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Showing posts from September, 2016

The Great Indian Obstacle Course

  It was Ganesh Chaturthi when I began writing this and a Karnataka bandh by the time I finished. Believers everywhere pray for Lord Ganesha to remove all obstacles and then proceed to create their own obstacles with their traffic jam inducing processions. There are numerous things that defy logic in our country – godmen, reservations, godwomen, Rahul Gandhi, the Newshour, Sakshi Maharaj among trillion others to name a few. But the one thing that defies all logic, transcends boundaries and binds our nation together is our traffic and our collective traffic sense. We share the roads with cows, dharnas, potholes and VIP cavalcades. With so many craters on the road, most days we think we are attempting a moon landing. When walking on a 10 feet wide foot path, we hear someone honking in our ear and cursing you for not giving them space. None of this will be possible if our roads aren’t dotted by colourful personalities. Though I am not given much to prayer, I wish for our roads to