Like any other morning in the week days i got in to the namma metro in byappanahalli to go to my office. I luckily managed to get a seat despite the crowd. I saw a poor labourer and his wife walking into my metro coach.(He may be poorer in terms of wealth but richer in terms of wisdom and experience ). He was dressed like any typical labourer i see in Bangalore, wearing shorts and an old formal shirt with a towel on his shoulders. He managed to spot an empty seat right in front of me and sat there. I could see a sense of triumph on his face which was beaming with joy as he looked towards his wife, when the metro started.
Sitting beside him was a techie and a banker from HSBC. They seemed to pretty comfortable with the acquaintance of this laborer. Soon the next station came where i saw some high society women wearing sun glasses, Carrying a puma bag and a galaxy S3 come in to our coach. Since there was no space to sit she had to stand in the coach right in front of us and she did so without any qualms or complaints. The same followed with a foreign tourist/expat who came in the next station.
It was very heart warming to see this side of india where the right to equality enshrined in the constitution has triumphed on it own. The namma metro has become much more than an urban rail network which was meant to cut travelling time and reduce traffic congestion. It has become a social platform which has subtly united people all walks of life in the society.
On some other day I saw 3 generations of a family boarding the metro. The dutiful son escorted his old father to the seat and placed his son on his father’s lap. The Grandfather who was contently holding his grandson enjoyed the scenic view of the city from the top as his son explained about the metro .I could see a sense of satisfaction and relief in his eye as he gazed at the horizon. The satisfaction was that he had lived long enough to see this amazing development. The sense of relief came from the fact that he knew his grandson would have a fairly comfortable life unlike his youthful days where he had to sacrifice and selflessly work hard to build his nation.
Namma metro which has opened up only for a small route has already started developing a social and emotional connect with the people in ways we can only imagine. What i mentioned was in context of just two instances.
Sitting beside him was a techie and a banker from HSBC. They seemed to pretty comfortable with the acquaintance of this laborer. Soon the next station came where i saw some high society women wearing sun glasses, Carrying a puma bag and a galaxy S3 come in to our coach. Since there was no space to sit she had to stand in the coach right in front of us and she did so without any qualms or complaints. The same followed with a foreign tourist/expat who came in the next station.
It was very heart warming to see this side of india where the right to equality enshrined in the constitution has triumphed on it own. The namma metro has become much more than an urban rail network which was meant to cut travelling time and reduce traffic congestion. It has become a social platform which has subtly united people all walks of life in the society.
On some other day I saw 3 generations of a family boarding the metro. The dutiful son escorted his old father to the seat and placed his son on his father’s lap. The Grandfather who was contently holding his grandson enjoyed the scenic view of the city from the top as his son explained about the metro .I could see a sense of satisfaction and relief in his eye as he gazed at the horizon. The satisfaction was that he had lived long enough to see this amazing development. The sense of relief came from the fact that he knew his grandson would have a fairly comfortable life unlike his youthful days where he had to sacrifice and selflessly work hard to build his nation.
Namma metro which has opened up only for a small route has already started developing a social and emotional connect with the people in ways we can only imagine. What i mentioned was in context of just two instances.
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