Things are moving...

First, there was Paritrana. Then, I knew the emergence of Bharat Uday Mission (BM). Then, I was referred to two Yahoo! Groups, WeWillHelpYou (WWHY) and ToMakeADifference (MAD). Of all, much to my surprise too, I did not associate myself with the very first one and the most-widespread among all, Paritrana, yet! With others, I did join their Yahoo! Groups (including BM and BM-USA for the first one), and am observing the proceedings a bit silently and didn’t get into “action” anywhere yet, but well, I am involved anyway, mentally at least!

Why didn’t I associate with Paritrana, then? I am not exactly sure yet, but I guess it’s because I knew it, albeit formed by IIT-ians, as a political outfit first. BM is not going to be a political party until 2010-2011, as they state on their website, and I realize from their Group that they’re well into social activities already! Well, if the fire dies out by 2010, good still, since a died-out enthusiasm does not influence Indian political scenario. If the fire doesn’t die out, better yet, since it’s an enthusiasm that had been withstanding the societal affairs and the very state of it for the last five years then!

The other two are a lot different, in fact – there’s nothing political about them, now or in future. Moreover, these are not backed by brains such as IIT-ians or other students – these are real common people, just ordinary ones like you and I, who came together as a group (Well, two groups, yes, but there seems to be a lot of overlap among their members anyway!) to do greater good, within their reach, for the society! And, at least MAD is now celebrating its first anniversary as I type this! Isn’t it a pleasant thought that assures some confidence about the helping people in the group, and about the group itself, and about the way it’s striving to change things in the society? (In fact, these groups are more about helping needy individuals and families with monetary and material help in needs such as individuals’ education and/or health.) How can one be sure that the help is actually reaching the needy, if the organization itself doesn’t have proven track record or credibility? Well, the name is not popular, but it’s the faith that matters – the skeptical one can check out the groups’ archives, and files, to be sure for oneself!

I told a few people about all these organizations, but not many were enthusiastic. All these were people who expressed their desire to make a difference, but they just don’t have much time or space in their mind to get into action, mentally at least, at this time of their life, I guess. I am fine with it, and optimistic still, that these groups do get the recognition they deserve – at least, those who received the help feel that, and I am happy! And that’s exactly why I am more for the latter three groups than Paritrana – I don’t want to be associated with something that gets a name anyway. I would rather want to be a part of what needs an extra hand, and mind. I’m waiting for strength – moral, financial, social, and personal – to get into “action”, so to say.

Suddenly, humanity seems to have many more beacons to show the way –  definitely not stand-still, inert beacons – I’m talking about the real beacons that always show the way, those that move with you, those that are with you! There've always been some, and there are more now, and there'll be more in future, and there is, at one time, light all over the place!

Traffic in India: A solution proposed

This is from my own experiences in the city of Hyderabad in the year 2005, the last time I went to India. This is a solution that I found good enough to be implemented by anyone, and I wish people take cue and do the same as much as possible. This is applicable to all roads, all cities, all vehicles, and (nearly) always! This is from one person’s experience – so let’s be optimistic that this can be seen in all of our experience!

When you go on the road, if you see that a vehicle is violating a traffic rule – the most common being a red signal violation – do this:

1. Note down the license/registration number for the vehicle. If it’s a government-owned (RTC) bus, also note down the depot it belongs to (even the abbreviated name will do) and the start and end termini in its route.





2. Also, write down the date and time of the event, along with the best description of the place of occurrence.





3. Call the Traffic Police Control Room (you can get the appropriate number by calling 100 or directory enquiry in your city), or the Traffic Hotline/Help-line and lodge a complaint. If you can, get a policeman to write down the complaint on a “penalty ticket” (challan, as we call it in India) for the same.

The Traffic Police Control Room staff in Hyderabad informed me that the penalty ticket shall be sent by post to the vehicle owner’s registered address, and after three such penalty tickets that go unanswered, instructions will be given to seize the vehicle on sight. In the case of government vehicles including buses, the driver will be identified by the date and time of the event, and the penalty will be deducted from his salary. Three such penalties will require him to retake a license examination.

Believe me, people, this is really effective and does the job to a great extent. For instance, let’s assume I violate a traffic rule somewhere. If someone sees me and does the above, and I get a penalty ticket at my home, I may not care once. What if I get another one, and another one? Would I not panic, and go pay at least the last, and then stay put following rules as much as I can, ideally speaking? Well, I agree that many people might not be living at the address listed on their license, or even worse, some people might be driving someone’s vehicle! But then, we cannot let everyone pass just because of these exceptions!

At least in Hyderabad, the police were strict and sincere enough to write a penalty ticket for a police jeep that crossed a red signal when I lodged the complaint, also mentioning that it was a police vehicle!