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.