Investor says he left India due to 'rampant corruption' in Noida: Didn't want to raise kids in hell

The businessman's take on Noida sparked a debate on the social media platform with a section of users defending the city and its perks while several other users agreed with the problems prevailing in it. (File photo)

Investor and president of the Indian Business Chamber of Luxembourg, Himanshu Upadhyay, has revealed that he moved out of the country because he and his family did not feel safe living in the country. Upadhyay said that while living in a "posh" gated society in Noida, they faced problems not only with pollution and corruption, but also due to disruption in water and electricity supply, among others.

He asserted that no matter how many tall buildings and trees Noida has, "it’s still a hell".

"I lived in a so-called posh colony in Noida. The only reason I left India was the incompetent and morally bankrupt people around me," the Luxembourg-based investor wrote on X. "There wasn’t a day that I didn’t struggle with basic things, not only outside of the house but also indoors. Electricity, water, pollution, neighbours, commuters. Everyone seemed to be always angry and frustrated, ready to kill. Even the most educated around me were involved in rampant corruption. For instance electricity theft in this very Noida."

Upadhyay made the comments in response to an X user praising the living conditions in Noida. The businessman, who has had around 20 years' experience in multiple markets across Europe, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific, said he did not want to raise his children in that environment. "As much as I love the country, the people around me made it hell. So matter how many tall buildings, how many trees, it’s still a hell," he said, adding that it would probably take two generations to resolve the existing problems.

His take on Noida sparked a debate on the social media platform with a section of users defending the city and its perks while several other users agreed with the problems prevailing in it. When an X user who claimed to live in Noida said he did not face any of the issues Upadhyay listed, the investor asked him: "So you are telling me that there are cities in India where people are morally sound, ethical, with no fights over parking, no road rage, no corruption, no disruption in water and electric supply, no pollution and everyone using common sense?"

On being asked if living in the West assured him a life free of crime, he added, "Largely, and at least I do not struggle with basic things in life and my family doesn’t live in fear."

Upadhyay' sentiments were echoed by a lawyer from Lucknow, who advocated preparing kids to settle abroad to escape the pollution, corruption, and "fictional caste-based egos" prevalent in the country.