Delhi's Killing Machines

I have had no illusions about what a harsh city Delhi is. And today that truth hit home again.

The weather is brutal - intolerably hot in the summer, bitter cold in the winter. When it rains, there is flooding in the streets bringing traffic to a grinding halt.

Yes there are the beautiful broad tree lined avenues and the majestic buidlings of Lutyen's Delhi. There is also the incredible Red Fort sitting across the very serene Jama Masjid. There is the historic Qutub Minar and the Tughlakabad Fort.

And yet the common, and not so common man must fight with his fellow man, woman, cow, dog car, bus, bicycle for a spot to stand in this city, for a spot to park their car, for a spot in front of the bank cashier.

Aggression and fighting come naturally to the Delhi-ite - it is an essential ingredient for survival. The gentle politeness cultivated in other cities is looked upon with scorn in this city where it has the same chance of survival as an ice cube in the desert on a summer afternoon.

The metro has made a welcome difference to Delhi's appalling public transport system. Clean, shiny and reliable it is fast gaining popularity with Delhi-ites.

However - many still rely on the putrid green buses also known as the Blueline service to ferry them around the city. The drivers of Delhi are lawless and reckless , masters at gap analysis and often a little too optimistic about their ability to fit into a gap, and aggressive to the core. The Blueline bus drivers are all of this and often driving under the influence.

One frequently hears of them driving too fast down a heavily populated street and running over an innocent bystander. The drivers and conductors get paid based upon the amount of money they collect in a day. The faster they make it from point A to point B - the more ground they will cover. So everyday for them it is a desperate dash to get through the city.

For weeks now we've been hearing about the killer buses. Pedestrians run over in a crowded bus by a driver rushing through the city. My driver says that the blue line buses have been running over people for as long as he has been in the city. He thinks the news is being played up in the media because the government wants to get rid of the blue line. It wants to replace it with new buses more appropriate for the Commonwealth Games to be staged here soon.

There is a group of concerned citizens who are petitioning the government to eliminate the blue line from the city. There have been calls to impound these killer machines. There have been calls for the resignation of the transportation minister. And yet there is no talk of restructuring the $4/day salary that these drivers make, no talk of breathalyzers or compliance to traffic law.

Yesterday, a blue line bus ploughed through a crowd waiting at a bus stop. It ran over 16 people, 8 of whom died on the spot. The other 8 are in serious condition in the hospital.

How does a bus plough through 16 people and not stop ? The driver continued on leaving the destruction in his wake. They caught up with him further up the street, the crowd dragged him out and beat him up. He is now in police custody. His accomplices escaped.

There was rioting in the streets. Politicians came out with strong speeches. They shut down the Delhi-Agra highway. There have been new calls to eliminate the Blueline.

24 hours later the city is back to its usual business. Here is what one young person of delhi thinks about all this http://jayant7k.blogspot.com/2007/08/killer-blue-line-buses-in-delhi.html

1 bus ... 16 people..........how is it possible ? In one of the most densely populated cities in the world, a city that has been reduced to ashes 7 times in the course of its documented history, a city that has risen again each time, stronger and more vibrant than before. Human life just seems like another perishable, dispensable commodity.

Indeed this seems a phenomena in the region. Ministers and their entourages are known to zip through the city. Armed with a little red light atop the vehicle and a special horn, these groups rush through the city warning people and cars to get out of their way. One such entourage ran through the city of Aligarh in UP some 150KM from Delhi. They ran over an unfortunate fellow who did not make it out in time. There are numerous stories of drunken celebrities running over people sleeping on the pavements at night in their motor bikes or other killing machines.

And you cannot help but wonder - when will it stop ? What will it take to raise the level of consciousness, to elevate the concern for human life... all human life..