On Tuesday the 17th of August, we had to rush my 38 day elder twin to the Rainbow Hospitals at Banjara Hills, Hyderabad. Since it was an emergency visit, we had to wait from 3.30 PM for the consultant pediatrician to come and see our baby. Since our kid was just out of hospitalization there for contracting the dreaded Rota Virus, the doctor did not want to take any chances and prescribed some tests. By the time we were done, it was 7.30 PM and we set out for home, amidst some real heavy downpour.
Even if there is a trace of rain in the city of Hyderabad, the civic services goes into a tizzy, battling breakdowns etc, usually for problems that are repeated and are never bothered about. Today, as we found out later, the city recorded 8 cm in less than 2 hours. The traffic lights were out. Roads were clogged and blocked. Vehicles had no clue as to which direction to go. Power was cut at several locations.
The roads were blocked for miles. Drains were overflowing and blocking roads. Diversions were making life miserable for motorists. I took the Whisper valley, Toli Chowki road to avoid the Hi-Tech city road. My elder sister, who had my elder twin and my wife in her car, was not so lucky. She got stuck proper and to compound our woes, water entered her car and she stalled in the middle of the busy Madhapur-Hi tech city road. Her husband was far ahead of her, stuck in the traffic about 5 km ahead. I was stuck in the same traffic about 7 km behind.
All of us were tensed for the small baby, who has already spent 7 hours outside his bed. By the time I could arrange for a mechanic and reach them, the rain had thankfully subsided. But the traffic snarl was far from over. It appeared that everyone was going nowhere.
Finally, when we reached home, it was 11.30 in the night. What should have taken us 45 minutes, had taken a clean 3 hours. Mercifully, our sick baby slept all through, except for brief moments of crying in between.
On 19th of August, we were taking my elder twin to the hospital for a follow up. This time, though there was no rain, traffic was still moving at a snail’s pace. At Image Hopsitals at Madhapur, all traffic was stopped for close to half and hour – over and above the hold up which we had come through.
As we fretted and fumed and the baby bawled, the convoy of our respected President of India, along with the delegates of the International Congress of Mathematics in Air conditioned bus, zoomed at terrific speeds, past citizens who could do nothing, but helplessly wait and add to their hours of penance for traffic to move on. We reached the hospital a good two hours behind our appointment time.
I have nothing against VIPs being given unhindered passage for security and other reasons. But I certainly object to public figures shamelessly milking the common man’s money to enjoy while the common man is faced the same problems day after day, year after year. 
The roads that I mentioned above are all heavy density traffic roads. Yet, they are in pitiable condition with several potholes. Come rain, water logging is very common every time. Every day, thousands of motorists uses the roads to reach their work places, causing huge pile ups. Even if the relative humidity in the air is on the higher side, hinting rain, the electricity goes off. And yet, the government has not even got down to planning options.
For example, why is the flyover at Hi-tech city taking so long to be completed? Why has not a single alternate major road been planned? Why are the potholes repeatedly appearing? Who is using the public money that is being paid at taxes? I certainly object to our netas enjoying at our expense.
I wonder if the CM, his ministers and our visiting netas would care to stay in our homes for a week and suffer the power cuts? Or travel in the traffic snarls with us, with babies bawling in fright and irritation? Or get caught in an ambulance and see someone die because the traffic just cannot be cleared?
I may be a lone voice and there is no ghost of a chance of this being read by our president ( I must admit I cursed her that day along with thousands of other waiting motorists), CM or other great ministers. I am only sharing my woes and grief of being a citizen of a country where all of us collectively seem to be working only to feed and foster our leaders, who shamelessly enjoy and prosper at our benefit.
Madam President, I do hope that by some miracle, you get to read about the enormous distress you caused us that day.
August 20, 2010 at 2:59 pm
I am happy that atleast everything turned out ok. India is still a very VVIP/Celebrity driven culture and everything is ok for them. While in the US or in Paris, I find it amazing that there is so much respect for even 1 human life, where as in India everyone is somehow desensitized.
August 20, 2010 at 7:42 pm
Respect for humanity is the key word and you said it right. Perhaps it is not just the leaders but even the common man who needs to see humanity as an entity and not as a menace to his own existence.
August 20, 2010 at 8:42 pm
Thanks for posting your experience and talking about it. It is nice that it worked out fine and the rain just stopped. I am not sure when that respect of humanity will be visible and cared for. Like you, I hope people with ‘jobs’ catering to civic amenities find your article and understand their work.
August 21, 2010 at 5:18 am
I knew this post is coming, from the ‘traffic-woes-oneliners’ that have been building up on Facebook. Are those pictures from that evening ? , real bad they are. Neways, atleast it didnt get worse for the kids…
I don’t think there is any solution to the VIP entourage part, but the other issues definitely need a lot of attention. We hear Bangalore is worser nowadays..
It’s not so much about the anti-corruption laws being in place, it’s just the individuals mutate and evolve in response to the laws. This research paper from Harvard Economist Mullai Sendhilnathan on Driving License Corruption in Delhi is interesting. In India, Corruption is sooooo complex, you dont know where to start and where to end, which rope to follow in the maze. Like the fence eating the crop, the regulator’s disinterest in pursuing things is a major contributor.
http://www.economics.harvard.edu/faculty/mullainathan/files/Corruption.in.Driving.Licensing.Process.in.Delhi.pdf
August 21, 2010 at 9:58 am
We may not have a solution for the VIP entourage part. May not be fully, but still there are solutions. One – to reduce the hold time. Why does one need to wait for half an hour, can’t they do it just before seconds.
Two – The expense on having such a big cavalcade of cars and police deployment probably justifies the cost of a helicopter, even within City. Simpler, and traffic to be held.
About Corruption Namaji. I know where to start at least. Let us all develop the highest level of intolerance to corruption. As of now we are indifferent to the corruption. Even if we do not like it, we do not express our displeasure publicly and often. That would correct the corrupt automatically.
August 22, 2010 at 11:02 pm
A helicopter is a good option; but where is the place to land in the city? Secondly, I heard that even the motorcade of the President of US of A is stopped only for 2 minutes. And I am sure where the security threat perception is concerned, the president of USA is ahead of our leaders. Thirdly, with city roads already so congested, our leaders should take a serious look at stopping motorists for such long durations. The PM Manmohan Singh was very serious about using a helicopter to move within Delhi itself. There was also a talk of making underground passages linking the residences to the Parliament and PMO. Nothing happened.
August 26, 2010 at 3:19 pm
Glad things turned out fine at the end.
I guess adequate attention needs to be paid while planning the roads and other amenities by the government engineers. I wonder if there is a subject in the civil engineering that covers how to plan a city layout keeping in mind all the seasons and its effects. I wonder if there is a topic that covers how to plan a construction in public places with minimal disruption to the public?
In a visit to Singapore, I noticed a 70 storey building under construction right in the middle of business district, next to a busy road. While the construction was at full swing, there was no disruption to any traffic whatsoever. I was touched by the thoughtfulness of the construction planners who had taken care to ensure their construction did not pose hindrance to anyone. A sharp contrast to what happens in our cities especially the locations where flyovers are being built.
Talking about the VIPs using helicopter is a good option. Wherever not feasible, I feel all of their visits to densely populated areas or where they need to travel through busy routes should be re-scheduled to off peak hours. If the VIP/organizers were to ask a simple question “How many will be put at discomfort by this travel” before planning any trips anywhere, would be an eye-opener for them.
Regarding corruption –
In today’s target driven world “the end justifies the means” seems to be the mantra that’s fuelling the corruption demon. Every Indian should be ashamed when India is graded year after year as one of the most corrupt countries in the world.
However, I do not quite agree with the statement “the regulator’s disinterest in pursuing things is a major contributor.” I think, of late, the regulators in India have realized that transparency can expose the roots of corruption. The world over, country after democratic country, has recognized the need to keep their citizens informed about the way Government takes decisions. In our country we have the Right to Information Act for the last two years. The spirit of the Act can be best summarized by stating that without informed citizens there is no democracy. It recognizes that in a democracy citizens are the masters and servants cannot deny information to their masters. In fact, servants act as trustees and hold the information belonging to their masters. But for almost six decades, the servants behaved like masters and the masters simply accepted this treatment.
Rampant corruption prevailing in the country forced the lawmakers to understand that there is no way the country can become better without the servants favouring good governance. Under these circumstances, the preamble of the Right to Information Act highlights containing corruption, improving transparency and making servants accountable by empowering citizens to get information..
It lays down the foundation for a better tomorrow. In fact, every citizen who is the master has now the same power to obtain information which only the legislators had so far. This single aspect alone should create a new group of people who will demand good governance. This tool should help the poorest. To help the poorest requires attacking corruption at its root. The RTI Act is sufficiently strong in its present form to even attack the roots of corruption. There will forever be corruption at the lower levels as long as its seeds are sown at the highest level. The RTI Act can be used to expose these seeds of corruption which in turn can curb corruption at the lower levels.