This is Chennai for you!!

Today I had to spend time near Sanatorium Railway Station to pick my family after a prayer. I noticed or rather - lot of things around the station made me notice them. I thought I would post them in my blog.

1. This Railway Station now has a flyover and a passenger sub-way for the vehicles and pedestrians to cross the railway track. But 99% of the people just cross the track by walking across, taking a serious risk. I initially waited at-least few people would use the sub-ways to cross, but no one did. And in fact, if I was to cross the track, I won't have taken the sub-way too, reason- it is difficult to climb-down and climb-up in a sub-way where as there are lot of unblocked spaces which would facilitate(?) crossing the track. This is what it is- From a government point of view, they have given the facility to people to cross the tracks - a sub-way and a flyover. But the process is not complete until you have the open spaces in the track near the densely populated area closed completely blocking people to cross the tracks(for ex- in Kodambakkam, you can't cross a track, you definitely have to climb the over-bridge to cross a track). So as a common man seeing this - I wouldn't blame the people crossing the tracks, but the only the government because it is its duty to make people use the sub-ways and fly-overs. Not just constructing them is fine. There are lot of train accidents now-a-days killing lot of people and these sort of negligence's account for most of them.

2. The very disturbing thing was, it is very much of a people moving area and you have a TASMAC Bar there - it is precisely 5th shop from the track, what it means is - it indirectly invites people to drink. And I could see lot of people at 12pm in the day going into the bar. And now there are few autos in the auto stand and there are some auto drivers bargaining with the passengers and some autos picked few people and rode away. And here I noticed one auto-driver(I came to know he was auto-driver very later) getting a bottle of drinks and some water and some carbonated drinks, he brought it behind a pillar beneath the fly-over, he invited one more guy, and they mixed and drank. These all happens just near the railway track and in-front of 'n' number of people watching and also there was a policeman chatting with a guy some 50 feet away - the police doesn't seem to have been bothered. I was deliberately watching him on what he does. And in another 5 mins this guys starts vomiting and some 'hero' sort of guy comes in starts to shouts at him that he shouldn't drink as he knows that he would vomit. For another few minutes, he was just complaining that guy, and this is what he did later, there was one more cup of drinks left by the first guy on the floor behind the pillar, he picked it up and started drinking it. I can only give a smile and to move on from that place. But there was another 50+ aged man who grabbed my attention, he and his wife are well dressed and looks like they are about to go to some place in these Metro trains. He asked his wife to wait near a flower vendor and went to the TASMAC Bar and came out with a bottle, then he asked his wife to buy some soda/water from the shop next. She promptly went and came back with a packet of water and some cool drinks, this guy again went behind the pillar and did a mix and enjoyed his cup of 'drinks'. I kept on starring at both of them for a long time and noticing this, the lady while crossing me, just told me that - he can't live without and so she is helping him out. I don't blame her but feel pity for her as she has no other go, but to live with this guy for her life. And that guy gave a majestic look as if he has done something great and crossed the railway track staking his life.

Yesterday evening the Communist Party of India had a small public meeting near my home to make people aware of the one day strike on Sep-7th. I liked those people very much, they spoke very practical stuff and no individual adulation or anything of that sort. A point one of those speakers made was that - why is this government running TASMAC Bars - aren't they making people drunkards, why should they give freebies, instead they could focus on job opportunities etc etc. And to me all seemed to be real good questions that people should think of, before casting their vote.

So it is not all that the individuals can be blamed for, it is also the responsibility of the government and the society to ensure people are disciplined enough. Had there been no TASMAC Bars at these many numbers in a particular locality, definitely the number of drunkards would reduce. From a Govt's perspective it is a Golden Egg laying duck and so they are happy that it is generating money.

3. Next is the attitude of people, this happened sometime last week, I was riding my car on a less traffic road near Besant Nagar and was riding along the right side(near the Median). There was one 40+ guy crossing the road and I expected him watch at-least to his right whether there are any vehicles and NO, he won't watch and he won't cross fast either, he was walking casually. Now I brake just behind him, and I asked him why don't watch the road before you cross, his simple answer was - "why don't you go over the other side of the road, there is lot of space right?". I just closed my windows and started my vehicle and I don't want to get into an argument with him, because for sure I know people in that locality if gathered would support him. My only question was "Would he do that while crossing a Railway track?"