Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
three classes of train carriage. There were luxury buses of various
kinds, and there were ordinary buses. The ordinary bus companies
would sell you a ticket without guaranteeing you a seat. However,
the unavailability of seats on buses did not prevent people from
travelling. The ordinary buses had no glass in their windows and
no suspension systems which, with wooden benches for seats, left
you feeling you'd been riding a jackhammer by the end of each
journey.
Nor did there appear to be bus stops as such. Everyone who
flagged down the vehicle got a ride, along with whatever menagerie
accompanied them. Any number of passengers were accommodated
in this manner. An hour into any trip and you often had your nose
embedded in someone's bum, a chicken on your shoulder, ten people
squashed onto your bench, and a herd of goats burping beneath
your feet. Anyone wishing to enter or leave the bus by this stage of
any trip had to use a window. The marvel of it all was that no one
seemed to mind such arrangements.
The luxury buses were supposed to be different. They were
supposed to boast upholstered seats, Sun-Dym windows, and even
air-conditioning. Again, none of these luxuries were guaranteed,
even though a ticket could cost fifty times more than you'd pay for
the same journey on an ordinary bus. Before purchasing my ticket
for a luxury bus to Tiruvannamalai at the Bangalore terminus, I
tried to get the facts straight. Was it air-conditioned? Were there
windows? Upholstered seats? And would only those possessing
tickets for these seats be allowed to travel? Absolutely, I was assured
on all counts.
'Best luxury bus, sahib.
Best
!'
I bought a ticket for a bus leaving early the next day, and set off to
spend a solitary evening on the town.
It is my belief that our basic task is to guarantee material welfare of
our people - full employment and the satisfaction of their needs for
food, clothing, housing, education of their children and adequate
leisure. I cannot believe that principles of natural justice and human
rights can be honoured unless people are assured of economic wealth.
- Extract from an address by Tipu Sultan, 1788
