A Story to Tell (continued)...

So was it love at first sight? No. He didn't know what struck him then. He was barely of age then. He never gave much thought of what he witnessed. The last time he met her, he could not string two words together and speak to her. It was an unnerving experience, but he got over it as time passed.


Then he met her again after two years. He was determined to talk to her. He got his chance. A good one at that. It was one of the best hours of his life. He kept talking with her on and on, on and on. He never noticed the passage of time. They covered a myriad of topics including hobbies, birthdays, films, favourites etc etc. It was like getting to know each other after a long gap. But was it just that?


Through the entire conversation he, for the first time in his life, was listening and speaking to someone with utmost freedom. Willing to expose himself as much as he can without realising what he was actually doing, but at the same time trying to know more about her. Alas! all good thing in life do turn out to be short. This wonderful conversation had to be cut short due to her prior commitment with her friend. When the interruption occured the first feeling he felt was one being left alone. He felt weird. Why should he feel like that?


It was then he realised how nice it would be to have this person in life, with whom he just shared so much and would like to share so much more. Someone to whom he can talk about his likes and dislikes without the slightest of reservations. Someone whose thoughts and suggestions he was ready to take in when provided. Someone for whom he was ready to do anything. But is it enough that he likes her so much? Shouldn't that be mutual as well?


He understood what he felt could probably not be reciprocated. But he decided he will not give up until he tried atleast once. So then, he tried to communicate to her as often as possible. This proved difficult as his geographic location could not be altered for another two years. But he did contact her once every quarter (if he was lucky), that too not direct. He couldn't help thinking both with optimism and pessimism about his suituation. Nevertheless, he never lost hope. He took this as a learning experience to face the possible extremities of life. Still, he had to tell her...How else will he get to know?...

P.S: Sorry for a delayed sequel!!

The Least We can do...

They are all five feet tall. They always go forward. They have bigger brothers running around. There are thousands of them littered in the streets of Chennai from Redhills to Tambaram, from Avadi to Mylapore, from Valasaravakkam to Villivakkam. They easily move around the nooks and corners of the city. They are yellow in colour and are the most feared but also the most preferred. Yes, I am talking about those three- wheeled "friends" of tourists locally called 'auto'.

One of the first things that anyone coming to Chennai, knows about them is that their meters are useless. The rumour mills run that the meters are heated up, mechanically/electronically sabotaged etc etc. One month of frequent travelling (almost twice every weekday) by autorickshaw gave me a fair idea of the background of this problem.

A standard auto driver who hires a vehicle pays Rs 150-180 as rent per day amounting to a maximum of 5400Rs per month. Petrol in Chennai costs Rs50+ a litre. And the average mileage of an auto is approximately 30km (on the best case). Logically speaking in Chennai, a driver can cover 160 km in 8 hours of driving. The meter rate of Rs 7 per km gives him 1120 Rs and an earning of approximately 650Rs per day, deducting petrol and rental charges. But practically, covering a distance of 120 km per day is the best one driver can hope for. This halves his earning to about 350 Rs per day. So what does he do?

Every driver I encountered kind of gave me the impression (when I was chatting with them) that their primary aim of the day is to earn the rental charge for the day (Rs 180/-). Hence the pattern that I observed went like- trips in the morning proved costlier than that in the evening. Shenoy Nagar (my house) to Nungambakkam station is a 3km ride for which paying Rs30/- is reasonable. I pay that on return in the evening, but the morning trip I always end up having to bargain to reach the same rate. The bigger the distance, the bigger is the deviation, I believe. Their idea is to earn as much as possible in minimum number of trips to cover their rent, petrol. Once they reach that target, they relax themselves to drive for reasonable prices. So what is the solution?

The goverment could probably standardize the rental rates charged by the owners, based on the day's trips, with a nominal minimum charge fixed. That could basically reduce the pressure on auto drivers to pay the now fixed component- rent. Also the current meter system, considering the maximum rent paid of Rs 180/-, gives a driver just Rs 3.50/km to a driver or a maximum of 50Rs per hour, could be changed according to the standardization of the rent. Mind you, 15k per month without any HRA, PL, CL or any other benefits is not enough for a family man to lead a standard life in Chennai. So what can we do?

The best judge of the state of auto drivers is they themselves. So this is what I learnt to do if I do take an auto. Name a price (which I think is reasonable) to the driver. If he accepts, great!! Else, simply walk away to find another who fits your needs. The least we can do is not make them more miserable, than they already feel by fighting with them :-). Mutual agreement always rules over a bargained one!!