India’s National Capital Region, the huge metropolitan area that encompasses the city of New Delhi, stretches spoke-like into the surrounding states as a bevy of satellite cities. One of the most important of these is situated in the state of Haryana.
Once no more than a barren stretch of villages, today Gurgaon is home to more than 250 of India’s Fortune 500 companies, 26 luxury malls boasting outlets for the likes of Chanel and Louis Vuitton, lush golf courses, premium car showrooms and upmarket recreation venues.
Gurgaon has been nicknamed India’s “Millennium City”, reflecting the development the country aspires to. However, in an attempt to bring the citizens of Gurgaon closer to their heritage, the state government accepted a request in April for its name to be changed to Gurugram (“guru” translates as “teacher” and “gram” to “village”).
Before India gained independence in 1947, only a few hundred people lived in Gurgaon’s founding communities. By 1971 the population reached 57,000. Today, the city is home to more than 1.8 million people and has an impressive per capita annual income of Rs 446,000 (£4,700), compared with the national average of Rs 88,533 (£930).
Although commonly associated with Delhi, Gurgaon also has borders with the states of Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, making its location highly strategic for business. From Indira Gandhi International airport, a 40-minute drive along National Highway 8 brings you to the centre of the city. Its proximity to the capital – and the country’s policy-makers – proved to be very appealing to the visionaries and investors who saw the area’s immense potential.
As you drive along, you’ll notice a large “DLF” stamped on most of the high-rise buildings. More than any other person, it is Kushal Pal Singh, chairman and chief executive of DLF – India’s largest commercial real-estate developer – who is behind the city’s building boom.
“When the idea first took hold of me that a world-class city could be built on the vast tracts of desolate land at the foot of the Aravallis in Haryana, nobody took me seriously. Reactions ranged from open ridicule to concern for my sanity,” wrote Singh in his autobiography, Whatever the Odds: The Incredible Story Behind DLF. Yet today, the company owns about 1,200 hectares of this industrial region.
While car manufacturer Maruti Udyog (now Maruti Suzuki) was the first company to lay its foundations here when it opened in 1982, it wasn’t until DLF’s acquisition of land at the end of the 20th century that investors developed confidence in the area’s potential.
The roots of Singh’s vision can be traced back to a chance meeting in 1980 with the then soon-to-be prime minister, Rajiv Gandhi. Bumping into each other in an isolated part of Haryana, Gandhi heard Singh explain his vision for Gurgaon. In his book, Singh recalled: “He became interested and pressed me on the issue. ‘What is holding it up and why don’t you do it?’ This one incident was to transform Gurgaon from a rural wilderness into an international city.”
Gandhi urged Singh to present his idea to Arun Singh, the union minister at the time and, as a result, the area was developed under a private-sector model, with DLF paving the way.
The process of land acquisition led to the inception of a unique business model. The farmers sold their land to DLF, but then became business partners by reinvesting the money back into the company. Singh’s rural and defence background, and DLF’s unsullied reputation, encouraged farmers to trust him.
Soon after, Singh invited Jack Welch of General Electric in the US to visit India and explore the idea of setting up Genpact – a business unit within GE. Latika Thukral, founder of Iamgurgaon, a charitable organisation that
works to raise quality of life in the area, says: “From there on, the city has seen a meteoric rise in terms of investment, with several multinational companies setting up base.”
She adds: “In the past 25 years, Gurgaon has developed rapidly and, at present, more than half of the Fortune 500 companies have their offices here, along with the manufacturing units of automobile giants such as Hero Motocorp, and most telecom companies, including Bharti Airtel, Vodafone, Sony, Ericsson, Nokia and Samsung. DLF has contributed to the real-estate boom in the city, which now boasts some of the country’s premium condominiums and luxury apartments.”
Add to this quality educational institutions and seven-star hospitals such as Medanta Medicity, which have mushroomed here, and it’s no wonder the place was made India’s first Millennium City – said to rival Bengaluru and also Chennai for its contribution to the country’s software exports. A number of corporations now have thriving offshore centres here, while outsourced solution centres for the IT and software industries have also been set up.
International players that have picked the city for their Indian headquarters include Pepsi, IBM, American Express, Coca-Cola, Microsoft and Bank of America. Such rapid industrialisation has created job opportunities for both Indians and expats, and many corporations have developed company townships that allow employees to find accommodation close to their place of work.
These integrated communities have flourished, housing cinemas, gyms, grocery stores, social centres, playing fields and schools. Thukral says: “Multinationals that set up bases in Gurgaon invited millennials from Delhi and the rest of India to join their workforce. A huge migrant population now calls Gurgaon home.”
As part of Haryana state, the responsibility for planning Gurgaon’s infrastructure was handed over to the Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA). Given that the land was previously lacking in facilities, HUDA started from scratch, setting up schools, colleges, hospitals, police and fire stations, bus shelters, nursing homes and community buildings, as well as sewage systems to manage waste and maintain hygiene standards.
A vital part of the infrastructure was to build and maintain the road system, creating new motorways and wider, well-lit avenues as the population grew. The agency has also built a 70km water channel from Sonepat (in Haryana) to Gurgaon that supplies 100 million gallons a day to up to 1.6 million people.
As the economic driver for Haryana state, which has a mostly rural population that exists incongruously near to the city’s gleaming skyscrapers and Mercedes cars, the city bears some responsibility for the broader development of the area. This is helped by the boosting of state coffers from foreign direct investment. However, in the midst of the multinationals, a Gurgaon-based company called Oxigen is aiming to bring economic empowerment to rural India.
The company’s footprint now stretches across 192 towns and is the brainchild of founder Pramod Saxena. Oxigen seeks to bridge the gap between India’s villages and financial services of all kinds. This is done via its vast network of more than 200,000 retail touchpoints offering mobile phone top ups, bill payments, money transfers, banking and travel services.
“Currently, banks cannot penetrate the remote areas of Haryana because of high operational costs,” Saxena says. “However, Oxigen has [developed] its presence in these rural locations by tying up with retailers who provide money transfer services to people who previously didn’t have access to banks.”
The firm’s business model aligns with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision for a “digital India”, which made headlines late last year following his visit to California’s Silicon Valley.
The company has developed a rural engagement programme to connect with a large potential customer base living in inaccessible places, and support people in access to health, education and employment. Saxena says: “We also routinely conduct financial literacy camps in these villages, where we distribute leaflets and show videos to educate [people] on financial services and money transfer facilities.”
In a place where more than half the population doesn’t have a bank account, and only 23 per cent have a usable credit history, Oxigen’s efforts are commendable, and underscore the region’s contribution to India’s growth.
Gurgaon’s journey from a backwater to a premier model city sets a high standard for nascent satellite conurbations across the country. It’s also an example of what can be achieved when?a bright vision is backed up by harmonised?planning and development. From burgeoning multinationals to home-grown companies that foster the development of Haryana, and of India as a whole, this city’s success is a milestone in the chronology
of a forward-thinking India.
WHERE TO STAY
Hyatt Regency Gurgaon
A 30-minute drive from Indira Gandhi airport and 15 minutes from the city centre, the Hyatt Regency (top) has 451 rooms and suites, a club floor, a pool and spa. It also has more than 3,700 sqm of meeting space and four restaurants and bars. regency.hyatt.com
Dusit Devarana New Delhi
Located on National Highway 8, ten minutes from Indira Gandhi airport and a 25-minute drive from the city centre, Dusit Devarana (middle) has 50 guestrooms. Each offers pool or garden views and is equipped with free wifi, LED TVs and minibars. There is also a business centre, a lounge for casual meetings, and a Chinese restaurant. devarana.in
Lemon Tree Premier, Leisure Valley
Situated in Gurgaon’s city centre, the 81-room Lemon Tree (bottom) is close to the Leisure Valley Park, Unitech Business Park and Cyber City. Rooms come with free wifi, DVD players and safes, while other facilities include a bar, restaurants, conference room, spa and pool. lemontreehotels.com
