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'beggars can't be choosers' - indian railways

Discussion in 'Snippets of Life (Non-Fiction)' started by sureshmiyer, Feb 27, 2011.

  1. sureshmiyer

    sureshmiyer Silver IL'ite

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    “Poverty is virtue and to be wealthy is sin” is a quote which is deeply imbedded in the Indian sub consciousness. No one will talk about his bank balances but will be ready to sulk before others about his day to day expenses. Isn’t it a miracle that when our Government cannot manage to check the prices of essential commodities like tur dal, sugar, milk (please don’t count your onions), our biggest Railway Network keeps on adding new lines, services and concessions without hike in passenger fare and freight rates. No MBA student, even from the IIMs can solve this great Indian Railway trick. Even the richest among the temples, Tirupati Devasthanam had contemplated hiking the rates of prasadam.

    Isn’t it better to stand in a Railway Queue rather than in a queue for Lord Balaji? I have been traveling in general compartment of a suburban train from Dombivli to Mumbai (over 60kms) for a monthly pass of Rs.510/- per month for the last ten years. I bow my head in gratitude before the magnanimity of the Indian Railways which offers me a cheap ride. So what if the Railway trains are chaotic and sleazy, I feel superior to those traveling in small first class compartments at half my comfort and double the ticket rates. My colleague who traveled in first class ticket for two to three months switched to second class as he realized that to be a first class ticket holder is sin. Why pay more and have far less comfort. Better to pay less and settle with whatever is offered to us.

    While the office-goers like us dwell in mediocrity, the beggars, the bootleggers, and the hawkers will walk around majestically with their heads held high. Railways seem to be their ancestor’s property. After a one hour regular train journey, while the regular working public rush towards nauseating toilets to relieve themselves, the so-called poor make hay all around the railway tracks in the open. It will always be difficult to gauge who deserves sympathy, us or them. You can never get down in Kurla Station without getting picketed or robbed or elbowed in your vulnerable areas (if you are a woman) by voyeurs at least once in a lifetime. You pity yourself to be working like dumb goats with herd mentality. The train tickets are dirt cheap, yet you curse yourself because there are many around traveling free without tickets. You wonder where the Ticket Collector is. Has he been transferred to another planet? A small lapse on your part like delay in renewal of monthly pass or forgetting it or traveling in a train without a ticket due to urgency will see the friendly neighborhood Ticket Collector right behind you and demanding fine from you.

    Traveling in such trains with super dense crush load requires tremendous patience, perseverance, tolerance, faith and resistance, all these golden values that are imbibed on us right from our childhood by our forefathers as a part of our culture. That is why you will never witness revolutions aka Egypt or Libya in India, because people learn to live and let live. They love to live in poverty and feel guilty of their possessions. The Public Announcement System in Railway stations will never work in emergencies when trains happen to be late. People console themselves as they are resigned to the fact that Signal failures and derailment are a norm rather than an exception. The smartness in which each passenger makes the ceiling fan inside the compartment move using his comb remains to be seen and researched by the best scientists in the world.

    Once in a while, one of them decides to take leave and go to their native place only to find all the seats reserved 90 days in advance. This great ticketing scam is a puzzle which will never be solved and no party will call a JPC for it. The luckier ones who happen to reserve their seats in Sleeper class very well realize that they will have to adjust with those with unreserved tickets throughout their journey at their own risk. Indians are luckily immune to their dirty surroundings, otherwise a visit to the toilets in such trains or intake of food from a pantry can land then straight on a hospital bed. The travelers in the 2nd and 3rd A/c compartments will have to make friendship with the cockroaches or rats that may infest their bogies without a murmur. Have you seen food parcels thrown from air in flood or earthquake affected areas? The hungry people rush towards picking the parcels and even fight among themselves as they have no choice.

    Keep the prices low and no one will demand accountability from you. Beggars can’t be choosers. Perhaps, this is the mantra of Indian Railways.
     
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  2. maalti

    maalti Gold IL'ite

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    Hi Suresh, very true. When will all these things change? Sometimes, the A/C in the A/c coach will not work at all and there will be no ventilation. The stink from the toilet will add fuel to fire and we will end up in a severe head ache when the journey is over. Thank u for bringing out the sufferings. Regards
     
  3. sureshmiyer

    sureshmiyer Silver IL'ite

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    thanks for the feedback

    cheers
    suresh

     
  4. kkrish

    kkrish IL Hall of Fame

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    Suresh
    VEry insightful article packed with and heading straight for the bull's eye.
    No one can so vividly describe the plight of daily middle-clas bread winner and the women travellers' plight every day, for so many years.
    Somewhere in me I felt sadness...
     
  5. sureshmiyer

    sureshmiyer Silver IL'ite

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    ya kkrish

    as a society, we feel helpless

    regards
    suresh

     
  6. ILoveTulips

    ILoveTulips IL Hall of Fame

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    Hi Suresh,

    I worked in Chennai and every month I used to travel to my home town to visit my parents. I have encountered each and everything you listed here (except the season ticket thing). Thank God that years ago we got railway track by the British at least. Just maintaining and enhancing seems to be impossible nowadays.

    Your blog always addresses the public issues and as a middle class citizen I always find comfort when someone raises their voice.

    Once again very nice blog Suresh. Thanks for sharing with us.

    ILT
     
  7. iniyamalar

    iniyamalar Gold IL'ite

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    A very nice blog as always.
    As ILT mentioned you always address the little things in society very nicely.
    I really liked this one.

    That is why you will never witness revolutions aka Egypt or Libya in India, because people learn to live and let live.

    :thumbsup:thumbsupsuperb....

    Thanx for the nice blog friend
     
  8. sureshmiyer

    sureshmiyer Silver IL'ite

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    thanks for your kind comments

    cheers
    suresh

     
  9. sureshmiyer

    sureshmiyer Silver IL'ite

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    thanks for your comments ILT

    cheers
    suresh

     
  10. raji2678

    raji2678 Gold IL'ite

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    Nice post. I can relate to it, as yesterday I had to travel to Dombivili. By the way, are you on Facebook?

    Raji
     

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