It was only recently that i came to know about the 8 'O' clock local bus time to sector 17 bus stand from sector-20, where i happened to stay during my first year of graduation in Government College, Chandigarh.
I fastened my pace towards the bus shed at sectors 19/20 point You cant be on time while boarding these local buses.
Bus stands and bus sheds are a home to many beggars and vagrants in our country with a major chunk of the population still living below poverty line, these public places become a home to the homeless. The bus shed of sector 20 was anything but different.
Skeletal walls with a long fixed cemented bench aligned along them, the bus shed was quite old almost as old as the sector itself. Adding to its rustic tones was its inhabitant, a hexagenarian man who resided in it since when neither i knew nor anyone else.
Well, just like any early morning commuter getting late for college or work, i was careful not to look at him with a perception that he would ask for alms. Instead, i would steal a look at college girls, the early morning being the only rush hour period at the bus stop. The old man would be awake by then and would look at the by standers and passers by with a stone face. He wore shabby clothes which appeared dark grey in color probably due to discoloration. He also had a blanket which he spread on the cemented seat. His thin frame, greyish white beard and hair loss over his frontal cranium symbolized his frail condition. Initially i assumed him to be a beggar but it turned wrong and to my surprise, i came to know that he was just a solitary man in his sixties. I remember almost every time i boarded the bus , i could see him either sitting or lying down in the bus shed. He was an omnipresent being of that place.
Time passed by and with the start of my second year in 2006, i shifted to a sector 15 rented accommodation. But, that didn't deter me from visiting sector 20 as one of my friends resided there.
One evening while returning back from sector 20 it got very late and i feared missing the bus. To add to my woes, my friend left for his hometown the same evening and there wasn't enough moolah in my pockets. The last bus at 8.15 didn't show up and i stood there looking at a distant light point in hope of a bus coming through.
All of a sudden, i heard a shaky voice from behind.
'What's the time? Son!'
I turned around to see that old man. The bus shed was dark and he was fairly visible. I wondered why this man was asking for time! Why would time matter in his life? Anyways his query incited me to inquire about the bus schedule.
'Yes Son! The last bus is at 8.45!'
It was already 8.20 and there was no sign of bus. I had been waiting for the last twenty minutes. Maybe, the driver skipped a route. But, was waiting for another 25 minutes worth it? What if the bus didn't arrive again?
' This old man is not going to drop you!', i lamented myself. There wasn't any other option either. I had to wait or walk all the way back to sector 15.
However, the old man lied down as if he was trying to sleep while i waited looking at every vehicle passing by me. I had almost lost hope of finding another bus and felt like abusing the man for making a fool of me just when my eyes were blinded by the glare of two big lights. That was nothing but the last bus to PGI via sector 15. I was elated and felt gratitude towards the old man. I looked at him before stepping in the bus. He was fast asleep. I just thanked him by heart as the bus gradually sped away.
' The very next month my friend shifted to sector 21 and i stopped visiting sector 20 anymore!'
Around two years later in the cold month of November 2008, i got a shocking news while flipping the pages of a newspaper reporting the death of an old man living in a bus waiting shelter of sector 20. The report added that the man had been living there since a decade. Some early morning walkers found him lying in a suspicious state and alerted the police. He was declared brought dead. Post mortem reports claimed that he died in sleep unable to bear with the prevailing cold weather conditions.
'Even to this day, whenever i pass through the sector 20 bus shed, i could feel something missing'. 'And yes, ever since i could never catch a bus at 8.45 pm!'
I fastened my pace towards the bus shed at sectors 19/20 point You cant be on time while boarding these local buses.
Bus stands and bus sheds are a home to many beggars and vagrants in our country with a major chunk of the population still living below poverty line, these public places become a home to the homeless. The bus shed of sector 20 was anything but different.
Skeletal walls with a long fixed cemented bench aligned along them, the bus shed was quite old almost as old as the sector itself. Adding to its rustic tones was its inhabitant, a hexagenarian man who resided in it since when neither i knew nor anyone else.
Well, just like any early morning commuter getting late for college or work, i was careful not to look at him with a perception that he would ask for alms. Instead, i would steal a look at college girls, the early morning being the only rush hour period at the bus stop. The old man would be awake by then and would look at the by standers and passers by with a stone face. He wore shabby clothes which appeared dark grey in color probably due to discoloration. He also had a blanket which he spread on the cemented seat. His thin frame, greyish white beard and hair loss over his frontal cranium symbolized his frail condition. Initially i assumed him to be a beggar but it turned wrong and to my surprise, i came to know that he was just a solitary man in his sixties. I remember almost every time i boarded the bus , i could see him either sitting or lying down in the bus shed. He was an omnipresent being of that place.
Time passed by and with the start of my second year in 2006, i shifted to a sector 15 rented accommodation. But, that didn't deter me from visiting sector 20 as one of my friends resided there.
One evening while returning back from sector 20 it got very late and i feared missing the bus. To add to my woes, my friend left for his hometown the same evening and there wasn't enough moolah in my pockets. The last bus at 8.15 didn't show up and i stood there looking at a distant light point in hope of a bus coming through.
All of a sudden, i heard a shaky voice from behind.
'What's the time? Son!'
I turned around to see that old man. The bus shed was dark and he was fairly visible. I wondered why this man was asking for time! Why would time matter in his life? Anyways his query incited me to inquire about the bus schedule.
'Yes Son! The last bus is at 8.45!'
It was already 8.20 and there was no sign of bus. I had been waiting for the last twenty minutes. Maybe, the driver skipped a route. But, was waiting for another 25 minutes worth it? What if the bus didn't arrive again?
' This old man is not going to drop you!', i lamented myself. There wasn't any other option either. I had to wait or walk all the way back to sector 15.
However, the old man lied down as if he was trying to sleep while i waited looking at every vehicle passing by me. I had almost lost hope of finding another bus and felt like abusing the man for making a fool of me just when my eyes were blinded by the glare of two big lights. That was nothing but the last bus to PGI via sector 15. I was elated and felt gratitude towards the old man. I looked at him before stepping in the bus. He was fast asleep. I just thanked him by heart as the bus gradually sped away.
' The very next month my friend shifted to sector 21 and i stopped visiting sector 20 anymore!'
Around two years later in the cold month of November 2008, i got a shocking news while flipping the pages of a newspaper reporting the death of an old man living in a bus waiting shelter of sector 20. The report added that the man had been living there since a decade. Some early morning walkers found him lying in a suspicious state and alerted the police. He was declared brought dead. Post mortem reports claimed that he died in sleep unable to bear with the prevailing cold weather conditions.
'Even to this day, whenever i pass through the sector 20 bus shed, i could feel something missing'. 'And yes, ever since i could never catch a bus at 8.45 pm!'
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