Sunday, February 28, 2010

The Daily Passenger

IT WAS 4.20PM.THERE WAS TOTAL CHAOS ON THE PLATFORM NO.1 OF NEW DELHI RAILWAY STATION.SHATABDI EXPRESS HAD JUST LEFT FOR AMRITSAR AND THE NEXT TRAIN TO CHANDIGARH WAS BEING ANNOUNCED.PEOPLE HEADED FOR CHANDIGARH HAD STARTED TO PREPARE FOR GETTING INTO THE TRAIN. IN INDIA,PEOPLE GENERALLY DO NOT BOTHER TO FORM A QUE FOR ENTERING THE TRAIN.EVERYBODY TRIES TO ENTER THE TRAIN AS FAST AS ONE CAN INSPITE OF RESERVATION OF SEAT/BIRTH.THIS MAKES THE SCENE AT A RAILWAY STATION TOTALLY CHAOTIC WHENEVER A TRAIN IS ANNOUNCED FOR DEPARTURE.AND TODAY,IT WAS NO DIFFERENT FROM OTHER DAYS.PASSENGERS WERE STRUGGLING TO GET INTO TRAIN WITH THEIR LUGGAGE,BIG SUITCASES AND SHOULDER BAGS,BROUGHT BY NRIs',WHICH SHOULD HAVE BEEN BOOKED IN BREAK VAN DUE TO THEIR SHEER SIZE.CHANDIGARH, BEING THE CAPITAL OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA STATES, ATTRACTS THE GREAT RUSH OF PEOPLE FROM THESE STATES FOR PERSONAL,POLITICAL AND BUSINESS REASONS.TOP BEUROCRATS,RETURNING INDIANS FROM OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD AND BUSINESSMEN FORM THE CROWD AT NEW DELHI RAILWAY STATION DAILY TO REACH CHANDIGARH IN THE EVENING.