Our globe..!

At the edge of destruction we have our globe
Tired and maligned with the dirt produced by all
Never to complain, never to say why!
Always speaking to its children to do the
needful without delay..!

The Steel Food Vessel (The Steel Chottupathram)

The Steel Rice Vessel (The Steel Chottupathram)!

The food vessel I carried to College was a steel vessel with a holding handle fitted on either side of the vessel. In the morning I carried the food only if it was ready by the time the bus was leaving. And that day it was ready. The little steel vessel with an outer lid on the top.  I moved to the bus stop with the vessel.

The Madras Eentha stood at the tripple road joint and people waiting for the line bus assembled in the shadow of that tree .  The tree brought forth sweet long  fruits which fell down from time to time. 

Two buses passed under it.  One is the red 'Sreeramachandra' coming from Thrikkur and the other one is the EBT (Buses in Kerala were named with letters denoting some names or family names and ending with the world T-denoting Transport). Nobodsy knew what EBT stood for but the it was a long bus with a lot of seats.

EBT came from a place called Puthur and the Sreeramachandra came from Thrikkur.  That day, EBT came first and I got in with my books and the chottupathram.  A seat was available as soon as I entered and I sank into it without a second thought.  It is a beautiful journey on a side seat when the people are less in the bus.  Just sit along and watch the houses, shops and temples and churches on the way.  At times the road is wet due to rain, the flowers on the hedges are beautiful and the huge embossing houses or little palaces of the rich are good to see!


The EBT is green in colour compared to the total red of the Sreeramachandra.  But inside colour is always light green with green seats which are very comfortable on a wooden floor.  This day, I got the EBT and that too with an empty seat which really was a great thing to expect on a normal college day.  Once I settled in the seat, I kept the book bundle on my lap and put the chottupathram under the seat so that my hands are free!

Enjoying the sights on the way, saeeing the passing cars, buses and trucks I got down at the Thrissur Municipal Bus Stand near the King's statue.  The Municipal office in those days was a huge building with a tower with a clock and this clock sent out a siren at 8 o' clock, 1 o' clock, 6 o' clock etc.  We did not know why this siren was being sent out !  Once I got down the bus moved off for its next trip.  I walked with my bundle of books to the college towards the East Fort.  In my mind was the periods and the subject which are to be covered in the morning session.  Once in college, time passes quickly and it becomes lunch time.  That is when I had the surprise..!  My lunch vessel (chottupathram) is not to be seen.  I wanted to search the vessel and thought back.  I could reach back to my vessel being put at the bottom of my seat in the bus..! This meant, if my memory is correct I have forgotten to take the chottupathram while getting down from the bus at the city centre municipal bus stand. Oh...that is bad. 

I had two options. To lose the vessel altogether and simply to go and visit the library which used to be my abode during lunch recess when I had not food carried to college.  The old Malayala Manorama Weeklies carefully made into bunches and bound was good to go through for light reading.  The 'Bobanum Moliyum” cartoon was always special and the jokes pages were a treat.  The smell of the old books carried one to many many years in the past all the while improving and increasing once general knowledge about the state and the world!

The second option is to take the chance and revisit the bus when it comes to the municipal stand again.  I took the second chance.  The bus usually took a trip to a place called Thiroor on the north and then reached back and went to Thrikkoor on the south east and repeated the process.  I calculated that after the second trip it should be around time that the bus came back to the municiapal bus stand.  I walked fast crossing the Civil Hospital and the 'Poorapparambu' (The ceremonial pooram festival ground)!  As I was walking into the municipal bus stand I could see the green EBT coming from near the 'Jos Theatre', one of the oldest theatres of the place.  The bus slowly took a left turn to the bus stand and was going to stop near the King's statue.  I walked fast and reached the bus!

I was anxious if I can get the vessel back at all.  I had forgotten the vessel in the running bus and so many people get in and get out.  It is not for the conductor to see all of them but still if no one has touched the vessel from where I have put it, then there is a chance..!   The bus was empty when I reached it and the conductor was looking at me from his seat.  I went in and looked at the place under the seat where I was sitting in the moring and found the place clean.  The lunch vessel was not there.  I turned towards the conductor: “Have you seen a lunch vessel in the moring?”  His smile reassured me that all was not lost.  He pointed to the driver and said “Look under the Driver's seat”.  As I looked on I could find the vessel still standing up straight and shivering under the deep beat of the bus engine! 

I thanked the Conductor and Driver and collected the vessel happily.  The Conducter said: “We found the vessel after you left in our routine check after each trip. But by the time we got it you had left.  Don't worry.  No body loses anything in this bus. Once you come on our bus, you and your properties are always safe..!”  I rturned to college and had a great lunch that day, the home made food with fried fish for side dish.

Those were the times, friends, most of it are gone now.  The nostalgia is still there!

Getting down at New Delhi Station forty years ago!

     It was evening! The train was to reach around 4 pm which was getting late in a February and ultimately it crawled into the station by 7 pm.  It had become dark and cold has set in along with the darkness.  Lights were on and a lot of people coming and going and those helping them were on the platforms. The speciality of any platform is that no body cares any body else other than oneself as all are in a hurry to reach their destinations. 

My co-travellers had been patient till the train reached New Delhi station but once it stoppled all of them quickly vanished into thin air or that fast they were all gone. Some had people waiting for them, some knew the place and others were the train operators.  I did not know the place, did not know any one and was not used to the cold of February evening.  That day it was more.!  I felt like vomiting.  My little thin sweater was no match for the evening as I was coming from a warmer climate in the south!

I waited for a while near a tube light pole to regain my composure and once felt better ..! Then I walked on with my brown leather suit case with the folded umbrella squeezed into the belt of the box which instantly gave me away as an outsider. The autorikshaw fellow spotted me as I came out to the front side of the station and simply came up and took my suitcase and walked up saying "Mere sath aao!" (Come with me).

Once he fixed me in his old and dilapidated autorikshaw he asked: "Kaham jana hai?" (Where do you want to go?).  I replied "Karolbagh".  I had learned that Karol bagh is a place four kilometres away from the station and one could get a day's stay there in any  small guest house! The auto-rikshaw who looked deceptive and in shabby clothes said:  "Oh.....this journey has to be completed in two auto-rikshaws,  I will take you half the way and the rest another auto-rikshaw will take you ..!  I became uneasy at these words  as I was surprised at the words of this sleaky guy and told him: "Can you take me to the "Madras Hotel" across the road?"  He agreed and took to the hotel across the road opposite the Station! As soon as it reached the hotel, I jumped out with me suit case and went in.

I simply settled at a desk and ordered for a cup of warm tea .  They youngster who came to take order seemed to be a guy from the south of India and I enquired of him if he can handle Hindi well.  He said: What do you want in Hindi?"  I told him "Just go to the front side and there is an autorikshaw fellow waiting.  Tell him I do not need his auto! "  He said, that is simple and went out and disposed off the guy in a few seconds!

Once he was gone I took a deep sigh of relief.  I felt better with the warmth insiide the hotel and wiith the help of the youngster took a room on rent just next door where there were plenty of guest houses with rooms at reasonable rates in Pahar ganj as it was called in those days!

The Thrissur Town & Public Library..

The  Thrissur Town:


Starting to the Temple of Learning in Thrissur, the Thrissur Public Library, I took the line bus and got down at the 'Binny' bus stop.  There is no reason why it is called Binny but a shop or so in that name selling clothes.  The bus stop was earlier at the Cinema  called 'Ramavarma' which has later on changed to 'Sapna'.  Walking on towards the next cut road  reached the King's Park where the bronze statue of the King stood!

The king stood facing south. Now there is no doubt about it.  He is declared to be the King of Cochin! An empossing figure in dark bronze!  He stood in a free space on the northern part of the great maidan.  He is still there on the same pedestal, but now he has been squeezed with a few walls behind and a lot of unnecessary constructions which many people thought necessary to beautify the whole place.  One side is a bus stop where many buses stop.  The place always buzzled with people getting down from buses or climbing into buses.  Some people kept waiting for the buses which made the place a busy one.  The increase in the number of automobiles also added to the huzzle and buzzle of the place.  Vewry few people went into the little park surrounding the King's statue.  Or none went in, perhaps.  The place had a lot of muddy water and wet ground due to the intermittant rains.  A man near by guffawed and thoughtlessly spat into the park.  Many of the people around never gave a thought  of the reverence of the place.    Many people in the town generally spat from time to time! The King was calm and serene!

He looked as if he is a live King.  He stood without looking left or to the right.  He continuously looked to the south where Cochin is. And he is the King of Cochin, nay, He was the King of Cochin.  Only those on the west can spit to the park.  I never liked people spitting! It should be lack of awareness all along! For any healthy man or woman there is no need of spitting.  Unless they are eating or chewing paan or the calcium and beatel leaf combination,  which is eaten in may places.

The park has more names now under and about the Kings Statue.  Thwy proclaimed the names of the people representatives and those dignitaries who had been there when the beautification was inaugurated. 

The Library is close by a furlong.  Library is having election!  Library is run by an elected body!   It carries a lot of books all very useful books!  But the day to day running money for the Library from the Government has to be released by another set of people in some apex organization. Which came  out rarely making the readers pay for the services they obtain at the Library.  This is surprising in a State with hundred percent literacy.  But every thing works here! The Staff and officials work in meagre payments but  take a lot of interest in the day to day running of the Library making it feasible with the limited resources ..! 

The multitude of Thrissur never thought of reading, as much of a thing.  Those who visited the town centre  are all busy either getting their thing done, or working for a daily living.  The permanent are mostly traders and shop keepers who have a hundred and one thing up their heads keeping the reigns of their businesses..!
Starting to the Temple of Learning in Thrissur, the Thrissur Public Library, I took the line bus and got down at the 'Binny' bus stop.  There is no reason why it is called Binny but a shop or so in that name selling clothes.  The bus stop was earlier at the Cinema  called 'Ramavarma' which has later on changed to 'Sapna'.  Walking on towards the next cut road  reached the King's Park where the bronze statue of the King stood!

The king stood facing south. Now there is no doubt about it.  He is declared to be the King of Cochin! An embossing figure in dark bronze!  He stood in a free space on the northern part of the great maidan.  He is still there on the same pedestal, but now he has been squeezed with a few walls behind and a lot of unnecessary constructions which many people thought necessary to beautify the whole place.  One side is a bus stop where many buses stop.  The place always buzzled with people getting down from buses or climbing into buses.  Some people kept waiting for the buses which made the place a busy one.  The increase in the number of automobiles also added to the huzzle and buzzle of the place.  Vewry few people went into the little park surrounding the King's statue.  Or none went in, perhaps.  The place had a lot of muddy water and wet ground due to the intermittant rains.  A man near by guffawed and thoughtlessly spat into the park.  Many of the people around never gave a thought  of the reverence of the place.    Many people in the town generally spat from time to time! The King was calm and serene!

He looked as if he is a live King.  He stood without looking left or to the right.  He continuously looked to the south where Cochin is. And he is the King of Cochin, nay, He was the King of Cochin.  Only those on the west can spit to the park.  I never liked people spitting! It should be lack of awareness all along! For any healthy man or woman there is no need of spitting.  Unless they are eating or chewing paan or the calcium and betel leaf combination,  which is eaten in may places.

The park has more names now under and about the Kings Statue.  They proclaimed the names of the people representatives and those dignitaries who had been there when the beautification was inaugurated. 

The Library is close by a furlong.  Library is having election!  Library is run by an elected body!   It carries a lot of books, all very useful ones!  But the day to day running money for the Library from the Government has to be released by another set of people in some apex organization. Which came  out rarely making the readers pay for the services they obtain at the Library.  This is surprising in a State with hundred percent literacy.  But every thing works here! The Staff and officials work in meagre payments but  take a lot of interest in the day to day running of the Library making it feasible with the limited resources ..! 

The multitude of Thrissur rarely thought of reading, as much of a thing.  Most of the people were keen on newspapers only.    Those who visited the town centre  are all busy either getting their thing done, or working for a daily living.  The permanent are mostly traders and shop keepers who have a hundred and one thing up their heads keeping the reigns of their businesses..!

Old Thrissur had more reading public. The new Thrissur has taken on the developments in automobiles and constructions coupled with the media explosions delivering all gadgets including smart phones and HD Televisions making reading time rare.  The great library stood as a mute spectator to the whole drama enacted around it every day.  The King was a companion to the Library...!