Street & the Ditch

Pallav Natraj

It was raining early in the morning, a good excuse for me for not going to school. Just a distance away from my home water got stacked on the field which was so called a road (street). So every morning I wished the rain to fall so that I don’t need to go to school as I needed to cross the muddy puddles. This went on. All of sudden I saw some heavy road rollers and giant earth movers marching towards the field. My heart shrunk as I got the vibes that the so called road is now going be a STREET. And the same happened – road rollers got on the task and the muddy puddles where removed, the land was unadorned. Earth movers layered a black carpet on the road. Grass and flowers plantation was done beside the street.

The street was inaugurated by Chief Minister and named as MG Road. Now rain was not stopping me to go to school (with upset heart). After couple of years a new member called a ditch came to live on the street. Initially it was small but with time it became bigger in size and deeper. An old man was passing by, unaware of the ditch he fell into it, the dusky evening playing a crucial role. He tried to come out but couldn’t as the ditch had grown exponentially deep. He tried hard but failed. The evening was turning into night and the night turned into midnight and then morning but he could not make it. He shouted, but his cry was unanswered. A man passing by noticed the sound of help coming from the ditch, the man was well dressed in formals carrying bag pack. He bent down and saw an old man inside the ditch. The old man was relieved to see him and said, “Please help me, please.” The man seemed in a bit of hurry, without answering him he went as if he didn’t see anything. Again the man started shouting for help.

A bike stopped after hearing the sound. He was a news reporter. He saw the old man and immediately noted something on his notebook. Seemed like a new headline for his column in newspaper. He questioned the old man, “How did you fell into the ditch?” “I was passing by the street hastily as I had to go to the neighboring village for some work, but unfortunately I could not see the huge gap and fell down. Can you please help me come out of this, I would grateful for your kind help?” The old man, not aware that the reporter was actually taking an interview, the reported vanished. News had started rolling on television and got viral. Seeing this police, doctors, nagar nigam, rushed to the point of accident but none of them came for help. Police told this is a municipal area they won’t took the matters into their hands. Municipal told this area comes under PWD, hence, this went on and on. Opposition party came and expressed disbelief on the accident and took an opportunity to degrade the current government by indicating this as a failure. No help arrived for the poor
old man. The street remained calm as it was, filled with voices and murmuring of the onlookers. Few students passing by heard the cry of the old man, they saw and they pulled him out. Finally the old man was out with the help of educated students. The old man said, “Thank you dear children for helping me otherwise I would have died inside the ditch. I am almost 65 years old and have seen more than half of my life, experienced so much and met different people. But these couples of days were pathetic and honestly felt sad for the people around. Many came and went but I was helped by you at last.” Crowd gathered around him on the street. “Education and knowledge are a crucial part of any one’s life. We should always use these for good of others, for bringing change in the society, for leading this country and set an example for others around.” The old man said, tears rolling down his eyes. The ditch has now again converted into a road. The street which made me unhappy as it led me to the school but taught me wonderful lesson of education. The street is still connecting home to home, person to person, a child to his family and will continue doing it.