Lives on the line

APR 16 -
Whenever I glide through the chaotic roads of Kathmandu, the many experiences I have baffle me: unavoidable traffic jams everywhere; cows and other animals in the middle of the road; people quarreling with each other or officers to justify their violation of traffic rules, pulling up the sleeves of their shirts, ready to fight; young guys stopping their motorcycles in the centre of the road to light their next cigarette; rotten waste everywhere.

It was about 6 p.m. in Tripureswor and I was winding my way home to Kirtipur when a man on his modified motorcycle zoomed by. It swept everything along its path away with it like a storm. A lady glued to his body was, perhaps, egging him on. Speechless, I kept looking at the bike till it disappeared into the heavy traffic. How that guy managed to navigate his bike through it all still escapes me!

On the other hand, I am clueless as to how an ambulance stuck in a traffic jam, even while its siren loudly wails and its red light brightly flashes, is unable to make any progress on its way to the hospital. What must be going through the minds of the patient’s relatives at those agonising moments, I can only imagine. Are they blaming the traffic or their poor luck?

One day in the middle of the road by Ratna Park, I heard a loud siren of an ambulance approaching from behind and steered my motorcycle to the side so that it could pass. No sooner than had I moved my bike to the side, a gentleman behind me with a luxurious car overtook me followed by what seemed to be an endless stream of motorcycles. The ambulance for which I had moved out of the way remained stuck. People in an air-conditioned cars and uncaring motorcycle drivers, it seems, couldn’t even be bothered to consider the needs of those who might be fighting for their very lives inside the ambulance.

Is it just me or are city dwellers not only losing their patience, but their very humanity? Everyone seems to be in hurry to get their jobs done, nevermind if they might be hampering someone else in the process.

I read an article based on the testimony of an ambulance driver. According to the driver, most of the emergency cases they attend to are life threatening, especially when they turn on their lights and sirens. Emergency driving is very difficult. Ambulances sometimes have to violate road rules to get to the scene of an emergency quickly. These ambulance drivers really do have a tough job. Can’t we help them do their jobs effectively, and more importantly, save lives in the process, by giving up five minutes of our time on the road?

During a programme in Kantipur television last week, Rabindra Mishra, a journalist associated with BBC Nepali Service, was talking about the responsibility of each citizen to contribute towards the betterment of his or her society. The least we could do is show a little empathy towards our countrymen when they are fighting for their very survival.

abamritofficial@gmail.com

Published in Kathmandu Post on 16th April, 2010.

Your promises- HAPPY NEW YEAER-2067

APR 14 -
Today marks the second day of 2067 BS. As years pass, changes take place, new expectations rise and people make resolutions to change themselves. The excitement of making changes and taking actions are motivating factors to keep our coming days more valuable throughout the year. Resolutions always sound like a good idea, but when it comes to practise, we often get busy or lazy and forget our previous commitment. It’s easy to get excited about a clean slate to finally give up our bad habits or bad practices. Unfortunately, many of us find our resolutions to be fading away within a month. Failing to uphold personal resolutions only affects the individual, but unfortunately, resolutions made in vain by those who curve the fate of the country have wide-spread effects.

I remember the commitments and resolutions political parties fed to the people as the election season began. Their speeches gave a new outlook on the future of the country and directed the people’s hope towards prosperity and peace. The tricky part for politicians has been sticking to these resolutions.

I read an interesting account of how our leaders are committing themselves to their resolutions: “In new Nepal, they said, everything will change, economy will change, and society will change. Optimistic and enthusiastic! I asked them, will you also change? In confusion they looked at each other and one of them replied-- we have not decided this yet!” What an ironic remark! If political leaders want to change and re-structure the country, they must first change their attitudes and re-structure their priorities with this New Year 2067. They cannot continue to place the blame on transition.

If political leaders claim the government is in transition to hide the fact that they are not working hard enough to uphold their resolutions, it is clear they are not ready to give up their luxurious life-style, inclination for corruption, or their habit of compromising at the cost of country. These are just a few types of ‘transitions’ being embraced by our leaders. At some point, the excitement that came along with the leader’s initial commitments wore off, so political leaders need to have a concise and proper plan to challenge the ghost of transition haunting their minds.

I suggest the politicians reflect on their past actions and detoxify their attitudes with the arrival of the New Year. I would just like to suggest a few questions to aid in their reflection — How often do you think about your commitments to the people? When will the transition period come to an end? Do you pay attention to the dreams you shared with the people of transforming the fate of Nepal? When will this transformation take place? What will you do to make these dreams come true? All you have to do now is figure out a programme that works, and make a resolution you can stick to.

Published in Kathmandu Post on April 14, 2010