Railways are considered to be the lifeline of India. Millions of people are dependent on it and it is the only cheap mode of transportation for long distances. With the rising fuel prices, airways and roadways are a secondary choice.
It is said that if someone spend a month in these trains, he can experience the best and the worst of India. It is true. You travel in a Rajdhani and Shatabdi express and no wonder you'll be impressed by the kind of treatment you get in these trains (there are a few exceptions though). On the other hand, you'd rather think about walking a 1000 km rather than traveling the same distance in a 2nd class unreserved coach. Such diverse is the system, one actually thinks if we are taking about the same organization.
I recently had the chance to spend a night at Pune railway station in India to book a tatkal ticket back to my place. A tatkal reservation normally begins at 10 am in the morning but the rush compels us to start queuing from midnight to avoid early morning rush. The 11 hour wait in that station changed the way I looked at that city. I forgot every good thing about that place and more generally about this country. If it wasn't for some experienced men who kept explaining things to me, I would have ran away in the middle of the night itself.
I found the tatkal line at about 10 pm and was delighted to be the 3rd one in the line, which means I was sure to get a ticket back home now. Two Rajasthani men were waiting ahead of me, both for ordinary reservations (not tatkal). It seemed like people have to fight like dogs for mere 3-4 seats even 4 months before the actual journey starts. It is more troublesome when you have a family to take. The first hour went all fine and I was having a good conversation about the situations in these trains and how they can be improved. A useless talk it was, but it was better than doing nothing. Till about 11 or 11:30 pm, the station is active and the last trains from Bombay drop off people who spent the weekend in nearby hills of Lonavala and Khandala (popular tourist destinations).
I had no idea what I was going to experience in the next 10 hours. It all started with a drunkard who sat beside me claiming that he was the 4th one in the queue time and again. For a first timer like me, such a person would freak you out. But I stayed there, assuming that one person would not be a problem for the rest of the night when I know cops and other people are around. Besides, the man was off to tea or more alcohol every now and then. He came back just to ensure we still think he is the fourth one in the queue. Me and the Rajasthani men started mocking him after sometime. After a short while, a teenage boy, probably 15 years old came to us and started begging and asked us to rescue him from the goons. Tears were rolling down his muddy face and his teeth-gaps were filled with bits of tobacco. His clothes smelled like desi-daru and where torn at various places, covering the essential parts. I almost felt like being in the middle of a Bollywood drama. Goons? People with guns and no emotions. That would be the last of all the people I would ever want to meet. A cold wave ran down my spine and I started panicking. I saw the Rajasthani men pretended to sleep during this event and I followed. After all that was happening, I decided to leave the place and head back to my room even though I risk not getting a reservation back home. The 'pretending-to-sleep' trick worked! The boy went away after some time and started sipping weeds with his fellow mates at the station. One of the Rajashthani men sighed- "The night has begun!". They told me that I'll see many boys like him in the station. The Railways is their home. He pointed to the drunkard who was watching the show all this time. It was that drunkard who sent the boy and told him to beg so he can get some money out of us. So if this is the beginning, I was not prepared to see the extreme.
My mind was in a dilemma now. I wanted to get out of there and be in a comfortable bed back in my room. But a large portion of my brain wanted to see how bad things can get. I was always afraid of such people in my life. I wondered what will I do if I come face to face with such circumstances. My voice trembled when I spoke now. Of all the people in my life, I wanted to see my family, my mom at this moment. The little child in me wanted the warmth of a mother. Mother's lap is the most beautiful place in the world when you are a child. One feels protected in her presence. But right now I was thousand miles away from her and I was not a child anymore. The only way to conquer a fear is to face the fear itself. I gathered all my strength and decided to stay and see what the real India looks like.
To my relief, one more person joined me and the Rajasthanis. He was a thirty-ish something man who worked in an IT company in Mumbai and was planning for a vacation with his wife in Jharkhand for a week. And he was another experienced man with this railway station and knew everything that was about to come. I was happy to see his built as he seemed to be the kind of guy who could fight 3-4 men at once. But I was glad more because he kept us busy with his talks- about his family, about politics (You keep 2 Indians in one room and it is impossible they wont talk about politics or the corrupted government). We got a company of about 5 other children after sometime who were also lining up for tatkal. I wondered why some 10-12 year old kids would stand in a queue at 1 in the morning. They wore decent clothes and did not seem to be from a poor family. As it turned out, this station was their home too. They have never seen their family and they work for the agents with whom I would be introduced in a few hours. They kept blabbering things in bihari language passing weed among themselves. Just like the drunkard, these boys went away for sometime asking us to save their positions. They came back after sometime with couple of blankets in their hands. It is not like these guys have a storage for their blankets. They steal from people who sleep on roadside pavements or the railway station. A demo for such a talent was presented right in front of us. One of the daily wage worker was sleeping sound beside a tree in front of the reservation center. The worker was drunk and was out cold. He didnt even come to his senses when the boys took the blanket away from him and even started kicking him just to let him know they are taking away his blanket. Though .
We all tried to get some sleep after the show. It was hard to sleep in concrete. The cold was getting worse and people started burning things to get themselves warm. People do not have heaters or coal here. They burn anything they find on the road unaware of the harmful effects of burning dangerous materials like cellophane which can cause suffocation among small children whom you can easily find wandering about the station area. But they do not have any choice, neither did I. I joined them for a moment just to relieve myself of the chills.
Making a queue was a hard task given that everyone was desperate for a ticket back home. But the trouble also came from a cop who came with a cane to shoo us away. It was annoying for we were sitting peacefully with an understanding among ourselves about our respective positions in the queue. At about 2:30 AM, we got to know the reason behind the cop's behavior, probably the 6th time when he came with the cane. Normally, this is the time of the night when people are in deep sleep and they wont even be aware if their wallet or any valuable good was stolen at this moment.
Soon it was dawn and the real situation and the flaw in the Indian railway officials became apparent. One does not notice the formation of a swarm of ants when you drop some sweet. The swarm of agents grew exactly like that. There was no use to complain to the police officers there as they were bribed by these agents. These agents were none other than the bullies and it seemed that can easily kill you if you did not follow their rules. It is for these people those teen boys worked. The honest people were left in vain. But that is the way it worked in the end. Money speaks in this country.
I ended up without any ticket that day. I did curse my country for facing hardships at every point. I wonder when this all will change and we get to see India as every common man wants it-- Corruption-free. I just wonder! The night at Pune station changed the way I see the trains in India. Indeed, getting to travel in this country for a common man is an achievement in itself.
It is said that if someone spend a month in these trains, he can experience the best and the worst of India. It is true. You travel in a Rajdhani and Shatabdi express and no wonder you'll be impressed by the kind of treatment you get in these trains (there are a few exceptions though). On the other hand, you'd rather think about walking a 1000 km rather than traveling the same distance in a 2nd class unreserved coach. Such diverse is the system, one actually thinks if we are taking about the same organization.
I recently had the chance to spend a night at Pune railway station in India to book a tatkal ticket back to my place. A tatkal reservation normally begins at 10 am in the morning but the rush compels us to start queuing from midnight to avoid early morning rush. The 11 hour wait in that station changed the way I looked at that city. I forgot every good thing about that place and more generally about this country. If it wasn't for some experienced men who kept explaining things to me, I would have ran away in the middle of the night itself.
I found the tatkal line at about 10 pm and was delighted to be the 3rd one in the line, which means I was sure to get a ticket back home now. Two Rajasthani men were waiting ahead of me, both for ordinary reservations (not tatkal). It seemed like people have to fight like dogs for mere 3-4 seats even 4 months before the actual journey starts. It is more troublesome when you have a family to take. The first hour went all fine and I was having a good conversation about the situations in these trains and how they can be improved. A useless talk it was, but it was better than doing nothing. Till about 11 or 11:30 pm, the station is active and the last trains from Bombay drop off people who spent the weekend in nearby hills of Lonavala and Khandala (popular tourist destinations).
I had no idea what I was going to experience in the next 10 hours. It all started with a drunkard who sat beside me claiming that he was the 4th one in the queue time and again. For a first timer like me, such a person would freak you out. But I stayed there, assuming that one person would not be a problem for the rest of the night when I know cops and other people are around. Besides, the man was off to tea or more alcohol every now and then. He came back just to ensure we still think he is the fourth one in the queue. Me and the Rajasthani men started mocking him after sometime. After a short while, a teenage boy, probably 15 years old came to us and started begging and asked us to rescue him from the goons. Tears were rolling down his muddy face and his teeth-gaps were filled with bits of tobacco. His clothes smelled like desi-daru and where torn at various places, covering the essential parts. I almost felt like being in the middle of a Bollywood drama. Goons? People with guns and no emotions. That would be the last of all the people I would ever want to meet. A cold wave ran down my spine and I started panicking. I saw the Rajasthani men pretended to sleep during this event and I followed. After all that was happening, I decided to leave the place and head back to my room even though I risk not getting a reservation back home. The 'pretending-to-sleep' trick worked! The boy went away after some time and started sipping weeds with his fellow mates at the station. One of the Rajashthani men sighed- "The night has begun!". They told me that I'll see many boys like him in the station. The Railways is their home. He pointed to the drunkard who was watching the show all this time. It was that drunkard who sent the boy and told him to beg so he can get some money out of us. So if this is the beginning, I was not prepared to see the extreme.
My mind was in a dilemma now. I wanted to get out of there and be in a comfortable bed back in my room. But a large portion of my brain wanted to see how bad things can get. I was always afraid of such people in my life. I wondered what will I do if I come face to face with such circumstances. My voice trembled when I spoke now. Of all the people in my life, I wanted to see my family, my mom at this moment. The little child in me wanted the warmth of a mother. Mother's lap is the most beautiful place in the world when you are a child. One feels protected in her presence. But right now I was thousand miles away from her and I was not a child anymore. The only way to conquer a fear is to face the fear itself. I gathered all my strength and decided to stay and see what the real India looks like.
To my relief, one more person joined me and the Rajasthanis. He was a thirty-ish something man who worked in an IT company in Mumbai and was planning for a vacation with his wife in Jharkhand for a week. And he was another experienced man with this railway station and knew everything that was about to come. I was happy to see his built as he seemed to be the kind of guy who could fight 3-4 men at once. But I was glad more because he kept us busy with his talks- about his family, about politics (You keep 2 Indians in one room and it is impossible they wont talk about politics or the corrupted government). We got a company of about 5 other children after sometime who were also lining up for tatkal. I wondered why some 10-12 year old kids would stand in a queue at 1 in the morning. They wore decent clothes and did not seem to be from a poor family. As it turned out, this station was their home too. They have never seen their family and they work for the agents with whom I would be introduced in a few hours. They kept blabbering things in bihari language passing weed among themselves. Just like the drunkard, these boys went away for sometime asking us to save their positions. They came back after sometime with couple of blankets in their hands. It is not like these guys have a storage for their blankets. They steal from people who sleep on roadside pavements or the railway station. A demo for such a talent was presented right in front of us. One of the daily wage worker was sleeping sound beside a tree in front of the reservation center. The worker was drunk and was out cold. He didnt even come to his senses when the boys took the blanket away from him and even started kicking him just to let him know they are taking away his blanket. Though .
We all tried to get some sleep after the show. It was hard to sleep in concrete. The cold was getting worse and people started burning things to get themselves warm. People do not have heaters or coal here. They burn anything they find on the road unaware of the harmful effects of burning dangerous materials like cellophane which can cause suffocation among small children whom you can easily find wandering about the station area. But they do not have any choice, neither did I. I joined them for a moment just to relieve myself of the chills.
Making a queue was a hard task given that everyone was desperate for a ticket back home. But the trouble also came from a cop who came with a cane to shoo us away. It was annoying for we were sitting peacefully with an understanding among ourselves about our respective positions in the queue. At about 2:30 AM, we got to know the reason behind the cop's behavior, probably the 6th time when he came with the cane. Normally, this is the time of the night when people are in deep sleep and they wont even be aware if their wallet or any valuable good was stolen at this moment.
Soon it was dawn and the real situation and the flaw in the Indian railway officials became apparent. One does not notice the formation of a swarm of ants when you drop some sweet. The swarm of agents grew exactly like that. There was no use to complain to the police officers there as they were bribed by these agents. These agents were none other than the bullies and it seemed that can easily kill you if you did not follow their rules. It is for these people those teen boys worked. The honest people were left in vain. But that is the way it worked in the end. Money speaks in this country.
I ended up without any ticket that day. I did curse my country for facing hardships at every point. I wonder when this all will change and we get to see India as every common man wants it-- Corruption-free. I just wonder! The night at Pune station changed the way I see the trains in India. Indeed, getting to travel in this country for a common man is an achievement in itself.
