Road Ending Nowhere

While coming to office yesterday the last square where I was supposed to take left, I was promptly stopped by the traffic cop and directed to move forward instead. Not aware what the hell had broken loose in that 200 meter stretch from the square till my office building, I thought of enquiring it from the cop.

As no so called VVIPs ever fancy passing through that small stretch which leads to my office, I was quite sure, it has to be some accident that prompted this redirection of traffic via other routes. Is it some accidents that happened? I asked the cop while rolling down the window glass. Nako. There is a celebration and function going around. So we are advised to inform you office goers to divert and take a different route. Different route? What the heck. Do you realize, the shortest different route would make me go around at least half of Pune before I could make it to my office? Can't I squeeze in somehow, as I can even see my office building and so does the cop can. Poor chap mostly busy with diverting few more office goer scoundrels like me, turned around and looked at me with an impression : 'I don't care if you have to go around half of Pune or for that matter half of whole Maharastra'.

Being subbed off and almost after two hours of Pune darshan I finally managed to reach office. What was that bloody function all about? and how it has got something to do with stopping the whole traffic in a busy office hour? Ignorant idiot. It is Ambedkar's birth anniversary today and not only this road but many more around Pune would have these traffic diversion, told my friend.Gee! So what? What has Ambedkar or his jayanti has got to do with blocking of the road? and what sort of celebration is going around? Out of curiosity I went outside during lunch hour to see the nature of the celebration.

Goodness gracious! Even if the cop wasn't present at the square no one would have able to pass through. A whole big tent was erected in the middle of the road with Ambedkar's statue in it and a loudspeaker with a few million decibel sound level playing the latest hip-hop hindi movie song. Is it for this me and hundreds alike were tortured early morning and had to burn down few liters of petrol throwing the whole go green funda out of the window?

When we will realize the roads, railways, telephone towers are not personal properties and definitely not of Ambedkar's at least. With all respect, you just can't stop the whole traffic bringing the system into jeopardy for someones birthday. Ambedkar is not the only one. There are thousand such characters whose jayanti did administer pain in many one's back one day or the other. Didn't these organizers need permission from the administration to erect such huge tents in the middle of the road? If so then the whole administrative outlook of the authorities is doubly questionable as how on earth they could give such absurd permissions.

I am not too bothered about driving few more kilometers on odd days. But think of someone who is in some immediate need of medical attention but finds Ambedkar or someone else is standing between him and the nearest hospital. All he has left to do is to take some never ending diversion rout to get that life saving liquid drop. Worse could end of taking another route when he is in the diversion route to heaven abode. Can Ambedkar or his followers who profoundly block half of the city's roads justify?

Even if we give benifit of sentiments to Ambedkar and allow him to block the roads on odd days, then what about all those marriage processions, matriji's victory rally which generally give a huge tailing effect to a jammed traffic behind them? You are happy, you are celebrating. Congratulation, we have absolutely no problem. But the least we could expect from you is to show equal respect to we lesser mortals and not end up hijacking our daily life making us feel like uninvited guests in your celebration.

Many might not agree, but I feel Ambedkar can always wait, but not the person who is desperately in need of some medical assistance or even we guys who are on our way to office to do our duty and some would say contributing to nation building. Ambedkar, all those garlands and yes those hindi hip-hop music can definitely wait.