The Bandra-Worli Sea-Link is now The Rajiv Gandhi Setu Bridge

The Bandra-Worli Sea Link opened for the public at midnight on 30th June 2009 (finally!!). The fact that the project is an engineering marvel is well known but what about the name of the project? As is always the case in India, when any sufficiently large infrastructure project (ports, airports, fly-overs, bridges etc.) is ready to be inaugurated there is a huge debate over the name of the project.

The Congress wants everything to named either Gandhi or Nehru. The BJP wants any of the other leaders involved in the freedom struggle. Local politicians demand that leaders from the region in which the project is located be chosen. The public is largely indifferent to the name; they are more interested in the benefit that will accrue to them from the project.

For example the Bandra-Worli Sea Link has been named "The Rajiv Gandhi Setu Bridge". This has (predictably) led to a huge controversy. This is something that has happened in the past and considering the political scenario will continue to happen in the future.

Why should projects be named after political leaders?. The right to name a project should be auctioned. It will be like an advertising contract just like the title sponsor for any major sporting event. (Barclays Premier League, DLF Indian Premier League etc). This will kill two birds with one stone. The political controversy over the name will be eliminated and money will be generated from the contract. The contract can be devised as a long term (say 5 years) advertising deal. The winner bidder will get prominent slots around the project area. The winning bidder will be able to use photographs of the project in other advertising campaigns(TV, Web, Print).

Infrastructure projects are expensive to build and maintain. The Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) still has unpaid bills worth Rs 480 crore towards the construction of the Sea-Link. The money raised from such deals will definately prove useful.

This is not as radical as it sounds. BEST buses and Railway trains are already covered with advertisements. Companies can pay the Indian Railways to have an entire train covered with their advertising. In many places companies maintain public gardens and in return they get advertising rights. It really is a win-win situation.