The Great Indian Civil Disobedience Movement

The Mahatma was great! We don’t have to agree with all his principles. But the strong conviction he carried about his views is admirable. One of his great influences on the Indian psyche is the Civil Disobedience. Everyone knows, the civil disobedience movement started by Gandhiji made the British think twice about their policies. It may not have given instant freedom or propelled Gandhi to the ranks of General Washington (perhaps that’s a wrong comparison), but it was a blow to the very basic building block of the British Empire. (I forget the date, but Kumar Ketkar, writing in Loksatta (Saturday) talks in details about how this happened.)

Now fast forward to 2005, in Pune. All you see around – the great civil disobedience movement is still on with gusto! We have been “free” for so long that one would think the movement is not only unnecessary, but also dead except for the revered history books. But somewhere, our DNA registered that it is cool to break the law – first it was to irritate the firang rulers and now to irritate the “whomsoevers”.

So, why is it that this movement is still alive? What movement you ask? We will consider only the Indian Road system for this…. Just look for it and you will find it everywhere…

1. Motorists crossing the red signal (and this is not the last 10 second count down)
2. Motorists ignoring the white strip (if one is visible) and also ignoring the zebra strips (the alternate black and white strips, where the pedestrians have right of the way)
3. Honking loudly in front of Hospitals, Schools or as soon as the signal turns green – never mind that you are about 200 feet away from the signal and the person in the first row has seen the color change and is working on the clutch already…
4. Not maintaining the lane discipline or invariable being in the left-most lane, if interested in turning right
5. Use of the footpath as one’s own front yard by shopkeepers and hawkers
6. Not maintaining the appropriate PUC levels (even by the ‘sarkaree’ vehicle, why blame the poor tempowalla?)
7. Not maintaining the rules at traffic circles (incidentally, their purpose is to regulate the traffic in absence of a traffic-signal, not to clog the traffic)

These are just few instances where rules are not followed. Many more countless incidents must be happening right under the nose of a hapless Traffic Police person. But who cares? Me? Not me – the rules are meant for others…. Or, the argument could be – if the others don’t follow the rules, why should I? And even with that conviction, we cuss-and-fume over the traffic on Karve Road. We call the traffic on Law College Road a bitch and we still take our vehicles to Shukrawar Peth and Raviwar Peth.

And why do we do all this? So we can be approximately 20 feet ahead of someone!

If you are reading this, I am sure you understand the purpose of rules, the reason for which law exists…and if you have read so far, think about it…do you really want to be the law-breaker. And just because you can take advantage of the system – the underpaid and corrupt police, the red tape and the attitude by your finesse of producing a 100 rupee note - does it solve the real problem?

Here’s a thought – Just as environment is being added as a subject to the education syllabus, why not include Driver’s Education? The 15/16 year olds can be given the education when it makes the most sense to them. The parents and teachers can start following the rules at least for the sake of the next generation and hope that others will follow…