‘Initially reluctant, I realised that Gurugram was closer to nature’

Delhi-born Vimal Kumar Suneja shifted to Gurugram because of family reasons but says it was among his best decisions.

Although the nomenclature of Gurgaon has changed to Gurugram, it is still called ‘Gurgaw’ by most of the people living here or those who have surfed it on Google. I came to Gurgaw 15 years ago in search of my second home, away from Delhi. My wife was interested in purchasing a plot or a house in Gurgaw, but I was dead against it; the reason being that I was born and brought up in Delhi and was living in a decent, centralised locality of Rajinder Nagar, which is close to Karol Bagh and Connaught Place. It was the heart of the city, but with the passage of time, the arteries of this heart started clogging because people made multi-storey buildings and every household had more than one car. The area could not cope with the increasing pressure. Opening of IAS coaching academies start mushrooming in this area and it became a hub for aspirants. The look of Rajinder Nagar changed from a residential colony to a campus, surrounded by PGs and hostels. It became difficult to move around in the area and even more so to park cars near the house. At times, we used to park our cars near the Salwan School, which was more than a kilometre from our house, and on some occasions, in the parking lot of Sir Gangaram Hospital.

Vimal Kumar Suneja reluctantly shifted from Delhi’s Rajendar Nagar to Gurugram at the insistence of his wife and son but is now happy with his decision. (Parveen Kumar/ HT Photo)

My son and daughter-in-law got their engineering jobs in Gurugram as it was turning a hub for cyber firms. A large number of MNCs set up their offices in Gurgaon. It became famous as a Millennium City, but coming to Gurugram in the morning from Delhi and returning in the evening became a nightmare for them. Although the government had set up a toll road, crossing the toll was a daunting task, even with prepaid tags. My daughter-in-law refused to have a child, and she had a valid reason, as she was unsure of being able to care for the child after spending eight hours in the office and a further fours hours in commuting. At times, they used to go to sleep without having dinner due to exhaustion.

One day, we sat together and decided to shift to a rented accommodation in Gurugram. Initially, I was against it but gave in, keeping in view the problems faced by the children. My son and wife went for hunting a good house.

Selecting a house and good landlord was also a problem. After four weekend visits, they zeroed in on a flat in a society in Sector 47, for which the rent was Rs50,000 per month. I was reluctant, as the rent was high (I am talking of the year 2015); secondly, living on rent when we have a good house in Delhi and thirdly, I have sentiments attached to the area where I was born and brought up.

With a heavy heart, I accepted their decision on the premise that if I did not like Gurugram, we would move back to Delhi. When we moved into the Bestech Parkview Spa in Sector 47, I started realising the difference. It has 80% green area, two-tier security system and dedicated parking for two cars in the basement. After a long time, I saw butterflies, sparrows, squirrels and peacocks in the society. I realised that I had moved to a holiday resort or a bird sanctuary, closer to the nature. With the passage of time, my perception about Gurugram changed.

When we are the family’s primary decision maker, we don’t take our inexperienced children’s views seriously. My son opined that it is always better to rent a house before buying one in the same area.

If we like it, then it is well and good. Otherwise, we can move to another area or society.

One day, I opened up to my family members and said that paying so much rent is not a wise thing. I suggested we purchase a house in Gurugram. At this stage, my wife did not miss the opportunity to remind me or taunt me that had I listened to her advice 15 years ago, then the house that is available for Rs 2 crore could have been bought for Rs 30 lakh.

In June 2017, we sold our two flats in Delhi and put all my retirement funds into purchasing a flat in the same society i.e. Bestech Parkview Spa, where we were living on rent.

The advantage of this society was that it is near to NH-8 and Sohna Road and is surrounded by reputed hospitals. Also, Huda City Centre Metro station is not far off.

In the society, we enjoy ‘laughter yoga’ in the morning for 45 minutes and take a walk in the dedicated walking area. Children enjoy swings, skating, gym, dance floors, lawn tennis and basketball. The society has everything, be it a club, saloon, chemist, play school and shops to meet daily needs of residents.

Every second person you greet here is a doctor, pilot or retired military officer. Family get-togethers and picnics are arranged at regular intervals, besides meetings on national days, such as Independence Day and Republic Day. On such occasions, children plant saplings and look after them on a regular basis. Festivals like Teej, Holi and Diwali are celebrated with pomp and show. People say that living in such a wonderful environment increases our life span by 10 years.

The society has everything and days are not far away when the builder will hand over the control to the residents’ welfare association; the ball for its election has been set rolling.

Destiny takes us to different places. We settled in Gurugram for our son, who then got a job in the USA and shifted there in July 2017. Life moves on and we should enjoy every phase of it. If today, anybody asks me if would we like to go back to Delhi from Gurugram, our answer will be a big “NO!”