Flouting Rules & Future Ideas

Hi to all readers of my blog. Its been a month since my first blog. I got a positive response for it. Now for my second blog I shall deal with a very different topic. I initially thought of dealing with Politics and Sports but another important issue- Flouting Rules, has led me to drop them. You will certainly find them in my future blog posts.

Flouting Rules:

The thing that led me to choose to comment on this topic is that this topic, often discussed but seldom paid attention to, has kept me thinking for the past few weeks. Our country being a Democracy, the people here enjoy all sorts of freedom one could vie for. But it is the misuse of this freedom that pains me.
Let me begin with the topic that I should’ve commented on in my previous blog itself- the Helmet rule fiasco in Tamil Nadu. Let me tell you that I was probably one of the happiest persons around when I strapped my helmet & went for a ride on the first of June this year. The reason for my happiness? Yes you guessed it right- people all around me in their vehicles (pillion riders included) had strapped up just like me. For once I was very happy about the fact that people have responded positively to the new rule imposed upon all riders. It led me to believe that people have become more disciplined & have started following the rules. But my joy was short lived for the rule which had been mandatory for all riders was relaxed the very next day itself. This time the villain was our CM, whose government had imposed the rule earlier. It was alleged earlier that the CM, due to shortage of funds in Treasury- heavily drained due to the freebies given away, had entered into a secret pact with the Helmet companies to impose such a rule & the resulting profit be shared. I ignored such allegations for I felt the rule was one of the rare good deeds of this Government. But very soon after the rule was relaxed, the allegation made sense to me. Since 95% of the people bought helmets, the Treasury might have filled & the CM, in order to regain the support of the people, relaxed the rule. Now its consequences have become more severe. Even people who were in the habit of wearing helmets are not wearing it now. The result? Increasing deaths due to road accidents & head injuries. Over the past week alone I heard about 5 accidents costing 4 lives in my city, all due to head injuries. Now what can I say about this? Had the rule stayed on for over a month, people would’ve naturally become accustomed to it despite complaining. These politicians will not allow people become good even if they are willing to do so. Also I’d criticize the media for being silent on this issue. In my opinion, this issue warranted an Editorial criticism of the Government. But I found none. Why did they keep mum on this issue?

Ok lets move on. Helmets aren’t the only issue on my mind when it comes to flouting rules. Being a resident of Coimbatore, I shall tell you about the severe indiscipline in traffic in the city. Often at signals, people take little note of signs like NO FREE LEFT TURN in the absence of a policeman and take the left turn. But in some cases the policemen hide themselves and immediately catch the offender & takes action on the rule flouter. Though I’m not a saddist, it gives me a great pleasure to see these people punished for they deserve to be punished. Given a chance a majority of the riders will flout rules & the authorities concerned would willingly forego their duties in the face of money. Though rule flouting exists in all fields, I’ve dealt only with some specific traffic rule flouting for these are the ones that I come across in my daily life and it certainly pains me to the helm. Also sometimes even riders who play by the rules are forced to flout them. In such cases it is the traffic congestion in the city which has to be blamed. On my part, let me bring to light some of the measures that need to be taken to ease the traffic congestion in the city (since I’m only very familiar with the roads that I traverse regularly, I shall deal with them alone. If you have any other suggestions about other roads that you travel on, you are welcome to comment on them):
1) A traffic signal should be put in place at the Edayarpalayam junction, where minor or major accidents happen almost everyday.
2) Underground parking lots should come up at NSR road and parking on the sides of the road should be stopped even though alternate side parking is followed every month. The road should be re-laid, expanded & a divider must be put up.
3) Encroachments should be removed from Thadagam road & the road should be expanded with a divider in the middle.
4) Underground parking lots should come up at DB road & the road must be expanded with a divider.
5) The older Coimbatore- the area near Town Hall and the surrounding areas, is probably the most congested part of the city. I’m unable to find a solution for this part of the city. I welcome you to come with your suggestions, if you’ve any, for this part of the city.
6) Lane driving should be strictly enforced in Avanashi road & also in Trichy road, Sathy road, Mettupalayam road, Pallakad Main road & Dr.Nanjappa road, if possible.
7) A flyover is an absolute necessity at Hope college junction.
8) Greater Coimbatore Development Authority should be formed.
9) Plans for new public transport system like Sky Bus should be mooted and works should begin sooner rather than later. Metro rail may not suit Coimbatore city; that’s why I’ve suggested the Sky Bus.
Well these are some of my suggestions for some roads that I regularly traverse. You may agree or disagree with me. You are welcome to comment either way.
As a normal citizen, I can only voice my views knowing well that my suggestions would fall on deaf ears. Although impossible, a character like Anniyan from the Tamil movie ANNIYAN is what is required to realize these dreams turn into a reality.
My only appeal to all citizens of this country is to try & follow the rules most of the time in all fields possible. Again like in the movie ANNIYAN, if 90% of the people start following 90% of the rules, 90% of the time, then one day I can proudly say that I’m from a country where people are disciplined and play by the rules most of the time. Though I doubt if that day will come, if it does then I will surely be one of the happiest guys around.

Oh, Mother India, Let that glorious day dawn upon you!! Jai Hind!!