After the hectic scheduled first three weeks of December, finally I was going home to spend remaining days of the year with my parents. There was sudden surge in chill and I had to catch train from Howrah. From Kharagpur I boarded a 2:30 PM local which was bound to reach Howrah at 5:00 PM, and my train to home was to leave Howrah at 5:45 PM. I have unflinching faith on the local trains which are famous for their strict commute time, that's why I had kept a buffer time of just 45 minutes. The train reached close to the station at 5 O' clock but stopped few hundreds of meters away from the platform. After my lot of praying it again started and finally I reached the station at 5:30 PM.
Now I had to take something to eat and catch the train. If you have ever been at Howrah station you must be aware of its atmosphere. Around 23 platforms and that's too divided in old and new station, and thousands of people on the station at all time like there is some mela going on. My first task was to search from which platform my train was scheduled to start, luckily that wasn't tough, thanks to continuously updating electronic boards. Since failing to catch train is one of my nightmare so I had to drop my idea of eating egg roll and vada pav at the store by the side of Food Plaza, which is by the way one of the perks of catching train to home from Howrah and not from kharagpur directly.(though there are two trains daily from Kharagpur to Dehri-on-Sone). I hastily reached to my coach walking briskly 200m, put my bag on seat and came out looking for some vendors. 3 min was still left, luckily I found a vendor very close to my coach, bought chocolate chip cookies and bottle of water, ordered tea, but train had blown its horn so after canceling the order, I returned to my seat.
It was already dark outside but the coach was glowing in its numerous tube-lights. As the train started moving, cold wind gushed in, first I found it refreshing may be because I was feeling warm, owe it to my brisk walk, but suddenly I felt the chill. People hurriedly started lowering the window pan, in a couple of minutes the coach was almost sealed. After seating for about 20 min on the side lower seat as no one had yet arrived at that seat, I went on to my seat, ate cookies, drank water, set alarm and went in deep sleep lulled in the lap of train.
Around 8 O' clock the TTE came, wake me up and asked for ticket and ID card which I showed, then he moved on. I tried again to go back to sleep then I heard some noise, when listened carefully it was the discussion going on between TTE and some passenger in my next compartment. There were two ladies one around 30-35 and other around 60 years. The TTE was asking to produce photo ID card along with ticket and the both women were saying vote photo nahi hai humare pass kaha se dikhaye, station par bas ticket hi diya (We don't have photo identity card, we got only ticket at the ticket counter.) The TTE said "without photo identity card your ticket is invalid and either you pay fine or Rs. 1100 or get off the train". I was kind of getting impressed with his honesty. The elder woman said "sahab pahli bar reservation bogi me chadhe hain humko pata nahi tha ki vote photo bhi chahiye hota hai ticket ke sath aur humko koi bataya bhi nahi aur humare pass itna paisa nahi hai fine dene ke liye" (Sir for the first time I am traveling in reservation coach and I didn't know that we need photo identity card along with ticket and no one even told me so and I don't have that much money to pay fine). The TTE said look, this is not my fault that no one told you, you don't waste my time pack your bag and get ready to get down the train. The younger woman said almost crying kaha jayenge shahab hum itni raat ko? (Where we will go sir, in this night?) The TTE said it's none of my business, you get ready with your bags, I will come when the train stops. His voice seemed as icy as was the gushing wind when train had started moving.
When TTE left the coach the old woman came to me sobbing and said "babu tohra pass vote id hai? dekha na humara pass ticket hai phir bhi ye TTE bol raha ki itni raat ko train se phek dega".(Babu do you have the photo identity card? See I have proper ticket but TTE is saying he will throw me out of train.) She told me she was from some village near Mirzapur and the lady accompanying her was her daughter-in-law, and her husband was traveling in general coach in the same train. I told her since 1st of December 2012 its a rule that you must carry identification card otherwise you ticket will be considered invalid. She hopelessly asked other passengers too. Many of them were not aware of this rule but since they had ID card so they had been spared from TTE's " harassment". Just to console her I along with other passengers said "theek hai aap jaiye soiye apne seat par, phek kaise dega humlog hain na, chinta mat kijiye" (you go and sleep on your seat, we are here how can he throw you away ? Don't worry, we will talk to him.) Of course that pacified her a little bit, she went to her seat and sat there.
Now it got me thinking what would I say to TTE when he would finally come. He was not wrong but surely he was being inconsiderate. No way a rule enforced just 20-25 days back would be known to a village woman. Who was at fault? The women? The TTE? Ticket-teller? Or the railway authority? The ignorance because of illiteracy is not a crime or is it?
P.S:- Finally when TTE came, we requested him and said that her husband is in general coach and he might be having the ration card. After lot of persuasion he left after giving them warning to be careful from next time. I told her to spread the word in her village so that next time no other person from her village get in trouble.
Now I had to take something to eat and catch the train. If you have ever been at Howrah station you must be aware of its atmosphere. Around 23 platforms and that's too divided in old and new station, and thousands of people on the station at all time like there is some mela going on. My first task was to search from which platform my train was scheduled to start, luckily that wasn't tough, thanks to continuously updating electronic boards. Since failing to catch train is one of my nightmare so I had to drop my idea of eating egg roll and vada pav at the store by the side of Food Plaza, which is by the way one of the perks of catching train to home from Howrah and not from kharagpur directly.(though there are two trains daily from Kharagpur to Dehri-on-Sone). I hastily reached to my coach walking briskly 200m, put my bag on seat and came out looking for some vendors. 3 min was still left, luckily I found a vendor very close to my coach, bought chocolate chip cookies and bottle of water, ordered tea, but train had blown its horn so after canceling the order, I returned to my seat.
It was already dark outside but the coach was glowing in its numerous tube-lights. As the train started moving, cold wind gushed in, first I found it refreshing may be because I was feeling warm, owe it to my brisk walk, but suddenly I felt the chill. People hurriedly started lowering the window pan, in a couple of minutes the coach was almost sealed. After seating for about 20 min on the side lower seat as no one had yet arrived at that seat, I went on to my seat, ate cookies, drank water, set alarm and went in deep sleep lulled in the lap of train.
Around 8 O' clock the TTE came, wake me up and asked for ticket and ID card which I showed, then he moved on. I tried again to go back to sleep then I heard some noise, when listened carefully it was the discussion going on between TTE and some passenger in my next compartment. There were two ladies one around 30-35 and other around 60 years. The TTE was asking to produce photo ID card along with ticket and the both women were saying vote photo nahi hai humare pass kaha se dikhaye, station par bas ticket hi diya (We don't have photo identity card, we got only ticket at the ticket counter.) The TTE said "without photo identity card your ticket is invalid and either you pay fine or Rs. 1100 or get off the train". I was kind of getting impressed with his honesty. The elder woman said "sahab pahli bar reservation bogi me chadhe hain humko pata nahi tha ki vote photo bhi chahiye hota hai ticket ke sath aur humko koi bataya bhi nahi aur humare pass itna paisa nahi hai fine dene ke liye" (Sir for the first time I am traveling in reservation coach and I didn't know that we need photo identity card along with ticket and no one even told me so and I don't have that much money to pay fine). The TTE said look, this is not my fault that no one told you, you don't waste my time pack your bag and get ready to get down the train. The younger woman said almost crying kaha jayenge shahab hum itni raat ko? (Where we will go sir, in this night?) The TTE said it's none of my business, you get ready with your bags, I will come when the train stops. His voice seemed as icy as was the gushing wind when train had started moving.
When TTE left the coach the old woman came to me sobbing and said "babu tohra pass vote id hai? dekha na humara pass ticket hai phir bhi ye TTE bol raha ki itni raat ko train se phek dega".(Babu do you have the photo identity card? See I have proper ticket but TTE is saying he will throw me out of train.) She told me she was from some village near Mirzapur and the lady accompanying her was her daughter-in-law, and her husband was traveling in general coach in the same train. I told her since 1st of December 2012 its a rule that you must carry identification card otherwise you ticket will be considered invalid. She hopelessly asked other passengers too. Many of them were not aware of this rule but since they had ID card so they had been spared from TTE's " harassment". Just to console her I along with other passengers said "theek hai aap jaiye soiye apne seat par, phek kaise dega humlog hain na, chinta mat kijiye" (you go and sleep on your seat, we are here how can he throw you away ? Don't worry, we will talk to him.) Of course that pacified her a little bit, she went to her seat and sat there.
Now it got me thinking what would I say to TTE when he would finally come. He was not wrong but surely he was being inconsiderate. No way a rule enforced just 20-25 days back would be known to a village woman. Who was at fault? The women? The TTE? Ticket-teller? Or the railway authority? The ignorance because of illiteracy is not a crime or is it?
P.S:- Finally when TTE came, we requested him and said that her husband is in general coach and he might be having the ration card. After lot of persuasion he left after giving them warning to be careful from next time. I told her to spread the word in her village so that next time no other person from her village get in trouble.
good job yaar chanchal...good to see youths fulfilling their fundamental duties... :) :D
ReplyDeleteand yes certainly ignorance because of illiteracy is not a crime...govt made the rule, it's their responsibility to spread the info.. they shud print it on the ticket or shud tell ppl when they are booking their tickets...