I was traveling to office, in one of the often crowded buses of Delhi. As my stop neared, I stood from my seat and waited behind others who were to get down as well. A man, in his late fifties (observation), with his bag, tried to brisk me sideways. There was hardly any space to give him a way and others were already standing near the exit front gate.
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| Following rules invites safety. |
I replied, "then what good is this line for? (as not only was he quite unaware of his uncanny behaviour* but also wanted a public bus to be halted for him prior to the bus-stop). He said, "you don't know son, there are no lines in bus."
The bus driver was unperturbed and he stopped the bus only at the designated bus-stop. I was amused but raising my voice I said, well, now that I have publicly accosted you, next time you'll be careful to jump the queue, because they exist!
We both got down and walked our opposite ways, silently acknowledging our act of change.
*This uncanny behaviour is what is slowly eroding our societal values. We must point out to others the relevance of being courteous in public life. What is disheartening is not that the bad people indulge into ill-behaviour(and acts) but that the good ones, the educated often shy away from bringing out these behavioural changes in others, which is often only, a simple act of dialogue.
