My accident

I survived a bad accident last evening.

It was raining very heavily yesterday, and transport was not available. I was at Deonar looking for a cab. There was a lady who was also looking for an auto or cab till Vashi.

We finally managed to find an auto willing to take us till Vashi Bridge, and decided to share the auto.

All was well till we reached near the Octroi Naka on the highway. It was raining heavily and the auto driver did not notice a gigantic pothole. The right rear wheel went into the pothole and the auto keeled over on that side, turned turtle and kept on going with all three of us inside and under it.

I can only say that it was divine providence that saved me. I got out relatively unscathed except for a couple of scratches and bruises (which are burning now as I type this) and some aching bones (which I did not realize last night).

The auto rickshaw hurt his right arm.

However, the lady bore the brunt of the accident. Since she was seated on the right side, when the auto turned turtle, she was half-thrown out and got dragged under the auto for a distance.

Her right arm and leg were scratched all over and the right side of her face was completely covered with blood!

People gathered quickly and helped the auto driver and the lady. A police jeep also appeared, but went and stopped a few meters ahead. Meanwhile, a Good Samaritan stopped and offered to take the lady to hospital.

Mr. Vivek Verma drives a tourist vehicle. The vehicle belongs to him, but is contracted to a company. He did not care about the dirt or blood stains on his passenger seat; just asked us to hop in. Since the auto driver did not seem badly hurt, I picked up the lady and asked Mr. Verma to drive to Wockhardt Hospital at Vashi. On the way, we called her husband and informed him.

Due to the craters masquerading as potholes on the way from the Toll Naka to Wockhardt Hospital, it took us a while to reach. On the way, I just wondered, “What if this was a major emergency. Our roads will kill people one way or the other!”

Anyway, we reached the hospital and got her into the emergency. In the meantime, her husband reached the hospital. After ensuring that things were under control, I left for home to my increasingly worried wife and children.

I called the hospital this morning, and was informed that the lady needed some stitches to her face. But her injuries were not very serious and she was discharged last night.

All’s well that ends well.

But it could have been worse!

Much worse!

People who travel that route will know that it is the start of the Mumbai-Pune highway, and vehicles are generally at a very high speed once they cross Mankhurd and move towards the Octroi Naka.

A single slip could have led to loss of life.

And it is all because our beloved Municipal Corporations have been giving us empty promises year after year, while the roads are getting worse.

It is not worth even contemplating suing BMC, because we all know nothing is going to happen. Civil cases get dragged in court for years, and the only person harassed is the litigant.

I want to file a criminal case against the road engineer and the ward officer in charge of that road.

I am writing to the Honourable Bombay High Court, if they can accept my petition to treat accident cases like mine which are due to bad roads or potholes under the relevant sections of ‘causing injury / death due to negligence’ and proceeding with criminal cases against the relevant municipal officers concerned.

I would also urge as many people who have suffered falls, injuries, problems with their vehicles due to bad roads, to also do the same.

Possibly a few score cases against each of these babus, and them spending a few nights in jail, is the only way they will learn to do quality work, and avoid the shoddy work they have been doing at the behest of their masters.

I need a lawyer to help me draft an appeal to the Honourable High Court. Anyone to help?

My love letter to Vodafone

Dear Vodafone,

Thank you for being my companion for the most part since 1996. I still remember my first compass box and first number (9820074200), both of which were due to you; and I wonder where they both are today!
 
Thanks also for giving me good service for most of the time we have been together. No real complaints there.
 
However, I ponder upon a few issues that irk me, and would appreciate if you could change your ways slightly for the sake of our relationship.
 
1. Mumbai and Navi Mumbai are now completely inter-connected. Why then, do you still leave my side for the stretch between the Octroi Naka and the Vashi Toll Naka? Do you swim that stretch while I'm up on the road? I'd flirted with Reliance for a while (Okay, okay! I'm sorry, alright?) and while she had her own faults, she never ever deserted me like this.
 
2. Where do you go to leaving me alone when I'm turning left at Vashi Plaza. You do this everyday!
 
3. I really want to be only with you, without disturbance. To ensure our privacy, I had told your parents (TRAI) - DO NOT DISTURB! And I do get very angry when your friends disturb me. Why do they still do this?
 
They had reduced initially, but are back with a bang with their SMS messages and phone calls.
 
4. Tell me honestly, do you give them my number? Because one of your friends called up on Friday when I was in a meeting, and our conversation went somewhat as follows-
Friend: Good Morning Sir. I am calling from...
Me: I'm sorry, why am I receiving this call when I'm registered on DND.
Friend: What?
Me: I'm registered on DND. Please don't call me again.
Friend: Sun toh lijiye...
Me: I'm busy. Please hang up or I'll complain to...
Friend: Toh karlo na. Kisne roka hai.
Me: What?!?!
Friend: Kar lo na complaint. Humein aapka number company waalo se hi milaa hai...
 
I disconnected!
 
5. I am getting a feeling you do go gallivanting with some of these friends behind my back. What else explains the following for certain friends-
I complain to your parents who assure me "We have received your request for DND. We respect your privacy. Your request confirmation will be sent to you soon."
 
But soon after, I get a terse SMS from you saying, "Hello! We are unable to process your request currently. Please try after sometime".
 
Once a few months ago, I had kept trying twice a day for three consecutive days, and kept getting the same message. How can that be possible?
 
Your two new friends who you are flirting with nowadays are +918508965821 and +917402004851.
 
Darling, I don't like this!
 
I sincerely hope you work on the  above. After all, one does have to change a bit for the sake of a relationship, don't you agree?
 
And I do love you!

Do cats also get attached to people so much?

One of the drawbacks of shifting from our house was that we had to leave Speedy behind.

As cat lovers know, cats are used to places, and shifting them from their location is a dicey decision at the best of times. There is always a ‘What if...?’

While our house is being re-built, my parents moved into my brothers’ house next door while we have shifted to an apartment a couple of blocks away. Our cat, Speedy, is an ‘outdoors’ cat and is used to both the houses – ours and my brothers’. Also, my parents were anyway staying in the house next door, and in any case, we go to check on the work done at least twice a day. Hence, we decided to leave Speedy behind.

However, I don’t know who has taken this decision more to heart – us, or Speedy.

Daily, I have to deal with the hurt that my daughter feels that Speedy is not there whenever. (Another matter that I miss seeing Speedy on the kitchen window every mornings).

But more interestingly, it is Speedy’s behaviour that intrigues me.

For the past 6 years, Speedy has been the prim and propah lady who did not like being touched or petted too much. Every morning, she would sit in her favourite place on the ledge of the kitchen window, and listen while I would talk to her, mewing occasionally to show her interest. In the evenings, when I returned home from work, she would meet me about 50 meters away, and walk back to the house with me, her tail in the air like a flagpole. But apart from some rare occasions, if I bent down to pat her, she would wait for precisely 30 seconds or two strokes on her back, and then arch her back and walk away, as if saying, “That’s enough”.

But now, every evening when I go to see the house, Speedy clings to me like a baby. I have to stand for about 5 minutes while she goes round and round my legs, mewing her complaints about leaving her alone. Even my mother’s admonitions do not make her move. (She shares a love-hate relation with my mother, and disappears the minute my mother comes out). Rather, she curls more between my legs and purrs till I bend down and stroke her back, her cheeks and between her ears. And interestingly, now it is me who has to say, “Speedy, that’s enough”.

I’m back...like a bad penny

Hi everyone!

One week, due to certain reasons, I did not write my blog.

The next week, the reasons still existed, and my blog time was set aside again.

There were many things I wanted to write about, which I kept noting on my phone, and deciding to post them on the weekend. But weeks passed, and I realised I was off blogging for nearly 8 months!

It’s so easy to break a habit, I tell you!

Anyway, now I’m back – like a bad penny.

It’s going to be a hectic time – new job, weekend classes, teaching assignments, house re-construction. However, amid all this, I shall now endeavour to continue posting something.

After all, this is my blog. And I resolve not to let external factors impact my ‘me’ time – and doing what I like doing.

So keep watching this space folks. Although really, I write for myself!