10.3 Bombay

• Cows without carts roam freely in Bombay. Cows with cars are sometimes restricted
• Indian women have on average 3 children, while those in developed countries have slightly less than 2. Those rates will converge by around 2030 as Indian fertility rates fall by a third. [XX Factor, a report by Roopa Purushotthaman, of The Future Group, Bombay.]
• 30% of Indian women work, compared to 70% in China. [ibid.]

• Tax collection rates in India are famously low, with roughly 1% of Indians paying Income Tax, and 40% of that number being found in Bombay. However, following tax cuts three years ago and because of strong growth, tax receipts have almost doubled in the last 3 years. Art Laffer should investigate.
• Indian airlines have hired more than 500 foreign pilots this year to satisfy a boom in regional air travel. Around 25 have since been sacked for poor English. [Report in Times of India]

• "Freedom fighters" get a discount on Indian railways.
  
• Roughly 10 people are killed on Bombay’s commuter trains daily, many simply from falling off. With 3500 deaths annually, Bombay is thought to be the most dangerous urban transit system on earth.
• Bombay is the world’s fifth most expensive city for office space, knocking New York out of the top 5. London’s West End, however, remains top with prices roughly twice that of either city.