Katwaria Sarai

My Delhi saga has just began and I have staying in this area since the last seven days.In spite of having hectic schedule I have started liking it.Katwaria Sarai is a bustling area.

As usual wherever I go I observe things going around me.

Now these are some my observations:

Its a completely Jat 'moholla' I should say.Some of my friends from North Calcutta will like this lively area well, especially if they are from Sobhabazar-Bagbazar area.

Heard that this area is the most vulnerable area to water born diseases in India. At least Calcutta Municipality will take breather when they hear this.Even former mayor Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya can claim" Jara bolen Kolkata ta puro dengue-malaria r dera tara bhul bolen". Those who say Calcutta is a city of dengue and malaria are wrong.Or our Budhhababu can say "London noy Kolkata ke amra Katwaria Sarai banate pari jodi r o panch bochor somoy pai." Not London but we can make Kolkata a Katwaria Sarai if we are gven 5 more years.

The Blue Line buses of Delhi Transport Corporation on which it is written " Propelled by clean fuel" are much much worse than the private buses of Kolkata.

Heat?Here there should be a different scale of measurement which should be scaled at 45 degree Celsius during summer months. The sun also does some overtime here. Being a early riser I have never seen the red ball in the eastern part of the sky that I like to watch.It is alwys burning furiously.Well, as a matter of fact my day starts at 5-5:30AM. Also the ancient Egyptian God stays in his office till 8PM.

Bhai ghar jane jaruri nahi hai kya??

Yes, no Bengalees in my vicinity.At least nobody to walk with me parallely. The hostel caretaker is one but he is not in professional area.I spend time by reading Anandabazar,listening to Bengali songs.Yes I have loads of recent Bengali movies of Ravi Kinagi and Raj Chakrabarti in my hard drive.

Sanjay Van:Well it is one of the most haunted places in India.Location?In the heart of Qutab Institutional Area.To be more precise it is right in front of my institute.It is a huge forest area spread over an area of 10km.There is cremation ground inside it. 

Everytime I pass by it I always think that one day I will take a walk inside it.

Our hostel is located in a very odd place.It is sandwiched inside two Jat houses.One of these houses may be termed a National Park.They have chicken coup right at their door step. Further there is battelion of bovines and nearly a dozen of dogs.All the dogs are of different breed. I have never seen German Shepherd,Alsatian,Bulldog,pug together!

Most interesting is that these people chain the cows and calves but they let the cannines go lose!!!!

Driving In India

This hilarious article was written by an Expert from Baan, Netherlands who spent two years in Hyderabad.

I couldn't stop laughing while reading this! Please note this is pasted just for fun only.
I read this back in 2006. Since the original link is lost I am posting it in my blog.
This is how it goes:



Driving in India For the benefit of every Tom, Dick and Harry visiting India and daring to drive on Indian roads, I am offering a few hints for survival. They are applicable to every place in India except Bihar, where life outside a vehicle is only marginally safer.


Indian road rules broadly operate within the domain of karma where you do your best, and leave the results to your insurance company. The hints are as follows:

Do we drive on the left or right of the road?

The answer is "both". Basically you start on the left of the road, unless it is occupied. In that case, go to the right, unless that is also occupied. Then proceed by occupying the next available gap, as in chess. Just trust your instincts, ascertain the direction, and proceed. Adherence to road rules leads to much misery and occasional fatality. Most drivers don't drive, but just aim their vehicles in the intended direction. Don't you get discouraged or underestimate yourself except for a belief in reincarnation, the other drivers are not in any better position.

Don't stop at pedestrian crossings just because some fool wants to cross the road. You may do so only if you enjoy being bumped in the back. Pedestrians have been strictly instructed to cross only when traffic is moving slowly or has come to a dead stop because some minister is in town. Still some idiot may try to wade across, but then, let us not talk ill of the dead.

Blowing your horn is not a sign of protest as in some countries. We horn to express joy, resentment, frustration, romance and bare lust (two brisk blasts), or, just mobilize a dozing cow in the middle of the bazaar.

Keep informative books in the glove compartment. You may read them during traffic jams, while awaiting the chief minister's motorcade, or waiting for the rainwaters to recede when over ground traffic meets underground drainage.

Occasionally you might see what looks like a UFO with blinking colored lights and weird sounds emanating from within. This is an illuminated bus, full of happy pilgrims singing bhajans. These pilgrims go at breakneck speed, seeking contact with the Almighty, often meeting with success.

Auto Rickshaw (Baby Taxi): The result of a collision between a rickshaw and an automobile, this three-wheeled vehicle works on an external combustion engine that runs on a mixture of kerosene oil and creosote. This triangular vehicle carries iron rods, gas cylinders or passengers three times its weight and dimension, at an unspecified fare. After careful geometric calculations, children are folded and packed into these auto rickshaws until some children in the periphery are not in contact with the vehicle at all. Then their school bags are pushed into the microscopic gaps all round so those minor collisions with other vehicles on the road cause no permanent damage. Of course, the peripheral children are charged half the fare and also learn Newton's laws of motion en route to school. Auto-rickshaw drivers follow the road rules depicted in the film Ben Hur, and are licensed to irritate.

Mopeds: The moped looks like an oil tin on wheels and makes noise like an electric shaver. It runs 30 miles on a teaspoon of petrol and travels at break-bottom speed. As the sides of the road are too rough for a ride, the moped drivers tend to drive in the middle of the road; they would rather drive under heavier vehicles instead of around them and are often "mopped" off the tarmac.

Leaning Tower of Passes: Most bus passengers are given free passes and during rush hours, there is absolute mayhem. There are passengers hanging off other passengers, who in turn hang off the railings and the overloaded bus leans dangerously, defying laws of gravity but obeying laws of surface tension. As drivers get paid for overload (so many Rupees per kg of passenger), no questions are ever asked. Steer clear of these buses by a width of three passengers.

One-way Street: These boards are put up by traffic people to add jest in their otherwise drab lives. Don't stick to the literal meaning and proceed in one direction. In metaphysical terms, it means that you cannot proceed in two directions at once. So drive, as you like, in reverse throughout, if you are the fussy type. Least I sound hypercritical; I must add a positive point also. Rash and fast driving in residential areas has been prevented by providing a "speed breaker"; two for each house.

This mound, incidentally, covers the water and drainage pipes for that residence and is left untarred for easy identification by the corporation authorities, should they want to recover the pipe for year-end accounting.

Night driving on Indian roads can be an exhilarating experience (for those with the mental makeup of Chenghis Khan). In a way, it is like playing Russian roulette, because you do not know who amongst the drivers is loaded. What looks like premature dawn on the horizon turns out to be a truck attempting a speed record. On encountering it, just pull partly into the field adjoining the road until the phenomenon passes. Our roads do not have shoulders, but occasional boulders. Do not blink your lights expecting reciprocation. The only dim thing in the truck is the driver, and with the peg of illicit arrack (alcohol) he has had at the last stop, his total cerebral functions add up to little more than a naught. Truck drivers are the James Bonds of India, and are licensed to kill. Often you may encounter a single powerful beam of light about six feet above the ground. This is not a super motorbike, but a truck approaching you with a single light on, usually the left one. It could be the right one, but never get too close to investigate. You may prove your point posthumously. Of course, all this occurs at night, on the trunk roads. During the daytime, trucks are more visible, except that the drivers will never show any Signal. (And you must watch for the absent signals; they are the greater threat). Only, you will often observe that the cleaner who sits next to the driver, will project his hand and wave hysterically.

This is definitely not to be construed as a signal for a left turn. The waving is just a statement of physical relief on a hot day.

If, after all this, you still want to drive in India, have your lessons between 8 pm and 11 am-when the police have gone home and The citizen is then free to enjoy the 'FREEDOM OF SPEED' enshrined in our constitution.

Having said all this, isn't it true that the accident rate and related deaths are less in India compared to US or other countries!!? ?