[V.Narayan]

Originally Posted by sridhu

While most posts on this thread are 'feel good', I thought this news item belongs here too.
Conductor leaves dead passenger on the road . Whatever the law or the guidelines of the organization, are we so bereft of human values that we stoop to this?

Thank you for sharing this glimpse into the reality of our attitudes. The sense of power and invulnerability that unions provide to employees especially in public sector at least partly contributes to this attitude of callousness. The fact that the two passengers were poor people means that our sense of socio-economic-community superiority might have also played a part here. I recall a time in Mumbai circa 1990 when the BEST driver and the two conductors thrashed a passenger severely for insisting on receiving his change back. The union to best of my recollection was aligned to a powerful party dominant then in Maharashtra. A year later they actually killed a passenger at the Andheri depot (I think) for similar trivia. The unions and their political power pass on a sense of invulnerability to employees prone to mis-use it. Not all do but enough to give a bad name and harrowing experience for others.

[Ithaca]

I don't know if what I am writing is suitable for this thread, but it is too funny so thought I should share.

My brother was at Delhi Airport waiting for his flight to Mumbai. He was in the waiting area and next to him were three couples who were slightly animated about their experience so far and he sort of over heard their conversation and laughed. One of the ladies in that group saw him laughing and shared their travail.

It seems that these 6 people had booked a travel package with a travel agent. They were from a small town in Rajasthan that did not have railway connectivity and the agent was to collect them and drive them to the nearest Railway junction so that they could catch the train to Delhi and at Delhi another agent would pick them at the railway station and drop them at the airport and they would take the flights for their vacation as booked.

As luck would have it, the agent who picked them at the original point managed to miss the Delhi bound train. So being a good sort of chap, he told them he would drive to the next station that the train would stop and get them to board the train. They kept missing the train at each train stop till they eventually reached Delhi and the agent finally dropped them at the Airport.

My brother told me this story and I could not control myself. I wish that whenever I have a travel plan booked, I get a diligent and decent agent who will take care of me.

[ALTIMAed]

Today, at around 1.30 PM I was driving in Salt Lake, Sector I (Kolkata), the post office being on my left. I was on the fast lane. I saw white Dzire coming bang opposite me. Thats when I realized there was a cut in the road, on my right, which I anticipated the Dzire wanted to go. There was an auto on my immediate left. I had to bring my car to a complete standstill to let the Dzire pass through. On a glance at my car's rear view mirror, I spotted a police man riding a bike. Since I stopped my car, he too had to stop.

After the Dzire passed by (an Ola), i started driving, assuming the cop shall take a U turn and stop the Dzire to penalize him for driving on the wrong side of the road, but that did not happen.

I pulled my car over to the left and waved to the police man to stop which he did. I told him in Bengali "Sir, you saw that car coming on the wrong side of the road, please stop him and penalize him", to which I get a reply "Bhai (brother), these things keep happening, you keep your eyes on the road and drive safe". I was like WHAT!

[GTO]

Thanks to Rijesh P R for sending this video in. Heartfelt gratitude for sharing it with other enthusiasts via this Team-BHP page!

This incident happened today and was recorded on my dashcam. Dog leads by example - be a good pedestrian.

Uploaded on YouTube, trimmed using Android App VidTrim. Dashcam was reset recently and hence, the older date.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GR_HX176r30

[gunin]

This incident occurred a few months back.

I was driving home from work when I noted a parked I10 on the side of the road. The general going on the road (VIP road, Guwahati) was slow due to water pipe works. As I neared the I10, I saw the car moving out of its parking place very slowly. Something about the car's movement struck me as odd and I decided not to overtake it and slowed down myself. The I10 was now moving right across the street and headed straight on to the road divider at a rolling pace.

By this time, I noticed a boy of not more than 3 years standing on the driver's seat of the I10 and his panic was fairly obvious. I parked at a safe distance, signaled the oncoming traffic to slow down for the I10 beached against the divider and took out the crying kid from the car. After sometime, the father of the kid heard the commotion (he was shopping nearby) and was much relieved to find his son safe.

What might have happened was the kid was left alone in the parked car and kids being kids must have disengaged the handbrake and slotted the car in neutral and off it went rolling. Made a mental note to self to never leave any kids unattended in a car.

P.S. Some people started blaming me about how careless I was for leaving my son in the I10 alone

[audioholic]

Yesterday on my way back home, I was almost close to the metro station on a rented two wheeler. What caught my eye was a new WagonR VXi+ AMT in white which was the first one I had seen till date. It had a Learners board and a middle aged man was driving it quite slowly and with a nervous face. On the number plate, he had proudly stickered that he was the president of some organisation for the protection and empowerment of people just like the many other presidents and secretaries we see. He was not wearing seatbelt either. Pulled up to his side, and found that he had the window open. I glanced at the interiors of his car and he looked back thinking something was wrong. I saw an empty road ahead of me, told him in gentle kannada - "Sir, please save yourself first by wearing seatbelts". Before he could respond, I was out of that place but he gave a sheepish smile and wore the seatbelt. That was all I could see by the time he disappeared in my mirror.

[Tejas@perioimpl]

This happened last week.

Heading back home, at the Haji Ali signal (guys in mumbai know that this is a main junction), one car ahead of me, a car is stalled. (well not stalled, the driver had his foot on the brake because the high mounted brake light and other brake lights were on).

So there's the stalled 3 series BMW, then an E class mercedes and then my car. Since it was bumper to bumper traffic all cars were tight behind one another and no place to cut out.

The signal is green and all lanes are moving but not the 3 series. I finally get a chance to back up and the E class also backs up and moves out.

Now as i move out and come parallel to the 3 series i see a young fellow in the driver's seat - the owner by the clothes (not a driver) sitting straight with his mouth open and head slumped to the side! Youngish guy - late thirties i assume.

Being a certified first responder, training kicks in and i assume the worst! Statistically, young fellows getting a cardiac incident have a lesser chance of survival than an older fellow.

Get out of the car grabbing my window breaker hammer which is always clipped to the dash.

Run to the passenger side and first knock on the glass. No response!

Try the doors, LOCKED!

Bang on the glass -> no response!

By now a cop has started running towards me seeing what is happening at a busy signal.

I signal to him that I'm going to break the window now and he gestures thumbs up while running.

I haven't actually used a glass breaker in real life and thus can't gauge the amount of force required.

So i go a little slow and the hit the corner of the glass (as shown on youtube videos - best place to break the glass); However, it doesn't break but gives a loud bang!

Suddenly the guy in the car wakes up!

YES! Wakes up. the bugger was asleep at 5pm in the afternoon!

Seeing me with a hammer, a couple of other car guys who had stopped and a couple of other cops running, he gestures sorry sorry and quickly slots to D and drives off.

We had a hearty laugh, i get in the car and slowly drive off waiting for the adrenaline in the system to wane!

Just imagine, if i had broken the glass???!!!

On second thoughts would he hold me liable to pay for damages?

[sai_ace]

Originally Posted by Tejas@perioimpl

This happened last week.

Heading back home, at the Haji Ali signal (guys in mumbai know that this is a main junction), one car ahead of me, a car is stalled. (well not stalled, the driver had his foot on the brake because the high mounted brake light and other brake lights were on).

So there's the stalled 3 series BMW, then an E class mercedes and then my car. Since it was bumper to bumper traffic all cars were tight behind one another and no place to cut out.

This is crazy, but kudos to you to have actually looked across and reacted in the manner you did.

Appreciable was the cop who seemed to be thinking on his feet and asked you to go ahead and break the glass. And I'm sure in the event of the glass eventually breaking, he would have vouched for you.

Imagine if the guy had his foot on the throttle rather, would have been disastrous.

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by Tejas@perioimpl

On second thoughts would he hold me liable to pay for damages?

Drawing a parallel: in some states in the US, it is illegal for someone to leave a child/pet unattended in a parked car. So many stories of how people break windows to free the child/pet, especially in the summer.

But this is India. All you know, the guy would have been like, "you could have let me die, who authorized you to break the glass. pay up"

Smart thinking, though

[ashis89]

Originally Posted by Tejas@perioimpl

Suddenly the guy in the car wakes up!

YES! Wakes up. the bugger was asleep at 5pm in the afternoon!

A few weeks ago, me and my friends were going for a night show movie. It was ~10 PM on a Saturday evening and the traffic was moving 1 foot at a time. My friend was driving (it was his car) and was frustrated with the traffic. Due to the stuck traffic, he used to wait till sufficient gap was available in front of him (8-10 feet) and then moved ahead. Meanwhile, all of us were chatting and cursing the traffic. We reached late and watched the movie.

While coming out of the movie, my friend asked me to drive the car. He said that earlier he was dozing off for few moments at a time and waking up to realize that the traffic had moved ahead. The traffic was so slow that he was bored and sleepy. We didn't know what to say. Never thought one can fall asleep in an overcrowded, noisy, crawling traffic road .

I took the key and drove us back home.

[arun_josie]

Not a pleasant situation but a nice experience in helping a family stranded on the highway:

Two weeks back, I was returning to Bangalore(Salem - Bangalore stretch) along with my son. Near Dharmapuri, I encountered a huge traffic jam due to an accident. It was a mini pile-up between a TN government bus, an etios taxi and a mini truck. The Etios was sandwiched between the bus and the mini truck. Thankfully, there were no injuries to anyone involved. However, the car had some major damages and its passengers, stranded.

The TN bus which got rear ended


Etios with some major damage

The driver of the car was looking for someone who can drop his passengers at their hotel in Bangalore (around 150 Kms from the spot). It was a Malaysian family of 3 and they knew only English to communicate. He was checking with almost every car that passed by. He stopped me as well and requested me for the same. I said I will be taking the NICE road from Electronic City. The driver volunteered to arrange for a cab from E-city to Koramangala for his passengers as the hotel was located in Koramangala. I felt okay with this arrangement. So, I agreed to ferry the stranded passengers to Bangalore. The driver was very concerned about his passengers who had language barrier with the locals.

The Etios had extensive damage to the boot. It took around 10 minutes to unload the luggage and we had to pry the suitcases via the rear seat. There were 2 huge suitcases and one medium suitcase that fit exactly in my boot. Fortunately, I had no luggage of my own in the boot. Once we started towards Bangalore, my new co-passengers were very silent. They were probably still in shock. This was their first day of 5-day vacation in India. They had landed in Trichy and were coming to bangalore. After few Kms, they started chatting and I checked if they wanted to stop for a break but they were fine to continue. After this, the conversation flowed easily on various topics. Something they were impressed about India was the highways. They said its on par with the highways in Malaysia.

Meanwhile the taxi driver was in constant touch with me and updated the cab arrangements from E-city to pick this family. By the time we reached electronic city, the second cab driver called and informed me that he is stuck in heavy traffic and will take another 45 minutes for him to arrive. I immediately checked OLA for a cab and that too had a waiting time of 25-30 minutes. So, the second cab driver arranged for another cab who reached the spot in 15 minutes. All the cabbies were part of the same Travels service and I verified it with the first driver.

At the end of it, the Malaysian family was relieved and happy that their terrible day was sorted out in the end. They thanked me enough before leaving. I would have done this for anyone on any day. But yes, for this family, it was really a tough situation as this happened to them in a place miles away from their country.

And once I reached home, the Etios driver called me and thanked me again. I was really impressed with him because he made sure his passengers reached their destination with as less hassle as possible even when he had to take care of his damaged car and the accident formalities.

And I was glad I could help out a visiting family during a time of distress.

[sansvk]

Originally Posted by arun_josie

And I was glad I could help out a visiting family during a time of distress.

Kudos to you for extending your help and services. Glad that no one was hurt.

[naveen.raju]

Originally Posted by arun_josie

And I was glad I could help out a visiting family during a time of distress.

Absolutely amazing Arun. Well done .

I had a similar experience few months back when I offered a lift to a cop (think it was from Thoppur to Krishnagiri). Only when I started talking to him I realized the hardships these guys undergo to keep the highways a safe place for us to travel (he had a 24 hour shift every 2 days - Highway patrol) and he had to leave his wife and 2 small kids back at home. The biggest jolt was when I asked him on the huge number of barricades between Salem and Hosur. His answer was "Sir, we see some horrific scenes/accidents almost everyday which give nightmares for days and we are doing this so that people like you are safe". I appreciated his effort and he offered me a free pass at Krishnagiri toll. 2 more cops asked me for a lift till Hosur when I dropped him and I happily offered them .

Here's the clip. Watch from 0.30.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5BenmO7zq4

[PrideRed]

An incident that happened while returning to Bangalore from Madurai. I was on one of the lanes next to Fast Tag lane in a toll booth (Don't remember which one). A Ritz, enters fast tag lane, the gate opens and proceeds further. A speeding Audi Q3 was behind him and before the gate is closed, rushes in. The bonnet had just made in and Bang!! The gate is closed and hits Q3's windshield. The owner steps down and starts shouting at toll booth officials. The toll booth officials reply back saying this is Fast Tag lane only and you don't have one. After a bit of verbal duel, the owner speeds ahead without paying the toll!

[drhoneycake]

So, this happened on the weekend, on a sunday night. So we had come to my relatives place in Girinagar for dinner and as we were about to leave, I told my wife and parents to wait at the gate while I go down the road and get the car. Small narrow lanes and full of cars meant I had to park at quite a distance from my relatives' house.

So this street had no street lights working. As I approached the car, I see this dude leaning on my car's driver side door fiddling with the door handle. So I keep looking at him and walk faster towards him.

Him: "Yen guraistha iddiya ??" (What are you staring at??)
Me (confused): Yen illa saar, car chennagide, nodtha idde (Nothing sir, nice car, so was just having a look).

I walked closer to the hood of the car and he goes:

Him: Nod aiythalla, right helu (You saw right, so now scoot off)
Me: Saar, volgade nodbekittu, key ide tegila ??? (Wanted to see the interiors, I have the key, shall I open??)

This guy is startled, out of breadth, steps back from the car and goes:
Him: Oh sir, nim car ah, kattle alva, gothagilla (Oh sir, you car is it, its dark, so I couldn't make out)
Me: Houdu Houdu, ee thara tumba aagtirbekalva ?? (Yes yes, must be happening quite a bit right)

Now before I grab his collar, this guy shrugs off and runs faster than Usain Bolt. I thought of giving a chase, but then decided to let it go. This guy was propably in his early 20s, was dressed in shorts and was wearing a ManU hoodie.

Still wondering if I should've encountered this situation in this way, I thought this area was relatively safe in the night (compared to some areas in BLR). The door handle looked fine, did a check around the car, nothing seemed to be off. Picked up my parents and doubled back home.

My family had a good laugh about it. All in all a really unusual and funny incident.