It was only a few months ago and took little space in newspapers; hidden in some corner surrounded by cheap commercial ads. A life lost, a human being crushed on roads with rampaging traffic, children orphaned is of little value; or it seems that inconsequential? When death toll cross half a dozen, a respectable space on front page is given, because it now a big news. TV cameras descent like swarm of locust, news hounds rush to be the first and announce their so called exclusive coverage with a childish glee.

We had stopped on the way back to city early morning at a Dhaba, famous for its spicy tea, strategically located at a sharp dangerous curve. They could have surely done a better job, but we all know how careless some of us can be with such an onerous responsibility.

A strange smell hung in the early morning crisp winter air; may be some open sever nearby.

 It was still early and visibility was poor. Savoring the hot concoction I noticed a pack of dogs furiously licking a portion of road. The pack will skillfully get back to let the thunderous overloaded trucks pass and rush back to engage in their urgent business. Dogs fought and would not let others to encroach upon their own invisible boundaries. The fighting was ferocious and what ever they devoured some thing special; I presumed. It was quite a large area they covered; the numbers of large and healthy dogs were impressive about a dozen. The poor, small and weak watched with hungry looks from a safe distance, as the stronger made their threats quite loud and clear. Few trespassers were dealt with loud barks and deadly attacks; making those foolish pups ran away from a severe mauling.

I though they were licking on some spilled mil or food left over.

But a casual enquiry with a waiter made me sick with nausea and horror. What the dogs were so eagerly devouring were remains of an unfortunate human being,  a speeding truck had crushed late last night. His departing cries must have been lost in thunder of hundreds of truck marching in line to deliver goods to the city. The mighty convey flattened his remains on road, reducing him to paste. Whatever blood that body had was splashed on the road and most of it gorged by the large wheels, making a visible line of crushed bones and flesh fragments to no where.

The scent of blood drew dogs and they devoured whatever was possible.

The lone baggage of the unknown departing soul was reportedly lifted by a resident scavenger.

Will his nears and dears ever know what happened to him and how he died?

File closed and buried in damp store house of unsolved common miseries.

A police post was nearby with sand bags and pot bellied policemen lounging around.

They did not hear and obviously did nothing, have they ever with few exceptional burst of duty?

With no clue left of that unfortunate man, policemen simply recorded a data: an unknown man crushed by unknown truck on such and such road under such and such police station.

One more anonymous death on road doesn’t make any difference to us; we are so many by the way.

Death is easy on Indian roads, notoriously undisciplined with marvels of shoddy workmanship.

Sharp unsafe radius and visual obstructions coupled with dangerous driving habits and media promoted irresponsible driving stunts.

Thousands of lives are lost and no one is bothered.

Doom II gets award for best stunts abroad, prompting stunt masters to conjure up new impossibly dangerous stunts for Rhitik, Rahrukh, Akshay and others.

More copy cat stunts more deaths on roads.

Years ago I got a shock of my life confronted with a clueless, unprofessional chief engineer, trying to bamboozle us, the concerned citizens about a dangerous turn at a right angle with no turning radius. We some how got the DC suitably concerned and he graciously made him self available for on the spot inspection.

The fat chief engineer justified the monstrosity because of the limitations and all those lame mumbo jumbo technicalities.

But he didn’t know that I come prepared to puncture his shameful deceit and ignorance.

He was transferred as the concerned DC got very angry with him.

But he will continue to be unprofessional and be deceitful where ever he will go.

Few more dangerous roads will devour more lives and he will retire to become Principal of one of many mushrooming engineering collages.

And he did....

It can happen only in India.

Mera Bharat Mahaan….

Jai Hind…