The convoys of ministers and other senior officials often travel at breakneck speed without considering the safety of others, and there have been quite a number of instances of innocent citizens getting hit by VIP convoys.
Representational Image
Guwahati, Oct 27: All individuals are considered equal in a democracy. However, though India boasts of being the world's largest democracy, the country has not been able to shake off the colonial VIP culture even after 77 years of independence. In fact, it is increasing with every passing day. In this write-up, we are mainly focusing on the fast movement of VIP vehicles, which often causes immense hardship to ordinary commuters.
Let us take the case of Assam. The convoys of ministers and other senior officials often travel at breakneck speed without considering the safety of others, and there have been quite a number of instances of innocent citizens getting hit by VIP convoys. Moreover, the police personnel travelling in the pilot vehicles act more loyal than the king; most citizens must have experienced getting a mouthful from them, as they often use abusive language to clear the roads. But, in some cases, the roads, particularly in towns and cities, are so clogged that it is impossible for common drivers to give way to the VIP convoys, which makes one wonder whether the police personnel escorting the VIPs expect common road users to fly off the roads to make way for them!
Of course, the government pays compensation to the next of kin of those who are killed after being hit by VIP vehicles, and treatment facilities are provided to those injured. But is it enough? Obviously, no. We can understand fire brigade vehicles and ambulances breaking speed limits to reach the spot or hospitals. But what is the reason for the VIPs to travel at such high speeds? Are they always in a hurry? They should realise that a major accident can put their lives in danger, apart from the lives of common citizens. In this context, we should remember that former Assam Cabinet Minister Lalit Rajkhowa died in a tragic road accident, and all VIPs should remember that tragedy while travelling at such high speeds.
It is a fact that sniper bullets cannot hit a vehicle travelling at a certain speed. But militancy is on the wane in Assam, and even during the peak of militancy, there was hardly any instance of sniper hits in the state. We can understand VIP vehicles travelling at high speed in Jammu and Kashmir, which has witnessed a number of sniper hits over the years, but not in Assam, particularly in the present scenario.
The transport department has fixed speed limits for different types of vehicles on various roads. According to this, for M1 category vehicles, which have no more than eight seats excluding the driver, the fixed speed limit is 100 km per hour on four-lane national highways, 70 km on other roads, and 60 km in municipal areas. But do the VIPs follow the norms? Certainly not. If a common man breaks the speed limit, he will be fined Rs 2,000; but if a VIP does the same, nothing happens, and we accept this as normal. During floods, the speed limits on the highways along Kaziranga National Park are reduced to 40 km per hour to avoid animal hits. Anyone violating the norm is heavily fined, and that is justified because animals cross the highways to safer places during the floods. But, unfortunately, the same rule does not apply to the VIPs.
Moreover, VIP movement often restricts the smooth travel of vehicles not only in cities and towns but also on the highways. We often see a number of vehicles, including ambulances, getting stranded due to the movement of VIP vehicles. Everyone agrees in principle that ambulances and fire brigade vehicles should get first priority, but that's not the case here. Maybe we have not yet been able to get over the colonial hangover.
This issue reminds me of an incident in Guwahati city, when even students appearing for the High School Leaving Certificate (HSLC) examinations had to run more than a kilometre to reach the examination hall just because vehicular movement was stopped as the Chief Minister was due to pass through the area. This was, of course, not during the tenure of the present government. HSLC is the first major examination in the lives of students, and the politicians should understand the trauma that the students faced while running like mad to reach the examination hall on time.
There is a Madras High Court order that states that vehicular movement should not be restricted for more than five to ten minutes for VIP movements, but this is not followed for reasons best known to the people at the helm of affairs. We remember Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma publicly admonishing a District Commissioner for blocking traffic on the national highway during one of his programs. That had raised a ray of hope that the VIP culture would finally end in Assam. But sadly, it continues and seems like it will persist for years to come.
The same culture is also seen in the case of parking of vehicles in cities and towns. If a common person parks his or her vehicle in a no-parking area, they have to pay a heavy fine. We support that because haphazard parking of vehicles can cause severe traffic congestion. However, at the same time, the police should try to find out whether the person parked the vehicle for some emergency or not, instead of blindly imposing fines. For example, for the four-storey new intensive care unit of the Gauhati Medical College and Hospital, located near the Medical College hostel road, there is no parking space, and people have to park on the road and pay the fine. There is no other way, as the authorities concerned have not made any parking space available.
In contrast, if the VIPs park their vehicles in areas marked as no-parking zones, no policeman dares to touch the vehicles or even take photos of them. This clearly implies that all are not equal in the world's largest democracy.
By -
R Dutta Choudhury
