New Delhi, March 7 -- At a literary festival in Shillong, a government official was dreaming big.

He apologised that for many of the delegates it was a long slog to get to Shillong. They had to fly in to Guwahati and face a 3-hour car ride. In a few years, he promised, the airport in Shillong would be able to accommodate bigger airplanes. Then they could fly directly to Shillong. And the festival could be bigger and better.

Everyone clapped. But I remember wondering nervously if it might be too much of a good thing. Shillong is already "developing" at breakneck speed. Traffic jams are not uncommon. Is making it easier for droves of tourists to descend upon it necessarily the best thing to happen to it? Already one could not walk around ...