THE ADVICE
Of all the innate qualities an artist is blessed with, I feel, reticence is perhaps the most profound. Sameer was no exception.
Sameer was as innocent a person as you can meet. But unfortunately there exists several other traits devoid of which a person can not imagine a fruitful social acceptance if not popularity. He was a character who could invite pity from his acquaintances but not a warm relationship. He was born with such shyness and reluctance that ignorance could be his only fate. He was not only inadequate with words but they were misdirected and ambiguous and though he tried to make up for this deficiency by making his tone loud, he still sounded languorous and without any hint of conviction. He was accursed to live a childhood without any acknowledgement, in total denial and rejection.
There was no wonder that Sameer’s reluctance gave way to listless behaviour. His actions reflected the ease of a spoilt prince but lacked the charm and chivalry. He was like a sloth. As a boy he hated work. He would wake up late ignoring all attempts- both vocal and physical- of his mother to get him out of his bed; bunk classes; stroll all day in the fields with his closest friend Vivek in spite of his father’s order of helping him in his work (his father was a respected farmer in the village); take no pain to do a single house hold work and even throw a scornful stare on his younger brother when he refused to bring him a glass of water but not move out of his chair to fetch one for himself. There was no doubt in the genuineness of his love for his family but he was too inert and casual to convert his dispositions into his actions. He was still innocuous but he had become irritating.
But all these can also be considered as essential compensations for his genius. Sameer was brilliant with colours in which he found a vent to all his suppressed feelings. His ideas were always exquisite but because of his inherent indolence his strokes were clumsy and figures crude which made his painting appear anything but soothing to the eye. So it was not before youth, and only after enormous practice-this was the only area where he had worked hard- that he could make his paintings presentable enough to the mute layman who could show their admiration only by buying them to use them as supplements to the furniture in their drawing rooms.
It was the happiest day of Sameer’s life.
“Your paintings are marvelous.” A critic said.
“Thank you.” Sameer replied.
“Every painting is unique, each has its own story and yet each one is equally sensitive, equally intense and equally beautiful. No praise is sufficient for you. Where were you till now?”
“Thank you.” He said again with a nod. He could not think of anything else not only because he was a terrible orator but also because he was overwhelmed. The only difference between the two was that he had, unsuccessfully though, put an extra effort the second time to retain the modesty in his tone.
Sameer was obviously not accustomed to such lavish praise. This was the first time in his life that he was being recognized for something and he was feeling proud of his accomplishments. His paintings were being displayed in an art exhibition and were being extolled more than his expectations. In fact one of them was being acknowledged as the best painting of the exhibition.
“How are you buddy?” A slightly familiar voice called from behind.
It took Sameer only a second to recognize him. It was his old and only friend Vivek and before he knew anything they were hugging each other.
“Wow! We are meeting after so many days. Where have you been?”
“Leave my whereabouts. First you tell me how are you? And you have become a famous painter now.”
This was the reason why Sameer liked Vivek. He always gave him a chance to speak first, and always cared about him, something Sameer was not used to.
“Oh! Yes. I am glad that finally my hard work has paid off. And now I am even happier because on this very day I meet you again. It has doubled my pleasure.” He said with a grin and then after a small pause added. “Do you want to have a cup of coffee? We can talk more over coffee.”
“Sure.”
They went to a small canteen just outside the exhibition and ordered two cups. Sameer noticed that Vivek was wearing an ordinary check shirt and jeans which though was not torn, as per the fashion, but looked old. His face appeared a touch jaded perhaps because he had not had a shave in past couple of days.
“The coffee is nice.” Vivek said taking a sip.
“That’s why I brought you here. I remember you liked coffee a lot.”
“So tell me more about you?”
“There is nothing much to tell actually. After you left the village, I really got alone. But I continued practicing my drawing. I came to city last year and after struggling for a while have managed to get my paintings displayed in this exhibition. But the fact is, had it not been for you, I would not have become a painter. I still distinctly remember those days when we used to sit beside the village pond, under the tamarind tree and chat for hours, swim in pond, catch fish in there and of course paint as well. I clearly remember how bad I was and good you were. How you helped me with my brush strokes and my sketching. And how you used to encourage me that I can do better.”
Vivek was the only person who understood Sameer. He was a better painter than Sameer and he encouraged him to paint better, unlike his parents who considered his painting as another of various ways in which Sameer wasted his time.
“Painting is a mean profession.” They used to say.
But Sameer enjoyed painting as much as he enjoyed Vivek’s company. He was the only person around him he felt comfortable; around him all his insecurities used to vanish like burning camphor. He was his friend, philosopher and guide. When Sameer was fifteen, he had liked a girl and used to think of different ways to impress her. One day, Vivek had brought a painting of that girl which he had painted and asked Sameer to show that painting to the girl and propose. It is a different story altogether what happened after that, but Sameer for sure was very touched by this gesture of Vivek.
“Vivek would do anything for him; and he would do anything for Vivek.” He used to think.
“O.K. That is enough about me. Now you tell me about yourself.”
“Well, as you might be remembering that I had left the village after Class 12th and then had come to city for some job. At present, I work as a mechanic in a garage. The village education was not very useful, you see; nor was painting.” A wry smile played on his lips but did not reach his eye.
Sameer felt bad for him. And this was where he hated himself. This was where a strange reluctance caught his tongue and he was unable to speak anything which would make Vivek feel better. Had it been Vivek in his place he would have easily said something which would have cheered him up. But Sameer was not Vivek. He could have painted a materpeice on what he was feeling now, but sorry sir, he could not say any words of sympathy or encouragement. Instead what he said was this.
“Why didn’t you become a painter? You could have become a better one than me.”
Vivek’s face suddenly became very stern. His breath became heavier. Sameer could not understand what had caused such a change in his countenance.
“Was his question that rude?” He contemplated.
Vivek took out a box of cigarette and asked Sameer.
“Do you still smoke?”
Sameer recognized that the box was familiar. It was a cheap brand they used to smoke together hiding from their parents in the village. He had left smoking that brand because it was unfiltered, but he could not have refused him.
“Yes, I do.” He said, took a cigarette and lighted it.
They both took a few deeps puffs.
“Do you want to know why I did not become a painter?” Vivek said. His tone was acrid had a clear hint of hatred in it.
“Yes, I want to know.”
“It was because of you.” His voice if liquefied could have dissolved gold in it. It was pure acid.
Sameer was completely taken aback. He felt as if Vivek had dropped a bomb. He just could not believe what he had just heard.
“What?”
“Yes, it was because of you. Do you remember how you had advised me to leave painting because it was a useless profession? And you had said that you are going to leave it too.”
Sameer some how managed to hold his brain and recollect what Vivek was talking about.
It was when he was around eighteen years old. He had had a serious discussion in his home with his father. His father had abused him for not doing anything but sitting at home. He had thrown his painting on his face and had told him that they were noting but useless crap. He had said that he could never become a painter and that he could draw a decent face. That day Sameer was very disappointed and they both met under the same tamarind tree in the evening.
“I think father is right. We should quit painting. There is no use of it. After all how many famous painters do we know? Vivek, I think you should stop painting as well. You are much brighter than me. You can easily get a good job and you should not destroy your career doing this painting.” Sameer had said.
A few days after this incidence, Vivek had left the village and gone to the city.
“How could he have taken this advice seriously? How could he be so foolish? And merely on the basis of one advice, he has no right of accusing me.” Sameer thought. He even felt a little angry.
“Do you remember?”
“Yes I do.” Sameer said. “But how could you be so serious about just an advice. We were kids back then. I was stupid and agitated that day.”
“Its not just about the advice” He said and took another puff.
“Then what?”
“It’s just about you, and everything about you? Did ever think about me in the village? Did you ever bother to find out how I was or what I was doing in the city? No. You were just engrossed with your own painting. You were always like that. Always bothered about yourself and none others, not me, not even your family.”
Sameer was doing what he was best at. Keeping quiet. But he had never imagined that he would ever be accused by his friend.
“Do you know that whenever your younger brother used to be in any trouble he used to come to me for help and not you?”
Sameer knew it. He had felt sad when he had learnt it but he did not do anything about it.
“I am sorry.” He said. “But I never meant any harm to you.”
“Yeah, Thank you for that sorry. That is quite convenient. You know what the biggest problem is. You just never mean anything to anyone.”
He picked up his pack of cigarettes and left the table.
Sameer was left all to himself. His closest friend had accused him of betrayal. He had said everything about him which he knew but never wanted to recall. His acid tone was tearing him apart. His every word was thumping against his ear like a hammer. With lead heavy footsteps he went back to exhibition where everyone had left. He was broken but was not prepared to end up insulted on that day.
“What non sense.” He thought.
“Just one advice. What the hell was he thinking? After all I was always the dull one. He only had said that my younger brother used to go to him for any help and not me. So why did he take my advice instead of listening to his own heart. It was his mistake that he has failed. He lacked the perseverance. He lacked self belief. If he is a mechanic today, it is because he was destined to be. After all a man makes his own destiny. It is not at all my fault. I stuck to my beliefs and I became a painter. He succumbed and he is a mechanic. Simple. Why does he want to make me feel bad if he has failed? And what else was he saying? I did not care about him and that I never bothered to find out what he was doing. Did he bother to come to village and see what I was doing? Why should I take all the blame? He is equally at fault.”
He wandered around in the gallery, looking at all his paintings, his chest swollen with pride. Then suddenly his eyes fell on his favourite painting, the one which was being considered the best. And he melted.
He had drawn this one deriving joy of the happiest memories of his life. It was indeed a masterpiece. For layman like us it is difficult to comprehend what it was. It had shades of bottle green, yellow, gold, purple, earth and clay. It had something sensual about it, something exotic, something that gave a sense of mysterious joy. It resembled a tree.
“How could I think so meanly of my best friend?” He felt a sense of deep pain in his heart as if somebody had clenched it with his fist.
“He was my inspiration. My only friend. He has done so much for me and I have done nothing. What if he has blamed me? Am I not at fault? Is not every word of what he has said true. I have never taken any pain for anyone. And I used to think that I could do anything for him. I have never meant anything to anyone.”
Suddenly, an idea struck him. He took the painting, brought out a lighter from his pocket and set it on fire. He saw the flames engulf it. He felt a strange happiness. He felt that he could breathe easily and that a fist has been unclenched. He saw the tree burn behind the grey cloud of smoke. But even the grey cloud had a silver lining. A tear rolled down his eye.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Friday, May 22, 2009
LESS FLYOVERS ........ MORE BEARS
Lesser Flyovers….. More Bears!
(The writer would like to apologize for the delay in posting this article on the blog. It was written on 30th November, 2008, when I was doing my internship with an NGO called Janwani. I was traveling by bus today morning and had a very pleasant journey. It was an AC bus, with music being played, announcements being done before every stop, and I also managed to get a seat and read 10 pages of my novel during the journey. SO I guess it’s a pretty good day to post the article on the blog. )
I hope you have not been establish the link between flyovers and bears or else a part of effort I have put in writing the article would be futile
We (a group of four people comprising of three IITians and an architect) had an opportunity to discuss a lot of things with the senior most executive of PMPML (the company which manages bus transport in Pune). The main agenda of the meeting was to discuss the importance of public transport and how we can improve it in Pune. This article comprises of an extract of things discussed in the meeting along with some other facts and experiences which I have gained in past one month while working on a project related with traffic issues in Pune. Many of these facts and experiences have been mind boggling and challenge the general trend of thinking among the public.
All of us have seen many old rickety public buses which could have Euro-0 or Euro-1 rating (a modern car is Euro-4 or Euro-5 and the best buses in Pune have Euro-3 rating) emitting thick black smoke. The first thought at the stench of burning diesel, which we unsuccessfully try to avoid by covering our noses, is that all these buses should be removed. But what we do not realize (at least I never thought differently) is that if we calculate the per capita pollution created by the bus which is carrying nearly 50 to 60 people, it is much less as compared to a car or two-wheeler. Just imagine if all those people traveling by bus started using car or a two wheeler, there would be so many extra vehicles on road. The point is that a bus is a much efficient way to travel as far as per capita fuel consumption, per capita road space consumed and per capita pollution is concerned. The two words ‘per capita’ change all the equation.
India has many fast growing cities with burgeoning population like Pune (Pune’s population increases by more than half a lac every year), Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad etc. Nearly 500 vehicles are added every day. The debate on the issue of urbanization could involve arguments from science to philosophy. But the fact is that we are urbanizing at a fast pace and it is inevitable. India being a country with humble resources simply can not afford expansion of vehicles at these rates. The amount of fuel consumed the amount of on road space taken and the pollution is enormous. So the only solution is more and more people using public transport.
There is also a new concept called BRTS (bus rapid transport services). This is a project by government of India to be started in ten big cities. This concept includes a separate lane for public buses (they will be air condition buses!!) so that they can travel really fast. There will be a bus in every few minutes and the timing will be reliable because they are traveling without any obstruction like the metro rail of Delhi or the local trains of Mumbai. Bangalore has now a fantastic bus service and even the people going to air-port take public buses. I took a BRTS bus ride in Pune and it was really amazing to watch the bus overtake the cars in the side lanes. Another funny incidence which I observed was that a car which had illegally come in the bus lane got stuck behind the bus every time the bus stopped at a bus stand as it had no space to overtake. It must have been a lesson learnt the hard way for the driver.
Now I will explain the title of the article- the relation between flyovers and bears. The concept BRTS, is based on the strategy that we need to reduce the number of on road vehicles where as the flyovers are made to encourage new vehicles. It is based on the concept that we have to build new roads since vehicles are increasing but this is a successfully tried, tested and failed strategy. It has failed because the rate of growth of traffic is much more than the feasible rate of growth of roads. The BRTS system requires a huge amount of capital for buying buses and building lanes etc. There is enormous shortage of buses in Pune. A flyover costs nearly 50 crore rupees which could be used to buy new buses which means better public transport, which would lead to more people using it; hence lesser vehicles on road, lesser pollution, lesser global warming and more polar bears! There was a very famous incidence in Seoul where the common people broke a flyover. We need the same rage and vigour. Another suggested measure to get more money for more buses was to raise the bus fare. But we argued that why should the people who are taking the pain of walking from their houses to the bus stops and taking the public buses be penalized for doing something good. In fact, we argued that a part of cost involved in making flyovers should be used to reduce the bus fares. The solution is to charge more from the private vehicle owner- higher parking tickets is just one way to do it. The idea basically is to condemn all the policies which encourage private vehicles and encourage all policies which are in favour of public vehicles. So, the next time you are paying for your parking, do it gleefully, considering it a penance for committing the sin of using a private vehicle and causing so much extra pollution.
Please have a look at this beautiful presentation. It will take just two minutes. http://www.pttf.net/tour/
I will now write something which might earn me a tag of a preacher. But frankly speaking I don’t care. I was watching the recent terrorist activities being covered on news channel with my friends. All of us were damn frustrated and after some discussion a question popped up-“How much have we done for our country?” The question has almost become a cliché but that does reduce the shallowness of the answers we have for it. “After having read in a heavily subsidized institution all we want is leave this country for a better salary.” The same friend said who had raised the question. But there is a lot we can do. In last three months I have bought about a dozen books from Crossword but I have never taken the polythene bag along with it. You can not carry a Kg of potato without a plastic bag but you can carry a book in your hand (you can make sure though that you carry a jute bag when you go to buy vegetables). The person with whom I am working (his name is Ranjit, and he is an IITian) always takes a bicycle where ever he has to go in the city (even for the above mentioned meeting, he had come by a bicycle). Nearly 33% population of Netherlands travels by bicycle. My experinece teaches me to have humble expectations and so I do not expect you to leave your cars and start ridig a cycle. But once in a while you can try the bus or if the distance is small use a cycle or walk. One can also use a Splendour instead of a Pulsar 220 which gives a lesser mileage.
Another thing you could do is forward this article to as many acquaintances as possible
Pardon me for getting a little emotional in the end. But I guess only an emotional fool can waste two hours in writing such an article on a Sunday morning.
(Written on 30th November, 2008, Pune. )
(The writer would like to apologize for the delay in posting this article on the blog. It was written on 30th November, 2008, when I was doing my internship with an NGO called Janwani. I was traveling by bus today morning and had a very pleasant journey. It was an AC bus, with music being played, announcements being done before every stop, and I also managed to get a seat and read 10 pages of my novel during the journey. SO I guess it’s a pretty good day to post the article on the blog. )
I hope you have not been establish the link between flyovers and bears or else a part of effort I have put in writing the article would be futile
We (a group of four people comprising of three IITians and an architect) had an opportunity to discuss a lot of things with the senior most executive of PMPML (the company which manages bus transport in Pune). The main agenda of the meeting was to discuss the importance of public transport and how we can improve it in Pune. This article comprises of an extract of things discussed in the meeting along with some other facts and experiences which I have gained in past one month while working on a project related with traffic issues in Pune. Many of these facts and experiences have been mind boggling and challenge the general trend of thinking among the public.
All of us have seen many old rickety public buses which could have Euro-0 or Euro-1 rating (a modern car is Euro-4 or Euro-5 and the best buses in Pune have Euro-3 rating) emitting thick black smoke. The first thought at the stench of burning diesel, which we unsuccessfully try to avoid by covering our noses, is that all these buses should be removed. But what we do not realize (at least I never thought differently) is that if we calculate the per capita pollution created by the bus which is carrying nearly 50 to 60 people, it is much less as compared to a car or two-wheeler. Just imagine if all those people traveling by bus started using car or a two wheeler, there would be so many extra vehicles on road. The point is that a bus is a much efficient way to travel as far as per capita fuel consumption, per capita road space consumed and per capita pollution is concerned. The two words ‘per capita’ change all the equation.
India has many fast growing cities with burgeoning population like Pune (Pune’s population increases by more than half a lac every year), Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad etc. Nearly 500 vehicles are added every day. The debate on the issue of urbanization could involve arguments from science to philosophy. But the fact is that we are urbanizing at a fast pace and it is inevitable. India being a country with humble resources simply can not afford expansion of vehicles at these rates. The amount of fuel consumed the amount of on road space taken and the pollution is enormous. So the only solution is more and more people using public transport.
There is also a new concept called BRTS (bus rapid transport services). This is a project by government of India to be started in ten big cities. This concept includes a separate lane for public buses (they will be air condition buses!!) so that they can travel really fast. There will be a bus in every few minutes and the timing will be reliable because they are traveling without any obstruction like the metro rail of Delhi or the local trains of Mumbai. Bangalore has now a fantastic bus service and even the people going to air-port take public buses. I took a BRTS bus ride in Pune and it was really amazing to watch the bus overtake the cars in the side lanes. Another funny incidence which I observed was that a car which had illegally come in the bus lane got stuck behind the bus every time the bus stopped at a bus stand as it had no space to overtake. It must have been a lesson learnt the hard way for the driver.
Now I will explain the title of the article- the relation between flyovers and bears. The concept BRTS, is based on the strategy that we need to reduce the number of on road vehicles where as the flyovers are made to encourage new vehicles. It is based on the concept that we have to build new roads since vehicles are increasing but this is a successfully tried, tested and failed strategy. It has failed because the rate of growth of traffic is much more than the feasible rate of growth of roads. The BRTS system requires a huge amount of capital for buying buses and building lanes etc. There is enormous shortage of buses in Pune. A flyover costs nearly 50 crore rupees which could be used to buy new buses which means better public transport, which would lead to more people using it; hence lesser vehicles on road, lesser pollution, lesser global warming and more polar bears! There was a very famous incidence in Seoul where the common people broke a flyover. We need the same rage and vigour. Another suggested measure to get more money for more buses was to raise the bus fare. But we argued that why should the people who are taking the pain of walking from their houses to the bus stops and taking the public buses be penalized for doing something good. In fact, we argued that a part of cost involved in making flyovers should be used to reduce the bus fares. The solution is to charge more from the private vehicle owner- higher parking tickets is just one way to do it. The idea basically is to condemn all the policies which encourage private vehicles and encourage all policies which are in favour of public vehicles. So, the next time you are paying for your parking, do it gleefully, considering it a penance for committing the sin of using a private vehicle and causing so much extra pollution.
Please have a look at this beautiful presentation. It will take just two minutes. http://www.pttf.net/tour/
I will now write something which might earn me a tag of a preacher. But frankly speaking I don’t care. I was watching the recent terrorist activities being covered on news channel with my friends. All of us were damn frustrated and after some discussion a question popped up-“How much have we done for our country?” The question has almost become a cliché but that does reduce the shallowness of the answers we have for it. “After having read in a heavily subsidized institution all we want is leave this country for a better salary.” The same friend said who had raised the question. But there is a lot we can do. In last three months I have bought about a dozen books from Crossword but I have never taken the polythene bag along with it. You can not carry a Kg of potato without a plastic bag but you can carry a book in your hand (you can make sure though that you carry a jute bag when you go to buy vegetables). The person with whom I am working (his name is Ranjit, and he is an IITian) always takes a bicycle where ever he has to go in the city (even for the above mentioned meeting, he had come by a bicycle). Nearly 33% population of Netherlands travels by bicycle. My experinece teaches me to have humble expectations and so I do not expect you to leave your cars and start ridig a cycle. But once in a while you can try the bus or if the distance is small use a cycle or walk. One can also use a Splendour instead of a Pulsar 220 which gives a lesser mileage.
Another thing you could do is forward this article to as many acquaintances as possible
Pardon me for getting a little emotional in the end. But I guess only an emotional fool can waste two hours in writing such an article on a Sunday morning.
(Written on 30th November, 2008, Pune. )
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
THE SOLUTION
THE SOLUTION
First of all I would like to thank my friend Vikas for reading the article and pointing out that in my previous article- “Let’s talk rubbish”, I have only talked of the problem and not pointed out any solution or any concrete measure that a common man can take. In this small article I will be giving some suggestions as to what we can do.
The first thing which we can do is keep two dustbins in our homes and separate dry and wet garbage. If I am not wrong perhaps even the Supreme Court has ordered that it is compulsory that waste be separated at the point of generation itself. This would lead to much higher efficiency of waste recycling and prevent harmful wastes from seeping into our water table.
If we live in housing societies we can try to make sure that our garbage is being recycled there itself. Today it is compulsory that any housing society has its own pit where the garbage can is decomposed to make manure. The builders generally make the pit but then it is forgotten by the people who stay there as maintaining it takes some effort and responsibility and so we conveniently take the easier way of ignoring it.
If we do not live in housing societies then we can find where your garbage is dumped. There are several decomposing pits around. But it would obviously take some effort on our part to ensure that your garbage is going to that pit.
The least we can do is not throw garbage on the road from our Ford Icons.
You could also do one more thing - popularize this blog and ask your friends to read it. :)
Few days ago, I was talking to one of my friend and saying that we need to take more pain for the larger good. It could be small things like using public transport or separating our garbage at home but cumulatively it could make a lot of difference. He said that everyone needs to change and I said that we have to start with ourselves. He said that there is no motivation. And then I said that we have one. Even if we don’t think of others, we should think of our own children and grand-children. You obviously don’t want you grand son to be saying – “Grandpa, how could you be so careless?”
(Written in office on 19th May, 2009)
First of all I would like to thank my friend Vikas for reading the article and pointing out that in my previous article- “Let’s talk rubbish”, I have only talked of the problem and not pointed out any solution or any concrete measure that a common man can take. In this small article I will be giving some suggestions as to what we can do.
The first thing which we can do is keep two dustbins in our homes and separate dry and wet garbage. If I am not wrong perhaps even the Supreme Court has ordered that it is compulsory that waste be separated at the point of generation itself. This would lead to much higher efficiency of waste recycling and prevent harmful wastes from seeping into our water table.
If we live in housing societies we can try to make sure that our garbage is being recycled there itself. Today it is compulsory that any housing society has its own pit where the garbage can is decomposed to make manure. The builders generally make the pit but then it is forgotten by the people who stay there as maintaining it takes some effort and responsibility and so we conveniently take the easier way of ignoring it.
If we do not live in housing societies then we can find where your garbage is dumped. There are several decomposing pits around. But it would obviously take some effort on our part to ensure that your garbage is going to that pit.
The least we can do is not throw garbage on the road from our Ford Icons.
You could also do one more thing - popularize this blog and ask your friends to read it. :)
Few days ago, I was talking to one of my friend and saying that we need to take more pain for the larger good. It could be small things like using public transport or separating our garbage at home but cumulatively it could make a lot of difference. He said that everyone needs to change and I said that we have to start with ourselves. He said that there is no motivation. And then I said that we have one. Even if we don’t think of others, we should think of our own children and grand-children. You obviously don’t want you grand son to be saying – “Grandpa, how could you be so careless?”
(Written in office on 19th May, 2009)
Thursday, May 7, 2009
LET's TALK RUBBISH
Let’s Talk Rubbish
I had thought of writing this article few months back but got lazy then. What prompted me again to write was a small incidence which I saw few days ago- garbage being casually thrown on the road out of a speeding Ford Icon.
“Fuck!” or “Shit!” or “Damn!” These could be the most humble words you may utter when you visit a landfill sight. The vulgarity of these words is no where close to the shock to you receive on seeing the tones and tones of garbage. I managed to visit one few months back and I wish I had written this article at that time. We (me, Ranjit –the head of NGO Janwani and Krishna –an environmental scientist) went to a place called Uruli, around 25 kms from Pune which is one of the landfill sites where the garbage from the city is dumped.
It was a pretty big area with piles of garbage scattered around. There was a path made for trucks to travel- these trucks get the garbage from the city and drop it there in the most unorganized manner. One could see plastic, metal, paper vegetable waste and all sorts of things you can imagine. The stench was overpowering like anything. We saw that there was smoke coming out from somewhere. This was basically because any landfill site is continuously smoldering because of constant decomposition process which is an exothermic reaction. It is an incessant source of pollution with half burnt methane producing carbon mono oxide. Oh sorry, I forgot to mention methane, which is present in high amounts in this area polluting the air and also acting as a green house gas.
Believe me up to this it is fine and tolerable. But it gets much worse.
We saw many small puddles of dark liquid around the garbage. It was leachate which is a black syrupy liquid which drains out of the garbage if it is not treated properly. It contains heavy metal contaminants (the main source being thermometers, batteries etc) and many other pollutants which, as I was told by Krishna has no way out and they ultimately reach our water table. He also told me that these pollutants lead to very scary skin diseases. He was telling me about a lady he had seen whose skin would come out if she scratched it. I could feel my body itching and shuddering to imagine that I could be drinking water which contains that tar like black poison. Leachate, sounds like leech, and when you know that you might be drinking it, feels like too.
As we were discussing how disastrous the situation could be for the nearby villages we saw a tractor which had come to that place. We asked the person who owned the tractor as to what he was up to. He said that the rotting garbage acts as good manure. Krishna started smiling on hearing this. “We all are eating poison!” He said.
Then we visited a waste-management plant which was very close to the site. We discovered that it will (the plant was not complete yet) convert the garbage into refuse derived fuel or RDF. Krishna again helped us understand what this RDF was and he told us that this is a very old, tried, tested and failed technology. Actually the technology works well for waste processing in developed countries because the calorific value of the waste is higher there as it contains less percentage of vegetable waste and more of plastic and paper (in developed countries everything sold is very well packed and that adds to the plastic and paper content of garbage). The fact that we are still trying to use an old technology and spending so much money to build a plant which is inevitably going to be a failure speaks volumes of the lack of foresight and planning in the government bodies. But I also observed that they were also trying to come up with some other method to trap the methane and use it for commercial purposes. That was the only positive thing I saw there and I pray that the attempt to do so is successful.
I also could not over look that there were many rag pickers who were working in such inhuman conditions trying to collect some of the recyclable waste which they could sell in the market. You might have seen such scene of people working on a landfill site in the celebrated movie ‘Slumdog Millionaire’. There are a few clips in the movie which show children working in landfill sites. But the actual experience of a visit was quite different.
As we were returning back, I and Ranjit were discussing that the place should be a compulsory school trip for all children. We were also joking that if one wants to get his kids interested in a boring subject like chemistry, a visit to this place could serve as just the right tonic. The place had everything- methane, organic pollutants, heavy metal contaminants and that too everything entering into your body. One would get interested purely for the chock value of the whole experience.
My point is that we need to be more aware and concerned. An escapist tendency won’t help. We people living in our ivory towers and driving in our Ford Icons may not be the first ones (the first ones will be people who live around that area) to get effected by the hazards resulting from such unconcern towards what we have ourselves produced; but we are not far either. After all, we, rich or poor, near or far, eat the same food, drink the same water and breathe the same air.
p.s.-I urge the readers to also read the artcle above it - "The solution" as it contains some tips on what we as a common man can do. It is a small article and will hardly take 2 minutes to read.
I had thought of writing this article few months back but got lazy then. What prompted me again to write was a small incidence which I saw few days ago- garbage being casually thrown on the road out of a speeding Ford Icon.
“Fuck!” or “Shit!” or “Damn!” These could be the most humble words you may utter when you visit a landfill sight. The vulgarity of these words is no where close to the shock to you receive on seeing the tones and tones of garbage. I managed to visit one few months back and I wish I had written this article at that time. We (me, Ranjit –the head of NGO Janwani and Krishna –an environmental scientist) went to a place called Uruli, around 25 kms from Pune which is one of the landfill sites where the garbage from the city is dumped.
It was a pretty big area with piles of garbage scattered around. There was a path made for trucks to travel- these trucks get the garbage from the city and drop it there in the most unorganized manner. One could see plastic, metal, paper vegetable waste and all sorts of things you can imagine. The stench was overpowering like anything. We saw that there was smoke coming out from somewhere. This was basically because any landfill site is continuously smoldering because of constant decomposition process which is an exothermic reaction. It is an incessant source of pollution with half burnt methane producing carbon mono oxide. Oh sorry, I forgot to mention methane, which is present in high amounts in this area polluting the air and also acting as a green house gas.
Believe me up to this it is fine and tolerable. But it gets much worse.
We saw many small puddles of dark liquid around the garbage. It was leachate which is a black syrupy liquid which drains out of the garbage if it is not treated properly. It contains heavy metal contaminants (the main source being thermometers, batteries etc) and many other pollutants which, as I was told by Krishna has no way out and they ultimately reach our water table. He also told me that these pollutants lead to very scary skin diseases. He was telling me about a lady he had seen whose skin would come out if she scratched it. I could feel my body itching and shuddering to imagine that I could be drinking water which contains that tar like black poison. Leachate, sounds like leech, and when you know that you might be drinking it, feels like too.
As we were discussing how disastrous the situation could be for the nearby villages we saw a tractor which had come to that place. We asked the person who owned the tractor as to what he was up to. He said that the rotting garbage acts as good manure. Krishna started smiling on hearing this. “We all are eating poison!” He said.
Then we visited a waste-management plant which was very close to the site. We discovered that it will (the plant was not complete yet) convert the garbage into refuse derived fuel or RDF. Krishna again helped us understand what this RDF was and he told us that this is a very old, tried, tested and failed technology. Actually the technology works well for waste processing in developed countries because the calorific value of the waste is higher there as it contains less percentage of vegetable waste and more of plastic and paper (in developed countries everything sold is very well packed and that adds to the plastic and paper content of garbage). The fact that we are still trying to use an old technology and spending so much money to build a plant which is inevitably going to be a failure speaks volumes of the lack of foresight and planning in the government bodies. But I also observed that they were also trying to come up with some other method to trap the methane and use it for commercial purposes. That was the only positive thing I saw there and I pray that the attempt to do so is successful.
I also could not over look that there were many rag pickers who were working in such inhuman conditions trying to collect some of the recyclable waste which they could sell in the market. You might have seen such scene of people working on a landfill site in the celebrated movie ‘Slumdog Millionaire’. There are a few clips in the movie which show children working in landfill sites. But the actual experience of a visit was quite different.
As we were returning back, I and Ranjit were discussing that the place should be a compulsory school trip for all children. We were also joking that if one wants to get his kids interested in a boring subject like chemistry, a visit to this place could serve as just the right tonic. The place had everything- methane, organic pollutants, heavy metal contaminants and that too everything entering into your body. One would get interested purely for the chock value of the whole experience.
My point is that we need to be more aware and concerned. An escapist tendency won’t help. We people living in our ivory towers and driving in our Ford Icons may not be the first ones (the first ones will be people who live around that area) to get effected by the hazards resulting from such unconcern towards what we have ourselves produced; but we are not far either. After all, we, rich or poor, near or far, eat the same food, drink the same water and breathe the same air.
p.s.-I urge the readers to also read the artcle above it - "The solution" as it contains some tips on what we as a common man can do. It is a small article and will hardly take 2 minutes to read.
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