Today I want to talk to you about the Delhi Government’s
decision to control the use of private vehicles on Delhi roads in order to
reduce the alarming atmospheric pollution due to carbon emission by the
excessive use of vehicles, from 1st January 2016 onwards. Delhi has
almost topped the world cities in pollution despite its green cover and it has
become a concern of the government that seeks human security than national
security and over emphasis on development. I do not go into the data of the
pollutions levels in Delhi but I am concerned about the health of all,
including my children who live in the city of Delhi. Like any other human
beings who are over protective about their progenies, I too am a human being
who thinks more about the safety, security and health of my own children. Call
me selfish. From this selfishness, perhaps we all could start an ecological
revolution in our city. The AAP government that has a brutal majority in the
Delhi assembly has decided to allow the private vehicles with odd and even
numbers on their registration plates on alternative days to ply on the road. I
welcome this decision not only as an AAP sympathizer but also as a citizen who
is concerned.
(Determined to Clean up: Arvind Kejriwal, Delhi Chief Minister)
The government has already declared that if the move fails
in gathering public support or it shows systemic failure in implementation,
within fifteen days the move will be withdrawn. Chief Minister, Arvind Kejriwal
is confident about its success as this model had been successfully employed in
Paris and Beijing during the times of environmental crisis. My idea of writing
this article is however slightly different than the actual withdrawal of
vehicles from the Delhi roads by force. The government move has already been
politicized by the opposition led by the BJP and also by the cynics in the
society who say that the rich and powerful will flout the directive by opting
for more cars with odd and even numbers so that they could use cars daily.
Published data show if effectively implemented on day around two millions of
cars will be kept off the roads in the city; that automatically translates into
the reduction of atmospheric pollution due to carbon emission by half. But this
needs the sheer will of the people than the muscle of a government that enjoys
clear majority. Cynics also point out that (as the government rightly knows the
shortcomings of the city’s public transport systems) there are no effective
supplementary and complementary commutation plans in place in Delhi.
There should be a beginning somewhere for the benefit of the
people. It is not the concern of this city alone. It is the concern of the
world. The revolution should start at home. When we say that by implementing
such a curbing directive by the government people of the city are forced into
inconvenience of different kinds. But we have to understand that people in
general would be the beneficiaries of this move. The losers will be the
corporates that sell more and more cars and more and more fuel and go to the
banks all the way singing happy tunes. We need to ask where exactly the
inconvenience is. With the metro covering more than two hundred kilometers of
the city, only a few places are left without metro connectivity. The problem is
the last mile connectivity. Despite the tall claims of the AAP government, the
city of Delhi still reeks in small and large scale corruptions, of which
ironically the auto rickshaw drivers are a part who were an integral part of
the AAP’s anti-corruption drive. One finds hardly any auto driver with a clear
conscience in this city; they all pitch their argument that there is a price
hike, the higher ups are eating money and they also need to live in the city by
literally looting the hapless passengers.
(Try this: Delhi Metro)
This is a very defective argument. My experience tells me
that many private transportation service providers like Ola, Uber, Meru, Cool
Cabs and so on, charge exactly what the meter says. The drivers are well
behaved (except the odd unfortunate incidents happened with a Uber passenger)
and never makes the passengers uncomfortable with their arrogance. If that
system is possible in this city, why can’t much effective meter system be
implemented strictly for the autos and the drivers be disciplined even with
punitive measures if need be. It is not that there are no meters in the autos.
The fact is none wants to go by the meter. Unfortunately, the law enforcers are
equally corrupted and most of them let corruption happen at the inconvenience
of the passengers, right under their nose. One just needs to look at the metro
station surroundings where even in the presence of the cops the passengers are
heckled and harassed by the auto people. Nothing is unconnected or remains
disconnected; everything is organically connected. If corruption could be well
connected, right from the lower rungs to the upper rungs and vice versa, then
why goodness is not connected in that way?
I strongly believe that goodness is connected organically
and a streak of goodness runs through every human being. Even the most
corrupted person in the world should be having a little bit of human goodness
left somewhere in his or her mind. What we need is the tapping of that sap and
letting it run through the whole system. I remember people coming out in the
Delhi streets in large numbers for protesting against the brutal rape of
Nirbhaya in December 2012. This revolution of the middle class percolated all
over the Indian streets. I believe that the drive against environmental
pollution could also become a national move provided if all of us think that
our children are Nirbhayas at the hands of the ‘polluters’. And who are these
polluters? All of us have this tendency to point finger at the other vehicles
while stuck in a traffic jam. We always say that the others create traffic jam
while sitting in a stuck up car in the middle of the road. We exempt ourselves
from the sin of brining a car out. It is said, traffic jam is nothing but us in
our cars. There is no external phenomenon like a traffic jam. It is created by
us. Each person who takes out a vehicle from the garage and brings it on to the
roads is nothing but the cause of a jam or pollution.
(A Long way to go: Delhi buses)
Using of a car has a lot to do with social snobbery than
convenience. The desire making machines day in and day out tell us that a big
car with state of the art facilities help one to become something more than
what he or she is. It is an illusion but most of us fail to understand this
illusion. We believe that the more we show off our opulence and wealth the more
we are respected. A man or woman who heads an office of any kind believes that
coming by a car (a big car) brings him/her more respect. While we model the
west for anything and everything, we forget to understand the fact that only in
advertisements the westerners are shown in cars. The CEOs and Professors and
many such important people peddle down to their officer, take public transport
or even walk or jog to their offices. Educated new generation in cities like
Delhi, I have seen, has become more aware of the coolness of being ecologically
friendly. I have seen young professionals peddling down to their offices. But
that is a miniscule percentage in the city’s population. But if everyone walks
the last mile or use the cycles for the last mile then metros and public
transportation are enough for a city like Delhi. If people decide to walk the
last mile and boycott the use of autos, or they decide to use e-rickshaws and
cycle rickshaws, I am sure the corruption level along with the pollution level
would come down.
(Walking Buddha)
The decision of the government definitely would bring a lot
of inconvenience to the people in the beginning till they get adjusted to it.
The best example of adopting and then getting adapted to a system is the
behavioral patterns of the metro commuters. Delhi being a city of spitters (it
is almost like a national sport for the Delhiites to spit anywhere they feel
like including the corridors of the state assembly) never thought that they
could resist the temptation to spit inside metros. But constant public
announcements, punitive measures and the general sophistication given by the
metro locations made people a different kind at least when they ride on metros.
If that is possible people could get adjusted to the new situation of using
public transport. But there should certain exemptions. People with health
problems, pregnancy, age related problems and emergency related issues should
be exempted from the odd-even number restrictions. Also there should be some
relaxations to the senior citizens. And above all, the government should take
measures to build cycle tracks and pedestrian tracks. A strong will of the
people and of the government could change the complexion of Delhi forever. But
the revolution should start at home. For this there should be a sea change in
the idea of self-perception and social perception.
(Streets belong to People)
Self- perception of a citizen is largely based on his idea
of self-worth. The moment he or she attaches all her worth to the materials
that she/he consumes or is seen with then there is no limit to consumption. The
moment one detaches self-worth from the ‘things’ that one is seen with then
everything falls in place. I never say that one should not use cars. I never
say that one should not consume desirous objects. Everything permitted provided
those things do not determine the self-worth of a person. Imagine the
catastrophic conditions in which people are thrown due to wars, conflicts,
natural calamities and so on. Both the film stars and the destitute come under
the same roof of the rehabilitation centers. Where exactly does a flood or fire
different one’s self worth? Nothing matters then. One’s self worth is not
definitely defined by the possessions or the cars one uses. When the
influential ones change the attitude the rest will find it easier to follow.
Social snobbery attached to things should end and with that the use of the cars
also will go from the cultural underpinnings in the people’s minds. One should relearn the art of walking.
Art of walking is the most exciting and enriching form of
art in the world. As a practitioner of this art I could say that it is the
simplest form of art. Though it is simple, it is conceptual and intellectual at
the same time. The biggest benefit that one person would get from walking in
these days is that he/she would get a chance to see the people and things
around. While you are driving you do not really see things as your focus is
either on the road or your mind is wandering in your thoughts accompanied by
the music coming out of the stereo. When you are in a public transport you
hardly look out; these days most of the people prefer to stare at their mobile
phone screens than watching and observing things around. In fact the market and
the governments want the people to be zombies like this so that they become
passive receptacles of anything given to them. The ability to observe, analyze,
question, probe into and so on become benumbed as one engages completely with
the mobile phone screen. Walking is a remedy to this illness and the symptom of
an impending mental break down. Walking also helps people to be one with the
surrounding and people. A society develops or rather the developments happen in
a society when people become social and affectionate not only to the other
people but also to their surroundings. Sunday picnics or Sunday gardening or sticking
to organic diets etc would not help to develop these community traits; walking
would. When you walk you get enough time to be with yourself also with others.
(Cycling to workplace is the coolest thing)
Walking is the first step to enlightenment. I do not say I
am an enlightened being. But I could be at any time as I walk a lot. I say this
because, when the Prince Sidhartha left the benumbing luxuries in the palace
for knowing the world more, he witnessed disease, old age and death. It was the
beginning of his Buddhahood. He was in a chariot driven by Chanda. He was not
walking. But that journey made him walk rest of his life. He became Buddha. We
all are possible and potential Buddhas. There is a Buddha in us but we need to
realize him by walking. When we walk we understand the pain of others. When we
walk we understand the pollution level in the air that we are breathing. When
we understand that, we will not dare to pollute it further. Walking should be a
very cultured life style as in the west. Or cycling is a very cool life style
in most of the developed societies. To make walking a cultural way of life, we
should leave all the social snobberies behind. Joseph Beuys was a great walker.
Richard Lang made his works by walking. Christo was a walker. Francism Aly is a
walker. Vito Acconci was a walker. And why forget Gandhiji who was the greatest
of walkers. They all brought around changes in the world. One should be proud
of standing on one’s own feet, literally. Bob Marley sang, ‘my feet is my only
carriage so I have to push on through’(No Woman No Cry). That is the history of
human race. They walked and by walking paths became clear. That’s why they say
street belongs to people who are walking. But at some stage of our modernist evolution,
paths were taken over by vehicles. This is a Frankenstein that we ourselves
given birth to. Now it is the time to contain him. We can do it by being proud
walkers. When we walk or peddle around, our kids will grow up in that culture.
Today our kids are brought up in the culture of arrogance. A study conducted by
the Outlook magazine long back said that the desire for larger cars comes not
from the desire to have more comfort but it is to assert the spaces that one
could occupy in the society. The more space you consume in the road the more
your ego is satisfied. It shows not only social occupancy but also social mobility.
We need to do away with that mindset boosted by the market economy by fanning
illusionary desires.
We should all covert ourselves into the art of walking. We
should be more sophisticated to accept that the world is made for all and we do
not have any special space or place in the larger scheme of the universe. When
we increase the carbon emission levels we are not only denying our kids’ right
to have clean air but also denying the same to all the other organic beings
that use oxygen for their survival. This is the Buddhahood that I am
suggesting. Once this sense of being is awakened, then everything will be
alright. None will feel the need for bigger cars or the daily use of them. One
could walk, one could peddle around or one could just be at home and manage the
works from home. Let’s walk and be Buddhas of the urban spaces.
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