Prominent senior citizen Jimmy Hawewala laments the loss of the peace and serenity. ``This place was a pensioner's paradise. Rows of banyan trees, narrow roads, horse-carts life moved slowly but it had quality. Today the skyline is tainted by fumes from the many refineries and chemical units that sprouted here with the advent of industrialisation. We are suffering from respiratory disorders. This isn't the Vadodara I came to in 1958,'' he says.

Hawewala is deeply disturbed by the soaring crime graph, the blatant violations of FSI norms and the lack of concern for the environment. ``The warmth and human touch has disappeared. Now all people here are concerned about is money. We have all the amenities, but at what cost? People are living dangerously,'' he adds.

While the influx of people from other states has added to the vibrancy to the city, it also promoted unplanned growth. Explains social worker Ajit Gaekwad, ``The mega-projects ONGC, IPCL and others sprouted suddenly and people came here seeking employment. Simultaneously, housing demands increased, traffic problems surged and the civic authorities failed to meet the challenge. Now we have to face the brunt of a weak infrastructure''.

Gaekwad is also bitter about the alleged ``callousness'' of the migrants, ``especially those who came here from Mumbai, who found the market conditions very cheap compared to their city. They willingly paid more rent, better salaries to domestics and unknowingly, created a lot of imbalance. Builders also raped the city through and through. It helped the economy but ruined established systems.''

The sentiments are true. But could the erstwhile kingdom of the Gaekwads have escaped the industrial boom and the makeover that followed?``I'm not surprised that the materialistic trend is affecting small towns and cities'', says former Pro-Vice-chancellor of M S University Veena Mistry.

``The trend is prevalent across the country and would at some time or another reach the smaller cities because the upper and middle-classes everywhere always want to acquire more.''

However, Mistry sees nothing unhealthy in the quest for the best. ``But I am concerned about the effect of this race on family units and the younger generation. Imagine the tension in a middle-class family if a 12-year-old demands a pair of Nikes for school,'' she points out.

For all the ailments afflicting the new improved Vadodara, the city still has a lot to cheer about, according to Narayani Mahil, PRO at ONGC, who came here a year-and-half ago.

``I come from Dehradun in Uttar Pradesh and what always strikes me about this city is its vibrancy and the cosmopolitan culture,'' she says.For Mahil, Gujarat has been a great relief from the conservative people and unsafe bylanes of UP. ``Even professionally, there is less interference from the bureaucracy and the labour conditions are conducive for the company here,'' she adds. As they say, the grass is always greener on the other side.