You must have the basic knowledge of the principles of Time, Speed –and Distance, Usain Bolts’ agility and Arnold Schwarzenegger’s muscular power to cross the borders and accomplish your mission for the each day.
Don’t think you need these qualities to cross over to some unfriendly neighbouring country. You need to have these commando-like qualities in abudance if you are shuttling just – between Delhi
Though lakhs of people travel daily, between these two states, there is no seamless system of public transport. Metro coming upto Vaishali in a few weeks time, is also not going to make any significant difference for the pedestrians.
There does not seem to be even an iota of coordination between the authorities of both Delhi
The busiest Inter State Bus Terminal at Anand Vihar, which is situated on the UP-Delhi border, now has became a travel hub with newly built State of Art Railway Station and the Metro, the passenger are left with all miseries.
Passengers from all walks of life, young children and elderly people, women carrying heavy bags and frail girls looking bewildred, live on the edge till they cross the border here (at Anand Vihar). The borders are virtually sealed for you if you don’t have above mentioned qualities. One has to make a quick dash between speeding vehicles in spite of a traffic signal presumably meant to help the pedestrians.
Now it is test for your balancing act - You have to stand on a Two feet high divider along with the hundreds of hapless pedestrians like you before you venture to cross over to Uttar Pradesh from Delhi or vice versa.
Once you enter into UP, here the tests are different. This land examines your muscle and money power.
If you like to charter an auto rickshaw, you should be ready to shed Rs. 70-80 for just 4-5 km’s travel. Obviously, you have no bargaining power and it is a unilateral deal over which you have no control.
Or else, get prepared for the worse ... ( ..my economics prefer this.. :( )
Here we go – an auto on sharing basis - accommodating at least 13 passenger. (It is a wonder how the Guinness Book of World Records has missed it, yet..!? ). Even chickens (or cows for that matter) transported from the farm have some rights, while being transported but here the human beings do not have such privileges.
If his entire passengers are breathing at ease, the auto driver would certainly push one more person into the auto.
Have any objections? Then be ready to show muscle power if your vocal chords could not settle the issue.
Over the years, there have been dozens of occasions when one has read the news reports about to the effect that both the states have come to an agreement to run buses/auto/taxis between these untapped areas. However, it’s a mirage yet.
You must be wondering how come media could not see this misery of pedestrians and did not make an issue of it in the local pages of their dailies? This is all the more surprising when one learns that a large number of journalists live across the border in areas like Kaushambi, Vaishali and Indirapuram etc. However, they are not personally affected by this as most of them own their personal vehicles and do not have to suffer the ignominy of a pedestrian. And UP Police on their part have advertised a Help Line number but they seem to be even more helpless.
Tailpiece: Women, by nature, are said to be more sensitive towards the need of the vulnerable but despite Shiela Dixit and Mayawati ruling the roost in these two States, the women, children and old are suffering (and perhaps cursing too) at their borders!
