Quality of life and cities in Kerala; seven cities featured in Oxford Economics Global Studies Index

It is an honour to have seven cities from Kerala figure in the list of cities with the best quality of life in India. This information, which is a catalyst for Kerala's future development, is from the list released by the Oxford Economics Global Studies Index, which has studied 1,000 cities in 163 countries. Delhi, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Chennai are all behind Kerala in the quality of life category. Thiruvananthapuram tops the quality of life index. The ranking of the capital city is 748. Kottayam is in the second position with 753 rank. Thrissur is in the third position with 757 rank. The ranks of other cities are Kollam 758, Kochi 765, Kannur 768 Kozhikode 783. Kochi has reached the fifth position in the overall ranking and has secured the status of number one in the state. Although New York has been voted the best city in the world, Grenoble in France has the highest quality of life.

In India's overall ranking, Bengaluru is second after Delhi, Mumbai is third and Chennai is fourth. Five criteria were considered namely economy, human resources, quality of life, environment and governance.

Thiruvananthapuram being ranked number one in India for quality of life opens up many possibilities. Along with that, the city planners and the government need to give importance to the thoughts to maintain this position and advance further. The biggest feature of the city is that the rural beauty also exists in a way that can be enjoyed. Even though the number of vehicles has increased, hours-long traffic jams are alien to this city. There is no doubt that the city of Thiruvananthapuram will attain great dimensions when the Vizhinjam project becomes a reality and the light metro project is implemented. No city in Kerala looks like a concrete jungle. At the same time, our cities are not behind any other city in India in terms of amenities and peaceful living.

The best cities are those without violence against women and children. In that regard, despite being the national capital, Delhi is not safe at all. However, Mumbai, with its multiple underworld groups, is quite different. Mumbai is a city where any girl can walk without fear even after midnight. It is part of the culture of that city. Along with increasing the standard of living, cities in Kerala need to become cities with the lowest crime rate as well. Law enforcers should formulate long-term plans for this. Today we are far behind in waste disposal. To change it, the government, organizations and citizens need to join hands and make intensive efforts. The fact that Kerala has most of the cities with the highest quality of life in the country is an asset for the growth of the tourism sector.