Cogito Ergo Sum

I am back to office from a long holiday. Wanted to write a lot on how I enzoied the last one month. But what a tragedy that I have to write a post titled thus? This is called Fate! I have visited police station twice within a span of 54 hours, which is slightly on a higher side I guess. So, looks like God wants me to post a blog on this only, before I write on how I spent my vacation or share my thoughts which got shaped in the last few days.

It all started like this: One fine morning, about 2-3 months ago, when I reached office and kept my bag on the desk, I noticed one of the pockets being open. I remembered that my two wheeler license was supposed to be inside that pocket. Immediately rummaged through inside to find every junk thing except the only important thing-i.e. the license. Somehow I felt I didn't lose it that day, but only got to know about it then, either way it didn't matter. I wasn't worried, since in 3 Yrs, I had never been caught or fined, so it hardly made any difference. I took it pretty cool and did not do anything about it with an excuse of having better things to do like studying for GATE and Veena Practice.

Once GATE was over, I thought it is better to clear up all stupid, pending things and hence I made my way to Koramangala RTO on Tuesday, [That's where I had got my license, 3yrs ago because I used to stay in that locality then] to get a duplicate license. The procedure seemed to be quite simple(!). Just that it involved a lot of paper work, paying 15 rupees as license fee and another 215 for card license and of course a proof for losing the original one. This last thing called for a visit to the police station near the area where I had lost it. Now, this was tricky, when I myself didn't know where I lost it, where should I go? Hence I decided to go to the Koramangala police station which was the nearest.

That was my first visit to the police station; it was a beautiful building actually. It was not looking like a dilapidated old hut of the kind they show in Hindi movies. It was built with quite a modern design, granite flooring etc. There was a lady and a male constable in the front desk. I went in and told them I wanted to file an FIR on losing my license. The lady seemed to be very friendly, but the first question she asked was when and where did I lose it. I said 3 days ago(Yeah, I too can tell lies much to my own and may be some of your surprise) and about the place I said I didn't know. She said I had to then give the complaint at least in a station nearby my house, to which I made a very tired and sorrowful face. The male constable evidently melted by the expression on my face and said that it was OK to file it there. He convinced the lady too (who was apparently his peer). He suggested me to write that I had come to 'Raheja Arcade' for shopping and there I had lost it-which is what I did. In between I peeped inside to have a look at the cells. Inside there was an innocent looking man, aged about 40-50. I thanked the constables and came out.

In RTO, I said I had changed my house and would like to get the new address printed on the license card. But then I came to know, it involved more paperwork and a half day work at Rajajinagar/Yeshwanthpur RTO and another 230 rupees from my pocket. So, I was forced to be content with whatever best I could get at Koramangala, i.e. a card with an address of someone else's and a phone number which might belong to nobody. They said I could come after two days and collect my license between 4 to 5 p.m.

Today, at 3:43 p.m. I start from my office and peacefully enjoy a ride to Koramangala. I reach the RTO office at exact 4 and coolly get my card license. I come down and see, my bike is not where I had told her (yeah, it's a female, her name is Lakshmi, because she came home on a Friday; i.e. 13th of December 2002 ;-)) to wait. I hear a faint cry of my name, look here and there and some people with a white shirt, khaki pants and cap are kidnapping her in front of my eyes. Some other people are actively involved in putting many more two wheelers into a van. At first, I can not figure out what is happening, as I am lost in some other thoughts. I just set my eyes upon a blue board saying "No Parking". Now I realize what is happening. I let out a frantic cry there without caring for anything else; I talk to the police to leave my bike. He tells me to pay Rs 300 and I ask him whether he would give me the receipt, to which I get an affirmation. I open my purse only to find that I had exactly 290 Rupees. I was so desperate not to let her with them that I foolishly ask whether they accept cheque(Good God, I didn't ask whether they accept credit card!); all of them laugh. They ask which is my vehicle and I say "Victor GL Black", they seem to be even more amused. I crib that they don't have better work to do, they trouble only innocuous people like me, they don't do anything for those who keep doing mistakes. No effect, they tell me to come to Aadugodi police station and collect my bike. Had I been 2 minutes earlier, I could've avoided all the trouble.

There I am, despondent from the temporary separation from my bike. I go to the nearest ATM to withdraw money and pay my visit to the traffic police station. [In fact I make a short visit to the normal police station also while searching for traffic police station.] My bike is there near the station chained along with other vehicles who shared the 'Karma'. No one is there around, so I go up the stairs and give a lecture to 2 uniformed people who were blissfully sitting. One of them offers me water and then tells me to wait near the vehicle to collect it from Kidnappers only-it seems those who sit inside the office room have no business with my vehicle. I come down and wait near my bike. After about 10 minutes of restless waiting, the van comes again with another set of two wheelers.

I approach the kidnappers and start a sermon on how atrocious it is to trouble people like me who run the Government with thousands of hard-earned rupees (of tax) every month. They never do anything to those auto-walas who refuse to come to places within the city even at 12 noon, to those who literally rob the outsiders and over-charge even at 8:30 in the night, though they can do it only after 10. I ask them where do all the money which we pay as fine go. Just imagine, at a rate of 1 vehicle per minute in several areas throughout the city how much money they'll collect. Look at the roads, infrastructure-they are as worst as ever. I knew that it was useless to talk all these to those people, since they were just doing their duty. In fact, I appreciated a couple of things about them. The man-leader of kidnappers-did not accept the bribe from some people who tried it on him and also he did not yield to a person's threat that latter's brother was a traffic officer.

Finally they release my bike and I get back to office at 5:30. I am very much shaken from the loss, it is not the loss of 300 bucks that shakes me the most, but the fact that I don't have an immaculate record any more. I had never been fined for anything in my life till now. No more I can say so. One of my close friends who was always jealous of me on this, will get ever-lasting solace now.

What a sad day today has become!
Just 3 hours before, I was bubbling with joy....
Dear readers, I'm hoping to get some empathy from you...
Hope to come out of it soon and write nice things on this page....

Sincerely,
Aparna