People, Places and Things- 1

This year I was in Pune for four months for my internship. After living in Mumbai for 25 years, it is difficult to live in any other city. You get to know the difference the moment you land up in a new place. In Mumbai we complain about the overpopulation and traffic problems but the transport facilities are really good. In Pune, the places are comparatively less crowded but the transport system is not reliable.

Local trains are not efficient with respect to their network. Buses in my area looked ancient and dangerous. Initially I was wondering whether they work or not. But they do work. Then there are auto rickshaws. There are two kinds of autowalas. One which use meters and others which tell the fare in the beginning. There is no logic to what amount they ask for. It all depends on the time of the day, number of autos present at that place and the area where you are catching it. If you are out of a cinema house at 12 in the night and there is only one auto available and even if you have to travel just 1 km, they ask for 100 rupees. You have to bargain and bring them down to 50. There is no control over the auto fares.

In both Mumbai and Pune the minimum auto fare is 18 rupees. So after reaching the destination in Mumbai, if the meter is not showing more than 18 the autowala takes exactly 18 rupees. In Pune, the scenario is different. If you give them a 20 rupee note to pay 18, they do not return 2 rupees. Very few will return the money. If you ask them for it, some will give you while some will say they don’t have change. I once travelled from Model colony to E-Square in auto. My fare was Rs.26. I gave the autowala three notes of ten. He didn’t return Rs. 4. I asked him for it. He stared at me as if I asked him for his kidney and then said, ‘Char rupaye kon deta ka?’ It means, who gives four rupees. I told him that I do. Then he had the usual reply that he doesn’t have change. I asked for my money back and gave him an exact amount. It’s not about the money. It’s about being fair.

I had a different experience with the cab services. There were two kinds of cab drivers. Ones who knew all the routes and the ones who asked the customers about the routes in spite of having GPS in front of them. For a new person in the city, it’s not possible to guide the driver. One thing I realized was that we need to have our own private vehicle in order to live in the place or else it is difficult to travel. Four months passed quickly and to my relief I got back to Mumbai.