From scoring highest to lowest: Bengaluru's 'liveability' dilemma

The city of Bengaluru in Karnataka finds itself in a dilemma following the release of an international report which ranks it the 'least liveable' city in India, even beating Delhi which is often considered 'unliveable' owing to its high levels of pollution. This is after the silicon valley of India topped the central government's 'Ease of Living Index' in 2020.

Released on June 24, the Global Liveability Index 2022 prepared by the European Intelligence Unit (EUI) ranked 173 cities based on their liveability or living conditions, determined by five factors- including stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure.

The index ranked five Indian cities: Delhi, which ranked the best at 140, followed by Mumbai at 141, Chennai at 142, Ahmedabad at 143, and Bengaluru at 146. As per the report, the ideal rank for cities is under 100, but all Indian cities have scored way beyond the mark.

Bengaluru recieved a score of 46.4 out of 100 in the field of infrastructure, way below our neighbour Pakistan's largest city Karachi which scored 51.8 on the indicator and figured among the five least lievable cities in the world in the index.

Infrastructure is given 20 percent weightage by the EIU and is judged based on the quality of roads, public transportation system, international links, energy provision, telecommunications, water, and availability of good quality housing.

The highest weightage is attached to stability and culture and environment, which account for 25 percent each, followed by healthcare and infrastructure with 20 percent each and education with 10 percent.

Austria's Vienna ranked the highest on the index followed by other European and Canadian cities such as Copenhagen, Zurich, Calgary, and Vancouver that made it to the top five liveable cities. The Syrian capital, Damascus is the least livable city in the world, as per the report.