Flashback Series - 1 : New Delhi - National Capital

Nizamuddin Railway Station: Early Morning. We reached there 1 hour prior to our train's departure, so lots of time to sole-grate (my term for loitering here and there just to pass time) and observe.

The first thing that caught our still sleepy and travel-weary eyes was the mazes formed by the platform "Sleepers", Parcels and Luggage: Mazes in different forms and sizes made up of Beggars, Travellers, Workers, Parcel Boxes, Huge Cartons, Sacks and what not... It takes a lot of patience and dexterity to wind through these with your baggage and minus the help of a porter. Somehow, we got to the platform where our train would come.

Rodents, Stray dogs, Ants, Roaches, Birds... in absolute freedom! Shoo them, and they are most likely to ignore your gesture. If you're that adamant and persevering, then they might stage a somewhat placating act of moving about here or there. As there was no train in rail lines in front of us, we could see how clean (read un-clean) the rail sleepers, lines and the other platform.

Human faeces, urine, food leftovers, plastic cups, oil, sewer water... on the rail sleepers and lines dirt, dust, grime, nauseating smell. Huh!

Why I narrate all these now?

'Coz, I would like to take a calculated guess. I guess that Nizamuddin Railway Station might be still the same, even now. With us, it takes years for things to notice, acknowlege, decide and act.

If things have changed for the better, please let me know thru' ur comments. If not, let me not have the wrong notion that my post would ever be taken even bit seriously.