From the Hindustan Times (it appears in the Delhi print edition, Live section,Thursday, but does not seem to be there on their main site. However it can be accessed from here, registration required) -
----- an open drain in front of the office of the Deputy Commissioner, Delhi government, in Nandnagri is a death trap for passersby as well as school-going children.
Utter negligence by the authorities is witnessed in front of
the DC office. A 400-m stretch has been covered with only
a few cemented slabs, which are not sufficient as there
are three-four ft gaps in between.
----------------------------
"Our children have no choice. To go to the nearby school, they have to either walk on the main road amid heavy traffic or cross through the manholes. In both the circumstances they run a risk to their life, especially in the rainy season," says Ramvir Singh, a resident.
A makeshift DTC bus stop is also there on the narrow pavement. "If anybody slips and falls into the 10-12 ft drain he/she will not manage to come out of it and it will turn into a death trap for him/her," says Ramanath, a nearby resident.
---------------------------------
"MCD does not have any plan to cover the drain. If people are scared to pass by, they can take their own precautions," said A. K. Singh, Deputy Commissioner of MCD Shahdara (North).
Assuming that the Hindustan Times has quoted him accurately, just re-read what this public servant said-
"MCD does not have any plan to cover the drain. If people are scared to pass by, they can take their own precautions"
Hey, it is the government's job to dig holes, and if anybody falls in, that's his/her fault.
It's as if the minister(s) responsible for water supply said-
"We do not have any plans to provide clean, germ-free, dirt-free water.In fact we do not have any plan to supply water in sufficient quantity at all. If people are thirsty, they can make their own arrangements."
It's as if the police commissioner said-
The police department does not have any plans to provide adequate security to the citizens. If anybody is scared, they can take their own precautions."
It's as if the transport minister said-
I do not have any plans to provide a decent, hassle free system of public transport so that the public could commute in relative comfort without getting fleeced or getting crushed under the wheels of over-speeding monster. If people don't like what we give them they can make do on their own."
It's as if railway secretary said-
"The ministry has no plans to provide a comfortable, harassment-free system of railways where the tickets are easy to buy without long waits and waiting lists or going through the touts, no maram-maari* for the seats and berths, no bribing the TC*, where one doesn't have the fear of goondas* who have no fear of the few railway police guards that might be lazing off somewhere on the same train, where........Oh, for, godsake! Why don't you take a plane!"
It's as if the top civil aviation official said-
"We have no plan to clean up the mess that are our airports, to remove corrupt customs officers or make the staff helpful and polite. If anyone has any complains, he can take the train."
It's as if all the chief ministers and the prime minister said in a chorus-
"We have no plans to provide a government where there are no ministers with criminal backgrounds, where each and every department is honest, where there is no corruption, where the public servants behave as if they are one and not as masters, where police torture is not the norm, where buses, trains and things run smoothly and the sun shines brightly. No, sir, we have no such plans at all. And if people are tired of this system, they can take their precautions -they can emigrate! In fact, we don't care if they go to hell!"
Perhaps, no one has said any these things . But the country is run as if they had. It sure feels that the our government at all levels is full of A.K. Singhs.
*The colorful Indian Language Translator-
maram-maari - the dog-eat-dog, desperate struggle and conflict over something. A very common feature of an average Indian's life.
goonda -Gangster, lout, unsocial element. A species that thrives in the Indian political culture.
TC - Ticket Checker.
0 comments:
Post a Comment