The ride from New Delhi to Jasidih
Before i begin to write about the train i took it would be prudent to essay a word or two on the ride from Safdarjung Enclave to New Delhi Railway station. It was just after 6.20 i left home searching for a scooter that would be handy enough to get me to the railway station. The ride by Delhi Metro was not feasible given the luggage i was carrying and the current reservation centre that exists at Paharganj side and not at Ajmeri gate one. There was an autowalah who already had one student on board and his persuasive skills made me board the vehicle and one first halt happened to be a school in Sector 12 R K Puram. Aveek Pandey was the student's name and the school fees that he was paying for three months was a heart-breaking 30,000 rs (during my time it was 850rs for three months). What more one could say on this exhorbitant school fees which by no means one can justify. Here the schools and parents are to be blamed. First you get your ward in an expensive school and ready to pay the demanding school the fees it extracts. If school can't get the requisite and demanding fees it won't be able to hold on to its expansive infrastructure which to a considerable extent it can do without. From here as well the automan was candid to convey that he would reach the station well before train's departure and he sticked to his commitment. The current reservation centre at the new delhi station had no gathering to speak of and i got the ticket with ease.
Having taken toofan express (13008), the seat allotted in B1 was 45. It left a little after 7.35 and with stoppages that came quite frequently, it took its time to reach Palwal. The man who boarded the train with his daughter amina insisted that i vacate the lower berth as his insistence was on instant sleep that he wanted to inherit. I told him that during day time from 6am to 9pm the lower berth is not meant for sleeping. Seeing the urgency that he time and again underscored i had to take the opposite seat where the daughter too showed her reflexes and took the three fourth of the seat available. In the meantime i had made a request to TTE that if possible i could be given an alternate berth given the man and the daughter were carrying two kids and were ably performing the role of kindergarten developers. The TTE obliged and the attendant with the name Abdul Kalam was helpful. The seat given was 29, again middle berth, but with the exception that i could sit in the lower berth. (Here one needs to stress that in my ride from Jasidih to Puri later the guy who had boarded the train from Samastipur slept the entire day on lower berth and here the railways need to underscore the need that passengers should be in sitting posture during day time and if one wants to sleep the upper berth is the available option).
Train going past Taj Mahal
The guy opposite me was Salman who ran a jewellery business in Sriganganagar in Rajasthan. From Agra, the train took another route going past Agra Fort station and also a bridge which to date i had found difficult to figure out while returning from West Bengal/Bihar. From this bridge one can get a handy view of Taj Mahal. The water below has receded and hope the momentum is back for Taj Mahal to stay firm. Perhaps 35 years ago we took this route while coming from the East and proceeding towards New Delhi. From Agra another gentleman who has his son in Air Force Medical took the opposite seat and he was headed towards Hajipur. Again a man of simple habits, the cell chorus he found it difficult to unclue. The train reached Kanpur in the evening. In Kanpur station next to the coach a Muslim group was saying prayers with bagful of flowers and rose on the platform. It is quite risky and it can also lead to a stampede. Perhaps they could be requested to carry out their rituals in a less crowded place.
Poor power has led to no job creation in UP; tea-serving across Bihar
From Kanpur among others who boarded was one one student who had completed his MBA from CCS College in Western UP. The fee structure was not elaborate and he had not made up his mind on to pursue business or take up a job. From the expression i could make out both were challenging tasks. In Kanpur i was told that no new industry has come up. The power scene is appalling and there are places like Etawah that get uninterrupted supply and rest of the state suffers. There are no job-creation drive in Kanpur and nearby areas due to poor infrastructure. Perhaps in the entire state of UP, new jobs as such don't come up and all those pursuing MBAs and other programmes are left with no options for future. An industrial drive that boosts jobs creation should be the stress of the state government rather spending mindless money on announcements and schemes of 180 days. Once industrial activities come up in UP, with no step motherly treatment to agriculture, which is the backbone, hope things would improve. At around 7 in the morning the toofan express crossed Buxar and little after Arrah came. Soon we went past Abdul Bari bridge on Son river. The water here as well has receded. The expansive fertile land from Buxar to Jamui in Bihar is a major plus of the region. The train reached Patna a little after 10. To be noted is the tea served from Buxar onwards in a cup that has a large length, not a wide base but with a serving energetic enough. Going past Barh and other destinations the train reached Jasidih after 4 in the evening.
It was a ride in Toofan that had stoppages not less than a ton. Perhaps trains of this magnitude are a necessity, given the comfort it gives to people who get down at small stations. As for those travelling in AC coaches, they be told that entry to coach to outsiders can be curtailed but for how long you can keep yourself away from non ac environment. Perhaps acwallahs were of the view that ac is their mai-baap and all those stationed and stranded in small stations don't comprise Indialot. AC you can enjoy for few hours and after that when you step out you would have to take medicinal shower.
Before i begin to write about the train i took it would be prudent to essay a word or two on the ride from Safdarjung Enclave to New Delhi Railway station. It was just after 6.20 i left home searching for a scooter that would be handy enough to get me to the railway station. The ride by Delhi Metro was not feasible given the luggage i was carrying and the current reservation centre that exists at Paharganj side and not at Ajmeri gate one. There was an autowalah who already had one student on board and his persuasive skills made me board the vehicle and one first halt happened to be a school in Sector 12 R K Puram. Aveek Pandey was the student's name and the school fees that he was paying for three months was a heart-breaking 30,000 rs (during my time it was 850rs for three months). What more one could say on this exhorbitant school fees which by no means one can justify. Here the schools and parents are to be blamed. First you get your ward in an expensive school and ready to pay the demanding school the fees it extracts. If school can't get the requisite and demanding fees it won't be able to hold on to its expansive infrastructure which to a considerable extent it can do without. From here as well the automan was candid to convey that he would reach the station well before train's departure and he sticked to his commitment. The current reservation centre at the new delhi station had no gathering to speak of and i got the ticket with ease.
Having taken toofan express (13008), the seat allotted in B1 was 45. It left a little after 7.35 and with stoppages that came quite frequently, it took its time to reach Palwal. The man who boarded the train with his daughter amina insisted that i vacate the lower berth as his insistence was on instant sleep that he wanted to inherit. I told him that during day time from 6am to 9pm the lower berth is not meant for sleeping. Seeing the urgency that he time and again underscored i had to take the opposite seat where the daughter too showed her reflexes and took the three fourth of the seat available. In the meantime i had made a request to TTE that if possible i could be given an alternate berth given the man and the daughter were carrying two kids and were ably performing the role of kindergarten developers. The TTE obliged and the attendant with the name Abdul Kalam was helpful. The seat given was 29, again middle berth, but with the exception that i could sit in the lower berth. (Here one needs to stress that in my ride from Jasidih to Puri later the guy who had boarded the train from Samastipur slept the entire day on lower berth and here the railways need to underscore the need that passengers should be in sitting posture during day time and if one wants to sleep the upper berth is the available option).
Train going past Taj Mahal
The guy opposite me was Salman who ran a jewellery business in Sriganganagar in Rajasthan. From Agra, the train took another route going past Agra Fort station and also a bridge which to date i had found difficult to figure out while returning from West Bengal/Bihar. From this bridge one can get a handy view of Taj Mahal. The water below has receded and hope the momentum is back for Taj Mahal to stay firm. Perhaps 35 years ago we took this route while coming from the East and proceeding towards New Delhi. From Agra another gentleman who has his son in Air Force Medical took the opposite seat and he was headed towards Hajipur. Again a man of simple habits, the cell chorus he found it difficult to unclue. The train reached Kanpur in the evening. In Kanpur station next to the coach a Muslim group was saying prayers with bagful of flowers and rose on the platform. It is quite risky and it can also lead to a stampede. Perhaps they could be requested to carry out their rituals in a less crowded place.
Poor power has led to no job creation in UP; tea-serving across Bihar
From Kanpur among others who boarded was one one student who had completed his MBA from CCS College in Western UP. The fee structure was not elaborate and he had not made up his mind on to pursue business or take up a job. From the expression i could make out both were challenging tasks. In Kanpur i was told that no new industry has come up. The power scene is appalling and there are places like Etawah that get uninterrupted supply and rest of the state suffers. There are no job-creation drive in Kanpur and nearby areas due to poor infrastructure. Perhaps in the entire state of UP, new jobs as such don't come up and all those pursuing MBAs and other programmes are left with no options for future. An industrial drive that boosts jobs creation should be the stress of the state government rather spending mindless money on announcements and schemes of 180 days. Once industrial activities come up in UP, with no step motherly treatment to agriculture, which is the backbone, hope things would improve. At around 7 in the morning the toofan express crossed Buxar and little after Arrah came. Soon we went past Abdul Bari bridge on Son river. The water here as well has receded. The expansive fertile land from Buxar to Jamui in Bihar is a major plus of the region. The train reached Patna a little after 10. To be noted is the tea served from Buxar onwards in a cup that has a large length, not a wide base but with a serving energetic enough. Going past Barh and other destinations the train reached Jasidih after 4 in the evening.
It was a ride in Toofan that had stoppages not less than a ton. Perhaps trains of this magnitude are a necessity, given the comfort it gives to people who get down at small stations. As for those travelling in AC coaches, they be told that entry to coach to outsiders can be curtailed but for how long you can keep yourself away from non ac environment. Perhaps acwallahs were of the view that ac is their mai-baap and all those stationed and stranded in small stations don't comprise Indialot. AC you can enjoy for few hours and after that when you step out you would have to take medicinal shower.
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