see which can be improved. And if we can see them, surely those whose job it is it improve them can also see them. Why then do these improvements not happen? Why is there not a belief that we need to make things better?