Write a letter to your Kolkata friend about the difficulties in life arising from the mismanagement of the transport system in Delhi.
3183, Kuncha Tarachand
Daryaganj, New Delhi-110002
31 January……
Dear Friend,
Rajiv
Please accept my loving greetings. Today I received your much-awaited letter after many weeks. The contents of your letter afford me much pleasure to note that you are quite hale and hearty now and that you have started attending to your work. It is also a matter of good luck that you are living in a metropolitan city where all means of transport are available and at no moment does anyone feel any kind of inconvenience in going from one place to another.
On the other hand, Delhi, the capital of India, has such mismanagement of transport system which I don’t think will be found anywhere else. No doubt, D.T.C. buses ply in every area and they are also in large number. Besides these, there is no shortage of taxis, scooters, and four-seaters. Their rates/charges are also fixed by the administration. But since Delhi is the trade centre and over-populated, thousands of people move from one corner to the other every day. Despite the means of transport being in abundance, one gets the hired vehicle with great difficulty to go from one place to another. A person has to stand at bus stops in a queue for hours together to board a bus and even then he has to travel while standing. I feel ashamed of talking about the conduct of bus drivers and conductors. Bus drivers drive buses so rashly that every day there are many accidents in the city. Most of the conductors misbehave with passengers. Apart from this, pick-pockets are found doing their work stealthily on buses.
In addition to buses, taxis, scooters, etc. have their own queer story. Their drivers are always ready to take the distant passengers, But if the place is near, they make lame excuses, adding that their four-wheelers are out of order or that they are already occupied. Besides this, it is a matter of common experience that they charge more and also indulge in quarrels with passengers though their rates are fixed.
Taking into consideration all these factors, you may imagine very well what type of mismanagement of transport system exists here.
I hope that all the members of the family will be fine. Please convey my best regards to your worthy parents and blessings to Mridula. Rest on the meeting.
Your most intimate friend
Ravi Shankar
