Bangaloreans relive the glorious past

Bangaloreans relive the glorious past
New Indian Express

BANGALORE: No Bangalorean would believe that you could cruise through M G Road at over 60 kmph, except for a band of daredevil midnight racers. But you could, on Wednesday, when the city’s most important road was just a long strip of tarmac.

The city roads which are piled with traffic on any given day, wore an unusual look on Wednesday, thanks to the state-wide bandh called by the Kannada organisations.

Residents wore a sigh a relief as the city at once turned clean and green, reminding them of the days when the Pensioner’s Paradise was a slow, unhurried place. There was no blanket of smog hanging over the city.

The roads were empty and the city resembled a ghost town for most of the day. There were no incidents of violence to mar the peace, though policemen rolled the roads and platoons were positioned in sensitive areas.

The police had drawn up elaborate plans for security and they did not go in vain.

Most people did not step out of their houses and all commercial establishments remained closed, with the exception of medical stores and of course, tea vendors and pan-wallahs.

There were neither traffic jams nor traffic signals to hold up traffic, a reminder of yesteryears when the Pensioner’s Paradise was a slow, unhurried place. There were few pedestrians in the city’s central parts, which are usually filled with people.

Policemen on guard seemed to be quite relaxed too, and many were spotted reading papers or magazines while others chatted with their colleagues.

The traffic police, however, used the situation to their advantage and in some places police officials were busy getting maintenance work done on the roads. A police official said that it was only on a day like this that they could paint signages on the roads or clean them.

“On a normal day, the roads are jam-packed with traffic and it is very difficult to carry out repairs. Today the roads are free and there will be no hurdles,” an official said. But with the traffic off the roads, the city took on a different feel, despite its high degree of air pollution. Many commuters enjoyed a smoke-free ride across the City.

For children, however, the day was spent in playgrounds. With schools declaring a holiday, groups of children and youths were found in parks and playgrounds in the residential areas.