Platform 7

Kerala and tolls..

2012-01-14T23:38:00.000+05:30

Kerala - the most literate state in India - has a particular dislike for tolls. By 'toll', I mean the user fee collected from road users for using a bridge or a road. The road infrastructure in Kerala is, perhaps, the worst among Indian states (atleast in South India). Kerala's roads are in poor condition for 360 days of a year - the roads get repaired a few days before the monsoon sets in, and the roads go back to square one within two days of rains.

Ministers in-charge of Public works and Roads, irrespective of their political affiliation, always blame the poor condition of roads due to the special conditions in Kerala - as if it rains only in Kerala! We still have British era roads in pristine condition, while roads laid months ago are in tatters. Kerala's roads are the best place for an automobile manufacturer to test their vehicles' suspension setup - if it can handle our roads, it can even ride in the deserts!

Coming back to the topic - "Kerala and tolls": Recently (I mean a few years back), the NHAI (National Highways Authority of India) set out with its target of building "standard" roads - most National highways are being converted to 4-lane roads on private partnership. In effect, these roads are being turned to "paid" roads, where one has to pay a user-fee to use the facility. These roads have helped vehicle owners save huge amounts of fuel, and thereby helping the country save a lot on foreign exchange.

Roads in Kerala are typically single lane roads - with just enough carriageway for two vehicles to cross each other without hitting each other. A recent World Bank assisted project (Kerala State Transport Project, KSTP) helped the state to widen its major roads to two-lane carriageways. The NHAI proposal envisages 60-metre wide roads, with service roads on either sides and wide medians that would prevent vehicles from jumping across direction in case of an accident. Kerala played its "special condition" card here as well, and successfully stopped expansion of roads in Kerala. After a lot of debate on the issue, the NHAI finally ceded to the state's demand, and agreed to build highways with 45-metres width (instead of the 60-metre national standard). Although Kerala has very high population density, which makes land acquisitions very difficult, one point to be considered here is the very high vehicular population on Kerala's roads.

Fine - we are getting National Highways that are 75% as wide as NHs in other states. However, like in every other state, NHAI builds them on Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) basis with Private partnership. This means the roads would charge a user-fee proportionate to the distance traveled by the road user. There are two sections in Kerala that meet the NH standards - Mannuthy-Edappally and Edappally-Aroor (both on the erstwhile NH47. The former section is on the current NH544, and the later on the current NH66).

In Kerala, tolls are usually charged on bridges, not for roads. The average malayalee is used to pay a maximum of Rs. 5 (one-way, Rs. 7.50 for both ways) as toll for major bridges. For smaller bridges, its Rs. 2 (one way, Rs. 3 for both ways). Smaller bridges include small culverts, for which the PWD would call a tender and appoint a contractor to collect toll! I wonder if the contractor would make any money at all after considering the salary for the employees collecting toll! Half of the vehicles would zip through without stopping or even slowing down. Now, the new Tollways in Kerala are demanding upto Rs. 55 one way! The average malayalee who is used to paying Rs. 5 gets worried when thinking of having to pay Rs. 55 one way!!!

The result: Hartal! Yes. Malayalees celebrated another harthal for the "privatisation" of roads! They stoned the toll gates, destroyed public property and staged road-blockades. Political parties poured enough fuel into the fire that matters spiraled out of control. The first road to be tolled in Kerala was the Edappally-Aroor section, which charges Rs. 15 one way (Rs. 20 both ways). However, a good portion of this section (Edappally to Kundannoor Jn) sees heavy traffic, and there are three traffic signals in this section. The NHAI has not yet finalised the designs of flyovers at these junctions.

The second road in Kerala to be tolled is the Mannuthy-Edappally section of NH47 (NH544). This section, about 75-or-so kms, saves almost 30-45 minutes of running time for a car driver, in addition to atleast a couple of litres of fuel. Overtakes are now a bliss, and one strains the engine much less now. This road has also led to an increase in the revenues of Kerala Police - they've invested heavily on purchasing speed radars, and they have speed checks on the road almost daily! Since one sees a good road in Kerala very very rarely, drivers tend to put a heavy right foot on the accelerator - forgetting the 70kmph speed limit for LMVs in the state. This road is now making money for every one except the contractor who built it!

The toll-plaza erected on the Mannuthy-Edappally section. The user fee for cars at this toll plaza is Rs. 55

A talk show conducted by a major television channel concluded that toll collection on the highway amounts to breach of one's basic rights. The participants in the show were asking for free highways across the state. One point every participant in the show forgot was the amount of fuel vehicles save while using such highways - overtakes are no more stressful, and one tends to reduce the number of gear shifts. Drives are more stressfree, and one tends to maintain constant pace through out. The government cannot afford to spend crores on these wide highways - and they surely need to be funded on public-private partnerships (PPPs). What is wrong in paying a user fee for the road (its in the range of about 75 paise a kilometre) that is well kept, wide and well-paved? One pays tolls for bridges that are not maintained properly, but are not ready to pay money for a good road.

A bridge constructed inside the city in Kochi charges toll from users - why one earth is a bridge inside the city charging tolls? The effect - hardly anyone uses the bridge out of choice, and everyone ends up choking the old roads. So, what benefit did the bridge do to the city? There is no one to protest against such bad decisions - but public are out en masse to protest against toll collection for a road that saves time and fuel! Yes - Rs. 55 does sound huge - the contractor could have made two plazas and collected money in bits instead of collecting Rs. 55 at one go. But, should we protest against charging user fee on highways that save a lot of time and fuel?

A drive from my home in Kodungallur to Bangalore would make me poorer by about Rs. 350~450 if I go via Coimbatore-Salem-Hosur, due to the user fee charged. However, I'd spend only Rs. 10 in userfee if I took the Kozhikode-S.Bathery-Mysore route - but I'd have to spend upto 4 hours extra on the road - because, the road is predominantly two-laned and ill-maintained. I'd rather spend Rs. 350/450 and reach Bangalore in 8~9 hours, saving a lot of fuel. I repeat, should we protest against charging user fee on highways that save a lot of time and fuel?

End-Note: The user-fee collection on the Mannuthy-Edappally stretch was abandoned in December owing to mounting public protest. The user-fee collection would resume this month - local parties and "anti-toll" groups have already announced protest measures against toll collection. I wish the government brushes aside the protests and goes ahead with toll collection - better roads are desperately needed in Kerala.

The year, 2011 was...

2011-12-31T19:36:00.001+05:30

Yet another year comes to an end... a quick recap of what the year was:

This was yet another crawler year - the 12-months took ages to finish. This year saw quite some heavy busfanning, and very light railfanning. Thankfully, did not have any major illness over the year.

This year had lots and lots of traveling - over 26000kms by my car (driving solo). This included three drives to Bangalore, and one to Coorg! I fulfilled by long desire of setting foot at Dudhsagar falls, and also a ride on the iconic Nilgiri Mountain Railways!

I lost my dearest pet - my little paru is now no more. Poor lil' cat lived only 7 months - miss you always.

Nothing really new happened this year.. each day passed as just another. Quite a lot of journeys, the way I like. The next year hopefully has all the action I love, with lots of fun-filled journeys. Although a crawling year, I really had not much time to blog - a lot of travel experiences are still to be written. Hope to finish all of them next month...

Wishing everyone a very prosperous and fun-filled year ahead!

Happy New Year 2012!!!

With lots of wishes that all your wishes come true in life... but, remember that better things in life happen only with hardwork.

My India! My Pride!

Club Class.. Back-to-Back: Part-2

2011-11-30T21:37:00.000+05:30

Like I had said earlier, a back-to-back trial of the Volvo and the Mercedes Multi-Axle buses was on my agenda for a long time. I had posted my review of the Volvo ride earlier (read here). Here comes the review of the Mercedes Ride:

Part-2: November 20, 2011. Bangalore to Thrissur by KaSRTC Airavat Club Class (Mercedes Benz) [Trip Code: 2120BNGEKM]

The day was tiresome - I had attended a wedding of a friend that afternoon, and later had a get-together of fellow railfans near Majestic. I reached home pretty late - only by around 1900hrs. Since my bus was to leave at 2120, I had to leave home latest by 2015hrs. I did manage that feat - my brother dropped me at Shantinagar Bus Terminus. My bus was already there, and they had also started boarding. I left my baggage in the luggage boot - this time, they gave a baggage tag (The last time I got a Baggage Tag in KaSRTC was three years back!).

This was the same bus that I had traveled about a month back (read here): KA-01-F-9278 of Depot-2 Bangalore. The bus had added some 13K kms since my last journey - this time the odo read some 25000-odd kms. I got into the bus at around 2115 - the conductor was still standing outside, should "Thrissur, Ernakulam..." - I was happy for the fact that they did not want to enter Coimbatore city. The driver got in at 2120, and switched on the engine (and the AC). They played one slap-stick confusion comedy Bollywood movie (its a recent flick). The driver just moved the bus forward, closer to the exit, and we continued to wait for some more time. Finally, the bus got moving at 2126 hrs - a 6 minute delay at origin.

We had pickups at Dairy Circle (2135), Madivala (2145) and Electronic City (2210). It was during this journey that I noticed this fact: KSRTC has appointed inspectors at all these pick-up points. The Conductor has to go to them and get his waybill signed. This did cause some delays, but timekeeping allows passengers to remain relaxed devoid of the fears of the bus going without them. The driver sped up after Electronic city - we were decently fast. The only road block was the toll gate at Attibele - it was crowded. I tried to sleep a bit - but the loud comedies of the movie did not net me sleep.

We pulled into the food plaza near Shoolagiri at 2252 - made a quick run to McDonalds and grabbed a McVeggie, and returned to the bus - only after capturing a few shots. The engine was, unusually, left on during the break. I was back at my seat now. My aisle seat was empty, and I had the liberty to use both the seats. We started off from there at 2316. The movie was still playing. After the movie finished, the conductor came around and closed the rear LCD panel. Curtains were drawn - yes! They had fixed an extra curtain to reduce lights at light.

Now, the bus meant business - I could hear the engine, but the sound was subdued compared to my previous experience. I was ahead by only a row this time - so the seating position would not make much of a difference. Engine sound was still audible - transmission made a lot of noise. The airconditioners were set to very low temperatures now - the ugly window vents was freezing me down. The cold temperature wasn't helping matters much and I found it really hard to sleep. Ride quality, as usual, wasn't great - the bus sways at bad sections.

The adjustable leg rests are the worst I've seen ever - this is not the fault of the bus manufacturer, but the seat manufacturer. The leg rest wouldn't lock at positions that are comfortable for passengers - it would either be too high or too low. I also felt that the leg space for the particular row was poor - my leg was hitting the bottle holder every time and it pained badly. I slept intermittently - I do remember traveling through the bad patches between Avinashi and Neelambur. We pulled in for yet another break at Ettimadai - at 0410. It was hot and humid outside - very different from the cool environs of Bangalore. This time too, the engine was left running.

As we prepared to start, at 0423, the Airavat to Thrissur came in. Our driver meant business as we started off from Ettimadai. Thankfully there was no traffic snarl at Walayar - I slept through the section, and woke up only as we stopped to drop a passenger at Mannuthy. The run from Mannuthy to Thrissur was brisk as usual - I was dropped at Thrissur exactly at 0630 - a 20 minute delay over the promised arrival time. The bus took 9 hours and 4 minutes to finish the journey - the time taken is on the higher side, but the driving was really relaxed and decent.

Comparision: I felt the ride quality in the Volvo was somewhat better than the Mercedes. The leg space in the Volvo was better as well - in fact, I had a co-passenger in the Volvo as well, and I could still sit comfortable. About noise insulation - cannot make a fair comparision. The Volvo had over 2.49lakh kms on the odo, while the Merc had all of 10% mileage of the Volvo - at just 25000 kms. So age would have had an effect - but still, I'd rate Volvo a bit higher than the Mercedes. The window air vents of the Mercedes is the biggest thumbs down for me - I'd not take this bus for this sole reason.

The overall atmosphere in the cabin of the Mercedes is a notch higher than the Volvo - the sleek gear lever, fake wood finish on the instrument panel, the dark MID, etc are some features which attract me. The aisle is very narrow in the Mercedes - walking through with luggage can be a royal pain. The awfully shallow overhead rack is too small to hold anything bigger than a backpack - so passengers had left baggage on the gangway - a safety threat in case of an accident. The brakes are another feature that I like in the Mercedes - One wouldn't slide off their seats during brake application - the retarders are very effective - but the side effect, is the awful noise from the retarders inside the cabin.

Overall: I'd rate both buses equal - but, if there is an option, I'd take the Volvo. Mercedes needs to do a bit of homework to improve noise insulation and also to improve width of the gangway. And, please close those window-aimed air vents too..

Club Class.. Back-to-Back: Part-1

2011-11-21T18:17:00.000+05:30

A back-to-back trial of the Volvo and the Merc Multi-Axles was on my mind for a long time. Although there has been close incidences, I've never been able to do a "back-to-back" trial till date. A personal reason gave me a chance to make a very quick journey to Bangalore (A real quick journey). The tickets were booked only a day prior to the journey - both ways by Airavat Club Class. I took the Volvo B9R from Ernakulam to Bangalore, and the Mercedes Multi-Axle from Bangalore to Thrissur.

Part-1: November 18, 2011. Ernakulam to Bangalore by KaSRTC Airavat Club Class (Volvo) [Trip Code: 2035EKMBNG]

My bus was to leave from Ernakulam KSRTC Bus Station at 2035 - I left my home (about 42 kms away) at around 1835. I missed a bus just as I reached a bus stop - there began my delays. I got into a small bus (can't be sure if I can call it a bus - it had all of 18 seats!) which dropped me at the nearest Town - Kodungallur - by about 1855. I got a bus towards Ernakulam (RAM972 of Parur) by about 1910 - the 15 minutes I spent at the bus stop was agonising. The official running time from Kodungallur to Ernakulam is an hour and 25 minutes - so the bus would be reaching there only by 2035!

The driver was in no mood to speed and he crawled for most of the time - to add to my agony, it was one horribly vibrating Tata! We reached Parur at 1930 - the official running time from Kodungallur to Parur was 25 minutes - we did it in 20 minutes despite the super slow driver! This lightened by mind, and I was now hopeful of making it to the bus station on time (atleast just in time). The bus continued its crawl. It was 2005, when we neared the infamous Edappally Railway Level Cross - Damn! It was closed! I lost all hopes of making it to the bus on time. It took about 10 agonising minutes for the train to go, and the gates to open. The bus crawled at a leisurely pace towards Ernakulam. A small block at Palarivattam made me more tense - there was a worse block at Kaloor.

2030 hrs - a call from an unknown number. The person at the other side of the phone asks me if I had reserved a ticket to Bangalore - I understood it was the conductor. I replied Yes - he asked me if I was coming - I said yes, and I'd be there in another 5 minutes (knowing well that it was impossible to be there in 5 minutes). He mumbles that the bus is already late and asks me to hurry. In the meantime, my bus crawls into the bus stop at Kacheripady (this bus goes to Ernakulam Jetty, via Menaka - information for the people with an idea of Ernakulam). I literally jump off the bus and run towards the rickshaw stand - get into a rickshaw and request him to speed up. He concedes to my request, and he drops me at Ernakulam bus station at 2036. I run to the Airavat Club Class parked at the "Interstate bay".

The bus: KA-01-F-9151 of Depot-4, Bangalore Central Division. The bus was about a year old, and about 2.47lakh kms on the odo.

The conductor mumbles something as he sees me - I was very sorry. He double checked that it was indeed me who was "missing" - he checked my ticket, and confirmed it with an identity proof. I presented an "m-Ticket" - KSRTC sends a copy of the ticket as an SMS to your registered phone number. You just need to show this SMS - no need for a printout! He just saw this SMS, and asked me for my identity proof. I left my bag in the undercarriage and took only my backpack inside the bus.

My seat was #29 - a Left window seat in the 8th row. My co-passenger was already seated. I just made it to the seat, and the bus got moving. The time was 2039 (a delay of 4 minutes). The bus runs via Rajaji Road - Chittoor Road - SA Road to reach Vyttila, where they have a pick up point. The turn from Rajaji Road to Chittoor Road was real tight - and a stupid biker made it tough for the driver as well. We reached Vyttila at 2053 - this is where most passengers joined the bus. We had some 35 passengers on board - not bad for a Friday from Ernakulam! We started from Vyttila at 2057.

A Kannada movie - Hudugaru - was being played. I hadn't seen the beginning of the movie, but one scene was a clear give-away of which movie it was - I had seen the same story in Tamil and Malayalam as well. This movie is a remake of the Tamil hit, Nadodigal, which also made in Malayalam as Ithu Nammude Katha. The three versions were similar, scene by scene - except for some adaptations to suit local tastes.

Coming back to the bus - the driver was driving horribly - he never bothers to change gears, and the bus was being lugged every time. We got held up at Edappally signal - we could get off the junction only in our third attempt - the line was so long! Once on the highway, the driver did a good job - we did not have anymore pick ups, and the bus just kept running. We overtook the Bharathi Multi-Axle Merc at Aluva. In the meantime, I had my dinner - packed from home. The bus stopped for dinner at one "Hotel Jubilee" at a place called "Pongam" just at the border of Ernakulam and Thrissur districts. This hotel is beside a fuel station and has a lot of parking space for buses - a lot of operators have now moved over to this hotel from those umpteen shady motels on the highway.

The dinner break was from 2143 to 2210. The exit from the hotel was a mess - due to construction work of service roads. The bus got back to the highway after a bit of circus. The driver was decently fast - there was one Shama Big Bus trying to overtake us badly - that driver was very rash - he attempted a few very close overtakes - thankfully things did not take an ugly turn. The cat-and-mouse game continued till Thrissur bypass - our bus took the flyover. I am not sure where the Shama went. I vaguely remember seeing Mannuthy bypass - I slept soon after. I remember waking up when the bus ran through the rough patches upto Kuthiran - the ride was matured, and did not throw us around.

I woke up around 0130 - the bus was stationary then. The engine was running, and there was one Multi-Axle Merc (of KSRTC) ahead of us, and the Trivandrum-Bangalore Multi-Axle Volvo of KSRTC standing parallel to us. The bus was crawling once in a while - just when I realised that we were stuck in the infamous traffic snarl at Walayar - on the Kerala-TN Border! I slept off again and woke up around 0230 - we were running through Coimbatore town then. All I remember seeing is "The Residency" at Avinashi Road, Coimbatore. I slept off after this. I woke up exactly at 0600 - when I woke up, I saw there was daylight already.

We stopped for yet another break, at 0635 - at Hotel Surya, at a place called "Kurubarapalli" - somewhere between Krishnagiri and Hosur. Started off from here at 0647. When we pulled in for the break, it was the Conductor at the wheels - not sure when the change happened, since it was the driver at the wheels when we started off from the dinner break. When we started from that "glorifed tea stall", it was the driver again at the wheels. The driver was driving better than the conductor - this conductor guy had a habit of shifting to neutral the moment the bus reaches a down-grade!

There wasn't much traffic on the road - but there were enough trucks to slow down our progress at the ghats. We made a halt at Electronic City to drop a couple of passengers - at 0756 AM. The next stop was at Bommanahalli, where I got off - 0813 AM. The driver did not mumble when I requested him to stop - he patiently pulled the bus to the left, so that the conductor could open the luggage hold. Airavat crew are certainly a class apart (there are rotten eggs here, for sure) - but their service is warm, considering the fact it is a government company.

The bus was in good shape - it did have bruises from the battles it battled on the Bangalore-Pune route (the bus has a regular permit on the Pune route, and perhaps also has a spare permit for the Ernakulam route). Even with 2.47lakh kms on the odo, there were no rattles from the bus - no "out-of-note" sounds from the suspensions or the tranmission. The leg-room was really great - I had a long sleep in the bus for the first time! The seats were a bit worn out - may be due to its colour combination. A "super-civilised" not-so-gentle-man had stuck chewing gum on the window glass - wonder when our people will have basic sense of cleanliness. I certainly loved the ride in the Volvo - much more than the ride I had on the return.

Part-2 coming soon...

TN finally bites the pill

2011-11-17T21:37:00.000+05:30

Its inflation every where - the value of every commodity - except currency - has appreciated in the recent times. Petro Cos announce price hike as if they were calling in at an auction - One increases the cost by Rs 2 today, the next Co responds next month with a Rs. 2.50 hike and so on. I still have a copy of a bill for refueling diesel at Rs. 9 a litre (that was back in 1996/7 period)! With the cost of fuel increasing almost on a daily basis, every transport corporation in the country revised their ticket rates. The State Government of Tamil Nadu were hesitant to increase fuel prices since a very long time - a hike in prices would hit their vote banks badly - who cares of the health the Transport Cos. For every loss they make, it is the Common man who has to fund by the way to increased taxes.

Fares of buses in TN was hiked last in 2001 - the price of diesel has doubled since. TN buses charged 28 paise a Km (For Ordinary/City/Town buses) and 32 Paise a km (Mofussil buses). Now, the new government of TN has finally decided to bite the hard pill, and open their eyes to reality - keeping the fares artifically low has cost a lot on the Transport Corporations. Transport Companies in the TN were among the best in efficiency, maintenance, punctuality, reach and what not - they've slipped down on many counts now. Corporations (in TN, there are 8 transport corporations - the Chennai City operator MTC, the pan-state long distance operator TN-SETC and finally 6 TNSTCs controlling short distance services and town services) were adopting backdoor methods to collect higher fares - they introduced "branded" services which charged upto twice the rates of regular buses (I had blogged about this earlier - read here).

Finally after almost 10 years of downward roll, the state government of TN has finally decided to hike rates - a good hike as well. They've almost doubled rates (not exactly though) for their services. The ordinary buses would now cost you 42 paise a km (up from 28ps), while the mofussil buses would cost 56 paise a km (up from 32 ps). Now, I'd call these fares realistic - they reflect today's operating costs. This hike might perhaps give the most required Vitamin-M for the corporations in TN.

These tickets would now be history - the minimum fare in TN is being hiked to Rs. 3. The above ticket cost only Rs. 2!!!

A short comparision of fares with other transport corporations in South India (and Maharashtra too) would give an idea of how the fares are in other places. The fares are as below: (all fares are Paise per Km)

Tamil Nadu: Ordinary 42 ps, Express 56ps, Super Deluxe 60ps, Ultra Deluxe 70ps.
Kerala: Ordinary 55ps, Fast Passenger 57ps, Super Fast 60ps, Super Express 65ps, Super Deluxe 75ps, AC 90ps, Volvo 110ps
Karnataka: Ordinary 69ps, Express 75ps, Semi-Deluxe 80ps, Super Deluxe 107ps, Hitech 117ps.
Andhra Pradesh: Ordinary 50ps, Express 62ps, Deluxe 70ps, Super Luxury 82ps, Volvo 140ps
Pondicherry: Express 27ps, Deluxe 75ps, AC 150ps
Maharashtra: Ordinary 80ps, Night Services 93ps, Semi-Luxury 107ps, Sheetal 142ps, Shivneri (Volvo) 198ps

I'd discount the fares in Pondicherry since all the territories of Pondicherry are very small - the fares charged in Pondy would not make much of a difference for inter-state vehicles. The lowest ordinary fares are still in TN (42 Paise), while Andhra follows them at 50ps. The highest is in Maharashtra at 80ps. Ordinary fares are an indicator of the state's transport business - since its ordinary buses that are used the most by daily commuters.

The Karnataka government gives a more free hand for their operators when it comes to fixing prices for premium services - the fares for Volvo/Mercedes buses can be decided by the operator without the consent of the government - this gives the operator more flexibility in operating services. They can charge high when the demand is high and charge low when the demand is low and thereby attract more passengers.

Keeping ordinary fares low is a great idea - since it benefits daily passengers a lot. In Kerala, even Ordinary fares are not spared - mainly because a good share of the public transportation scene is handled by private operators, who operate mainly on Ordinary permits. In the two states where ordinary fares have been kept low (TN and AP), the transportation scene is ruled mainly by Government operations. With this hike in fares in TN, operators of other states would be less scared to operate to TN. In the earlier scenario, other state operators had to operate to/through TN charging very low fares. Take the following example:

The Ernakulam-Bangalore route - there are three different routes between these two cities. The first route goes via Coimbatore-Hosur, the Second via Thrissur-Nilambur-Gudalur-Mysore and the Third via Kozhikode-Bathery-Mysore. In the first and second routes, the buses would have to travel through TN. Let us take an example of an imaginary Super Express of Kerala SRTC running between the two cities, in all the three routes.

In Route 1: Via Coimbatore - the bus would travel 171 kms in Kerala, 358 kms in TN and 35 kms in Karnataka. (Total Kms: 564) The bus would be able to charge an end-to-end fare of Rs. 277 (Kerala rounds off its fares to the next multiple of 5, so the fare would be Rs. 280). Breakup of the fare would be Rs. 111.15 for the 171kms in Kerala (@65 ps/km), 136.04 for the 358kms in TN (@38ps/km - SD Fares) and 29.87 for the 35 kms in Karnataka (@85 ps/km - Semi-Deluxe fares).

Route 2: Via Gudalur-Mysore - the bus would travel 229.9 kms in Kerala, 38 kms in TN and 238 kms in Karnataka (Total Kms: 505.9). The end-to-end fare would be Rs. 367 (rounded off to Rs. 370). The breakup would be Rs. 149.4 for 229.9 kms in Kerala, Rs. 14.44 for 38 kms in TN and Rs. 366.17 for 238 kms in Karnataka.

Route 3: Via Kozhikode-Mysore - the bus travels 329 kms in Kerala and 236.2 kms in Karnataka. Total kms: 565.2. The end-to-end fare would work out to 414.6 (Rounded off to 415). The bus makes Rs. 213.8 for the 329kms in Kerala and 200.77 for the 236.2 kms distance in Karnataka!

To summarise things - the bus earns Rs 280 for running 564 kms in Route 1, Rs. 370 to travel 505.9 kms through Route 2 and Rs. 415 for running 565.2 kms via Route 3!! So by avoiding running via TN, the bus manages to earn an extra Rs. 135!! This simple calculation explains why corporations like KeSRTC or KaSRTC were hesitant to operate "low end" services to TN, due to the unrealistically low fares. This increase in fares would also increase the availability of "low end" services to passengers on interstate routes. Hope the TN government continue with its realistic attitude, and not blindly follow vote-bank politics, which finally ruin the health of state run companies.

My first tryst with a Metro..

2011-10-31T20:38:00.001+05:30

I saw the first ever Metro train in my life while passing through Delhi on my way to Chandigarh, back in June 2009. The silver, sleek train rushed through a bridge above my train - I looked at it in awe, but time constraints did not let me have a closer look. Two years down the lane, the Metro descends on my favorite city in the South - Bengaluru. Although the Metro missed a lot of deadlines, it came with all the fun.

Coincidentally, I was in Bangalore during the time the Metro was inaugurated. Some personal commitments did not let me get on the metro for the first week of its operations. I had planned a ride on the Metro on Diwali day - but that too had to be postponed. Finally, I was going on the day immediately after Diwali - October 27, 2011 to be precise. I took a bus from my place to KR Puram via Ring Road. I waited there in the hope of getting a Metro Feeder bus - I wasn't aware that this route wasn't covered by feeder buses. But there were umpteen buses going there - seeing all of them crowded, I got into an Autorickshaw - making by wallet light by Rs. 50.

The Metro station at Baiyyappanahalli resembled a shopping mall, and it had the kind of crowds that Malls see on weekends! There was a police bus standing outside, and half a dozen cops were sitting near the entrance and chatting off. On entering the station, I went through a Metal detector - they did not check my bag though. Then comes an escalator - I did not see any steps for going up - having them would be a good idea for people scared of escalators. The Escalator was dead slow, and I felt like walking up - resisted the idea though. After the escalator was a long "skywalk" that gives a view of the carshed, and the yard. There were no security guys or cops anywhere in this stretch - people were talking photos of themselves posing on the skywalk.

The ticket counters are located on the first floor - its a huge balcony kind of thing. The counters had a very huge queue - four counters were open, and each one of them had humungous queues. One of the counters was issuing only tokens to MG Road. After 15 minutes in the queue, I reached the ticket counters - purchased a Varshik Smartcard and charged it for the minimum amount (the card costs Rs. 50, and the minimum recharge is Rs. 50). After getting the card, I walked 'into' the station building. One has to take an escalator to get to the platforms, which are at ground level.

The station has two platforms (sorry - no images. The queue was humungous for me to take any decent images). Arrivals were on Platform 1, and departure from Platform 2 - the incoming train goes towards the yard, reverses and enters the other platform for its return departure. A while after reaching the platform, the train from MG Road came in. The Security guys on the platform had a very tough time to keep people behind the yellow line - the whistles were getting me crazy. Passengers were absolutely non-cooperative - no body was ready to listen to the security guys. When the train came into to our platform, what ensued was reminiscent of Mumbai's Locals - people were pushing each other, with loud howls. The train came in and stopped - the doors weren't opened. Later the train crawled a bit forward for it to align with the door markings, and later the doors opened. All this time, people were pushing ahead all the time.

I got into the coach - the middle one of the three car rake. People were jostling to get a seat - passengers were mainly families who were out to have a taste of the metro. There were lots of guys working in companies around BYPL - the likes of HP. The train got moving by 1300hrs - there was no jerk when the train started. It started gently - slowly crawling ahead, and then picking speed. The train made sounds similar to the DC EMUs of Mumbai - the sound was nostalgic, very nostalgic. The AC was hardly able to cool the coaches - the crowd was too much for it handle.

There were announcements before the train arrived a station - they announcements were in Kannada, English and Hindi (in the same order). The English announcements were horrible though - there were plenty of grammatical errors - an Example: "Train will arriving MG Road station" - this announcement plays when the train would just be entering the platform. The announcements also included details like which side the platform would arrive, and also reminded people of the gap between the coach and the platform (the gap was too less for people to fall, though). The train reached MG road around 1312 - thats a 12 minute ride for 7 kilometres. A road journey on the same route would take atleast 45 minutes!!

Now the next drama - the train empties and goes out to reverse. The security guys still want people on empty platforms to stand away from the Yellow Line - a couple of guys talked rough to the security guys for going overboard - I took a couple of images and headed out. But wait - the exits were all chocked! I took the exit that seemed less crowded to me. Getting to the exit gates itself was a task in itself. More than the number of passengers, the gates were often getting stuck, and people were trying to get past the gates without dropping their tokens - the security guys had a tough job here.

I decided not to be a cultured citizen - and cut across lines and reached the gate quickly. Since I had a Varshik Card, I just swiped it and walked out. The scene outside was interesting - the entry gates were closed - I presume it was due to some problem at the ticketing counters. Interestingly, at Baiyyappanahalli, a counter was closed since the tokens got over! Perhaps the same happened at MG Road as well. There was a HUGE queue to get into the station - the queue was stretching till the point I could see far in the horizon.

I got into a Metro Feeder bus that was waiting outside - thankfully BMTC does not keep a board as to where the bus goes, other than a useless board which says the route number was "MG-MF-4", with the origin/destination reading as "MG Road Metro Station". They did not bother listing out the route the bus would take - forget writing in English, they did not write it even in Kannada! The rude behaved controller there did not bother replying to passengers either. The conductor was shouting out "Majestic, Majestic" - I got into it, there were no seats though. I changed buses at Shivaji Nagar and proceeded to Majestic later.

The Metro service was too good - the coaches were well finished. The crowd would surely come down - to less than 50% of what it is at present. Being a short corridor, that does not serve any of BMTC's Milk Routes (ITPL/E-City/ORR/Bannerghatta Road), the Metro shouldn't be looking at high riderships until its next reaches open. But surely the Metro has a bright future in a city which sees traffic blocks as its favorite time pass :P

Club Class'd.. finally!

2011-10-29T15:32:00.000+05:30

Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) is a pioneer in introducing newer age technologies among the Government run Transport Corporations. KSRTC was the first to bring out Volvo buses, way back in 2002. From then, KSRTC built up a strong fleet of those white swedish beauties, naming them after the Mythical character, Airavat. KSRTC increased their presence on many routes, and became the preferred premium operator on every route they ran on. About 8 years after they created history, they repeated history again with the introduction of Multi-Axle buses - the first for any state transport undertaking.

The Multi-Axle buses of KSRTC are called "Airavat Club Class" - the buses are a notch above their regular Airavat services. The buses come with 49 seats - 44 of them with calf-support, and the rest are regular limited-recline seats. Airavat Club Class was initially Volvo B9Rs. The Multi-Axles were flagged off on 27th November 2010. These buses have replaced regular Airavats on many routes and are an instant hit with passengers. On the trail of success, KSRTC introduced Multi-Axle Mercedes Benz buses this year - on 29th September 2011. Unlike the two-axle Mercedes Benz buses, the Multi-Axle buses get the same name and livery as the Volvos.

Almost a year after the "Club Class" came into being, I managed a chance to travel in an Airavat Club Class bus this month. I traveled in a KSRTC Airavat Club Class Mercedes Benz bus on October 27, 2011 from Bangalore to Thrissur. This was also my second ride in a Mercedes Benz Multi-Axle bus. To begin with, I was never a fan of the boxy looks of the Merc buses sold in India - I love the curvy design of the Volvo. I was at the Shanti Nagar bus station around 2040 for a 2120 departure. Roamed around the bus station for some time, clicking a couple of buses. The conductor came in around 2105 and started boarding.

I left my baggage in the undercarriage and they stood outside for some time. Although I didn't have much baggage, I preferred leaving them in the luggage hold since the overhead racks in Merc buses are too small for even medium sized bags. The racks are best for backpacks or small bags - nothing more than that. I roamed around the bus until about 2110 - later headed too my seat: #36. It was a Left-Window seat on the 9th row - my glass was partially obscured by the sticker on the glass. The Airavat Club Class buses have a huge sticker of a baby sleeping on a pram, along with a couple of toys lying around. This sticker obscures the glass of the window right above the rear axles.

The AC was not yet switched on, and it was getting somewhat hot inside. The conductor came in to check tickets and also switched on the entertainment system - a bollywood movie was played. I love this attitude of playing a neutral movie. The bus was switched on around 2115, and the AC too was started. The bus was very noisy - the growl of the engine was heard clearly inside the bus. I discounted the noise since the door was open. The clock in the bus was about 4 minutes ahead of my watch - the driver got in sharp at 2120, but we didn't start. Around 2124, the driver slots the bus to the first gear and prepares to move - but the bus doesn't budge. Smelling something wrong, the driver gets off and rushes to the back. He opens the engine door, plays around something and closes the engine door. The engine shuts down on itself!

The driver comes back, switches off all lights and the TV - turns the ignition switch - but no response from the engine! After a couple of tries more, the driver gets off the bus. Other Volvo drivers too join in - the trace the problem to a "loose AC Alternator". They call up the depot and get hold of a mechanic. The driver informs the mechanic of the problem and ask him to rush immediately. Around 2140, the mechanic turns up. Around 2155, the bus was fit to depart. They switched off the engine and restarted it a couple of times, started the AC, and so on to test if things were all right. Finally at 2158, the conductor signals the driver to start. The bus finally crawls out of Shantinagar bus station, takes a right and heads towards Lalbagh. From there the bus turned left and headed straight towards Dairy Circle.

We had about 37 passengers on board as we started from Shantinagar. We picked up another 3 passengers from Dairy Circle and one more from Madivala - we finally had 41 passengers on board in the 49 seater bus. The seats were of Harita make - the Fabric had red and beige colours. The fabric was soft, and the upholstery was well done. The seats also had calf support. We took the route below the elevated highway - thankfully traffic was really light since the time was already past 2215. Since the windows were partially obscured, I had nothing much to see outside, and kept the curtains closed. I watched the movie for some time, and later fell asleep. We pulled into the food plaza at Shoolagiri, at 2303. While the crew and majority of the passengers headed to the hotel Krishna Inn, I headed straight to McDonalds. Grabbed a cold Coke and a McVeggie and returned back to the bus.

We started off from there at 2322. The movie was stopped, and the screens were folded up. Sadly, there is no curtain between the driver cabin and the passenger cabin, other than the two small drop down screen - light from the oncoming vehicles were a disturbance. My co-passenger moved to an empty row behind, leaving me the two seats for my self. The cold air coming out of the open vents between the rack and the windows were annoying - there was no way I could close them. (May be I'll have to carry packing tapes for my next journey). You can see those vents in the image above. Thankfully, the AC was left at 23~24, and the blower speed was low. I slept soon after we started off from the break - I vaguely remember crossing the first toll gate.

The engine noise was penetrating heavily into the cabin - even the retarders could be heard loud and clear. The engine grunt was annoying at times - and it felt as if the bus was crawling. I woke sometime around 0300, when the bus hit a blunt pothole - that was perhaps at the point where a new surface met the old one. While the engine noise deceived me into thinking that the bus was very slow, but in reality we were almost close to Coimbatore already! That was just 5 hours! I slept soon after we entered Coimbatore bypass. Woke up again when the bus ran through a rough patch and stopped somewhere on the road side - just as I opened my eyes, the lights in the coach came up. The conductor shouted "5 nimisha idhe.." (We have 5 minutes) - that was another break! The time was 0356.

I got off the bus - we were at Ettimadai. Right outside Amrita University campus - on the highway. There was a small teastall. A lot of buses were crawling in from Kerala - and almost all of them stopped at Ettimadai, for passengers getting off. While we were just preparing to leave, another KSRTC bus - an Airavat heading to Thrissur, came in. We started off at 0408. I vaguely remember running through Walayar. We made a brief halt at Palakkad to drop off a passenger (0440). The road was in poor shape, and the suspension did not help much - the bus was swaying side to side and each pothole was felt inside - despite all these, I managed to sleep again. I woke up just when the bus stopped somewhere - I thought that to be Mannuthy, but we were already at Thrissur - somewhere near the Round. I hastily packed up my luggage - just while the conductor switched on the light and shouted "Thrissur"... the bus passed Sakthan Stand and headed straight to the KSRTC bus station.

I headed to the front to see how the bus manages the road - the long creature had no troubles getting in to the bus station. So finally a multi-axle calls on at Thrissur bus station!! I was dropped inside the bus station at 0558 - exactly 8 hours after we started from Bangalore! I was terribly impressed with the speed of the bus - the ride quality wasn't great. The engine noise added to the misery. Merc buses have a very narrow aisle - its almost impossible to walk through with baggage, especially if the seats are full. The awfully placed air vents facing the windows are a pain for passengers - it'll freeze passengers.

A few tips: If you need to travel in a Mercedes Multi-Axle: Make sure you get a seat towards the middle of the bus - those awful air vents pointed at the windows aren't present here. If its a Club class, the rear rows have a completely obscured window - so a seat around the middle of the bus would give a clear window as well. I'll try out the Mercedes once again to see how the sound levels are, when sitting at the seats towards the front.The aisle is an absolute pain to walk through - so sitting towards the front would save you the trouble of having to walk through the aisle.

My ratings: 9 on 10 for the service and 6 on 10 for the bus.

My first on KPN

2011-10-28T18:28:00.000+05:30

KPN - K.P.Natarajan - Travels is an infamous travel operator based in Salem, Tamil Nadu, India. The operator is credited with perhaps the highest reach to places in TN from Bangalore - but has earned a misreputation of being an unreliable operator in the past few years. KPN is a very old operator, existing since the mid 1900s. The operator started expanding sometime in the mid 1990s, and is now a formidable operator on many routes. They also have to their credit a good transparent online ticket booking system. They are also the biggest Multi-Axle Volvo operator between Bangalore and Tamil Nadu.

I had been planning a trip on KPN since a very long time - It had even reached the point of booking a ticket. But that ticket was cancelled later due to some other issues - this time, I was determined to make it. Accordingly, I booked a ticket on KPN's Multi-Axle Volvo departing from Coimbatore on October 16, 2011 at 1300, to Bangalore. I reached Coimbatore by a KSRTC bus from my place, and did a bit of bus spotting at Coimbatore. After a sumptuous meal at Sri Annapoorna, I headed to the Omni Bus Stand, from where I was to board the KPN bus. The KPN office had basic facilities for passengers waiting for the bus.

The bus - KA-25-D-1 - came in sharp at 1255. Only two of us got in here and the bus left at 1257 itself. The bus headed straight to their Dr. Nanjappa Road office (near the Central Bus Station). We started off from here at 1330. The next stop was less than a kilometre away, at "Sow-Maa" complex. We returned to the Omni bus station at 1342. The cleaner got here in - we had two drivers, and two cleaners now. A guy from the KPN office got in and made a final head count before letting the bus leave. We started off at 1350. The bus ran straight through Ganapathy, on to Sathy road. We took this route upto Annur, from where the bus took the State highway to Avinashi. We had a pickup at Avinashi.

The bus was well kept - it was a two year old bus, with over 5 lakh kilometres on the Odometer. The bus did make squeaks when going through rough patches, and the transmission noise was loud when the engine was being lugged. The seats were in good shape - the cloth covers on the head rest were clean. Curtains were in good shape. The interior lighting was redone - the camouflaged lamps were replaced with open lamps - the ones we see in Volvo City buses.

In the meantime, the bus continued its good run towards Bangalore. We maintained speeds in the range of 100~110kmph (on my GPS) on the four laned road. We went into Chitode town to pick up a few passengers, leaving from there at 1542. We went inside Bhavani as well to pick up passengers - leaving from there at 1552. From Bhavani, the bus took the route through Mettur Dam, to reach Dharmapuri. The Bhavani-Mettur-Thoppur section is two laned, with potholes in many sections. However, the driver maintained very good pace through the run. We stopped at Mettur for the last pick up - the bus took a "leak" break as well here. The break was about 8 minute long, departing at 1645. The pickup at Hosur was the last - the bus had 100% occupancy now. KPN Multi-Axle buses are configured with 44 semi-sleeper seats. The last row seats are replaced with a berth for the spare driver to sleep.

The driver let the beast rip after Mettur. Their experience of driving on the route daily showed up - they made the correct maneuvers, avoided big potholes, all while maintaining decent pace. The bus finally pulled into A2B Restaurant near Dharmapuri Toll. The break was from 1748 to 1813 - every passenger made use of the break to stretch their legs, and also for some pet pooja. The drivers stretched after the break - the ghats were messy like always. One slow moving truck decides to over take the one ahead of him - in the process jamming the entire carriageway. Cars resort to off-roading, while long vehicles like the Multi-Axle bus are forced to crawl behind. I was finally dropped at Silk Board, at 2030 - 6 hours and 40 minutes after the bus started from Coimbatore. The running time is decent considering the traffic in the section.

Side notes: The cleaner did not bother pulling down the rear LCD panel - so passengers in the rear seats were forced to strain their necks to see the movie on the front LCD. They played one horror movie - I feel such movies should be avoided in buses, since the audience would not always love such movies. The horror movie had to be stopped at between after the disc stopped automatically. Later, they played a couple of classic Kamal Hassan flicks. The service was "no-nonsense" - the crew were not ill-behaved. The berth at the rear of the bus let the spare driver stretch well - which keeps them fresh for their duty. They adhered to timings as claimed by their website - and the bus also seemed to have regular passengers.

KPN has a very transparent booking system - they do not jack up fares during peak seasons as well. They have the biggest reach with Multi-Axle buses in TN. They do waste time at various points - for loading luggage, or waiting for the odd passenger to turn up. The bus was fast enough - and I'd surely give KPN the benefit of doubt. I'd surely dare try them again.

Do Not overtake from the left...

2011-10-14T17:57:00.000+05:30

This is one rule that is seen on highways often - a rule that needs to be followed meticulously. In many places, traffic police seem to enforce this rule with enthusiasm. Recently, the Kochi City Police came with an idea of "Model Road". They declared the Edappally-Vyttila-Aroor section as a "Model Road" - where all motorists were required to follow all highway rules. The rules imposed were - maximum speed of 70kmph for light vehicles, strict lane discipline and no overtakes through the left.

The cops were enthusiastically pulling up violators - overspeeding was caught using speed radars, and traffic wardens were posting at many places on the road. So far so good. However, the police said "No Overtakes from the left" - but they never tried understanding why motorists were overtaking through the left. The Government of Kerala even launched a video campaign as part of their "Road Safety Campaign" - the videos included those intended to induce alertness about use of mobile phones while driving, using zebra mark for crossing the road, lane discipline and so on.

In one video which was intended to convey the message "no overtakes through the left" - the message was conveyed by showing a trucker driving slowly (crawling would be the correct word here) on the fast lane (the right lane on a 4 lane road) and a car driver honking continuously from behind. The car driver finally overtakes through the left. The message comes up "even on four lane roads, one should overtake through the right". All is well - BUT - why on earth isn't the video focusing on the trucker who does not change lanes to allow the vehicle behind to overtake him??

In the two years of driving in Kerala, I find that overtaking through the left is inevitable while driving through the few kilometres of four-laned roads in Kerala! The reason: the head-weighted average Malayalee would not let any one overtake them! Try this on a road: the moment you start overtaking a slow moving car, he'll start pulling to the right - the reason: you have not finished the tenure of tortoise race punishment. You try overtaking through the left, he'll pull left. So on four lane roads, the tactic would be - try overtaking on the right, he'll pull right. Use that moment to overtake him from the left!

While I don't support overtaking through the left, it is inevitable in our ill-mannered state. The lack of road sense is shocking. Our RTOs insist on drawing "8"s and "H"s for getting a licence. The simple solution - driving schools teach wannabe drivers only to drive "8" or "H". These drivers after confidently winning their license, get on to the road to try out "8" or "H" on the road - in the process pulling out all the senses out of other drivers.

Here is one incident - I was driving back home today, on the typical one-and-a-half laned "Non" Highway in Kerala (once called the NH-17, now NH-66). There one one old white coloured yellow-board Ambassador crawling at 30kmph. This bugger would start pulling to the right the moment I try to overtake him - I really do not understand what did he achieve by that. After testing my patience for a good 10 minutes, I managed to overtake him at one tricky point. The next time you crawl on the road, remember that you are putting the life of the guy following you into risk - because he'd make dangerous attempts to overtake you. What do you achieve by not letting him overtake? You have anyways decided to go slow - why force others too to go slow?

Pandemonium square...

2011-09-22T19:17:00.000+05:30

After three years of planning, booking and cancelling, I was finally at it – heading to Dudhsagar falls, near the Karnataka-Goa Border. I was accompanying Jayasankar on the trip. We were taking the Bangalore-Dharwad Siddaganga Express from Bangalore to Hubli, and then the Hubli-Vasco Link Express to Dudhsagar. Jay had arrived that morning at Bangalore, by the Chennai-Mysore Shatabdi Express. I was running late, and had to make a dash to the station. In the meantime, Jay got lunch for both of us. I just got into the station when Jay called up and said our train was on Platform 9 already, and I need to rush. The time was around 12:15 – and the scheduled departure of our train was 13:00.

I walked through Platform 1, and then walked through the trolley path. Just as I reached Platform 7, the DEMU towards Bangarpet (Marikuppam?) started off. The train literally crawled out – it took too long to clear out. Once it cleared out, I headed towards Platform 8. I was heading to Platform 9 – all of a sudden, I heard someone calling out my name – I turned out, and it was Jayasankar! He had settled down on Platform 8 – I just realised that there was some confusion.

The announcements on the PA system were hard to decipher – poor quality of announcement added to our woes. There was a talk of our train departing from Platform 9, but a rake with the markings “Bangalore – Shimoga – Mysore” (all written in Kannada) was stabled. I thought it was the Bangalore-Shimoga Intercity. The LCD panel kept near the platform kept displaying arrival-departure information, but there was no talk of this train to Shimoga – this confused me even more. Since the time of departure was approaching, and there was no sign of that rake departing, we decided to head to Platform 9.

We walked to Platform 9, and asked the pointsman standing there – guess what? The rake was indeed that of Siddaganga Express! The rake comes in from Shimoga, and goes out to Dharwad as Siddaganga! The lazy C&W staff at SBC changed the boards only on the platform side (the new boards read “Dharwad – Bangalore – Mysore”), and let the boards on the other side remain as “Bangalore – Shimoga – Mysore”!!! I was shocked, enraged and terribly disappointed! What if we hadn’t checked with the pointsman? We’d have merrily waited there for our train, while seeing it going out!!

We headed to the sole AC Chair Car coach in the formation of some 20-odd coaches – the coach was old, and poorly kept. The toilets were stinking, and the stink was penetrating to the passenger cabin as well. We had the “two-seater” on the first row – Seats #3 and #4. We just settled down – soon after, Jay headed out to check the loco. The Loco for our run was WDP4B #40046 of Hubli DLS. The train started off dot at 13:00. Just as we started moving out, the Chennai-Bangalore Brindavan Express sneaked into Platform 1 with a WAP7 in charge. There were no noteworthy incidences during the run – it was more or less dry. The Loco made a unique sound – the horn too sounded very different.

We reached Hubli perfectly on time at 2110. The train more or less emptied out here – it was cold at the station. We headed to Platform 2 to have some food. We had our dinner from a stall on the platform – replenished our water stock and got some biscuits and other stuff for the busy day ahead. The platform was crowded to the core – The Sampark Kranti to YPR and the Rani Chennamma to SBC would be arriving in an hour or so. The Sampark Kranti was the first to come in – it was a WDP4 (Or 4B?) of Krishnarajapuram in charge. In the mean time, we decided to head to Platform 4 (or is that 5?, the island platform near the coaching workshop). This platform too was crowded – on the other platform was the rake of Tirupati-Hubli Passenger with a live GTL WDM2 coupled to it.

The PA system came alive and blurted out: 11048 Hubli-Miraj Express would depart from Platform 4 (or 5?). Soon after the announcement was made, WDG3A #13052 of Pune came in with the rake of Hubli-Miraj express. This train has just one Sleeper coach, and about 11-12 General Coaches. The board resembled that of, what Jay calls a “Global Village Passenger” – the board had names of most places in the region! The WDG3A went with the rake almost until the starter at SBC end. We sat near the SLR of the Miraj Express – there were lots of passengers accompanying us. We had seen most of those faces in Siddaganga express as well!!

Confusion prevailed – there was no sight of our Link Coaches – one each of SLR, 3A and Sleeper. Sometime later, the WDG3A ran through the other line with the link coaches in tow. The loco went out, and came back to our platform. In the mean time, the Rani Chennamma to Bangalore came in. Our Coach was 2004-made. The AC was still to kick in – we both had lower berths. I directly hit the berth – so did our co-passengers. The TTE came in for checking soon after the train started from Hubli. The attendant also distributed the bed rolls – surprisingly they were well packed! The bedspreads were fresh. I don’t remember much – I fell asleep soon after the train started rolling.

I vaguely remember seeing the train stationary at Londa – but fell asleep again. I woke up only after we stopped at Castle Rock. I headed to the front to check our loco – it was WDG3A #14551 of Gooty in charge. Jay had witnessed the entire shunting operations at Londa – lucky him! I slept all the time :sad: I took a couple of images at Castle Rock, and then returned to our coach... The halt at Castle Rock was very long – the halt was almost an hour long. We got off at Dudhsagar –the rest is already posted!

We went through two Pandemonium squares on the day – Bangalore and Hubli. Lack of proper announcements was the villain at both the places. The improper boards too added to our misery at Bangalore.

Side Note: The dosas served by the vendors at Tumkur was awesome! So were the vadas at Arsikere!

On Kallada G4, after 4 years!

2011-09-10T18:36:00.000+05:30

Kallada G4 - a smaller company, part of Kallada Group run by four brothers - recently introduced a new Volvo B9R service between Bangalore and Changanassery via Ernakulam and Alappuzha. Kallada G4 is a smaller operator compared to the brother concern Suresh Kallada. G4 operates all of 3 services - one each to Changanassery (B9R), Guruvayur (Semi-Sleeper Non-AC) and Kottayam (Sleeper Non-AC).

Since the bus was new, booking on this service was a no-brainer - they did not have online reservation at that time, and I had to make a visit to their agent - Friends Travels at Madivala for the booking. The booking process was quick. The fare was Rs. 900 (compared to Rs. 950 on Suresh Kallada). The bus was almost empty at the time of booking. Interestingly, the bus that would carry me back was parked right outside the office at that time - had a quick look at the bus.

Fast Forward to September 01, 2011. I was at Madivala by around 2045, for a 2130 departure. My last journey on a Kallada G4 bus was in May 2007 (read it here). Back then the service was awful - they were operating the bus as Pathanamthitta-Bangalore via Alappuzha, Ernakulam - it was a Mark II Volvo B7R (The bus on the day of my journey was KA03AC2000, now with Sangita Travels). They recently sold their old B7Rs and replaced them with two brand new B9Rs. I somehow dared to try them this time - but the experience was too good.

Being at Madivala during the late evening peak hour, there were lots of buses heading to different places. After a couple of rounds of photography, I decided to get on board my bus. The bus was parked right in the middle of a slushy ground - they had laid cartons to create a kind of bridge for people to board the bus without dirtying their feet or the bus! I got into the bus, and left my baggage - the AC was yet to be switched on. I decided to stay outside till the driver gets in. The driver got in at around 2125 - about 5 minutes to go for departure. The engine was switched on, and the AC was running at full force. I got in and occupied my seat - we had around 14 passengers on board.

A guy from the travel agency confirmed if all were on board and signalled the driver to start - but they were still loading parcels. The driver was getting upset at the delay - we finally started off at 2134. He was very cautious - and did not exceed 80kmph anywhere till we got into TN. We had a pick up near Chandapura. The driver meant business soon after we crossed Attibele - he picked pace swiftly. We stopped at Shoolagiri for refueling - the bus took in a good 460lts of diesel. The driver said that they pick up fuel only in one direction, which helps in maintaining schedule. We left after refueling at 2249. The movie was awful, and I slept most of the time.

The bus stopped for tea near Salem - a very short one. About two minutes into the break, a traffic cop came and asked the driver to start off. Just as we started, I noticed that the Shama Big Bus (Bangalore-Ernakulam) which left about 30 minutes after us was also there. Shama too started off right behind us - both buses gave company to each other all the way. I slept soon after we crossed Salem - was woken up only when the bus stopped at KG Chavadi Check post, on the TN-Kerala border. The cleaner went to the check post and got the papers checked. We moved a bit forward and stopped on the road side.

The bus backed into a small cut road, and kept waiting for someone. In the meantime, the Shama Big Bus came from the Kerala side! It was the same bus that gave us company from Bangalore to Salem! It turned out that there was a heavy traffic block at Walayar - the Shama bus turned back, and came to Chavadi. Both the buses - mine and the Big Bus - took the Velanthavalam route from here on - the road was narrow and not in great shape. Both buses ran one behind the other. A while into the run, the Shama guy asked us to go ahead (he called up our driver), since he was not very sure of the route, while our driver knew the route better.

We ran through Kozhinjampara, and reached a bridge - the bridge was closed. They had built a wall across - but the wall was broken in the middle - wide enough to let buses through. It was tight though - the cleaner of our bus got off to guide the driver through the gap. The bus still hit a stone and we got a small scratch. At the other end of the bridge, the cleaner had to move some stones to make way. As we exit the bridge, I saw there was two multi-axles behind us! Not just the Shama! The other bus looked like a Merc-Multi to be, especially due to the positioning of the lamps. We stopped near Palakkad bypass - the driver wanted to see how big was the scratch. The Shama driver too joined us in the inspection.

The Third bus was indeed a Merc-Multi: Was the Bharathi Multi running to Changanassery. We over took the Shama and the Bharathi soon after Palakkad bypass and we got rushing towards Thrissur. I slept off again - I woke up only when the bus stopped at Mannuthy bypass - even the worst of roads did not wake me up! A passenger got off at Mannuthy - and we headed towards the town. The cabin lights were switched on - too bad, since other passengers too were woken up. The cleaner came about to wake up those who were alighting at Thrissur. I asked him if the bus would be going towards the bus station - no came the reply. So I had to get off at Thrissur Round - I was dropped there at 0558. The Shama Big Bus came right behind. It was a tough task getting a rick from there at that time - but I did manage one - the rest of the journey on my favourite KSRTC. It was RNC170 that took me from Thrissur to my home in Kodungallur.

Concluding remarks: The service was good. The cleaner and the drivers were well behaved. The cleaner responded to passengers' requirements. The sad part was playing a movie well until midnight - this could've been avoided since the bus leaves at 2130! They did stick to the timetable, and the driver did not drive rash - no overspeeding or harsh braking. I'd surely try the service again!

The ocean of milk..

2011-09-04T17:57:00.001+05:30

Warning: Very long post. Might not be suitable for the general audience.

It was chilling cold – sending shivers through my spine – I get off the train. Armed with a flashlight, I find my way to level ground. In the mean time, the locos let off a long horn, and starts off with a jerk. Jayasankar and me walk on to the other line to let the train clear off. Behind is the station building, which was well lit at that hour. The clears off, and we walk towards our shelter for the next two hours. It is a small chapel – with a couple of low height walls which serve as a bench. We settle down on one of them, rest our bags, and try to catch a few winks.

We barely manage to sleep, while the chugging sound of the DG3As reverberates across the Ghats. The loco pilot kept blowing the horn to break the eerie silence of that hour – silence is not an apt word here. The roar from the waterfall nearby filled the atmosphere. All of a sudden, we see some flashlights across the line – a group of about 20 people from Maharashtra too had gotten off the train. They too entered the same shelter as we were in – flashing their lamps, they ensured we could not sleep. They talked aloud, and made a mess of the entire area. Jay somehow managed to sleep, while I struggled to sleep.

Bonggggggg..... jing jing jing jing jing jing..... bboonnngggggggg! WDG4 twins crawl in, and stop at the starter, a few metres away from our camp. The guys sitting there joke: “Why are they ‘timepassing’??” The locos go away – only to remind us about their presence with the reverberating noise. They kept honking as well. I struggle again to sleep – only to be disturbed by the chaos created by the reckless guys.

My watch ticks past 6 AM... Another honk. I woke up Jay, and alert him of the diggies coming in. Jay, who was asleep, jumps up in excitement. We head towards the tracks to take some pictures. It was a triple consist – I did not notice their numbers. The locos came in and stopped right in front of us. The headlamps gave us the picture of what lay ahead – the yellow board beside the tracks read “Dudhsagar”!!! It was a dream come true for me – I had been planning to come here for three years now. I had to abandon my plan every time – but this time, I was determined to make it. Jayasankar has been visiting Dudhsagar like an annual pilgrimage for the past three years – this was my first trip to this place. (Not exactly the first – had travelled through the place by train two times in the past).

It took me real long time to sink into reality – it was still cold around, but the excitement of having made it to the place at last kept me running in high spirits. I and Jay had drawn up a plan to trek down the ghats – 12 kilometres to Kulem. Our first priority now was to have our breakfast – we had packed biscuits and cakes from home – we topped it up with flavoured milk (from Nandini!). After breakfast, we slowly set off. I stopped every 20-30 metres to take a photo – while Jay meant business. Jay kept firing on all cylinders – he was brisk. Tagging along a three digit load, my speed was much slower. Intermittent showers meant that we had to always hold the umbrella.

It couldn’t have been more foolish of me – I had left my weather coat at home! I was at the risk of getting wet – plus the cold environment kept me slightly tensed. On starting from Dudhsagar, one crosses the old Dudhsagar cabin, which is located right at the mouth of a tunnel! This was my first ever experience walking through a tunnel – it was chilling cold inside, and there was water dropping off at the portals. A good flashlight ensured that I did not trip anywhere. The roar from the waterfall was getting louder as we exit the tunnel – we walk past a curve. I see Jay standing in the middle of no-where, pointing his fingers upwards – Wow! That is the first sight of the waterfall!

We walk closer to the waterfall – In the meantime, I take more snaps. As we near the falls, sprays get stronger – the entire air is misty, saturated with fine droplets of water. We finally reach the bridge – the one across the falls. I take a couple of quick snaps – it was very windy, and the water sprays were too strong. I got wet in hardly a minute! Just as we walk past the falls, it starts pouring down – Jay asks if we should take a break or continue – I chose to continue. The tracks were slippery – thanks to the heavy tree cover, which keeps water dripping all the time. We continued our slow progress. We cross another tunnel, and reach a signal - this was a Warner signal – its unique in its appearance. It has two light units placed one above the other – the one of top was green, and the one at the bottom was red. This signal indicates “Caution” – and is used in 2-Aspect signal territory.

We stood around looking at the beauty of the environs – that served as a break for us. A few metres ahead, I get the first proper view of the massive falls. Dudhsagar – literally translated to an “Ocean of Milk” – kept its name today. It surely was an ocean of sea – from far it felt as if milk was flowing down a gorge. We continued walking – another tunnel later, we reach the “View point”. It is here that one can see Dudhsagar in all its beauty – the stone bridge that carries the railway line appears miniature when compared to the majesty of the waterfall. We take a 10 minute break – we covered 2 kilometres in about an hour including umpteen breaks.

After the viewpoint, my camera was safely packed in a waterproof packet and left in my bag. It started raining heavier by now. The tracks got even more slippery as we proceeded towards Sonalium (the only station between Dudhsagar and Kulem). It was getting tougher to walk – heavy rain, plus slippery nature of tracks made the walk difficult. We were, however, determined to accomplish our task. The line passes through dense forest from here on – the tracks have very little space to its sides. Another hour later, we slowly approach Sonalium. Sonalium Home signal came as a sigh of relief for me – that meant another break was in sight.

Jay walked past the Home signal and directly entered the loop line – but he reverted to the main line soon after. I too entered the loop line, and understood why he switched lines! The area around the points of the loop line had wooden sleepers! They were very badly slippery – walking on the ballast bed was the only way out. Jay paused mid way to the station – I caught up with him. He was exhausted – I was partially exhausted, but was not very sure if I could make it to Kulem – that was 8 kms ahead. Jay took shelted outside one staff quarter – I unloaded my baggage and stood in the shelter.

Jay was badly exhausted – a combination of inadequate sleep and some other factors made this veteran accept defeat very early – being a novice, I too thought it was perfect for me too to stop. The rain worsened now – there was no sign of the rain even reducing! The staffs on duty at the station were relaxing – chatting aloud. Off-duty staffs were just waking up. About 30 minutes after we stopped, the station staff announced the arrival of the Howrah bound Amaravati Express. Just as the pointsman came out, he asked us which direction were we headed to – when we replied “Kulem”, he said the next movement to that side would be at 1100 hrs – it was just past 0920 hrs then.

A couple of minutes later, WDM3A #14031 coupled to #14041 of Gooty came in with the Amaravati Express. The train took a 4 minute break at LIM (Sonalium). The train headed out at 0929 hrs – the bankers were WDM3A #14057 and #14032 of Gooty. I was back in our “shelter” – by now Jay was fast asleep. I had a small chat with the pointsman, who said a “freighter” was expected soon, followed by the Poorna Express – both heading towards Kulem. The pointsman came and alerted us soon as the clearance for the incoming freighter was given – I woke up Jay, and we quickly grabbed out belongings and rushed towards the starter.

In the mean time, an Up-going freight – a loaded BOXN rake hauled by twin WDG4s and banked by triple WDG4s came in. Just as we reached the starter – we saw that it was already set to proceed. The down-going freighter – a Penta WDG4 consist, running light – went past without stopping! Both of us were dead tired to walk back to the station building, and decided to sit on a pile of sleepers kept there. It drizzled on and off, but thankfully did not pour. Around 1100 hrs, we heard a horn and the characteristic ALCO engine noise – Hurrah! Our train to Kulem was approaching! The horn got louder – we though the train was already in Sonalium. But the train was no where in sight..

We turn back – the rake is still at Dudhsagar! A blue speck was clearly visible up in the ghats – Dudhsagar station is visible from Sonalium station. The train took a good 16 minutes to reach Sonalium from Dudhsagar – a distance of 4.11 kms! Sharp at 1118hrs, a triple loco consist appear around a marvellous ‘S’ curve at Sonalium. Out of the three, two were the breakers and one was the main power – The breakers were WDG3A #14552 and #14587, both from Gooty – and the main power was WDM3D #11348 of Pune. We got into the coach that stopped near us – it was a sleeper coach. Jay chose to doorplate, while I got on to the TTEs seat. The rest of the run was uneventful – the train crawled the next 7.98 kms to Kulem. We got off at Kulem, rushed to the ticket counter, took a ticket and we boarded the passenger bound to Vasco – we were joined by some more guys from IRFCA (thats a secret!). There ended a trip that I was longing for since long!

On the day-night multi to Bengaluru..

2011-09-01T14:24:00.000+05:30

For long, I've always been wondering why there aren't any day time bus services from Southern Kerala to Bangalore. Day buses always ran from Coimbatore, Madurai, etc to Bangalore. There is a day time train from Bangalore to Ernakulam. About a month back, a friend called me and said, Kallada was running a "day time special B9R" to Kerala. I was left awestruck - a quick glance at the Kallada website clarified that it was NOT a special, but a regular service!

Wow! That was a long time dream come true for me! I love traveling over the day, and this was the perfect service for me. There comes a trip to Bangalore - like a god sent gift! For the first time, I'd also be traveling without luggage! I mulled by long term desire to travel bus-hopping, but somehow, I wasn't very ready to do it this time. Booking on the Day Volvo came as a no-brainer to me! The ticket was booked online, seat on the first row. The bus was absolutely empty when I made the reservation.

On the day of journey - August 25, 2011, I started off from home at about 7:00. Got into RAC977 of my home depot (Kodungallur), heading to Alappuzha via Aluva, Vyttila. Its a roundabout route, but the fact that I need not change buses to reach my destination was a big positive. The bus left at 0720, and dropped me at Vyttila around 0850. Had I changed buses, I'd surely have reached earlier, but it would have been a hellish ride. No worries - I still had a good 40 minutes to go for my next bus.

The pick up point of Kallada is a bit away from the bus stop - towards Thycoodam underpass - about a 200 metre walk. Just as I began my walk, a gleaming red Volvo pulls in - KA01AA7638, of Suresh Kallada Travels. I was sure this is the bus that works the day service - the incoming bus came in only at 9 AM! I was left wondering about how would they manage to have it return at 9:30AM! The bus remained at the bus stop until 9:15 - while the cleaned the bus. The bus was taken towards the underpass, and they parked it on the road side. The drivers had their food, and took a bit of rest.

The bus was brought in to the pick up point at 9:41 - late by 11 minutes even before departure! Boarding began only by 9:45. We started off at 10:00 - with a grand total of 5 passengers on board. We were welcomed by crawling traffic, all the way upto Edappally. We picked up another passenger at Edappally, and two more at Kalamassery. We picked another two at Ankamaly. The driver clipped after Ankamaly - we hit a top speed of 105kmph (on my GPS) before Mannuthy.

The cleaner was adamant not to let me have the curtains open - the one that separates the crew area from the passenger cabin. This meant that I had to pass time watching the horrible movie that they played on TV. I caught up some sleep in the meantime. We reached Mannuthy at 1128, picked up two more passengers, and continued our journey. The road ahead was inexistent, and made for a very bouncy journey. Our driver was very careful not to ground the bus anywhere, and in the process was overtaken left right and centre by private route buses. The roads upto Vadakkenchery very in horrible shape - it was better after that.

We stopped at Hotel Sre Aaryas at Chandranagar, Palakkad bypass for lunch. While we stopped for lunch, we picked up two more passengers. We stopped at 1250. I had a very quick lunch, and got back to the bus. It was now that I had a very detailed look at the bus - the bus had about 14000kms on the odo. It was installed with a Volvo Speed Limiter, with a speed limit of 100kmph. The bus had absolutely no scratches or dents anywhere on its body - in very fresh condition. The bus underwent a service at 12000kms, at Volvo Kochi. The interiors had a Red and Cream combination - although very "on the face", the contrasts were too good.

We started off from Palakkad at 1321. We had 14 passengers on board now. The driver got faster now - maintaining 80kmph all the time. We stopped briefly near KG Chavadi, when the cleaner went and got the papers checked. The traffic was a bit slow near Madukkarai, and go slower as we near Athupalam. Ukkadam was a mess. The driver had a tough time taking a 90-deg curve near Town Hall - mostly due to traffic. We finally stopped at Coimbatore Omni Bus Station at 1440. Entering the bus station was a big circus due to the haphazard parking of buses. We had to get one bus moved so that we could come out of the bus station. We were out at 1448. Only one passenger got in here - we had dropped three passengers near Gandhipuram bus stand. We picked up three more passengers from Nanjappa road, and made swift progress towards Avinashi road. We now had 15 passengers on board.

The ride ahead was uneventful. The cleaner was adamant not to play a movie - and passengers were left to the mercy of some horribly boring songs being played on the music system. My observations about the bus continued - I've always seen operators installing speakers on the hatrack - they install 8 of them. I always thought this happened because the OEM speakers were bad - but I was proven wrong. The AC Vent unit did not have speakers at all - the operator chose to have speakers on the hatrack instead! The bus has 12 rows - which means there would've been 24 speakers. But by have speakers on the hatrack, the operator has to spend only on 8 speakers, saving the cost of 16 speakers!!

The bus had a 25" Samsung Series 4 LCD monitor at the front, and a 19" drop down screen (Make: Carbon?) towards the rear. The player was of JVC make. The speakers on the hatrack were installed at Volvo itself - since the boxes had the same covering as that of the floor! In the meantime, we rushed past Avinashi, and we entered the four-lane highway at Chengampalli. I was expected the bus to enter Perundurai for refueling - but nothing happened. We stopped at a wayside tea stall in Bhavani for Tea - at 1710, and started off at 1718. I was disgusted at the kind of place they stopped for a break - there was no toilet facility anywhere in sight.

By now, the drivers realised that we were running very late. They called up their Salem office to enquire if there were any pickups - there were 2 passengers! The cleaner picked up their numbers and called both of them. One of them said he/she was not joining, while the other was coming - the cleaner asked him to wait on the bypass and not at the bus station as mentioned on the ticket - a small argument ensued. But then the passenger agreed. Oh! Forgot to say this - the drivers changed at Bhavani. The new driver was a senior person - with grey hair, wearing the legal white uniform. We were welcomed by a long traffic snarl at Salem - we picked up the passenger at 1810.

The driver was desperate to break free, and speed up his run. We picked pace rapidly after Salem, maintaining 95-100 all the time. Toppur ghats came as a huge roadblock for us - trucks blocked all the lanes, our bus struggled to maintain even 30kmph - we hardly make an overtake, to get stuck behind the next truck. The size of the bus meant that we couldn't cut across lanes very easily. Somehow, the driver managed to dodge most trucks and we approached Dharmapuri Toll Gate - but an RTO guy jumps across and asks us to wait: 1900 hrs. They find some offense, and levy a fine. We start off at 1909 hrs.

We enter the first toll gate line - we had to request a car guy to let us go since the bus was running very late (The official arrival time at Bangalore is 2030 hrs - about 130+ kms to go!). The car guy obliged, and we enter the toll lane - but the driver stops half way through. The Lane is too narrow to let the bus go by without hitting anywhere! Finally, we reach such a stage that the driver had two choices - break the rear-view mirror, or bang the rear grille! Finally, the guys at the till gate intervened, and closed the lane. They cleared the traffic behind, and we pulled fully backwards, and entered the next lane.

We finally exit the toll gate at 1930 - we lost a good 30 minutes here! We had an hour ahead to cover 130+ kms - and impossible task by any expectation. The driver resigned to fate, but kept firing on all cylinders. We had a drop off at Hosur - the passenger was dropped off at the flyover instead of going to the bus station. Another traffic block welcomed us to Bangalore. Attibele was a mess - as usual. The Toll Gate ate more time. We took off after Attibele. Traffic was very heavy on that day - all the way. We took the Elevated highway from Electronic City. I was dropped off at Silk Board junction at 2158 - one and a half hours late! The bus has to return to Bangalore at 2200hrs!!

Side notes: The nationwide Truckers strike had concluded just the day before - all the trucks that were lying idle for few days were now on the road. The roads were chocked everywhere - Ghats were a pain, Traffic signals were long. We reached Bangalore a good 88 minutes late - thanks to the awful road in Kerala, and the horrible traffic in Tamil Nadu (Truck traffic).

Service: The cleaner was clearly misbehaved - not the way he should behave with passengers. He was adamant on not playing a movie - he played one after Dharmapuri, that too after a few passengers gave him a dressing down. I wonder why should the curtains be kept closed on a day service - passengers aren't traveling in the bus to see the beauty of the curtains - are they?

The day service is a good way for many passengers - some people do not like night services and prefer traveling over the day - for them, this service is god sent! Wish Kallada hires better staff - atleast guys who know the basics of dealing with passengers. Cleaners should be told that they do not own the bus - and he is nobody to order what the passenger does.

Will I recommend this service to someone? Yes! Why not! Just because the cleaner was a bad on that day, doesn't mean the service would be bad - but approach the service with a pinch of salt! Kallada doesn't provide water bottles to passengers - but Blankets were provided though. The AC control was awful - perhaps they weren't setting proper temperatures.

Rating: 7 on 10.

Do you have a Multi??

2011-08-24T20:30:00.000+05:30

Warning: This post in intended to those who love/follow buses !!

About a month back, I was at a travel agency waiting for my boarding pass. Of late, I've been a great fan of private operators on the Bangalore route - especially the multi-axle buses. Multi-Axle monsters have made road journeys even faster and comfortable - the speed certainly comes with its risks, but its indulging.

Back to the story.. Just as the guy at the counter pulled out a stack of empty boarding passes, a guy walks in an asks for a ticket on a bus to Kerala. The agent pulls out a file and checks availability - he replied that ticket was available and said the rate was Rs. 560. Then comes the next question: "Multi alle?". (Isn't it a Multi). The agent pulls out another file and quotes the new ticket rate.

That question keeps ringing in my mind - Isn't it a multi??. What is so special about a Multi that every one wants one for their travel?

Multi Axles have made journeys faster - they've cut down run times by upto 2-3 hours on many routes. The bus has humongous torque, which makes the bus pick up pace faster than regular buses - even Volvos! The private segment now purchases only Multi-Axle buses - be it a Volvo or a Mercedes. The Multi Axle frenzy has reached its heights now - any route gets a Multi now!

Ghat routes which were once difficult even for ordinary buses, are now the forte of Multi Axle buses. Take the case of the Shiradi Ghats - the ardous one on the Hassan-Mangalore route - the ghat route was in the news for all wrong reasons. This route now gets a Multi-Axle bus!

Taking the case of Bangalore-Kerala route - this route is now the hotbed of Multi-axle buses. A simple back of the paper calculation revealed that there are as many as 21 Multi-Axle buses (20 Volvo and 1 Mercedes) running between Bangalore and Kerala - each way. This works out roughly to about 1028 seats! This number is independent of the regular Volvos that run to Kerala daily. The non-Volvo/Merc buses too are not included in this calculation. Of the 21 Multi-Axle buses, one is a Government run (Karnataka SRTC) bus.

A Multi-Axle Volvo. Image is only representational.

The Multi-axle buses charge a premium of Rs. 100~150 over the regular rates. Even the government run Multi-Axle bus charges a premium - all for the "Sleep Like a Baby" tag! The Chennai-Kerala route is even hotter - with operators fighting each other to reach first at their destination. The worst offender being an operator with a "three letter" name. A user had posted a video on YouTube showing a Volvo speedometer reaching its limits - at 130kmph!

These buses hit crazy speeds - controlled by amateur F1 wannabes.I used to call Kerala's private bus drivers as F1 aspirants - but the private Volvo drivers take that to a newer dimension! I am not blindly blaming all operators - quite a lot of old time operators are taking safety seriously and have ordered their drivers to be sane. But the newer operators are getting crazy - I only hope the government takes this craze seriously and clamps down these operators. Three digit speeds are unsafe on Indian Roads - especially for a bus.

Whatever safety gadgets are provided, the guy who drives doesn't handle it safely. An ABS brake, or even the retarders would not help if the bus gets into danger at three digit speeds. The number of accidents involving Multi-Axle buses is not a welcome sign - in most cases, accidents happened after the driver couldn't control the bus at some point. In a recent case, a Multi-Axle Mercedes bus overturned after it hit a median at a very high speed - the result: Three lives were lost.

Its time passengers resented to such reckless driving - better be safe by departing earlier, than departing late and then playing a balancing game praying for life till one's destination. It is passengers who encourage such driving practices - if passengers avoid such notorious operators, they are bound to fall in line. That is what is required.

Before you think shamelessly of reaching your destination early, remember that you are not the only road user. There are more road users - who may be affected by the reckless driving of these idiots (sorry for this word - but couldn't find a better one) dancing to the tunes of equally idiotic operators.

Desperation.. and Mudslinging??

2011-08-10T17:42:00.000+05:30

Kerala's biggest, and perhaps the only, Multi-System Operator, Asianet Cable (ACV) stopped airing signals of the ESPN-Star Sports bouquet (comprising of ESPN, Star Sports and Star Cricket) since over a month now. ACV argues that ESPN has raised subscription charges heavily and that they stopped airing the channels to protect consumer interests. ACV has maintained steady subscription charges for a long time, despite increased operational costs.ACV offers the maximum number of channels for a Cable TV network, and they offer very good service on their Digital system.

The switching off of ESPN-Star signals comes at a wrong time for sports lovers - with plenty of sports action lined up for the next few months. It appears that ESPN-Star are desperate for business - they have started a campaign to reduce the subscriber base for ACV.

In the past few days, ESPN-Star has started airing advertisements on leading FM radio stations and placing hoardings at important places urging customers to switch to a different cable network or purchase a DTH set to continue enjoying ESPN-Star Sports. It seems ESPN-Star has not been able to reach a consensus with ACV, but are desperate to reach out their audience. Such mudslinging seems very cheap - a company like ESPN-Star shouldn't resort to such cheap pressure tactics.

AND, ACV are no saints either - trying to get cheap signals, eh??

Kallada Multi-axle.. with a decent driver!

2011-07-28T20:10:00.000+05:30

Four days after arriving at Bangalore - four days of gastronomical treat, and a totally unexpected rail experience - it was time to head back home. I had to carry some baggage back home and chose the Kallada B9R for my return. It was sunny until the day before my journey. My boarding point was the Kallada office at Madiwala. We reached the office around 20:30, while my bus was scheduled to depart at 2130 (reporting time was 2115). On reaching, I headed straight to get my boarding pass, and also book the luggage that i was carrying alone - the guy who takes care of the Parcels asked me to wait till the bus comes.

In the mean time, I walked around clicking the multi-axle monsters of various operators that were parked around. It started pouring down by then - it was very heavy. I had no option but to return to the Kallada office. The clock ticked past 2115, there was no sign of the bus. Enquired with the guys at the office, who confirmed that the bus would arrive only by 2130. The bus, KA-01-AA-103, came in sharp at 2130. It was almost completely empty when it came - but it filled up in no time! We started off at 2148 - just as a lady in the bus started shouting that her husband was yet to board. The crew showed no interest in stopping the bus for him - but they later said they will take a 'U' turn and stop on the opposite side of the road - which they did.

We were there until 2154 - few 'off' duty Kallada staff too got in - a guy slept in the undercarriage luggage hold, while the others took the seats in the last row. As we started off from Madiwala, the 'assistant' announced that we had only two vacant seats. The bus was about 13 months old (info gathered from the talk among the crew) and had about 2.15 lakh kilometres on the Odo. The bus was still in good shape - the suspension was in top order, and there were very little squeaks. Once past Silk Board, the bus picked up pace rapidly, and we took the Elevated highway (there was a bit of traffic at Bommanahalli, but we stuck to right lane, and could negate them quickly) to Electronic City. The driver was very sane, and made very careful overtakes. He was using the low tone horn at night, and preferred using the dipper more than the horn.

We had a pick up at Hosur – we left there at 2238. The driver and the attendant(s) [there were two of them] were chatting all the time – the Driver was an old hand at Kallada, and had been driving right from the time Volvos were introduced by Kallada. I was in love with his style of cautious driving. We did a top speed of 111kmph somewhere on the elevated highway – his top speed was in the range of 105kmph in other sections. I struggled to catch up some sleep – succeeded in it only as we were crossing Krishnagiri. I slept through – and woke up briefly as we were running past Salem. I slept again, only to wake up as the bus pulled into a fuel pump in Perundurai – at 0200.

The fuel station had an array of toilets – all clean and well kept. The bus took in 222 litres of diesel. We started off at 0215. Just a while after starting off, we crossed our pairing bus – the drivers exchanged pleasantries as we moved on. The driver did not change here – and the guy was chatting all the time. The road was in horrible state after Perundurai. We did not go via Tiruppur, but stuck to the conventional route via Avinashi, Coimbatore bypass. The road was really horrible – but the body roll was minimal, unlike the Merc. I might be biased here – since I was in the second row in this bus, and on the ninth row in the Mercedes.

The bad roads contributed to my misery, and was left absolutely sleepless – hardly grabbed a bit of sleep after Karumathampatty. I woke up as we stopped at Neelambur toll gate – we were joined by the SRM’s Chennai-Thiruvalla Multi-Axle and the Shama’s Bangalore-Ernakulam Multi Axle (which leaves 15 minutes after us) here. Both of them overtook us on the way – I was happy that our driver did not engage in a chase, but remained composed. (We did take our revenge later). I slept lightly after the bypass ended – but was woken up by a call from dad as we neared the border.

We stopped at Walayar Check post at 0404 – the assistant ran to the office, and returned very quick. We started off at 0408 – that was real quick! SRM and Shama were still waiting, while we rushed ahead. The bus stopped briefly to drop off someone at Palakkad bypass. The road worsened soon after we crossed Vadakkenchery – but the ride was much better than my outbound. We made another stop at Mannuthy – at 0547. The bus took a right, and literally rushed to Thrissur town. We surely did three digit speeds in this section. We stopped at the Kallada office at Sakthan Thampuran Nagar sharp at 0557. My dad was already there to pick me up – the luggage was retrieved from the luggage hold. The bus was still there when I got into the car and started my return. They unloaded a lot of parcels here.

Concluding points.. The bus was old, but it did not show its age. It was decently kept, and most importantly, it rode really well. The NVH levels were well under control – the bus did not vibrate when idle, while the noise levels while on the run was under control. The bus took all of 8 hours, including the breaks, to reach Thrissur – that was decent, given the fact that the driver was sane!!

The Mercedes 'Tri-Axle'

2011-07-27T21:12:00.000+05:30

After rounds of planning, replanning, cancellation, planning.. and so on, I finally decide to take the plunge and head straight to Bangalore. Some urgent personal work, with some railfanning in the agenda, made this weekend the perfect time for my trip. Accordingly, I booked a ticket on the Bharathi Multi-Axle Mercedes Benz bus leaving on 21st July 2011, with boarding point at Aluva. The day arriving very soon..

An accident near my home meant that the power supply to our area was disrupted. With clouds looming large, it was wet and dark around my home. A short walk from my home, I reached the bus stop to get a bus to Kodungallur (38kms south of Thrissur, Kerala). Had to wait for quite some time to get a bus (the first two that came went without stopping). I got off at Kodungallur, and quickly got the next bus to Parur. As I reached Parur, I got a bus to Aluva as well. Except for the long waiting time near my home, travel to Aluva was a breeze. The bus dropped me well away from the place I needed to go, and this ensued hiring a rick to get to my place. I reached the pick up point (Zam Zam Travels Aluva) at 2035. The bus was scheduled to arrive at 2045.

I showed my ticket and enquired if the bus was on time - the reply was affirmative. I decided to remain seated out side the office - it was drizzling on and off, and hence standing on the road was not a choice. The bus came in at 2050, right behind the KPN Multi Axle to Chennai.The bus, KA-07-A-1212, looked sleek, decked up in Yellow Colour. The attendent (cleaner) and agent of the GSA for Kerala got off the bus. I was the only person to board at Aluva - the attendent took my bag and deposited it in the baggage hold, and the other guy checked my ticket. I got a 'boarding pass' on board the bus soon after we left Aluva. The bus started off from Aluva at 2100.

First Impressions: On entering the bus, came a whiff of fresh air. They had used some air freshener, and there was a very good fragrance. The cabin was well lit - the driver cabin looked much better than the two-axle Mercs running with KSRTC. I headed straight to my seat - I1, which was in the 9th row. The bus was about 50% empty. Blankets were already kept on the seat. The attendant came around to check if anyone had any requirements. Soon after the bus left, the attendant came again to distribute water bottles - they gave out 1 litre bottles!! The blanket was fairly big, unlike the ribbon sized shawls that most other operators pass off as blankets.

A dubbed movie was being played - the story was too bad to digest - hero kicking off many people at one go, and the heroine falling for the hero's stupid antics. My view of what was happening outside was badly disturbed by the condensation formed on the window glass. This led me to investigate what was happening - there are air vents directed at the windows. These vents cannot be closed - and ends up fogging the windows. This is surely a very bad design flaw - This flaw exists in almost all Indian built buses - wonder why there should be an air vent directed at the windows!

In the mean time, we roll into Angamaly - the time was 2118. A couple of passengers join in, and we continue forward. The road was in good shape, and we were cruising at a decent pace. We stopped at Koratty for dinner - The time now was 2128. There are a few decent sized restaurants on the road side, and we stopped at the last of them. This one was attached to a Petrol Bunk - there was a hotel and a US Pizza outlet there. I had dinner from home, and had nothing to do other than loiter around the bus. We started off at 2200 - a 20 minute break turned out to a 42 minute break overall! The bus was back to cruising. The driver made good use of the 4-laned road, and we were surely doing 3 digit speeds.

Went below Chalakkudy flyover, but did not stop to pick up anyone. We slowed down after the 4-lane roads ended a while before Mannuthy - we stopped at Mannuthy as well, where the travel agent's guy got off - 2234 hrs. Past Mannuthy, the road was in awful shape. The bus was rolling badly - I was being thrown around badly all the time. A while past Kuthiran ghats, I saw a Shama Multi Axle (the one running Ernakulam-Bangalore) running ahead of us - that guy was very fast, and our bus could not come anywhere close. But we did manage to trail him for a long time. In the mean time, the movie finished and the screens were closed. The curtains were pulled down, and lights were switched off - replaced with night lamps, rather.

I had two seats at my disposal, and decided to make full use of the opportunity. I couldn't see anything outside since the windows were fogged badly - and I had nothing much to do other than sleep! I vaguely remember reading "Walayar" on my mobile phone, but continued sleeping soon after. I woke up around 0115, only to see the bus running through Tiruppur - I was shocked! What was the bus doing in Tiruppur?? In the mean time, I fell asleep again! I woke up just as the bus stopped at Tiruppur bus station - 0133 hrs. They unloaded a few parcels and the drivers changed. We started off again at 0138 - that was pretty quick! We stopped again, this time at a petrol pump - 0150hrs. The bus took in a good 260 litres of diesel, while the passengers went out for a leak. The drivers too took a leak, and we started off at 0203. Just as we were moving out, our pairing bus came in.

I slept soon after the bus returned to the road - It was one deep sleep - I vaguely remember seeing us cross Salem. The bus did stop somewhere in the middle of the night - perhaps a leak break for the drivers. Both the drivers were sane - they did not overspeed, or do any dangerous heroics on the road. There were no rash overtakes, or hard braking. I was asleep for most of the journey - I woke up only as the bus stopped near the border. We had a very slow crawl till we crossed Attibelle toll gate. The bus took the Electronic city Elevated Highway. I called up my home well in advance, to arrange for my brother to pick me from the bus stop. The bus dropped me at Silk Board flyover exactly at 0613.

Overall: It was an awesome journey. The drivers were well mannered - they behaved well on the road. The attendant was also well behaved - he was patiently replying to passengers, and also ensured that he distributed bottles to all passengers. The airconditioner was powerful - but the vents pointed at the windows are a sore to passengers. The windows get fogged, plus the vents ensure that the passenger sitting at the window seat is frozen! This is a serious design flaw that needs to be corrected ASAP. The gangway is too narrow - very tough for passengers with bags to walk through.. no wonder the attendant asked me to leave my bag in the baggage hold. The ride was hard - no wonder the poor roads in India force manufacturers to go for harsh suspensions. The bus had a very good amount of roll - not very comfortable when the bus runs through poor roads. The engine was very noisy inside as well.

The AC Vents lack volume control - one can only adjust the direction of air flow. The passengers' control console is very stylish - two spot lights, a small night lamp, a switch to turn off the speaker and two AC vents. The seats were the standard Harita stuff, that one sees on most buses these days. The bus is surely better than the regular Indian buses - but is certainly not the best, only shares the spot with Volvo. Volvo had first mover advantage and they surely cashed on it - they did revolutionise bus travel in India. Mercedes sadly maintains the revolution at the same level - the star doesn't roll much forward!

Suicidal Driving...

2011-06-26T12:51:00.000+05:30

05:00AM, May 09, 2011, Somewhere between Mannuthy and Vadakkenchery on NH47 in Kerala.

I was driving my Silver Punto, rushing towards Bangalore for a week long vacation. The road narrows down from a well-paved 4-lane road to a horribly paved, dingy two laned road a while before Mannuthy on NH47, while approaching from Ernakulam side. Despite being too early in the morning, the traffic was messy around Mannuthy. The road got emptier as we crossed Pattikad. I had an uneasy feeling right from beginning of the day. It started pouring down as we crossed Mannuthy. My kitten was crying through the time (yes! she was traveling with us to Bangalore).

A while into the 2-lane driving, I started noticing trucks in the opposite direction driving ruthlessely - they came straight head-on, and the onus was on me to avoid an accident! I slowed down, so that I get more time to save ourself from an accident. Trucks in the opposite direction were too rash, and one could feel the effects of overnight driving on them. LCVs - like Mahindra Pickups - too were very rash.

I usually prefer early morning and late night driving, for the simple reason that traffic would be thin - and private vehicles would be very less at that time. I find two-wheeler drivers the most dangerous lot on highways, followed by Autorikshaws and Private buses - these known dangers can be avoided by starting early in the morning. But this time around, early morning driving was proving more cumbersome. I was dead tired by the time we stopped for breakfast at Karumathampatty, near Coimbatore. Perhaps for the first time I regreted starting early in the morning..

The problem was compounded by the fact that this was a Monday morning - so many people were returning to their workplaces. Truckers were surely slipping asleep - a word of caution to people who drive early - overtake with care. The trucker in the opposite direction might be asleep - do not depend on his reflexes. It is said that most of the accidents happen at such hours - between 5 and 6, while one feels the most sleepy.

Note: This post was composed and left in Drafts for a long time...

A Real superfast.. in Kerala!!

2011-06-21T13:45:00.000+05:30

Perhaps for the first time in life I made one real superfast journey in a train in Kerala! In what could be described as a soon to be extinct species, this train made hardly any stops in the 223 kms journey I made in the train! After a mind-boggling day bus fanning and some tourism in Trivandrum, I was returning home. I was accompanied by fellow railfan Vibin Andrews.With some late bus fanning plans in mind (which got washed down, thanks to the rain), I decided to take the weekly 12698 Trivandrum-Chennai Super Fast.

We both were drop-dead-tired at the end of the day. After a light dinner, we headed out to the platform where our train was berthed. Sadly, the train was taken on PF4. Walking over the foot-over-bridge, we saw a loco with "top headlamps" pulling in to take charge of the train. It was a WAP4 - road number and shed unknown - rather, we did not bother checking which loco was that. My seat was in S1, while Vibin was in S4. S1 was fully reserved - all seats were taken, and most passengers were joining at TVC. However, S4 was a different scene - more than half the seats were booked from ERN! I decided to join Vibin in S4.

The train started off perfectly on time. The train picked speed in no time - we literally flew past Kochuveli, and the flight continued until we reached Paravur. We slowed down at the LC before Paravur, later picked speed and flew past the station. We reached Kollam on time. We crossed the LTT-Kochuveli Garib Rath here. While at the station, I was busy explaining to Vibin that QLN (Kollam) doesn't have any platform numbered "1". The 'first' platform at QLN is numbered 3. Platforms 1 to 3 were under the Metre-Gauge system earlier. Once the MG line was dismantled, a new platform was built on the BG line adjacent to PF4, and was numbered PF3. PF3 is peculiar in many terms - this platform starts around the mid of Platform 4, and runs a long distance after the station.

On hearing my explanation, a co-passengers jumped in, and argued Platform 1 exists! While both of us tried to explain to the 'intruder' that PF1 'existed' and does not exist anymore. Later, as the train pulled out, he (the co-passenger) was satisfied that he was wrong. Vibin was surprised to see that the new MEMU shed is 'almost inside' the station. Meanwhile the red beast at the front of our train put all its horses to work, and we were literally flying. Vibin slowly retired to his berth, as the passenger on the Middle berth wanted to sleep. Vibin tracked the train's progress in his GPS, and found that we were maintaining decent pace all the time.

With not much to see, I too retired on the lower berth (the remaining passengers in the bay were to join only at Ernakulam). I feel asleep soon after the train crossed Sasthamcotta. I jumped up all of a sudden when water gushed into the train - it was raining heavily outside. I pulled down the shutter, and continued sleeping. I woke up when my phone beeped - it was 2250, and we were pulling into Kottayam already! The remaining passengers in the bay, who were supposed to join in at Ernakulam, decided to turn up early! They got in at Kottayam. We left Kottayam at the scheduled time, 2310.

I could not lie down after this, but continued sleeping sitting upright. I remember seeing the train slowing down near Vaikom Road, but kept pace and ran through. We slowed down at Mulanthuruthy, and kept crawling for quite some time. In the mean time Vibin woke up and asked if we were close to Ernakulam - I said Yes. We stopped near the Ernakulam Coaching yard around 00:05. I could see the Trivandrum-Mangalore Maveli express - this is the only train with LED boards that would run through the section at that time. After a longish halt near the yard, we were allowed to enter the main line, only to stop at Ernakulam Town's Home signal. This wait was very long, and we finally entered ERN at 0025, late by 10 minutes. I got off - still half asleep. Vibin was in deep sleep, so thought not to disturb him. I walked through the length of the station, still half asleep - went to the rickshaw stand, and got a rick to Ernakulam Junction, where i had left my car.

This train is perhaps the only "Real" superfast train in Kerala - Covering Trivandrum to Ernakulam in 4 hours and 5 minutes, that too via Kottayam is a huge task - this train managed doing that! The Halt pattern was mind-boggling as well. There should be more such trains in Kerala - almost all trains running in Kerala resemble passenger trains, and more halts are added each year! If only the railways could introduce the proposed MEMUs, and reduce the number of halts for these long distance trains. (But where are the tracks to run all these ??)

Yet another overnight bus journey in Kerala..

2011-06-01T19:13:00.000+05:30

Yet another bus fanning trip, this time to the North. This one was lingering around for a long time, but the decision to do it came at the last moment. I was to join Sankar on some bus fanning at Kozhikode on Saturday, May 28, 2011. My initial plan was to start off on Saturday morning - very early in the morning. I had almost finalised the 4AM from Thrissur, but later had my mind hanging around. I then thought of taking a train - but the lack of reservations just nipped the plan in the bud itself.

Towards evening of Friday, May 27, 2011, I get a call from Sankar saying that he is taking the Trivandrum - Kozhikode AC bus, from Kollam. I changed my mind at the last moment, and decided to join his bus at Thrissur. I called him up and asked him to try to block a seat for me from Ernakulam. No news from him till later in the night. I got set to travel, and left home around 11 pm on Friday. I was to leave my car at the railway station, and then take the bus from the bus station.

Around 23:24, my phone beeped.. a message from Sankar: "Left ekm. No halt here. bus full tight". A hard feeling sunk in.. if the bus was full at Ernakulam, there are very little chances of getting a seat from Thrissur. I was very sedate until then.. just pushed down the throttle after this. My intention was to reach Thrissur at the earliest, and then take the first bus towards Kozhikode. I reached Thrissur around 23:50. Rushed into the bus station and had a glance at the timetable - a "Limited Stop Fast Passenger" bus was the immediate next bus. I called up Sankar once again - he repeated, it was very tight. Very little chances.

At 00:05, the Fast Passenger bus comes in.. RNA648 of Thottilpalam, working Kottayam-Kozhikode-Tottilpalam. I pushed myself in - intially dejected to see all seats taken. All of a sudden, I notice one 'middle' seat empty - just rushed in without a second thought. There was no sign of movement - the bus filled up in no time. Around 00:20, the drivers gets on board - we move at 00:21. No sign of Sankar's bus. Just as my bus pulls out of Thrissur bus station, Sankar's bus pulls in. I somehow make space for myself in what could best be described as a 2-and-a-half seater bench, with 3 people sitting on it. The window shutter was closed - not just the one at my seat, but most in the bus.

The bus was unbearably hot and humid - the driver was struggling to keep the windshield free of condensation. It started raining as well. The bus was crawling, and we kept making very frequent stops. This continued till we reached Kunnamkulam. In the meantime, my neighbour - a tamilian - was remarking how people in Kerala did not know Tamil!! They got off at Kunnamkulam, and a new co-passenger came in. This person - a tall and well built person was struggling to seat on the "half" seat space he got. Poor guy almost fell off at quite a few curves.

Past Kunnamkulam, the driver made it clear that he meant business. We were flying past - the road here is well paved, marked and accessorised with reflectors. The BSII Cummins powered TATA was vibrating like no-body's business. The ride was horrible once the bus went past 60kmph, and I had a tough time not itching my nose. I fell asleep sometime after Perumbilavu. I slept upto Kuttipuram. We reached Kuttipuram at 0133 - left after picking a couple of passengers. Since it was night time, there were little passengers waiting for the bus at the wayside. However, we still had standing passengers in the bus.

Valanchery was crossed at 0144. I was half asleep all the time. I woke up when the bus pulled aside all of a sudden. The place was Velimukku, and the time was 0225. That was a break for tea. I got off the bus and decided to have a stroll. The Trivandrum-Mangalore bus overtook us at this time (I did not notice the number). I had a tea and walked around for some time. In the mean time, the Trivandrum-Bathery deluxe also went ahead. We started off at 0245. I realised that we were not very far from Kozhikode, and decided not to sleep anymore. The windows were shut again since it was cold outside. I continued in a half-awaken state. We turned off the bypass road and headed towards Ramanattukara. The territory ahead appeared very familiar - I was traveling through the area after a good 6 years.

We turn left near Baby Memorial Hospital, and rushed straight into the Municipal Bus Station. The time was 03:16. Just 2:55 hrs, including a 20 minute break, that too in a Fast Passenger bus! I spent just Rs. 78 for the run - but my back was making unusual noises at the end of the journey. It was tiring, plus the lack of sleep made me more tired. Sankar's bus was yet to reach. I had another tea and some light snack, before Sankar reached Kozhikode.. we then took the Kannur Deluxe, and go off at Thalassery, for a day full of bus fanning....

A Train-o-logue after long...

2011-05-08T18:06:00.000+05:30

Since over a year, buses have been my preferred choice for travel. Trains never came on my list, at any point of time. Since shifting to Kerala in 2009, the number of travels by train can be counted on fingers! I did make a few train rides with college mates to attend various seminars, but the travels would be more of a fun trip, and very rarely did I railfan during those trips. A couple of weeks back, a friends get-together was planned at Paravur (near Kollam). I quickly zeroed in on a train journey, and booked tickets in CC of the Guruvayur-Trivandrum Intercity express.

The journey was on May 01, 2011. My initial plan was to start from home at 4.30am, and reach the station by 5.15am, for the train departing at 5.50am. However, things did not work according to my plan, and I could start from home only around 4.50am. It was mad rush afterwards, and finally ended up with a closed level cross at Edappally, trailing a slow moving truck for quite some distance in the city - at the end of all confusion, I reached Ernakulam station only at 5.30. Parking my car took more time, and it was 5.40 when I entered the platform. On entering the station, I found that my train would come on Platform 4. The PA system blurted out that the train would depart at 5.50, just as I entered Platform 1. It was a mad dash over the Foot-over-bridge to reach the train on time. Just as I reached Platform 4, WAP4 #22548 (of Royapuram?) pulled in with my train.

The crowd on the platform was very high, and the unreserved coaches were already spilling out. There was no indication of where my coach would be, and I had to run to find out my coach before the train left. I reached my coach just about in time - my seat was #61 in C1. It was, thankfully, an aisle seat. The entire coach was booked out, and a lot of "wannabes" were standing around the entry to get a seat. The TTE checked all passengers even before the train started off. We started off exactly at 5.50am. The TTE finished checking all passengers and turned down the "wannabes". My neighbour was a lady in her 50s. I switched on my iPod, and remained tuned to music for a good part of the journey.

Thuravur was our first halt. We kept very good pace for most of our journey. My train crossed other trains at very frequent intervals - we were never made to stop for any train, till we reached Cheppad. This was out first halt for a crossing, and turned out to be a long one too. The opposite train was the Kozhikode bound Jan Shatabdi - which came in with WDM2 #18698 of Erode. The train had a medley of coaches - some wrapped in Joy Alukkas advertisement, while some appeared freshly repainted. I noticed that there was another train at the station - which had an NE rake (the Raptisagar express?). Our next scheduled halt was Kayankulam - which turned out too long. We were overtaken by the Vanchinad express here (Could not notice the loco, since the rake of the Kayankulam-Ernakulam passenger blocked my view). I did not notice the time when we crossed each station - I was not in railfanning mood anytime during the journey.

I was in a semi-awake state through the journey - and hardly noticed details of the run. The catering in the train was handled by one "Joy", and the items they sold were all good. I had breakfast from the train (Idli-Vada) - the food served was decent. The vendors were mostly from TN, with a few north indians completing the "gang". I was to get off at Paravur. I was in constant touch with a "new born" railfan, Sankar, throughout the journey. Sankar was reaching Paravur from Trivandrum by the 16382 CAPE-CSTM Express, while I was reaching there by the 16341 GUV-TVC Intercity express - both trains are scheduled to reach PVU around the same time. I finally got off at PVU around 9:30, delayed by about 35 minutes (thanks to the long waiting for the JS to cross, and the stupid decision to let the Vanchinad ahead). The Vanchinad express was running a good 50 minutes late that day, and we had to wait a good 15 minutes for it arrive at Kayankulam, and another 10 minutes for it to clear the block ahead!

Paravur was hot and humid.. what ensued was some train spotting, and finally a lively journey back home by BUS!!! I know I did very little justice to this journey as a railfan.. did not even notice the number of my coach (I vaguely remember, it was a 98 built coach). Hardly noticed the details of the journey.. hope to get into some railfanning this year!

Garuda, still flying?

2011-05-03T22:53:00.000+05:30

That was my first question when I walked into a horribly crowded Thampanoor Central Bus Station (CBS) in Thiruvananthapuram. I walked straight to the enquiry counter and asked if the Volvo service to Ernakulam was running on that day - the guy at the counter turned back, and asked another officer: "Innu Volvo vanno?" (Did the Volvo come today?). The other guy replied affirmative. The guy at the counter turned to me and confirmed the bus was indeed running today - departing at 16.40hrs. The time was then just past 14.30hrs. I had two full hours to kill - a blessing for the bus fan in me.

It was tiring day - that started off at 4 in the morning. I was sweating so badly that my dress was wet by now - i could feel sweat dripping off my face. I decided to rest for a while, and remained seated on one of the many vacant seats. A while after, the Volvo to Bangalore turned up - RA101 was working the trip today. I tried my luck to see if tickets were available in this bus to Ernakulam (Vyttila) - but sadly, the trip was fully sold off. They were preferring only passengers to Thrissur or beyond. The bus to Ernakulam does not offer reservations, and hence one needs to be real quick to get a seat.

The bus station was getting crowded by the hour - it was a Sunday, and the population in Trivandrum prefers having a picnic over the weekend, and the number of people on the roads was just humungous. Kochi sleeps over a Sunday, while Trivandrum was active - was more active than on a working day! The bus station was crowded - crowded like a market! There were people everywhere. To add to my woes, it was overcast, and humidity went over limits. I decided to roam outside the bus station. Headed out to see a lot of buses never seen earlier - and walked around capturing buses.

I suffered a horrible muscle cramp when I tried getting on to a footpath... Ouch! It was paining badly. I struggled to get moving from there.. and somehow managed getting back to the main platform of the bus station. Thankfully, a seat was empty, and somehow managed to get on. But the cramp was so bad, that I couldn't sit at all - it was paining very bad. There was no way that I could sit.. walking was giving a bit of relief, and I kept walking. Around 16.15 hrs, I asked a security guy when the Volvo would be brought in - he was unsure. I remained around the platform where my bus would arrive.

Around 16.20hrs, I saw the Volvo (RA102) being pulled out of the garage - I got set to prance the moment the bus stops and the door is opened. I was the second passenger to get in - I got in just as the driver prepared to reverse the bus into the platform. The door was closed just after I got into the bus. I just managed to get into my favorite seat, when - ouch! The other leg also cramped! A lot of massages later, I managed to sit! My leg was still paining badly. The bus filled up in a matter of a few moments - but most passengers were to Kollam and Kayamkulam! I was seriously disappointed by the way they were filling up with local passengers.

By 16.35 hrs, all seats were sold. The Conductor went to get the waybill signed, and we were good to go. The bus pulled out sharp at 16.40hrs. Since all seats were sold, we had the liberty of directly cutting through to the bypass, instead of roaming around in the city. But the driver still decided to take the normal course - a decision which he regretted later on. We started off from the bus station, only to get stuck at a traffic snarl, just 500 metres from the bus station. We managed to get through the snarl, only to end up in diversions. We finally reached the General Hospital junction - by now, the driver started asking for directions to hit the bypass - a good Samaritan (a passenger seated right behind the driver) decided to help the driver - he gave directions at each point. We hit the bypass very soon.

Once on the bypass, our driver (a cool guy in his late 20s or early 30s) meant business - we were quickly cruising at 80kmph. He never exceeded 90kmph, even when the roads were empty. I was seriously amazed with his lane discipline, and awareness of road etiquette - a very rare sight in Kerala. He signaled before changing lanes any time, honked before overtaking and used the indicators while returning to his lane. He used the headlamps judiciously, and used the low beam whenever there was a vehicle in the opposite direction! He used only the dippers at night - oh boy! He was one excellent driver.

We rushed non stop from Kazhakoottam to Attingal. We stopped outside the bus station at Attingal - a few guys got off, and an equal number got in from here. The conductor was calling up the next bus station every time, and intimated the station officer of the exact number of seats available, so that announcements could be made for passenger waiting at the bus station. The crew were really interested in filling up the bus - both were youngsters, around the same age group. They were really motivated, and such crew will help KSRTC fill up their buses.

From their conversations, I found that the conductor was a regular on the Ernakulam-Trivandrum route these days, while the driver is a regular on the Ernakulam-Moovattupuzha Volvo service. The driver was well-versed with the features of the bus - he used the retarders, the suspension adjustments, and almost all the facilities provided to drivers! I was seriously impressed with the crew. But the bus was disappointing - the gears weren't engaging properly, there was no entertainment system (a TV did exist, but there was no player!). The ride was good, and rattles were minimum. The driver door did not seem to shut properly - there was a lot of wind noise whenever the bus went about 80kmph.

We reached Kollam at 1820 - about 8 passengers got off here - and the same number got in. A couple of guys wanting to go to Kozhikode got in, but there was only one vacant seat. The conductor made it clear that they are not allowed to take in standing passengers, and that they had to disembark. Or one could continue his journey, while the other waited for the next bus. Both the guys were heavily drunk, and the security guys have to use a bit of force to vacate them. While they got off, a single passenger got in, and he took a ticket to Ernakulam. We left Kollam at 1824. The run got a bit slow after here - the traffic was heavy, and it got dark. We dropped a good number of passengers at Karunagappally (they all had to pay fares upto Kayamkulam) - some 17 passengers got off here! None got in. We stopped at Kayamkulam (at 1920) for a tea break. More passengers got off, but around 10~15 passengers got in. An announcement was made at the bus station to attract more passengers as well.

We left Kayamkulam at 1930. Dropped a couple more passengers at Haripad (but some 5 passengers got in here). We dropped more passengers at Alappuzha - the bus does not go to the bus station, and drops off passengers at Medical College Junction itself. We crossed Alappuzha at 2020 hrs - thats about 150-odd kms in about 3 hours and 40 minutes, not bad I'd say. It was an excellent ride after Alappuzha. The conductor was well-versed with the route - it turned out that he did his graduation from a College near Cherthala, and he knew the roads around here! The driver too was well versed with the route - he seemed to be a regular guy in this section before getting promoted to Volvos!

We kept very good pace on the road - almost all overtakes were long ones - I mean we overtook 3-4 cars at one go. Once past Cherthala, our driver let the beast rip. The beast took out all its might, but we kept our speed restricted to 90kmph. The bus was taking rough patches very well - the bus is a good 2 years and 5 months old, and has clocked well over 5 lakhs kilometres. But the engine still seemed young, and was kicking! By 2100, we were past Aroor. We reached Vyttila around 2115 - a few guys got off. We stopped at Kadavanthra as well as Pallimukku to drop passengers. We finally pulled into Ernakulam Bus Station, sharp at 2130 hrs! Now, our driver was confused as to which side was the fuel tank - I was quick to say, "both sides". He did not believe, but he got off the bus with me to confirm!

This was my fastest run from Trivandrum to Ernakulam - the last time the Volvo took a good 5:30 hours. This time we took only 4:50 hrs. For Rs. 251, the Volvo service is too good. The only disadvantage is that these buses do not have reservations, and is not very reliable. Very often, the service is cancelled, and replaced with Deluxe buses. I was perhaps lucky this time, to have the Garuda flying on the day. I hope KSRTC gets more such buses, and ensures punctual running of such money spinning routes.

Buckle up... you are worth a lot!

2011-04-27T18:45:00.000+05:30

Why should I wear the seat belt? We are in the city, and you are not going to be driving fast....

Its so uncomfortable.. there is no cops around. Why should I pull that this over?

I'll hold it over.. there is no checking.

These are among the few common statements that I get when people are asked to buckle up - wear their seatbelts. I've seen people getting irritated when asked to buckle up. At many points, I declare blunt - buckle up, else we ain't moving.

Wearing seat belt is often seen as an offensive by the so-called modern and literate society in India. Although there exists a law mandating all passengers to wear seat belts, it is at best implemented selectively. Only front seat passengers are forced to wear seatbelt - and in many cases people wear them only when entering city limits or police hotspots, and remove the moment they leave the zone - as if they are doing a favour to the police.

Please wear the seatbelt the moment you sit in a Car - irrespective of whether you are in the front seat or at the rear. Lives are very precious, and it isn't fair to leave them on road.

Seatbelts and Helmets are the most hated stuff by drivers in our country - its not uncommon to see guys wearing helmets on their hands, or better still leave it hanging on the mirror - afterall, the mirror is more precious than their head. The police have come up with an interesting phrase:

Omlet aakan njan ille, helmet itte odikkoo (Translation: I don't want to become an omlette. Will drive only with a helmet).

A very amusing sentence, but conveys a sad reality of what could happen to one's head in case of accident!

See this video to know how important Seat belts are:

I stop my post with the video above. (Video taken from YouTube: Copyright rests with the original creator)

China Town.. No Warranty!

2011-04-16T23:18:00.000+05:30

This year's Vishu set a battle between the two big M's of Malayalam Cinema. I had the mis-fortune of watching one of them - and have no energy left to watch the other.

How many times would have seen Suraj portraying a local goon, getting beaten by every tom-dick-and-harry in town, and finally getting thrown around? I have lost count of seeing him in such roles. Back in the 90s, Jagathy Sreekumar had specialised in such roles, and Suraj seems to take over the crown from Jagathy. (Jagathy is a classic actor, and he is beyond comparision with any other actor today in the industry).

China Town is an attempt by Rafi Mecartin, who are known for good Comedy-Suspense movies, to re-create their magic. The movie is yet another multi-starrer, featuring Mohanlal, Dileep and Jayaram. The movie falters right from scene 1, and is no where near the magic of Rafi-Mecartin Movies of the past. China Town follows an age-old thread of dad getting killed by don, and son getting out to revenge the don. The only difference here is that, three dads get killed, and their sons are on the prowl.

The movie starts off with a flashback scene - set in 1986 in a place called China Town in Goa. The dads run a casino is Goa (Goa is the only state in India, where Gambling is still legal), called Four Star. They get killed brutally by a don, Gowda (Pradeep Rawat, of Ghajini fame). There are four partners, of which three get killed. The Fourth partner, Gomez, returns years later (played by Captain Raju) and starts a new Casino. He finds out the sons of his lost partners, and bring them back to Goa. The sons, Mathukutty (Mohanlal), Zachariah (Jayaram) and Binoy (Dileep) then get on the prowl to take revenge on Gowda.

Mathukutty is a local goon, while Zachariah is a broke businessman. Binoy is a serial lover who goes behind any girl he sees. The introduction scene of Mohanlal is comical, and the actor has shown his dedication in most of the scenes. Dileep plays the same old comical lover in his introduction scenes. The heroines in the movie, Kavya Madhavan, Poonam Bajwa and Dipasha, do not have much to do, other than dance around with the heros. The first half of the movie is rollicking, with lots of slapstick comedy and the heros shouting out aloud at each other. Suraj plays the comic don yet again - getting beaten and thrown around by our heros! A good majority of the scenes in the movie seems to have been copied straight from a few older movies - especially the scene where Dileep plays a paralysed guy in front of a girl (Dipasha) only to get beaten by Mathukutty and Zachariah, and still act like nothing has happened.

The second half is outright confusing and abrupt. All the suspense, as they call it, happens in the second part. The second half has a lot of drunken brawls, confusion in every scene, and infighting. Suraj offers a white powder to the heros, which induces "dementia" to the hero and confusion ensues. Finally the movie ends abruptly, so abruptly and people were still gaping at the screen! Imagine seeing "Directed by blah blah" all of a sudden on the screen! But wait - there were more things happening even as the end credits start rolling - the background score seemed as if it was recorded at some theatre, with lot of people shouting at each other!

Mohanlal has proved that he is one dedicated actor - the actor has performed dance sequences with utmost ease. Lalettan feels at home as he dances on screen. The heroines have been totally wasted in the movie. The movie shows a warning which reads "We do not support atrocities against women" (or something like that - the warning is apt, since the roles the ladies play in the movie is more of an atrocity! They have nothing to do, but play eye-candy! The two northies in the movie Pradeep Rawat and Bharat Dabholkar do exactly what bollywood actors do in Malayalam - they speak in malayalam to the characters in the movie, but they talk to each other in Hindi! And, the whole of Goa speaks Malayalam!! Quite of lot of the intro scenes were shot in a set - and that was obvious everywhere.

Last but not the least: Dileep has done a very decent role - he feels at home while playing that stupid romeo. There are quite a lot of humorous scenes, thanks to him. Suraj has portrayed that local goon character for the nth time, but he has done it decently. Overall the movie lacks any logic - but if you love Slapstick comedy, this is the movie for you. The story ends abrupt - perhaps the script writers did not find an apt ending, and had to meet the deadline.

Verdict: I'd rate it a 3 on 5 (7.5 on 10). Leave your brains at home, and laugh your stomach out! Go for it if you are looking at laughter riot.

Generosity from Kallada...

2011-04-15T12:12:00.000+05:30

Some of you would have read about my misadventure on a Kallada bus to Madurai (for the uninitiated, read it here). After a tiring and sleepless journey to Madurai, I decided it was enough, and shot off a mail to Kallada Travels. I wasn't expecting any reply, but decided to go ahead to vent my frustration. After hitting the Send button, I went on with my work in Madurai. It had rained badly the previous night, and the city was horribly dirty.

In the evening, I headed straight to the Kallada office at Madurai, and asked if they could get me a refund. They said it was not possible, and I needed to contact their Cochin office. I had no other go, but resign to fate. I reached my room towards night, and opened my Gmail inbox - only to be surprised! The official at Kallada had replied! He apologised for the inconvenience, and offered a free ticket for my return journey!

A couple of days before my return journey, I headed to the travel agent (the sole selling agent for Kallada in Madurai) to process my freebie. I called up the contact at Kallada, and the agent spoke to him directly. I was quickly issued a ticket for my journey - the "ticket" was a marking on the booking chart - there was no document.

On the day, er! Night, of journey - March 02, 2011, I checked out my room, had dinner and proceeded towards "Complex" bus station - situated near Periyar Bus Station. As I entered the bus station, I saw the Kallada bus (KL-45-E-4100) parked, all set to head to Madurai. The crew were no where to be seen. I walked towards the office. The agent asked me to wait. He called up the Kallada office in Ernakulam once again, and confirmed my seat - I was issued a boarding pass very quickly. The Boarding pass read my seat number as "12 (F/S)". Around 21:25, the agent sent a person to escort us to the bus.

By now, the bus was opened. I left my baggage in compartment below the passenger deck, and then got in to the bus. I remembered that I did not have water with me, and got off to get a bottle. I boarded the bus just as the driver switched on the engine - the bus was vibrating badly. I got in and settled at my seat - just when I realised that there were no bottle holders! Had a tough time keeping the bottle. By now a recent Malayalam comedy flick was played on TV. There were all of 11 passengers in the 41 seater bus - Kallada is not doing great on the route for sure.

The clock ticked past 2145 - there was no sign of our bus moving. In the meantime, more passengers joined the bus. We started moving at around 2210 - 40 minutes behind schedule. But the driver was still sure of arriving Ernakulam by 6 AM. The bus ran through Arasaradi, and then through the "ring road", to finally enter the 4-Laned highway. Once on the highway, the driver started ripping off - but the speeds weren't very high. The bus was an 8-year old, and clearly showed signs of aging. The seats were in good shape - thankfully.

The ride got choppy after we exited the highway at Dindugal, and entered the road towards Pollachi. The road was in bad shape at many places - especially at Level crossings. I fell asleep soon after crossing Oddanchathiram. I woke up when the bus was running through Kuthiran - the road was too harsh here, and all the unevenness of the road was passed on to the passengers. I slept again - and woke up around 4 in the morning, when the bus stopped at Thrissur to unload parcels. I slept again, and woke up only when we reached Aluva. One passenger got off at Aluva. I got off at Edappally - the driver was co-operative enough to drop me exactly where I wanted. He parked the bus on the roadside, and got the luggage compartment opened. Walked a little, and got my car to head home!

Notes: The breakdown, and the helplessness of the crew was certainly a big black mark on their service. But, their complimentary ticket offer did go a long way in calming me down. The buses are not in very good shape - afterall, they've outlived most of their expected life. The buses rattle like nobody's business - the ride quality is badly compromised as well. However, the Kallada service is a God's gift to many people who travel from Ernakulam to Madurai and back, very frequently. Kallada certainly needs to improve their customer care badly - they no longer enjoy monopoly on any of their routes.

Urumi - a real masterpiece

2011-04-03T18:49:00.001+05:30

This was a hatrick of rare sorts for me.. watching a movie every weekend for three weeks in a row. Another specialty was watching all the three movies that released over the past 20 days, watching all movies within 3-4 days of release. The first two weeks had very average movies, while this week takes the cake with a masterpiece. Yes - Am talking of Santosh Sivan's magnum opus, the second costliest movie in Malayalam, Prithviraj's own production - Urumi.

I must admit I purchased tickets for this movie with huge expectations - and I wasn't disappointed even a bit. The past two movies of Santosh Sivan - Ananthabhadram and Raavanan (he was the cinematographer for this one), were gripping. While Ananthabhadram literally scared the wits out of me, Raavanan had jaw-dropping visuals and was an excellent piece of cinematography. I watched the movie at the recently renovated Asoka A/C DTS hall in Kodungallur. I was amazed to see that the hall was full (packed to capacity) for a noon-show on a Sunday! All seats were sold - and patrons were in well before the show began.

The common talk about the movie is that this piece of work talks about a boy who wanted to kill Vasco-Da-Gama. Given this 'concept' one would expect this movie to be in the lines of Pazhassiraja (the MT Vasudevan classic, starring Mammootty). But, Santosh Sivan had something different in mind - Urumi is a fiction movie based on a few historical incidents. The script is very convincing, and has been presented in a very interesting and gripping way. The movie revolves around two easy-go youth, Krishnadas (played by Prithviraj) and his friend (played by Prabhudeva), who are in deep financial mess. A big corporate offers him a grand sum for his ancestral property. The story unfurls as a flashback, when Krishnadas goes to his native to sell off the property.

The main story is set in the 1500s, when Vasco da gama 'discovers' India. The movie portrays the cruelty unleashed by the Portuguese on the locals. The movie talks of some incidents that have not been heard of in the past. The central character in the movie is played by Prithviraj (playing Kelu Nayanar). He is ably supported by his child hood friend Prabhudeva (playing Vavvali). Prabhudeva plays a witty role, and his mannerisms were well appreciated by the audience. Kelu Nayanar is a brave hero, with the sole ambition of killing Vasco Da Gama (played by Robin Pratt). Kelu's father (Chirakkal Kothuwal, played by Arya) was brutally killed by Vasco Da Gama, which instills the fire in Kelu to kill Vasco. Kelu makes a golden Urumi (a double sided flexible sword made of metal) to kill Vasco. The movie revolves around Kelu's brave attempts to kill Vasco, and whether he succeeds in his aim is the suspense.

During the course of his ambition, Kelu comes across Chirakkal Ayesha (played by Genelia D'Souza). Genelia plays an unusual role, far from the regular bubbly roles that we are used to seeing from her. Genelia does an amazing job as well - traces of he bubbly character does surface once in a while, but she has taken efforts to portray the role with utmost seriousness. Amol Gupte plays an important role in the movie, as Chirakkal Thampuran who plays to the tunes of his minister Chenichery Kurup (Jagathy Sreekumar). Jagathy was performed excellently as a man with womanish body language. Tabu plays a cameo in the movie, appearing only in one song sequence. Vidya Balan plays Makkom who appears in a song - an item number of different sorts. Nithya Menon plays Chirakkal Bala who is impressed by Vavvali. She perfoms an amazing song flawlessly, and steals the show most of the time.

The cast is huge, with lot more characters coming in and going out often - the movie has actors from most states in India, and all of them have been brought under the umbrella very well by Santosh Sivan. The songs in the movie is done by Deepak Dev. There are 7 songs in the movie, interspersed between scenes in an excellent manner. The number of songs appears high for a movie dealing with a serious subject, but the songs have been used well to support the script. The re-recording is excellent - background music has been scored really well. I did feel some resemblance to a particular song from the movie Guru at many places - especially the song featuring Vidya Balan.

Dialogues are crisp - really crisp. There are quite some vulgar references - but all in chaste language. The dialogues impart natural humour - without the conventional slapstick methods. The dialogues surely had the hall blast off in laughter. The dialogues are written in the typical accent of Northern Malabar. Dubbing artists have perfomed excellently - lip syncing for the non-malayalee actors have been done excellently. Prabhudeva dubs himself for this role - which is a malayalam speaking tamilian character.

The movie is a masterpiece in all respects. At 170 minutes, the movie grips viewers to the edge of their seat through the movie. This movie is certainly not for people who are looking only to laugh through the movie - this one is a serious masterpiece. The movie has comedy, romance, thrills, suspense, all laced with in flavour of revenge. The movie has been made in an unconventional format - a period drama without too much emphasis on the minute historical details, made in an easy to comprehend format. There are no bombastic dialogues, no over reacting hero playing to the gallery every time or unwarranted cheap comedy. Actors have been cast very well - all characters have a well defined role to play, and have done a very justifiable job.

The movie talks from an unseen point of view - talking from the point of the oppressed.The cinematography shows the seas from an unseen angle. The angles are swift, taken brilliantly. The cinematography has the Santosh Sivan stamp everywhere. So intro scenes resembled Ananthabhadram, while some other scenes resemble Raavanan. My only grouse about the movie is the choice of location. The movie is shot in jaw dropping locales, but the surroundings hardly resemble Kerala. The greenery was so typical of rural Maharashtra, and terrain no where near that of Kerala. I hoped Santosh had considered the forest range around Chalakkudy for this movie - that would have effortlessly portrayed Kerala. Malshej Ghat (in Thane District of Maharashtra) is no doubt an excellent place!

Overall: Excellent Cinematography, jawdropping visuals, magical images, a first-rate script, deadly action, energy packed timeless story - one movie that people would love watch through.

Rating: 9 on 10 - strictly from a common viewer's point of view. I am not a movie critic by profession, and hence the review is from a viewer's point.

The 'D' Day - August 15...

2011-03-27T18:00:00.001+05:30

Like every movie, this one too starts with a shot of the sun rising in. We start off with lots of media personnel waiting outside a hospital, eagerly to hear that the chief minister is dead! Interestingly, a daily newspaper starts composing its front page at 6.15 in the morning!!! The name of this newspaper is very similar to the mouthpiece of the Communist party in Kerala. The party secretary arrives at the hospital to enquire about the current status of the Chief Minister - he arrives in a joyous mood. Moments after he arrives at the hospital, the doctors come out of the ICU and announces that the CM is safe! The party secretary returns with a gloomy face!

The doctors realise long after the CM goes back home that he was poisoned! The chief doctor (played by veteran actor Madhu) calls up the police to inform the matter. The shocked police officers brainstorm, and immediately decide to set up a special officer to investigate the issue. No guesses who the officer is - there comes a bullet round the corner. Perumal (Mammootty) rides a Bullet all the time, with a sun-glass all the time. Perumal storms into the brainstorming session - he over-rides all his superiors, including the DGP! No where in the movie do they reveal the rank of Perumal - in the earlier part of this movie (August 1), he was a CB-CID.

Oh! Did I forget to say this - I am talking of the latest Mammootty flick, August 15. Directed by Shaji Kailas, produced by M Mani (of Sunitha Productions). Story is by SN Swamy - er! We don't need a story here - its the same as August 1, with just a few edits here and there.

The investigation finally begins! Perumal continues to run around on his Bullet. The re-recording went haywire at many places, with the sound of a Pulsar being used instead of a Bullet! I never knew Bullet came with an electric start! Very much like his favorite ride, Perumal loves firing bullets here and there - he fires a bullet even to pin a paper on the wall! Perumal is too stylish - and the camera struggles to keep pace with Perumal! Far too many close-ups make watching a pain for the viewer.

The villains are exposed too early in the movie. The killer, played by Siddique, is not even a shade of the role played by Captain Raju. Captain Raju was stylish, while Siddique struggles hard to keep up with the original. Siddique presents himself with a unique gait, and a very peculiar way of pronouncing words. While Captain Raju played many "fancy dresses", Siddique plays only one. Sadly, Siddique doesn't modify his dialogue render according to the role he is playing.

The Tom and Jerry show starts soon after the first half, and Jerry always proves himself smarter than Tom. I guess you know who tom and jerry are (for the uninitiated - Tom is the hero). At one poin, the villain comes very close to the hero, but our hero sadly looks at the villain escaping - no attempts are made to capture or shoot down the villain! The game continues on till the climax, where the villain is shot dead by the hero - in a manner very similar to the original version! And a burial too is done, with the cross reading "unknown"!

There are far too many similarities between August 1 and August 15 - both run on more or less the same storyline and screenplay, except a few changes (the changes are far and few). The Chief Minister's role is played by Nedumudi Venu (playing VG), while the role of the party secretary is played by Sai Kumar. Lalu Alex plays a very humorous ADGP - who is more worried about his shirt crumbling than any other issue! There are many situations where viewers are irritated by the ADGP's mannerisms - but succeeds in tickling funny bones. Almost every sequence featuring Lalu Alex (playing Jose Zackaria) evokes comedy.

Perumal, on his part, too tries to deliver a few comic dialogues. Perumal frequently visits the Police Cyber Cell, which is manner by three executive style-dressed girls - much like a customer care centre of a mobile phone operator. C'mon! A bit of reality here would've helped - when did police department start providing modern dresses to their staff?

The screenplay has a lots of loop holes - but none seemed predictable! The story has been presented in a decent manner. Quite a lot of scenes appear similar to earlier Mammootty films like The Truth, August 1, CBI Dairykurippu, etc. The presentation is not gripping, but does keep the viewer glued to their seats. Mammotty presents his character with a very special gait - walking with his hands waving behind. He always walks in slow-motion, with his sun-glasses on. He even takes on the goons single handed, that too without even removing his sun-glasses!The climax is somewhat innovative - the villain comes up with a very unique idea to kill his target - but finally gets killed by our here (as usual).

Verdict: Average. The movie has nothing special to talk about. Its watchable. I'd give it at 7 on 10. (All the marks go to Mammootty for the excellent character he has played!).

Howlers paradise!

2011-03-27T15:13:00.000+05:30

That was one helluva experience! A rare blend of conventional movie hall with a feel of a multiplex! A renovated movie hall, Asoka, re-opened recently at Kodungallur. This was once a 1000+ seater conventional movie hall, with a very huge balcony. The hall was then called Essen - and was owned by a very famous family in Kodungallur. Essen was later sold to another party, who renamed it as Asoka. The theatre was renovated when it got the name Asoka. The hall, according to anecdotes, came up some time in the late 1970s or early 1980s. The theatre is located right next to National Highway-17.

Asoka closed down close to a year ago, for renovation. The hall opened again on March 24, 2011. This time the hall was totally re-done and airconditioned. The seating capacity came down to about 610 now, just around half of what it used to be in the past years. The hall has been tastefully re-done. Asoka is now the ONLY Air-conditioned movie hall in Kodungallur. Kodungallur has three movie halls - Ashoka (AC), Sree Kaleeswari and Silpi. The last two halls are not airconditioned, but feature DTS audio system. Sree Kaleeswari is a very old hall - but is very uncomfortable, hot and congested. Silpi is a totally run down hall.

The reopening of Asoka heralds a new era for movie goers in Kodungallur. Before this, Kodungallur had one airconditioned hall - Mogul. Mogul is now dead and gone - the hall closed down some time in 2008, and has since been demolished completely. There are reports that a two-screened Multiplex would come up at the place. Asoka is the only place for people wishing for a decent movie experience in Kodungallur.

Me and my family had long been waiting for the hall to re-open. The opening came up as a big surprise - and inaugural movie was August 15 starring Mammootty. Sparing no time, I booked tickets for a Saturday Second Show (Night show, starting at 9pm). We started off from home around 8.40pm, and were in the hall by 8.50pm. Getting into the parking was a scary experience - two wheelers were parked on both sides of the entrance, and it was a tight rope-walk to get my car into the parking lot. Parking is certainly ill-planned. Left the car at the parking lot, and we walked into the hall.

The entrance was well-lit - and the roof was really well done. The entrance was impressive - the area was cool. We were welcomed by the guys at the entrance, and were escorted to our seats. At each point in the hall, there were uniformed chaps to help us reach our seat.The seats were old-fashioned with wooden hand rests. The recliners work very well, and cushioning was excellent. But I felt that the area around the head rests were a bit hard - nevertheless, the seating is excellent. The steps were well-lit. The entire hall is well-lit. The movie started off very late - a delay of about 15 minutes. Patrons did object to the delay with - Kooooooooosssss! Patrons were howling at the top of their pitch.

The movie started off in fashion - the curtains were lifted with loud background music. The projection quality was good - but I felt the music system needs a bit of re-caliberation. The airconditioning was a bit too heavy. The hall wasn't full - the entire last row was empty. A lot of youngsters occupied the last row - and they were howling out loud at the top of their pitch. Very loud commentary, often laced with vulgar comments, followed. The movie watching experience was marred by these loud comments and frequent howls. The movie hall is too good, and would certainly love to watch another movie there.

Some points that I missed: The ticketing system is computerised. I was the first customer to purchase a ticket two days in advance - the guy at the counter had a tough time negotiating through their system to issue my tickets. They charge a reservation fee of Rs. 5. The ticket rate is Rs. 65 (Gold Circle). There are 540 seats in Gold Class, and some 70 seats in another class (that one costs only Rs. 35). The big movie hall has only one snack counter - imagine 540 people fighting with hardly a few guys at the counter!!! They badly need to open another snack counter, or may be bring in À la carte service for patrons, like the multiplexes.

Apologies for the absolute lack of pictures - would try to get some pics some time soon.

Christian Brothers.... old wine in new bottle!

2011-03-24T17:24:00.001+05:30

Setting records of sorts, the multi-starrer movie, Christian Brothers, was released at over 300 centres across India. The movie opened at over 150 screens in Kerala alone - following the current trend of taking home a big opening in the first week of release, and then forget the movie forever. Christian Brothers is no different.

Christi-an Brothers is a movie cut out to meet expectations of just the fan bases of the three main stars in the movie. Christian Brothers is among a series of multi-starrer movies that are getting ready to hit the silverscreens. This movie has Mohanlal, Suresh Gopi, Dileep and Sarathkumar as the lead "heros", and Lakshmi Gopalaswamy, Lakshmi Rai, Kavya Madhavan and Kaniha as the lead "heroines". The word "Heroine" is a mis-nomer here, since none of the ladies in the movie have any concrete role to play - other than play eye-candy. The script for the movie was penned by Udayakrishna and Siby K Thomas. Music by Deepak Dev and Visuals by Anil Nair. The movie by directed by Joshi... err! Joshiy.

This is the umpteenth movie that shows the "Dad of the hero" doubting the hero, and blindly believing the villain, only to realise at the end of the movie that he was wrong, and then apologize to the hero. The Villain then harms the "dad", and the hero rescues him. The very same thread happens here as well - Sai Kumar (playing Palomattathu Varghese Mappaila) has two sons - Christi and Jojy. Mappilai is an ex-serviceman, and a man of principles (Like every armyman in movies!). He gets disappointed after both his sons divert from his ambitions - he 'kicks' our here (Christi) out of his house, when the villain (Suresh Krishna, playing Georgie) tells Mappilai that Christi is an underworld don in Mumbai! C'mon! Haven't we seen this happening in other movies as well??

The movie starts off in Munnar - unusually, the Baddies are introduced first - the villain brigade is led by Vijayaraghavan, ably supported by Jayan, Biju Menon and Subair. The villains do nothing but keep walking around a pool sipping liquor, and killing people at will (like every villain). Biju Menon plays a police office (Hariharan) in this movie. Although the title of the movie hints at a movie portraying a family feud - this movie is 'daringly' different. Christi (Mohanlal) is a renowed Police informer (however, the visuals actually gives a feel of him being a don, than being an informer), while Jojy (Dileep) is a joyous youngster, who studies theology and is in the process of becoming a priest.

Jojy goes to Rome to finish his theology studies, and return as a priest - but as fate has it, he falls in love with Kavya Madhavan (Meenakshi) and quits his studies. The love blossoms through a song - it would not be surprising if you felt the song resembles the song maine pyar kiya from CID Moosa. Dileep plays his characteristic antiques - not much different from his trademark "Oru Kvachu Free" dialogue, from the 90s (Dileep was an actor in Asianet's Comicola, the predecessor show to the current Cinemala). And, it turns out that Meenakshi is the daughter of the state (Kerala) home minister (played by Devan). As you guessed it right, Meenakshi is quickly "packed" back home, and Jojy is harmed. Meenakshi disappears from the airport - er! She is kidnapped from the airport.

Enter our Hero - Mohanlal. Christi is called to Kerala to help secure the release of Meenakshi. And, true to the name of a Malayalee, the Minister hatches a plan to trap Christi once Meenakshi is trapped - Come our second here: Suresh Gopi, who plays a police office (I forgot the name of his character - it was some vadakkan), as usual. Suresh Gopi looked too "disfigured" to play a police officer in this one - but he, certainly, has preserved his half-kilometre long dialogues and the "I'll die for the country" attitute. He is entrusted with sending Christi behind the bars - which he does. And, like in every movie, all the "goodies" get together, and kill all the baddies!

The movie will remind of many recent movies - Twenty-Twenty, Pokkiriraja, Sphadikam, etc etc. (the list would go on and on...) The overall story (oops! It doesn't have one - so I'd call it a Thread) is the same old mix masala like Twenty-Twenty. An array of stars battling each other, with no particular story. There are few dialogues which tickle funny bones. The director has tried to bring in some slapstick comedy, in the form of Suraj Venjaramood playing a very annoying character - the jokes, or what ever you call it, are stale and often irritating. Harisri Asokan plays a marriage broker yet again.

Salim Kumar has played a pretty decent role - just the right amount of dialogues and his mannerisms are well controlled. The four heroines have been wasted - except Kaniha, who has a few dialogues, the other three heroines are around only for the sake of being around. All that the two Lakshmis (Gopalaswamy and Rai) do are dance around in songs, and then vanish. There are three songs in the movie - one is outright annoying, while one is added only for the sake of skin show.

The movie runs for three solid hours - perhaps one song and a few scenes less would've made the movie a bit more engaging. The song Sayya Ve is added solely with the purpose of lengthening the movie, and to add some skin show to the otherwise bare movie. The song Moham Kondal is just about hummable - but the picturisation is somewhat irritating. The song Karthavey is outright irritating - and the choreography imitates the song Maine Pyar Kiya (From CID Moosa) in every step.

I felt badly disappointed at the end of the movie - seriously upset at the story, or lack of it, of the movie. The director has been successful in giving equal importance to all the stars (only the heros) in the movie, in what could be called a soup of ego. The movie questions in the logic of the viewer at many points, and be sure to switch off your brains before you start watching the movie. If you have a DVD of Twenty-Twenty, you are better off watching that at home. If you have lots of money to spare, or free tickets to the movie, be sure to leave your brains at home. Now, all the focus is on China Town, the next multi-starrer mash-up.

On a side note, I am glad Thilakan has not been wasted in this movie - he should be glad that he is not part of this poor show.

The two-decked fantasy...

2011-03-13T22:46:00.000+05:30

People looked in awe as this gleaming tall structure crawled through the crowded highway stretch between Vyttila and Kalamassery (both in Kochi, Kerala). Crew of private buses that over took this structure smiled, and mocked at the driver. Some people hesistated to even board the bus, when we screeched into bus stops. The bus stopped when ever somebody waved his hand - but very little people did so! At just Rs. 5.50, I made a 50 minute journey of fantasy!

Still wondering what am I talking about? The Kerala Road Transport Corporation launched a brand new Ashok Leyland Titan Double Decker bus in Kochi city. The bus was a matter of prestige for the incumbent Transport Minister, and he ensured that he got one bus for his constituency. The corporation purchased two of these Rs. 36 lakh monsters, one each for Kochi and Trivandrum. The buses were built by Antony Garage, Mumbai. The bus for Kochi was flagged off during the inauguration of Phase-I of Vyttila Mobility Hub - and was a surprise for the people who assembled at the venue.

The bus remained in the garage for another week, while the authorities hunted for a route where they could run this monster. Finally, they zeroed in on 'Thoppumpady - Angamaly' route. The bus was based at Angamaly - for the simple reason that the bus cannot enter Ernakulam or Aluva depots. Ernakulam was ruled out due to the numerous criss-crossing wires and low lying trees, while Aluva was ruled out since the garage has a "fort" like entrance, which is just about adequate for normal buses. The funniest part here is that Angamaly depot now functions out of a small corner inside Aluva garage - the maintenance of the double decker has already gone into a tizzy - more on this later...

One fine hot Saturday afternoon, I was battling myself from the hot sun, sitting at a dusty bus stop along the "Ernakulam Bypass", at Vyttila. It was damn hot and dusty.. the seats in the bus stop were hot enough to use them as hot plates for cooking. The clock was ticking past 15:15. The double decker would have started from Thoppumpady now - I was just hoping that the bus was running on that day. In the meantime, a Volvo glided in to the stop - heading to the airport. Two passengers joined in here, almost all seats were taken! The old routes are now doing really well.

15:30... still hot and dusty. No sign of the double decker, any where in sight. I though, 10 more minutes... if it doesn't turn up, I am on my way back. Another Volvo glided in to the stop now... this one was also crowded. No standees though.

15:33... a tall bus enters the overbridge (Thycoodam Underpass), I can see at a distance. I jumped up in excitement.

15:35.. the bus rolls into the stop. I merrily jump into the bus. Another passenger joins me. I set foot on the staircase to go to the upper deck, when the conductor interrupts me. He said.. "take a ticket and go up".. no worries. I replied.. "One Kalamassery" and gave a Rs. 10 note. He printed a ticket, and asked for change. The fare was just Rs. 5.50. I gave him change, got the ticket and walked up. The front seat on the upper deck was empty... i literally grabbed on. But, Ouch! It was hot!

15:40... We are still standing at Vyttila signal.. just turned green, and the bus crawled forward. We stopped at the main bus stop for Vyttila - quite a lot of youngsters got in.. and all of them came to the upper deck. The bus stopped here for over 5 minutes.. while a lot of other buses overtook us. Passengers and crew in these buses were "looking up" to our bus.. some were looking with awe, while some others gave out a sarcastic smile.

15:47... we crawl out of Vyttila bus stop. I am using the word crawl every time, since the bus actually runs only at around 35kmph, and sitting on the top feels like the bus is crawling at single digit speeds. The sun was too harsh, and it was getting hot up there. The crawl continued.. we stopped at every single bus stop, and not more than a person or two got in at each place.

15:59... we reach Edappally bypass junction. The bus literally emptied out. The upper deck now had only around 3 passengers (including me) now. I moved seats and checked comfort levels at different places in the upper deck.

16:08.. we are approaching Kalamassery. I decide to head to the lower deck. I took a seat neat the conductor, and struck some conversation with him. The bus, according to him, is running near empty on almost all trips. The timings and route is poor it seems. The collection is very bad - hope some sense prevails on KSRTC soon, and the route is revised. The conductor revealed some interesting stuff about how the bus is parked and maintained - the bus is parked inside Angamaly shopping complex (it seems, it is the only place where this bus can be parked currently). Diesel is taken in cans from Aluva, and poured into the fuel tank!

16:13.. we roll past Kalamassery Premier junction, and screech to a complete halt. The bus is parked on the road side, and the engine is shut. There ends my 37 minute long 'dream run' in the Double Decker bus. It was after about three years that I got into a double decker.. this was indeed a ride I'd remember forever.

Coming to my experience of the ride.. To begin with, the seats are of horrible quality. They were very flimsy, and made a crackling noise every time a passenger moved - even the normal moves people do while seated. The cushioning was on the harder side, but was adequate for a City bus.The front seats on the upper deck are poorly ventilated - there front glass is fixed, and hence restricted air circulation. Noise levels are very low on the upper deck. The ride is a bit choppy at the front seat, but was very relaxed towards the rear. Down in the lower deck, the engine noise was on the higher side - it might settle once the bus turns older. The ride comfort is far better in the lower deck than on the upper deck.

The driver was very cautious, and never over-sped. He negotiated trees very calmly, and we did not rub against tree branches anywhere - but with the monsoons around, I am sure the bus will 'record' some scratches on its head. The route is uninspiring. The bypass route gets a lot of collection, but people hesitate getting into this bus since it goes only upto Kalamassery. KSRTC should consider running it upto Angamaly itself, or atleast to the Airport or Aluva bypass. The bus reached Kalamassery at 16:13, and the return departure was only at 17:00. It isn't a brilliant idea to let the bus remain parked for 47 minutes on the road side. They should reschedule the trips, and run more trips per day - the bus will not earn recall value unless passengers see it running on the road.

Newspapers reported that Kochi had double deckers from 1969 to 1975. Interestingly, my dad just said that he had traveled in them back in 1973~74, while he was employed in Kochi. He still remembers that the bus ran from Palarivattom to Wellingdon Island - wow! What a prime route that was! Sadly, the city roads are out-of-bounds for the new double decker! If only the KSEB accomplishes the task of converting overhead electric lines to underground ones, will the double decker ever run in the city. BEST (Mumbai) manages to run double deckers in Mumbai city (Thanks to the underground electric cables)... I wish the KSRTC too accomplishes that fact. Until then, city dwellers need to go out to the bypass road to enjoy a ride on the mammoth. Kids are certainly gonna love them. Many of them have never seen one in their lifetime - so dads and moms, take some time to get your kids on the double decker!

Whats the fare, buddy?

2011-03-11T18:59:00.000+05:30

Every time bus operators in Kerala demand a fare hike, the government usually goes about describing the unbelievably low bus fares. My experiences with bus travel in TN has been very limited in the past few years. I've only been in buses running in Coimbatore and Chennai. Last month end, I had an opportunity to visit to Madurai (posted earlier). I was looking forward for that trip.

During the course of my stay in Madurai, I was to travel from Periyar Bus Station (The "central" bus station in Madurai) to Madurai Kamaraj University (about 12 kms from the city, on the Theni Highway). I was expecting a bus fare of around Rs. 3-4, given the bus fares in Coimbatore. It was off to a lazy start on the first day - having not slept properly the previous night. I reached the bus station, and wandered around without a particular aim. I kept asking people about which bus would take me to my destination. Finally a driver directed me to the correct bus.

The bus had started moving by then - a quick question to one of the passengers in the bus, and I hopped in. The bus was badly crowded by then - I just about managed to get hold of some standing space. The conductor gave me a ticket - it was Rs. 6. I convinced myself - its a 45 minute ride, and I was paying only Rs. 6 - I would have been paying anywhere between Rs. 15 and Rs. 25 in Kerala for the same ride! The bus kept crawling - literally crawling all the way.

In the evening, I was charged Rs. 9 for the return journey! The same distance, same number of stops and the same traveling time, but was charged Rs. 3 more! The justification was that the bus was a "Semi-Low Floor" model. The next morning, I took the Rs.9 bus again. On the third day, I took an old looking bus, with horrible seats. I had a painful journey, and the fare this time was only Rs. 4!!! The bus took the same running time, stopping at the very same stops!

A couple of days later, I got in to a similar looking buses, and had Rs. 4 change with me - but this time, the ticket was Rs. 5!!! So, whats the real fare? How do they calculate the fare? On speaking to a friend in Madurai, I realised that there were hardly any buses in Madurai that charge only Rs. 2 as the minimum fare. The operator - TNSTC (Madurai) Limited - charges higher fares from passengers under the pretext of "upgraded" services. In reality, these buses stop at all places (or may be skipping only a couple of stops in the entire run), but charge different fares.

The state government has forced the transport corporations to charge low fares in order to please their vote banks. The corporations are now forced to increase fares under the pretext of such upgraded services. No wonder the corporations are purchasing on Semi-low floor buses for city operations and charge more than double the regular fares for these buses. Tamil Nadu has, perhaps, the best transport system. Buses operate almost 24x7, connecting almost all parts of the state. The fares are often cheap as well. But, the government needs to increase fares so that the corporations atleast make up their operational cost, and not resort to such tactics to increase revenue...

At the end, I'd just leave this question to you... Whats the real fare, buddy??

Hurdle race to Madurai!

2011-03-05T19:21:00.000+05:30

Nine Thirty PM, on February Twenty Four Twenty Eleven. I was roaming outside the office of Kallada Travels, at Palarivattom, Ernakulam. I had booked on the Kallada Travels' Ernakulam-Madurai Volvo service. I had to be in Madurai before 9AM the next morning, and this bus was promising a 6 AM arrival there. There were just one more person at the office waiting for the bus. This bus is the last Kallada passing through the place, and hence the guys at the office were preparing to close down.

I took a couple of night shots of the road, and the church on the other side of the road. I was hoping for a "purple" coloured bus, and it so happened that the same bus turned up! The bus was KL-45-E-7929. My seat was #12. But there was a gentleman already occupying the seat - the bus was totally empty, and I decided to take Seat #8 instead. We had all of 7 passengers in the bus. The bus was noisy, and the ride was a bit patchy. The driver drove at a slow pace all the time - he was worried about poor effectiveness of the headlamps.

From the talk between the driver and the assistant, I got to know that this bus had an accident a few months ago, and the front was rebuilt after the accident. The accident happened when the driver fell asleep while on the job - it seems the driver was working continuously without a break for a couple of days. The narration send shivers down my spine - and just kept praying that the driver take us to Madurai in one piece. The driver maintained speeds in the range of 60~80 kmph all the time.

The bus stopped at the Aluva office (near the traffic signal).. just as the bus was about to start, a guy (in mid 40s) literally forced into the bus. He identified himself as a "Sub-Editor" for one of the big "M" newspapers (the one that is based in Kottayam), and also the Secretary of Youth Congress. The driver patiently explained that he is not permitted to carry passengers without a ticket/boarding pass, and that he should get off the bus. The guy threatened the driver with consequences, and threatened to call up the owner of the bus. The driver reiterated that he is not permitted to carry passengers without a ticket - by now the guy had already taken a seat. The bus too started off.

The assistant took over the role, and explained patiently to the guy that they were not permitted to carry passengers not mentioned in the manifest, and they could be at risk of losing their job if the extra passenger was detected. He also asked the guy to behave properly, and not threaten crew. This guy, who is surely a politician, now pulled out his phone and pretended to call up the owner of the bus. The crew retired to themselves, and were back to their pep-talk. This guy was now calling up people one after the other, and proudly informing them of his "adventure". I was trying to sleep somehow, but this guy was talking too loud for me to sleep.

The bus stopped at the Kallada office outside Sakthan Bus Station in Thrissur at around 2300. (I purposefully chose the Ernakulam boarding point, to avoid waiting at Thrissur at such odd hours). This "unruly" visitor was unloaded here. The bus also unloaded lots of parcels. We started off at 2315, and picked a few passengers from the office near the KSRTC bus station - we now had a grand total of 9 passengers (in a 41 seater bus)! I struggled hard, and managed to doze off. I woke up when the bus braked suddenly, and it switched off. The driver restarted the bus, but the gears wouldn't engage! He switched off the bus again, shifted to second gear and then cranked the bus. The bus inched forward using the power of the starter motor, and switch on.

He now realised that the clutch had failed! I was disturbed - was wondered on what was lying ahead! The bus was vibrating very badly, and the ride turned poor (the roads were inexistent around here). The bus ran for about 10 minutes on second gear, and the driver tried changing gears, but they they just don't engage! The ritual of turning off the bus, and restarting it with the second gear started again! Finally, we reached Alathur, and the driver stopped outside a petrol pump. The assistant went in, woke up the guys at the pump and got some clutch fluid. The driver replenished the clutch reservoir, and tried pumping the clutch. All this while the engine was left on, and passengers inside the bus were sleeping without being aware of the happenings!

I fell asleep sometime in between - I woke up around 0130, to find the bus still stationary at the very same place! I got off the bus now, and enquired what was going on. The driver broke the expected-but-unexpected news - the bus was dead! It cannot run anymore. He was now trying to flag down some bus, to help us get to our destination. But no buses in sight. The driver woke up passengers in the bus, and broke the news to them. A few of them got agitated, while some others were watching the drama without an idea of the happenings. A couple of us confronted the driver and asked him to get an alternative arrangement for us. He tried calling their office, but no response.

Finally, around 2:15, we had enough. A rickshaw came around, and the good soul stopped. He called up a few travel agents in Palakkad, but nobody were ready to send a vehicle to rescue us. Later, we decided to take this autorickshaw to Palakkad town and get a cab from there. Six of us got into the Autorickshaw (the remaining three were foreigners, and they chose to return to Ernakulam. The driver promised to get them a seat in one of the Kallada buses heading to Ernakulam). The rickshaw driver made a quick run to Palakkad, and dropped us there by 0250. Getting a cab was not easy - two people out of the six dropped off, and they decided to take a bus the next morning.

The remaining four were roaming around to find a cabbie who was ready to take up to Palakkad. One cabbie finally agreed - for Rs. 16 per kilometre. We had no choice, and decided to give in. The car was a Tata Indica Vista Terra (TDI). I took the front seat, and the three others took the rear seat. We started off exactly at 0300. The roads were were bad for the initial few kilometres - but turned good as we crossed Kozhinjambara. After the customary halt at the Checkpost (at Gopalapuram). We stopped for a break a while after the checkpost - I had a hot tea (It was just Rs. 2 for a tea!). I slept off sometime after we crossed Udumalaipettai - and woke up only a while before Oddanchatiram.

The driver started chatting soon after I woke up - perhaps it was attempt from him to avoid him falling asleep! I reciprocated his attempt, and we were soon chatting non-stop.We quickly reached Dindugal bypass, and stopped for refueling soon after we entered the highway. After refueling, the driver made a real quick run to Madurai. We were all dropped outside Periyar Bus Station. The city was all dirty, and roads were mucky. I had a tough time negotiating stagnant water to make my way to a hotel. I thus began my six-day long stay in Madurai on a frustrating note - the ugly environs and the "helpless" behaviour of the Kallada guys left me fuming. I retired to fate, and got ready in a jiffy and headed out for my day...

Are school buses immune to rules?

2011-02-18T09:27:00.000+05:30

School buses are perhaps the worst rashly driven vehicles on road - atleast here in Kerala. Long back, during the days I was taking my driving lessons, I was told by my instructor that School buses always get the benefit of doubt, and hence if they are involved in accident, they are less prone to be prosecuted. I've been driving since September 2004, and have since driven in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. The worst school buses that I've seen has been in Kerala - may be the observation gains more strength due to the roads of Kerala - which are at best described as "country roads".

Yesterday's accident, which took the life of 5 little angels (news, here) brings the issue of rash driving to the front. In yet another accident today, a school bus took lives of two people in Ernakulam - the rashly driven school bus hit an auto-rickshaw killing its driver and passenger on the spot. In yesterday's accident, it is claimed that the school van was driven by a 19-year old 'kid'. If my memory serves me right, a driver should have experience of atleast 5 years of driving (i.e., 5 years since issue of license for the particular class of vehicle) to be appointed as a School bus driver. In the case here, the driver might have got his licence just the previous year, or may be the same year!

Police authorities claim that the vehicle was not registered in the name of the school, and the vehicle was not painted yellow (which is the recognised paint scheme for School buses). However, images shown on TV clarify that the van did bear the name of the school, painted on its doors - this clarifies that the vehicle was solely used by the school - whether or not for carrying children. Now, it becomes the responsibility of the school to ensure that only experienced drivers are appointed.

All these raises one question - Are school buses really immune to road rules? Are they free to break rules as they like? It is normal to see them overspeeding on narrow roads, give very little respect to other road users - there has been many instances where they refuse to even move aside to let other vehicles pass on narrow roads. This high-handed behaviour of school bus drivers should certainly be put to an end. Traffic violations by School vehicles to be considered utmost serious, and very strict action should be taken against such drivers - they have no place on the drivers' seat in a School bus.

Traffic rules should be made a part of school education - this is the only way the newer generation can be educated on safe driving. The current lot of drivers (I am sorry to generalise, me too a part of this lot!) have grown up seeing their 'seniors' breaking law at will. Recently, the Kochi Traffic Police had launched a "Lane Traffic System" on Ernakulam bypass. The system was flawed in every step of planning - the system envisaged enforcing a norm where vehicles should not cut lanes without signalling, and overtaking through the left was strictly banned. BUT, the police conveniently forgot one major reason for overtaking through left - what about vehicles that crawl on the right lane? In 90% of the cases of overtaking through the left, the reason is that the vehicle ahead refuses to give way to overtake. In fact, I've noticed that many drivers would try to block anyone trying to overtake them as well - a clear "Indian Crab" attitude!

Coming back to the topic, Its high time the traffic authorities enforce strict restrictions on school buses. These buses should have strict speed restrictions, and school-bus drivers should be given refresher classes at fixed intervals. Attendance at these refresher courses should be made a mandatory requirement for renewal of their licence. A separate class of licence should be introduced for School bus drivers (if that does not exist already), and nobody without such a licence should be allowed to drive school buses (this includes ANY vehicle that carries school children on a regular basis.). Overloading of school buses is another major issue - which continues to go unchecked. At the end, the message should be clear - "School buses are NOT immune to traffic rules. They are more susceptible to them."

A political stunt?

2011-02-16T09:14:00.000+05:30

Private Bus Strikes are often an annual "festival" here in Kerala. The reasons for bus strike range from issues as meagre as altercation between passengers and conductor, to major issues like fare hike. A week back, crew of private buses in Kochi city struck work to protest their working condition, and demand a wage hike. The effects of the city bus strike was neutralised by KSRTC, which operated over 180 buses in the city (75 regular Thirukochi services, 60 JnNURM Low Floor buses and 48 extra buses) - thats a small number compared to the 650 Private city buses that were striking work.

Bus owners' association has now announced another indefinite bus strike, from February 17 (tomorrow). This time, their demands (as ever) are: Increase bus fares (already among the highest in the country), increase students' concession fares (the current fares were fixed in 2001!) and reduce KSRTC services (interesting!). But the catch here is that two major district Private bus operators association have already withdrawn support to the strike (Kozhikode and Ernakulam). The Government had appointed a committee to study the problems faced by private bus operators, and the committee is expected to report very soon. Given this, the two district operators feel the bus strike is 'untimely'.

A year back (in January 2010), Private buses kept off the road for 3 consecutive days, which made life really difficult to passengers in the state - given the fact that about 75% of Kerala's public transport is controlled by private buses. This bus strike was dotted by a many public litigation at the Hon. High Court of Kerala. At the end, the government gave in to the private operators' demands. Three days of hardships faced by the passengers left them fuming. The operators' had their demands (not all of them - but one major demand: Fare hike) met - and at the end, the passengers were at the receiving end.

All this brings one question - are these strikes stage managed? How does the government give in to the operators' demands so quickly? If the government is ready to give in, why on earth should passengers be forced to bear these hardships? The next 'episode' of bus strike, to begin tomorrow, is also another drama. The government would only give in to their demands, and raise bus fares to the highest in the country. The current fare is 55 paise per kilometre (subject to minimum of Rs. 4) - and the operators want this to be raised to 65 paise per kilometre (subject to minimum of Rs. 5).

Our neighbour, Tamilnadu, charges 27 paise per kilometre, and their minimum fare is only Rs. 2!! While operators in Tamilnadu agree that the fare is artificially kept low - the corporations have go into the 'other' means of fare hike like operating "deluxe" buses, which charge twice the regular fares, and so on. A newer trend is to arbitrarily increase fares by "naming" services. Point-to-point, and 'bypass rider' services charge higher than regular fares for the faster service they provide.

Given the fact that the state elections are just two months away, the government would try its best to save its skin - and as usual, passengers would be at the receiving end! All I can wish here is, the government takes a tough stance on such operators - there are legal provisions to cancel permits of such operators. But then, that too puts passengers at the receiving end! Its time passengers took a tough stance.

The beauty of corporate press releases

2011-01-22T18:48:00.000+05:30

The Public Relations department in any company is often an "unproductive" unit, and the staff in those units are usually seen with sarcasm. The main work done by PR Department is issue press releases, reply to queries from customers (often the department only forwards the mails to the appropriate department) and design/approve advertisements. As evident, this department has very little job to do, and is often run with skeletal staff.

Here is a clever copy-paste job done by the PR department of a major automobile company in India. This company launched their Intercity coaches a couple of years back, with the tag line "Travel with the Star". This tag line is often cheaply pasted along the length of the company.

This is the press release issued by the company on October 07, 2009 (read the original here)

“We at APSRTC constantly endeavour to provide our customers the best in terms of luxury, comfort, safety & technology. Thus, Mercedes-Benz buses emerged as an obvious choice for us. Now our customers can truly experience unmatched comfort and luxury in their bus travel”; commented Mr. V. Dinesh Reddy, IPS, Vice-Chairman & M.D., Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC).

Now, whats wrong with the statement? Nothing, right? The VC&MD of APSRTC feels that the Merc bus is an "obvious" choice for them, since they endeavour to provide their customers the best in terms of luxury, comfort, safety & technology. Its all fine for now...

...read this press release, issued on June 06, 2010 (Read here):

“We at Parveen Travels constantly endeavour to provide our customers the best in terms of luxury, comfort, safety & technology. Thus, Mercedes-Benz buses emerged as an obvious choice for us. Now our Passengers can truly ‘Travel with the Star’ and experience unmatched comfort and luxury in their long distance travel”; commented Md.A.Afzal.

Oh! Interesting that the MD of Parveen Travels and the MD of APSRTC feel exactly the same about Mercedes buses! If you are shocked, read ahead...

...this press release was issued on September 16, 2010 (Read here):

“We at KSRTC constantly endeavour to provide our customers the best in terms of luxury, comfort, safety & technology. Thus, Mercedes-Benz buses emerged as an obvious choice for us. Now our customers can truly experience unmatched comfort and luxury in their bus travel,” said Mr. Gaurav Gupta, M.D., Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC).

Come on, Mercedes! Fine, now, read this press release that appeared on January 18, 2011 (Read here):

"We constantly endeavour to provide our commuters with the best in terms of luxury, comfort and safety. Thus Mercedes-Benz buses emerged as an obvious choice for us. Now our customers can truly experience unmatched comfort, safety and luxury in bus travel," Navi Mumbai Municipal Transport General Manager G C Mangle said in a statement.

Its not new that Corporate press releases have standard statements in it, especially the portion that describes the details of the company that issues the release, and in some cases the profile of the customer is also included. But Mercedes has taken it too far - they've put their words into the purchaser's mouth! Shame on you Mercedes! This is not what people expect from a premium brand in India. High time you get a better public relations department!

Traffic... terrific!

2011-01-16T19:59:00.000+05:30

A gripping story keeping viewers glue to their seats through for two hours, without leaving time for second thought - not a moment to worry spending money on the movie - this is what would describe the latest Malayalam flick Traffic. The movie, directed by Rajesh Pillai, was written by brothers Bobby and Sanjay. The feature film has Sreenivasan, Rahman, Kunchako Boban, Asif Ali, Anoop Menon, Vineeth Sreenivasan, Sandhya, Roma and Remya Nambeesan playing important roles. All the actors in the movie have an equally important role to play, and all of them have performed to their best.

The movie revolves around happenings on a single day - September 16. The movie has a few flashbacks to make story telling easier. This movie too revolves around the "play and replay" format, which helps viewers get a better idea of the story. Certain scenes are first shown in a particular angle, and later in different angles, which reveal more twists in the story. The movie has a lot of side tracks, which all culminate in the main story.

The movie is based on a road traffic accident, which is - perhaps - the inspiration for the name. The story begins with a commentary by actor Sreenivasan about road traffic and accidents, and then begins with a small introductions of all the actors in the movie. All roles in the movie is adequately introduced before the movie begins - because there is no time for the viewer to think about the actor's role once the movie starts rolling. The main incident - that forms the nucleus of the story - is a road accident in which Raihan (Vineeth Sreenivasan) and Rajeev (Asif Ali), traveling on a bike, are knocked down by a rashly driven car.

Raihan was on the way to interview Siddharth Sankar (Rahman), who is a movie star. Siddharth Sankar was celebrating a new movie release on the day - similarities between Siddharth and a Malayalam 'super star' stands out aloud in the movie (those who have seen the movie would recognise which actor is being referred to here). Rude and arrogant behaviour is a highlight of the character played by Rahman in this movie. Siddharth is married to Lena (sadly, she doesn't have an onscreen name), who have a daughter (played by Namitha Pramod) - who suffers from a congenital cardiac disorder.

Following the accident, Raihan slips into coma, and later dies. Raihan's heart is set to be transplanted to Siddharth's daughter, who is admitted to a hospital in a very serious condition. The heart is to be transported from Ernakulam to Palakkad by road - and the target time set is two hours. (Yes! They plan to transport the preserved heart by road in just two hours!!). Constable Sudevan (Sreenivasan), who just rejoined duty after being suspended for accepting a bribe, takes up the responsibility of driving down the vehicle carrying the heart. Sudevan is accompanied by Rajeev (Asif Ali) and Dr. Abel (Kunchakko Boban).

The story gets gripping after the vehicle starts off from Ernakulam - and covers the first quarter run without a hitch. The vehicle then goes missing - yes, missing! The wireless set in the car is disconnected, and the mobile phones of all the three in the car remains switched off. The story then takes a few side tracks to uncover the mystery of the vehicle's disappearance. (I'd rather not write about the side tracks, else you might lose the fun of the movie). But the side track revolves around Dr. Abel, who discovers that his wife has an extra-marital affair with his close friend. The vehicle later gets back to track, and makes it to Palakkad in time - how this happens is the main part of the story.

The cinematography is excellent, and ensures that every scene is gripping. However, graphics used in the movie goes beyond the limits of "reliability". One scene for example - there is a point where Dr. Abel hits his wife Shwetha (Remya Nambeesan) with his car - she rolls over the bonnet and the windshield and later flies up and falls flat on the road - all the while, there is no damage to the car! Reality is lost in some scenes, but is still packed into a very good package.

To wind it up, the movie is a 'must-watch' Despite all the 'unbelievable' facts shown, the movie is a brilliant package. The director's (Rajesh Pillai) first movie was a big-time flop, while this movie rewrites all his past, and puts him straight in the league of "sure shot" directors. This movie is explained in an unconventional way - something perhaps unseen earlier in Malayalam cinema. The movie is written by brothers Bobby and Sanjay, who had written the movies Ente Veedu Appontem and Notebook earlier. They have proved their calibre once again. Movies like these will help Malayalam cinema lose their lost pride and attract viewers once again to cinema halls.

The underutilised potential of Inland waterways...

2011-01-09T13:59:00.000+05:30

Kerala, true to its name "God's Own Country", is gifted with over 1600 kms of navigable inland waterways across 41 rivers. Kerala is among those states which have realised the potential of inland waterways. The state has a dedicated company to run transportation services across Inland waterways in the state - the Kerala Shipping and Inland Navigation Corporation (KSINC). This company operates cargo services within the state, while the State Water Transport Department (SWTD) is responsible for passenger ferry services in the state.

The 181-km long National Waterway 3 (from Kottapuram in Thrissur district to Kollam) is one of the premier inland navigation channels in Kerala. The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) is planning to extend the West Cost Channel all the way to Hosdurg in Kasaragod District in the North and Kovalam in Trivandrum District in the south, which will make it a 560-km inland channel.

The SWTD is based at Alappuzha, and operates passenger ferry services from its bases in various districts in Kerala, including but not restricted to Alappuzha, Kottayam, Ernakulam, Kollam and Kannur districts. Regular ferry services are operated on some major routes, including Alappuzha-Kottayam, Alappuzha-Changanassery, Alappuzha-Kollam, Ernakulam-Fort Kochi, Ernakulam-Vypeen, etc.

Ernakulam is one city which has a very huge inland navigation potential. The city is surrounded on all sides by navigable waterbodies. In fact, the easiest connection between the city centre (Ernakulam) and parts of the old city (Mattanchery, Fort Kochi, etc) is through inland waterways. The SWTD operates frequent boats from Fort Kochi/Mattancherry/Vypeen/W.Island and Ernakulam Main Boat Jetty. Recently, the SWTD also proposed new boat services from Thevara to Kakkanad, while will help reduce traffic on the roads by a huge margin.

SWTD boats usually carry around 100 passengers, and are generally made of wood or steel. A few fibre-made boats were introduced, but were discontinued on most routes following operational difficulties during adverse conditions. Recently, the department announced plans to add about 15 Steel boats. These boats, being built by Steel Industries Limited Kerala (SILK) Kannur, are being introduced in a phased manner. Few such boats were introduced recently.

I recently made a journey from Ernakulam to Fort Kochi in a boat. There is a boat every 15-25 minutes between the two points. Almost all the trips run packed to capacity - SWTD makes it a point to sell only as many tickets as the seating capacity of the boat is. Overcrowding strictly prohibited and hence during weekends passengers often have to return without being able to get tickets. The ticket fare is Rs. 2.50 (compared to Rs. 9 by road) - and the boat completes the journey in just 15 minutes (compared to 30-45 minutes by road)!!! And in the 15 minutes, the boat takes you on a ride through the shipping channel, giving you an awesome view of Cochin Port and the surrounding tourist places.

A ride through the channel in a tourist boat costs anywhere between Rs. 100 and Rs. 250, with the ride lasting an hour. The government boat offers you 75% of the sights for just about 1-2.5% the cost! The seats in the government boat is not luxurious by any stretch of imagination - it is just a plain wooden bench. The ride is airy, and entertainment is provided through an FM radio on board! The next time you plan to go to Fort Kochi, make it a point to include a boat ride through Kochi's own waters.

A ride through Alappuzha's backwaters is a must for any tourist coming to Kerala - paddy fields stretching across the horizon, backwater canals, and other breathtaking sights will leave a lasting impression on one's mind. The Alappuzha-Kollam route - a distance of about 81 kms - is operated using a specially modified tourist boat. The Rs. 300, 8 hour ride, promises a lot of interesting sights to tourists. Alappuzha is the location to be, if you are interested in backwater boat rides.

At the inauguration of the Kollam-Alappuzha boat service, the minister for transport rued, "We utilise only 20% of our inland navigation potential" - a sad truth! A well developed boating system will help reduce congestion on Kochi's roads by a huge percentage. The government should go behind the Urban Ministry to get funds to purchase boats under the JNNURM scheme for Kochi. Currently, the SWTD base at Kochi operates to Fort Kochi, Mattanchery, W.Island, Vypeen, Bolghatty and Mulavukad. The department agrees that they still have unexplored areas around the city - its high time the government opens up to potential of waterways. They are an economical and eco-friendly way of mass transportation.

Cheated! Quite Literally!

2011-01-08T21:35:00.001+05:30

Back in October 2010, I had to visit Kottarakkara for some family reasons. It was a day's job and we (I and my dad) decided to leave early in the morning and be back by night. We ruled out driving down to the place due to the horrible state of roads, and taking the bus was a natural choice. Both of us enjoy traveling in the bus, and ruling out the train was a no-brainer. Accordingly, we decided to take the morning Volvo (7 AM) from Ernakulam to Kollam, and then take a local bus to Kottarakkara.

Both of us headed out from home around 5 in the morning on our car on October 3, 2010 - our plan was to leave our car at the railway station (Thankfully, KSRTC does not have parking lots at bus stations) and then take a rick to the bus station. We reached the bus station by around 6.30. I kept wandering around the bus station, while waiting for our bus to turn up. Around 6.50, I decided to enquire about when would be bus be brought. I was shocked at the reply - the bus has been cancelled! By now it was 6.55, and the station master made no announcements about the cancellation! No alternate bus was provided as well!

Finally, an announcement was blurted out around 7 am that the bus has been cancelled. With the announcement being made, all buses headed towards Trivandrum experienced heavy crowd. Left with no other options, we decided to try out a normal bus. A TNSETC bus was heading to Thirunelveli via Kollam - we decided not to take that bus since they take very long time. We got into a Trivandrum bound Super Fast instead (RRE883 of Thrissur). We were just about fortunate enough to get seats - although at one of the rear rows. The bus left the bus station terribly packed. We started off from Ernakulam about 5 minutes past 7 am.

The roads were horrible, and the driver showed no mercy of poor passengers seated at the back - he drove over the potholes with least botheration of passengers, who were now busy doing sit-ups. The bus rushed through the empty roads of Kochi (yeah! The roads were empty despite the clock quickly ticking past 7.30!). More passengers joined the bus at each stop, and by the time we entered the highway, there was not an inch of space inside. We hardly stopped anywhere on the highway, and dashed straight to Cherthala bus station. The halt was brief (hardly a minute). We made another stop at Alappuzha. By now, most crowd had deboarded. There were few standing passengers. We made our next stop at Haripad. By this point, my back was paining badly - thanks to the bad roads, and the careless ripping by the driver.

We got off at Kayamkulam, at 0940 - just two hours and 40 minutes to reach here from Ernakulam. Both of us headed straight to a restaurant (I am not sure if it can be called thus) outside the bus station for breakfast. We were back in about 15 minutes. After this I indulged a bit in busfanning. After some more time wandering up and down, we decided to take the 'next' bus to Adoor. The next bus was RAM33, working the chain service to Punalur (via Adoor, Pathanapuram). I took the front seat, right next to the driver. The bus left from Kayamkulam packed to the core.

The bus took a diversion from the main road (due to some bridge works on the main road), and the road we took was too narrow. The buses ended up losing a lot of time in the route. More and more people joined the bus at each stop, and there was not an inch of space anywhere inside the bus. We came to know of the reason for the crowd later - a temple on the route had a festival that day (Vettikottayilyam). Our bus stopped outside the temple for almost 5 minutes, and in the process the bus emptied out, and filled again! The run to Adoor was eventless. We got off at Adoor. It began pouring down a while before we reached Adoor. From Adoor, we got into RAC999 of Chadayamangalam, heading to Ayoor. It was pouring all the time, and all the shutters remained closed all the time. We got off at Kalayapuram (some distance before Kottarakkara).

From here we headed to our relatives place by car. We returned in the evening - we were dropped at Kottarakkara bus station. Being evening hour, most buses came in crowded. We later got into RRC499 of Punalur to head to Kollam. We had to stand for a while - but the bus emptied by the time we crossed Kundara. After Kundara, I got a good seat and sat down comfortable. We reached Kollam around 6 in the evening. I quickly headed to the enquiry counter and asked for the Volvo to Ernakulam - I was told the bus would come in before 6.30pm (1830). We decided to wait for the bus. While there was a bus every 5 minutes towards Trivandrum, not a single bus towards Ernakulam came.

The wait continued well past 1845, and there was no sign of the Volvo anywhere. I enquired once again at the counter - this time, I asked for the telephone number of the conductor manning the service. He gave me the number, but that was switched off. He called up the Station master at Trivandrum to enquire if the bus left on time - the person at the other end said the service was cancelled! Cheated once again in the day!!! My next question was - what next? The guy at the counter said, a Super Deluxe is expected around 7pm and another AC bus at 7.30pm (1930). We decided to take the Deluxe.

In the meantime, the first bus towards Ernakulam pulled into the bus station - the bus was already crowded, and it got more passengers from here. That bus was a Super fast heading to Mangalore (OMG!). The Super Deluxe (RRC958 of Sulthan Bathery) pulled in around 1910 - the bus was more than half-empty. We took a good seat somewhere in the middle of the bus. It started drizzling by the time we left the bus station - which later turned out into a full fledged downpour. The seats were good, but there was no proper place to rest my legs. I fell asleep soon after the bus entered the highway - I was dead tired after the day long journey. The bus stopped at Kayamkulam for dinner - we did not take dinner from here. I slept immediately after the bus left Kayamkulam. (The bus did enter Alappuzha bus station, but skipped Cherthala bus station). I woke up just as the bus was crossing Mattanchery BOT bridge. I still wonder why do these buses take the route via Thoppumpady instead of running via Vyttila - there buses do not stop anywhere on the route anyways!

We were dropped at Jos Junction around 2230 at night. We took a rick to the railway station, picked our car and headed for dinner. Finally made it home by around 2345 or so. I was cheated twice by KSRTC on that day - the Volvo service was cancelled without any information. The bus stations enroute were completely in the dark about the cancellation. Such cancellations would only drive away passengers - high time KSRTC learnt some lessons on professional management. I am being driven away from KSRTC day-by-day by their behaviour. I stopped using their premium services on interstate routes already - and intrastate is not far off.

Tippler's own country...

2011-01-03T16:03:00.000+05:30

Kerala gained a new name recently: "Tippler's own country". The name comes at a befitting time, when Kerala just won the first place in consumption of liquor in the country. The per capita consumption of Keralites was recently found to be a whopping 8.3 litres, equalling the record of the US!

Malayalees enjoy a special pride in queuing up to get that righteous bottle of their favorite spirit. The fact that the entire wholesale and retail sale of Liquor in Kerala is handled solely by agencies appointed by the State Government, makes it mandatory for people to queue up. The sales of Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) is done through outlets managed by the Kerala State Beverages Corporation (KSBC) and Consumerfed (Kerala State Co.Operative Consumers' Federation Ltd). People purchase liquor with the same patience (or even better) as they queue up outside a ration shop.

A queue outside a Beverages Corporation outlet in Alappuzha. This queue is too small though.

Malayalees, given their will power, can easily be the world leaders in Liquor consumption - world records are not too far off for us! While the rest of India contributes with "premium" liquor, Keralites concentrate on drinking Brandy (30%) and Rum (65%), and very little of premium drinks (just 5%).

The day before, newspapers made it a matter of pride for Malayalees, by highlighting the fact that this new year brought some jackpot to the Beverages corporation. It seems we Malayalees drank liquor worth Rs. 32 crores on New Year eve! (See this link). Kerala downed liquor worth Rs. 597 crore over just a month - of December! Out of this, more than Rs. 90 crores were sold during the three days preceeding Christmas alone! Onam is considered the biggest season for KSBC - the corporation makes sales over 150 crores during Onam alone!

Various political and social organisations have begun programs to spread message on the ill-effects of Alcohol, but to no use. During New Year, Irinjalakkuda took the first place in liquor consumption - it was Chalakkudy for Onam! We are proud that Thrissur district has retained the prestigious position this time as well. I sincerely hope we do not concede this position to other districts during the upcoming season(s).

In a recent news article published by the United News of India (UNI), it becomes obvious that the corporation (KSBC) earns over Rs. 4000 during the peak season alone (April to November) - this year the figure stands at Rs. 4,314.66 crores! The corporation's managing director N Sanker Reddy claimed that his corporation expects to earn an additional Rs. 500 crores of the public's hard earned money - since their big season (the New Year) is just around! He added a sarcastic remark, "Now people cannot imagine celebrating any festival or occasion, even if it is a ritual related to death, without liquor and it is an unavoidable drink in celebrations."

No wonder that the KSBC is the sole profitable corporation run by the Government of Kerala! Close to 40% of the State's tax revenue comes from the sale of liquor alone! (It would be just obvious that the same proportion of the State's health budget goes in treating alcoholics!). It is really sad that the government is so enthusiastic to sell liquor at such rates. The government is doing very little to stop this endless craze of drinking - afterall we are not developing a healthy hobby. The next time you spend Rs. 100 on a bottle, remember that you are giving as much as Rs. 80 to the government as taxes - no wonder the government is happy that you are drinking.

Please do visit the Gastroenterology ward of any major hospital near you, before queuing up for a bottle - people with Alcoholic Liver Disease are often laughing stocks for medical staff around. Its not fun to walk around with a protruding stomach (which is often the effect of deteriorating liver disease), and die a painful death. Do we need to really suffer so much for a few minutes of intoxication?

The year that was...

2010-12-31T19:44:00.001+05:30

Keeping in line with the tradition of this blog, I proudly present the year 2010 in a recap here...

This year was releatively a crawler compared to the past few years. A majority of my journeys this year were by my new car, and successfully ran over 24,000 kms over this year. Railfanning took a backseat as usual, while Busfanning came forward (only to be sent back again).

Have a fun filled run on the Punalur-Shencottah line this year, and was fortunate enough to be present on the last day of service as well.

Had two fun-filled trips from college, with my classmates - One to Chennai and Vellore, Second to Sringeri, and Manipal. Although both were aimed at attended conferences, we had a blast at both places. Such trips help a lot in improving the bond between students.

Got two pets - a dog and a cat! The doggie is now just about a year old, while the cat (pussy) is just about a month-and-a-half old now. Robin (my doggie) had a long journey to Bangalore (his hometown) and back in my car in April, while my Paru (my cat) is all set for a ride tomorrow to Alappuzha! I now enjoy being a "pet owner". Paru bites hard - never knew Cats bite so hard!

Had quite some long bus journeys on KSRTC buses this year - now I know why many people do not prefer KSRTC for long journeys! This included on overnight trip as well - it was terrible!

Got a new camera this year, and had been experimenting a lot with it - no show-worthy pics though. Although a crawler, the year did rock! Perhaps a turning point in my life, as well. I hope to have a rocking year again...

The famous American author and journalist, Hal Borland, famously said: "Year's end is neither an end nor a beginning but a going on, with all the wisdom that experience can instill in us."

Wishing everyone a very prosperous and fun-filled year ahead!

Happy New Year 2011!!!

With lots of wishes that all your wishes come true in life... but, remember that better things in life happen only with hardwork.

My India! My Pride!

Unity in 'diversity'....

2010-12-28T23:46:00.000+05:30

'Unity in Diversity' is one statement we Indian's often quote to explain the greatness of our country in simple terms. Our country is certainly diverse with a wide range of languages and cultures, stratified religions and what not. But this post is not intended to glorify India further, but is aimed at a few interesting "united we stand" tidbits from Kerala. Kerala is one tiny piece of land hanging precariously down along Peninsular India. With perhaps the largest per.sq.km population, Kerala is one helluva populous state.

While, officially, Kerala has only one state language - "Malayalam" (Note: not "Malyalam" or "Malyalee"), the actual form of the language used takes different form, so much enough for each of them being labelled a 'dialect'. Although all the strings of words spoken by common men in Kerala is called "Malayalam", there is a wide variety of "malayalams" used in Kerala. Starting from Kasaragod up in the North, the words used change dramatically and by the time one reaches Trivandrum down in the South, most words would've acquired exactly opposite meaning. Often words commonly used in the Northern Districts of Kerala (commonly referred to as "Malabar") are taboo down in the South, especially in the erstwhile Travancore kingdom.

While each Malayalee speaks his own Malayalam, we (oh! Me too a Malayalee) are united in the following... Malayalees have this love for spending more time at home than at office - thanks to the ever present Harthals. We are ready to strike work for any non-issue - so much that we struck work when Saddam Hussein was hanged! What does the hanging of this person got to do with Kerala? In one recent movie directed by the legendary family movie director Sathyan Anthikad, the protagonist mocks fun of a harthal called in Kerala to protest the "Cauvery river agreement between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu"!!! While that might seem too unrealistic, things turn very real here in Kerala!

Malayalees are very united in working to rulebooks! Any daily wage labourer will report to work only at 9 AM, and will wind up work not later than 5 PM. This includes a tea break from 10 AM to 11 AM, a lunch break from 12.00 to 2.00 PM and another tea break from 3.00 PM to 4.00PM. These breaks are in addition to the breaks to smoke and to untie-and-retie the lungi! All this for a daily wage of close to Rs. 400 now! And, they wouldn't work for more than two days at a stretch - coz they would be sick by the third day! They would not work on Sundays or Second-Saturdays.

Malayalees are very united at queuing up... no prizes for guess where do 'they' queue up! If you guessed "Railway station" or "Bus stop/station" or "Bill counters" or "Bank", you got it all wrong. We take pride in queuing up outside the nearest "Beverages" outlet. IMFL (or Indian Made Foreign Liquor) is sold by retail only through outlets owned by the Government of Kerala (Kerala State Beverages Corporation, ConsumerFed, etc). Therefore, its very essential to queue up if you want to buy a bottle to drink at home (or any place other than a bar). We take pride in waiting with utmost discipline in such queues until eternity to get our 'righteous' share. The pride goes to such levels that there is often competition between taluks to get the first price in consumption of liquor! Recent studies have shown than the average per capita liquor consumption of the state is a whopping 8.3 litres, equal to that of the US! Its not shocking that over 40% of Kerala's budget revenue comes from sale of Liquor! While the government spends money through its nose for treating people with Alcohol related diseases, its earning happily through the very sale of Liquor! (I'll leave this rant here... a special post would come up on this topic later)

North or South, we pay the same price! Go North or South in Kerala, most food items would have the same price. A Parippuvada (a fried snack made of lentils) would cost Rs. 3.50 any where in Kerala (not sure if the cost has increased recently following the exponential increase in cost of input), while a Tea would cost between Rs. 4 and 5 anywhere in Kerala. Same is the case with all food items. The prices get jacked up prior to a festival or an important event.

We all believe in using a single brand! Quite literally! When it comes to any product, Malayalees prefer purchasing a single brand. Come to Kerala, you'll see one particular maker of household products outsells its nearest competition by exponential margins, while you would see a particular model of car in a particular colour selling the most! One such example is "Pigeon" brands of Gas Stoves, and the humble Maruti Suzuki WagonR! We have the same preference for newspapers as well!

We do not argue! Malayalees believe in peace (perhaps a reason why we all wear White Dhoties!). We don't argue on trivial issues - we only argue on major issues like "was it fair on the US's part to bomb Iraq" or whether "north korea and south korea should settle their disputes". We don't argue on trivial issues like "maintenance of roads in Kerala" - but we are concerned about the poor state of roads in Kashmir (is it?). We will not argue on whether the bus fares in Kerala should be raised or lowered, but we are certainly annoyed that BMTC charges a minimum fare of Rs. 10 for their Volvos!

We don't bother meeting a doctor if we are sick - we know better than Doctors on what drugs to take! Have fever? Take an Aspirin or a Meftal Forte Tablets along with any antibiotic you like - never bother about doses. Afterall, we know better than Doctors/Pharmacists, right? Meet a Doctor only after you are unable to walk or you slip into a coma. So much that toddy (palm liquor) sellers recently discovered that adding "Diazepam tablets" along with Ethanol provides the much needed "kick" to drinkers!

Despite all diversities, we are all united, as Malayalees. Recently a mail forwarded by a friend claimed that the word "Mallu" (a phrase commonly used to refer to Malayalees) means "monkey" in Hindi according to the Oxford Hindi-English Dictionary. Although that mail had by blood boiling initially, a lot of calm thinking led me to the conclusion that the term matches the common Malayalee mentality - of that of a Monkey. We never stick to one thought - but keep jumping from one thought to the other!

This post was not intended to hurt any Malayalee (or any reader for that matter). This post is to be taken with loads of salt and intended to be taken light heartedly. I apologise in advance this post in whole or parts thereof is hurting any reader.

The abyss of blogging..

2010-12-27T22:24:00.000+05:30

The year 2010 would easily go into the history of this blog as an abyss. With just over 30 posts over the year, Platform7 was dormant for most parts of the year. Not because nothing happened over the year, I got all the more lazy to post! Life has been on the slow track over this year (more on that later).

Getting back to studies after close to two years of living off my own money was not a simple task. My exams just got concluded - and was preceeded by a two month study vacation. I began each day of my vacation with the pledge to start studying "today", and ended up the day with a pledge to start studying "tomorrow". The two months ran off as if it were just two days, and it finally dawned on me that the exam starts the next day! The regular "guilty" feeling of not starting early dawns, and finally ends up in leaving me hurrying through! I do love "performing" under pressure, though!

All the 5 papers had something in common - a terrible "Second" part. Our question papers were divided in two sections. In almost all the papers, the first section was annoyingly long, and the second section had to be left part way. Getting back to writing 3 hours at a stretch was not easy either - been used to typing out text, writing for that long was indeed a painful experience. I wound up each day with my hand paining like hell. As the exams ended, the regular drama of "Will I Pass" started as well!

As a part of getting back to studies (more specifically, with exams nearing),I quit both my hobbies this year (not completely, though) and concentrated on doing nothing (quite literally). After having spent most of the year at home (yeah!), I've now got used to doing nothing! However, doing "nothing" does require some skill - given the fact that I get close to 18 hours to do "nothing". Acquired a new camera sometime in the middle of this year, and have been experimenting with it since. Recently got a new set of lens for it, for me to go places!

Although I don't plan to get back to my hobbies with vengeance, I do plan to get back to them in a somewhat slight manner. I do wish the year ahead has some fun!

A painful movie experience...

2010-12-25T15:01:00.000+05:30

Watching movies at cinema halls are usually a mixed bag experience - one gets the fun of watching it along with comments from other viewers, while the horrible state of cinema halls gives the overall experience a thumbs down. My experience last night at a cinema hall in Kochi was such. I had written a half-baked story comparing conventional cinema halls v/s multiplexes a while back (read it here). I am one who loves watching movies at cinema theaters, but not ready to compromise on comfort.

Last night, I (and my family) went to a pretty major cinema hall in Kochi (one of the three "S"s) to watch the latest Mammootty flick Best Actor. The movie in itself was watchable (not great by any extent of imagination, but a nice movie). The movie is directed by the debutant Martin Prakkat. The movie is all about the experiences a wannabe movie actor faces in his attempts to hit the screen. He finally succeeds, but after overcoming a lot of funny and intense situations. Mammookka has really indulged in his character, and has presented it with ease. He does look a bit out of situation in some places - especially the hair styling. He has presented Hindi dialogues with the typical Malayalee punch, and adds to the humour in the movie. The ending did confuse a couple of people, with many walking out even before the movie ended.

Leaving the movie aside, the experience of watching it was horrible. The theater had narrow seats, with almost non-moving backrests. Cushion was inexistent, and I got the feeling of sitting on a rock. The seats were too narrow, and the seating layout was even horrible. Its high time these theaters renovate their seating, and get better seats - people are ready to pay-up for good facilities these days, and its time theater operators utilise the opportunity. This particular movie hall (Saritha) is part of a "complex" of three movie halls. I had watched movies at the other two halls in the "complex" and felt their seats were better than this one.

A word of caution to those heading to this movie hall - please enter the hall as soon as it is opened - you might be lucky to get a good seat. But if you suffer from a back ache, please postpone your outing. This experience only deepens my pro-multiplex beliefs. Multiplexes are indeed paisa vasool while normal halls have this suspense angle.

Three railfans go on a 'Sea Cruise'!

2010-11-16T20:02:00.002+05:30

What would one expect when three seasoned railfans come together? Obviously, some railfanning! But RailKeralites are daringly different! After attending a co-railfan's wedding engagement (on Sunday, November 07, 2010), the three of us (Jimmy Jose, Jaysankar and yours truly) headed out for some bus fanning (Yes! You read it right!). Jayasankar had a plan of traveling on the 'Sagara Rani' cruise for sunset. The rest of us decided to join him on the ride. We headed straight to the KSINC Jetty near High Court of Kerala for reservations - the cruise vessel was docked at the Jetty, and the Cruise manager came out and explained the salient features of the vessel. The vessel looked impressive, and we decided to make the journey despite all odds.

The operator, Kerala State Inland Navigation Corporation (KSINC, a Kerala Government undertaking) does not issue tickets in advance. All they do is note down the name of the 'group leader' and the phone number. Tickets are issued only 30-45 minutes prior to the journey, unless the group is big and an advance reservation amount is paid. On the day of our journey, there were all of 19 passengers listed (and the three of us) for the evening cruise. The cruise manager informed that the cruise would be made if there were at least 25 passengers. He asked us to contact him around 1645 to confirm. Jimmy went off to attend some of his official commitments (despite being a Sunday).

Yours truly and Jayasankar roamed around the Marine Drive walkway enjoying the breeze and a commanding view of the Shipping channel. Both of us were busy snapping. Later, we paid a visit to the famed Venduruthy bridge (the longest railway bridge in India), and roamed around the surrounding area for a while. We then headed to the Subhash Chandra Bose park along Marine Drive for some more photography. By around 4, Jimmy joined us. We headed back to the KSINC Jetty to confirm if the trip was still on. But the cruise manager remained non-committed. We headed out to a nearby food joint for some snacks, and then returned to the KSINC Jetty. By now, most news channels were flashing warning about the Cyclonic situation along the Eastern coast of India, and it was pretty cloudy. By 1650, he confirmed that the trip was not happening, since there were just 7 passengers willing to travel!

He informed that there was a group booking for the next day, and confirmed that the trip is guaranteed the next evening. We headed out to Fort Kochi for some roaming around. We met together the next evening for the cruise. Unlike the previous day, this day was not cloudy - it was sunny, and we had a good chance of seeing the sun set. We quickly landed up at the KSINC Jetty, and purchased our tickets. The rate is Rs. 250 per head, and the cruise sets out at 5.30pm (1730) and returns back by 1930 (7.30pm). Jimmy was yet to reach. Jaysankar and myself headed inside the boat to have a look of what was in offer.

The boat is two-decked - the lower deck has an airconditioned conference hall (which can seat 50 passengers), and a non-airconditioned restaurant. The upper deck can seat 90 passengers. We checked out all the facilities, and later took a good "window" seat on the upper deck. Jimmy joined us around 5pm. The cruise set out exactly at 5.30pm, and all the 90 seats were taken. The cruise manager - Shri Gafoor - was the guide as well. He announced all the important landmarks as the boat cruised through Kochi's waters. The boat is powered by two Ashok Leyland Marine engines.

A while into the cruise, snacks were served - the platter had a veg puff, a cookie and a slice of tea-cake. A cup of Tea was served later. Following the illustrated tour through Kochi's lake, we slowly headed towards the sea. The ride got choppier as we entered the sea. The vessel rocked pretty hard as we traveled more and more into the sea. According to the crew, we traveled close to 6 miles into the sea from the shore (not sure of the veracity of the claim). By now, entertainment program started in the boat. It started off with a few live music performances, followed by a couple of dance programs, and then some songs from the passengers.

In the meantime, myself and Jimmy visited the control room (the 'driver's' cabin). He had matured from a regular boat driver to this position. He was very friendly, and spoke a lot about their operations. By now, we were on our way back to the shore. The lights were getting bigger as we neared the city. We later checked out the lower deck facilities - the conference hall was cold, with the AC running at full force. We pulled back to the jetty exactly at 7.30pm. It was one mind-blowing experience, one that I would recommend to anyone coming to Kochi. It was my first experience riding to the sea. Our ride was cushioned perhaps due to the weight of the vessel - had it been a regular fishing vessel, all of our would've thrown up. it was surely "paisa vasool" for the Rs. 250 we paid.

See pics from the trip here. This link has pictures from the two days we spent along the Kochi Shore.

Verdict: Recommended!

Multiplex & traditional Cinema Halls... a different experience indeed

2010-10-27T16:49:00.000+05:30

Foreword: I am not a movie buff, nor do I work for a cinema house. I am just an average movie goer, who likes seeing 'brainless' comedy, and family sentiment movies - preferably in Malayalam. Not that I don't love movies in other languages, but I usually prefer watching them on TV. I am one movie goes who like to watch movies in an air-conditioned theatre, and that rules out watching movies at my hometown - for the fact that we don't have an airconditioned movie hall here!

To the best of my knowledge, there is only one proper Multiplex in Kerala - the Cinemax multiplex at Oberon Mall, Kochi. The multiplex was opened earlier this year, and has since offered a very different movie experience to movie goers. I have heard people often terming the high ticket charges of Multiplexes a daylight robbery - but, is that true?

IMHO, No! The Multiplexes offer clean halls to passengers - each hall is cleaned before every show, and they ensure that no layovers of the previous show remain. The seats are comfortable, the sound system works perfectly and the screening is of high-quality. During interval, one is greeted to clean toilets - and the "No Smoking" norm is strictly implemented. You need not mob the cafeteria - the food comes to your seat.. and so on are the attractions. But what makes me think the multiplexes are seriously value for money is the fact that one gets a really clean hall - you need not sit in the midst of garbage put back by people from the earlier show!

I recently had two cinema experiences - one at Cinemax (Kochi) and the other at a very famous cinema hall in Kochi (on MG Road - those familiar with the area would guess out the hall soon). The Cinemax experience was picture perfect - a small hall, limited audience, comfortable seats, carpeted floor, an extremely clean hall, etc. The experience at the cinema hall on MG Road: the ambience at hall was good, the seats too were good. But the hall was very dirty - at the end of the show (which was full) the hall resembled a war field with litter every where - plastic covers, empty tetra-packs (which once had fruit juice), papers, empty bottles etc. The litter was much more than what would be generated in one single show.

Multiplexes are certainly the way ahead to attract family audiences. Many families are turned off by the garbage filled movie halls, non-availability of good quality halls - with the right ambience. Multiplexes seat half - or less - the number of audience than a regular movie hall - and charge upto double the regular ticket rates. But, I swear, they are worth it. I'd be any day ready to go for a movie if its in a multiplex - the normal cinema halls are turning me down, big time! Am waiting for the day my hometown too gets a good hall!

Exercising franchise... a new record in Kerala

2010-10-26T09:23:00.000+05:30

Kerala is known as a hot-bed of politics - with almost every single citizen interested in the daily political drama. Kerala has two major political fronts - left and the "right". The left, "Left Democratic Front", is led mainly by the Communist Parties, while the "right", "United Democratic Front" is led by the Congress (Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee). In addition to the two fronts, the national party, Bharatiya Janata Party, too has been unsuccessfully trying to make a dent. In a state that is so interested in politics, the state assembly elections usually work on an anti-incumbent wave - the ruling party has to move to opposition irrespective of their performance.

In what could be termed a curtain raiser to the State Assembly elections, the state went to polls, to elect new Local Self-Governments. Perhaps, ours is the only state where almost all the Panchayats/Municipalities/Corporations go to polls together - giving a feel of a full fledged state elections. The state has been under the Model Code of Conduct for more than a month now. The state went to the Ballot in two phases - the first on 23rd of this month, and the second yesterday (25th October). The state recorded very low voter turnout last time - just in the range of 50-odd percentage.

This was my first ever franchise - although its been 6 years since I became eligible, and have gone through about 4 elections since then (in various places), I haven't been able to vote anywhere. It was a pretty excited start to the day. The polling station is the next compound to my home, and just walked in around 9 AM. There was a very small queue, and the entire waiting period was less than 10 minutes. The new voting machine has made matters very simple for both the voter and the counting officials! The franchise is just a beep away!

This time around, my home town tops in voter-turnout in the District - Kodungallur recorded 80% voter turnout, the highest in Thrissur district, which managed an overall turnout of 73% (Compared to only 58.76% in 2005). Is this high turnout a sign of change? Will the normal trend of voting out the incumbent change? The Local bodies in Kerala has been doing a horrible job with road maintenance - making driving a nightmare anywhere in the state. Take the case of Kochi - a city often called the busiest and the most happening city in the State: Kochi has the most non-motorable roads in the state. Rain or no-rain, one should be ready to drive avoiding all the "ponds" in the road. See this one:

That bus is not going for a bath, but one falling into a trap! The pothole - er! Pond! - is right opposite the office of the Corporation of Cochin. Will Kochi vote for a change this time? The current front has been ruling for over 25 years now, and they have only taken the city downwards - no solution has been found till date for the umpteen problems city residents face! Newer craters appear each day on the road - so much that a famous FM radio station holds "Miss Kochi" contests to find out the most beautiful crater on road! The traffic chaos sees no end - traveling a kilometre takes more than 10 minutes even during the worst non-peak hour!

I have only one question: Does this higher voter turnout signify a change? Will the current trend change?

The derailed railfanning attempt..

2010-10-25T16:42:00.000+05:30

Metre gauge railways always have a sentimental aspect is a railfan's mind - I am not different! The news that the final piece of Metre Gauge railway in Kerala, the Punalur-Shencottah line was closing down brought tears to the eyes of many - and a ride on the last train would be a fitting send-off for this humble train from railfans. Although elaborate plans were made, everyone dropped off at the last moment, and I was left all alone to make the trip - not be let down in any circumstance, I decided to go solo. My initial plan was to take a train from Ernakulam to Kollam, then the new passenger from Kollam to Punalur and finally the metre gauge ride. The return was to be by bus. However, being a weekend, trains were heavily waitlisted - I first thought of going unreserved.

However, on reaching Ernakulam station, I was greeted by heavy crowd and found that my train was running pretty late. I wasn't interested in missing the passenger and hence decided to take a bus instead. After a sleepless bus ride, I was in Kollam (Quilon) by 5 am. (a post on the bus ride would come later). Took a rickshaw from the bus station to the railway station, and decided to get my ticket first. Surprisingly, the counters had a very long queue even at this hour on a Sunday! I asked for a ticket to Aryankavu (so that I can return pretty early) - the lady at the counter warned me that she is not sure if the train would run. She said that they have received notification not to issue tickets from Monday onwards. I got a ticket to Aryankavu and walked into the station. The station was still asleep - no stalls were open any where. I had this faint hope of seeing the Vegetarian refreshment room being open - but that wasn't. Finally, saw one open stall - had a hot coffee and stocked some biscuits as a precautionary measure. Earlier, Kollam had Platforms 1-3 in MG and 4-6 in BG. Later, Platform 7 and 8 were added to the BG side. After the MG section was closed, the platforms weren't renumbered. Therefore, the BG section of Kollam currently has Platforms 3 to 8.

All set to leave from Kollam - the Punalur Passenger, with WDM2 #18533 of Erode in charge.

The rake of Punalur Passenger was parked on Platform 3 - the rake appeared pretty long, about 14-15 coaches long. The boards on the passenger clearly indicated that it has an RSA with the Nagercoil-Kollam passenger. The platform was wet after heavy rains the previous night. The passenger started off exactly at 6.30. The Maveli Express (the one that I was planning to travel from Ernakulam to Kollam) from Mangalore arrived just a while before the passenger left - I thanked my stars for not taking that train! Meanwhile, our train headed by WDM2 #18533 of Erode slowly pulled out of Kollam. There is nothing special about the line, other than the fact that it is pretty twisty with slight grades all along. Almost all stations have proper full length platforms - and the crowd today was pretty heavy. We were in Punalur at 0750.

The crowd on the platform was heavy - perhaps putting stations in Mumbai Suburban section to shame! There was a huge gathering, full with traditional drummers and people holding posters and banners! There was not an inch of space on the platform to move around - so much that I got off the train to the non-platform side and walked through ballast. I got outside the station to see that the station was literally bursting to seems! The queue at the ticket counter had already overflown out of the station building. The GRP and RPF guys were caught completely unaware of the crowd and they were struggling to control the crowd.

I was back into the station - the MG portion of the station had enough crowd for three trains! Seeing the crowd, I was doubtful if my plan of taking the train would happen - I was almost sure it wouldn't. Railway Employees were preparing to give the train a befitting send off, and were ready with banners, garlands and posters. The drummers were busy playing out traditional Keralite tunes (the famous Chenda Melam). The crowd on the platform was swelling by the minute and all my hopes of traveling in the train were quashed. There were videographers and photographers from almost all major media firms, plus a dozen local newspapers. The horn of the train was heard a minute past 8, and the cute little train made its appearance shortly - with more people than it can carry - passengers were everywhere, even on the catwalks of the loco!

YDM4 #6310 arriving at Punalur, from Shencottah.

The train got filled in hardly a couple of minutes, and there was not a single inch of space to even get a foothold in the coaches! People got on the loco even as it was shunting, long before the loco was attached to the train. The loco was shunted around, and the decorators got into their job. The loco was all decorated, banners hung and posters were stuck on the coaches. After all the melee, the train was set to leave - sharp at 0830. The departure was delayed, perhaps due to the heavy crowd. The starter was given at 0840, and the train pulled out a couple of minutes later. With no possibility of getting on board the train, I decided to take a bus to Aryankavu instead.

The train all set to leave Punalur...

Dejected, I walked out of the station and took a rickshaw towards the bus station - only to be greeted by very heavy crowds at the bus station! The bus station was crowded beyond belief, and buses were leaving with not even an inch of standing space. I tried getting in, but all buses were crowded. Finally, I decided to call off all my plans of taking a ride, or capturing another scene of the train. Headed straight to a nearby hotel for breakfast, and finally I headed back to Kollam in a KSRTC bus. By now, I had a splitting headache, and I couldn't concentrate on anything that was going around. I finally reached home around 6 in the evening, and straightaway hit the bed, only to wake up at 7 AM the next morning!

Although I couldn't travel in the train on one of its last rides, I was atleast content of being able to see off the train. Local people had come in to the station to send off the train - almost all were heavy hearted about the loss of this charming train service. After having served local passengers for close to a century, the train is now destined to the pages of History. The railways are expecting to reopen the section in BG, in about three years - with an all new alignment. If at the railways are going in for a new alignment, what was the need to shutting train services? Whatever, the cheap means of transporting goods, and also travel for daily passengers is now no more - will remain so for atleast the next few years! I left Punalur that day with a promise to be there for the inauguration of the BG line - I hope I would be able to attend the inauguration!

The Shama Big Bus...

2010-10-20T20:39:00.001+05:30

After ten rocking days in Bangalore - including runs on the Mercedes Benz buses, a visit to a hospital casualty, getting two IV Injections, and laying on the bed for a full day down with fever (what more can I ask for???), it was time to head back home - to God's own country. Perhaps for the first time in my life, I never considered traveled in a State bus anywhere during planning for the return journey - both the KSRTCs were kept off my consideration. This time around, Kerala SRTC stood no chance of being even considered, while Karnataka SRTC was kept my last choice. Reason why Kerala SRTC was not even considered: A horrible hard product. The only feasible option for me is the 2200 AC bus from Bangalore - while the bus is known for punctuality, the ride and comfort is horrible.

Once the STUs were thrown out of the window, the choices were simple: A tie between Kallada and Shama. Only these operators run a decent Volvo service, touching Thrissur town. Others prefer taking the bypass, especially at odd hours. The tie was simple to break - I opted for Shama. Especially since they are now operating a brand new Volvo B9R on the Bangalore-Ernakulam route. Shama has named their B9Rs as "Big Bus" - they indeed are big buses! Their online booking portal showed that only the rear row was remaining - I chose to get a ticket from their office instead. On Sunday (October 17) evening, I got my ticket from the Shama office at Madivala. I was given seat #10. From the chart at the office, I could understand that the bus already had more than 60% bookings.

I was just about recovering from a bout of Viral fever on the day of my journey - but the journey was essential on account of some other commitments. I had some business at SP Road (the place in Bangalore to visit, if you are interested in computer peripherals!), and went there around noon. Did some busfanning during the visit, but had to return early with my ill-health not permitting me to hang around for long. Returned home, then headed out again after dinner and a hot bath. Headed out of home at 2055, and we reached Madivala at 2110. I was dropped at Madivala by my brother. Since the bus was still long off, we decided to stay put in the car. Meanwhile, the Padikkal Isuzu to Kannur arrived, and was parked near our car - the bus had the name "Pranam" on its windshield, and "Padikkal" on the sides and the rear.

I decided to head to the Shama office around 2115 to report and get my boarding pass, when I saw a Shama "Big Bus" heading towards the office. I headed off to the office and got my boarding pass - my request for a seat on the left side was turned down, we were running 100% full! I got Seat #10 as indicated on my seat. The bus came at 2120, and boarding started immediately. I got in, left my bag and came out - the engine was shut down, and it was getting too stuffy inside without the AC running. Although the AC was off, a movie was playing on the AV system. Passengers were boarding pretty quick, while the driver went about checking something in the bus. His assistant was helping passengers leave their baggage in the under-carriage. By 2135, all passengers were in. I got in at 2140, when the driver too got in. A couple of minutes later, the engine was powered, and the AC was switched on. The blowers were at full flow.

The bus, KA-01-AA-2012, slowly inched forward, exactly at 2145. We slowly inched forward, went right upto St.John's signal, and took a complete "U" turn and headed towards Silk Board. The bus stopped again, opposite the Shama office - just realised that one passenger was yet to join! We kept waiting, and the passenger came in only around 2200. The engine was left running all this while, and I must admit, one couldn't feel the engine was running, except for the AC blowing cold air! No vibrations or noise inside. We started off at 2200, ran through Silk Board flyover, and headed straight on the new BETL Road towards Electronic city. I was elated when the bus took the flyover instead of running through the traffic blocks below. The driver meant serious business as he picked pace quickly.

We were past Hosur in less than 30 minutes from Madivala. We crossed the Krishnagiri around 2320, and kept going at a great pace. The movie got over at around midnight - the pull down screen around the middle of the bus was closed, and the AV system was shut down. I pulled up the thigh support, and tried sleeping. But my health condition stopped me from sleeping - I got an uneasy feeling through out. Around 0030, I noticed that we were no running past Vinayaka Missions University, on the outskirts of Salem! We were past Salem in less than 2:30 hours!! The high-speed run kept going, and but it felt like the bus wasn't very fast! The noise levels and vibrations were well under control, and the ride was too comfortable inside.

I somehow managed some sleep, and woke up when the bus was just pulling into a fuel station - at 0250! And, we were past Coimbatore!!! We were at a fuel station near Ettimadai - thats a distance of more than 360 kms in less than 5 hours, an average of over 74kmph!! The stop at the fuel station lasted over 30 minutes - with passengers using the break to stretch themselves and also have a leak. We started off at 0325 and headed at our steady pace! We stopped at Chavadi (outgoing) checkpost briefly. We stopped again, just after Walayar. The crew went in for a round of hot tea - two other Kallada buses, one B7R and one Multi-Axle, were parked there. We started off first, despite reaching last! We stopped at Walayar Checkpost to pay up entry tax, and get the papers checked.

We started off after a 5 minute halt. The roads were in sorry shape after the border, and overtakes were a painful affair now. It started raining down now - the ride was still comfortable inside. Only the major potholes were known, but the driver showed no sign of slow progress. A lady sitting at the first row kept stopping the bus often for her to vomit - the driver did stop the bus every time, but the rain outside meant she couldn't off the bus. We stopped at Palakkad bypass to drop off a passenger, then once again at Vadakkenchery to drop off another. We finally stopped at Mannuthy Bypass at 0510 - about 12 passengers got off here, all were from a group of pilgrims heading to Sabarimala. I was finally dropped off near Sakthan Thamburan Bus Station at 0520 in the morning - just 7 hours and 20 minutes since starting off from Madivala. My fastest ever, and by far my best Volvo ride as well!!

I had a long halt at the bus station, but no buses turned up to my place. Later, took a rickshaw to the KSRTC bus station, and took the second bus to my destination, at 0545 (The first bus is at 0530). RNA164 of Thrissur did the honours to dropping me back at home - interestingly, the same bus took me out to Thrissur on my outbound!!

Concluding remarks: Although the widespread word on the Internet about Shama talks of poor buses and highhanded behaviour, I was in for a pleasant experience. May be this is a one-off experience, but I would certainly dare try them again. The bus was still new - plastic covers on many seats were still on! The ride was excellent - silent and absolutely comfortable. One does not get a feeling of the sheer speed inside - but the bus was certainly rushing in at three-digit speeds throughout the night. This is supported by the fact that we managed a decent average speed of over 74 kmph from Bangalore to Coimbatore - the roads get worse after Coimbatore, and it did dent our overall speed. The B9R is an excellent product for such highway sprints, while guaranteeing passenger comfort. But what blew me off was the fact that a Kallada G4 Volvo (a 2004 model Mark-II bus) kept pace all the way from Bangalore to Thrissur along with us! I see myself using private buses for my forthcoming journeys, atleast till Kerala SRTC replaces their vibrating cold boxes on the Bangalore route!

Mercedized.. Part-2

2010-10-17T15:01:00.001+05:30

After the good experience on the MCV C120LE City bus, we (Myself and Bharat) returned to Majestic to find our way back home. We did some train spotting on our way back, and content with that short Mercedes experience, we were walking towards the City bus section of Majestic. All of a sudden, Bharat suggested we have a look at the "Mofussil" section to see if the inter-city Mercedes Coach was anywhere in sight. I wanted to see if the MSRTC Shivneri was still running as well. We, thus, headed in. The Mysore platform had a huge queue of Volvo buses, and an almost parallel line of Rajahamsas/Sheetal/Meghadootas. Dejected, we decided to return home, and just turned back.

OH! Wait a minute... did I just see that square box rolling towards us? Yes, it was. The much awaited Mercedes Benz O500R two-axle RE bus was rushing towards us. The bus just rushed past us.. with the boards reading "Bangalore Mysore". No seconds were spared.. if the bus was going to Mysore, we decided to make a quick run. Indeed, it was! The bus stopped a few metres ahead, and backed up to the "Mysore Platform". Bharat was the first to run towards the bus.. both of us called home to intimate the change in our programs, and go set to head out on that bus. The driver announced that tickets would be sold on board the bus, unlike the Volvos where we need to get them from a counter. A few snaps later, we both were inside the bus. The conductor said we'll leave only after 20 minutes. We replied, "doesn't matter".

First Impressions.. The body looked very boxy to me (personal opinion). The bus looks slightly narrower and a bit taller than a Volvo 9400 (the sole competition in the segment). The rear looked bland to me, while the front did have a few curves. The finish is far from being called "classic" - it had all the shine and whistles of an Indian product. In comparision, the Volvo 9400 looked strictly sleek and modern. In the interiors, the bus did not have anything special to boast about. The interior lights were unhindered - hence interiors were better lit. The seats were regular ones from Harita. The leg space appeared a bit low. The aisle were narrow as well - syncing with my observation of the bus being narrower.

The driver panel did not look as "modern" as the Volvo. The meters were all analog, no multi-information displays (a default these days even on low-end cars), screws visible outside, etc. Not really a layout aimed at a "modern" market. The 'partition' between the driver cabin and the passenger section appeared to be made of FRP - to very sturdy to hold a passenger falling on it in the event of a hard braking. The leg space at the first row seats were not humongous as in the Volvo or even the Isuzu. The entertainment system for passengers is by means of two foldable LCD screens - the one at the front appeared to be 17 inches, and the one at the middle of the bus was 15 inches - having two screens is an amazing idea. Both were of Xenos make. The speakers can be switched off individually - another marvellous idea. The interiors were clad with a lot of plastics - there were plastics everywhere including the hat-rack.

Into action... Around 6 (1800), the bus was switched on, and backed further into the platform. The engine was now left on, with the AC blowers running at the maximum speed. The vibration levels were negligible (on par with competition). The sound levels inside were well under control. We finally started off at around 1820 or so, with about 30 passengers on board (out of 45). The bus was very sluggish at the start - it literally struggled to get moving. The conductor issued tickets to all passengers, and then distributed bottles of water. (Yes! KSRTC still provides a 500-ml bottle of waterto all passengers on the Volvo/Mercedes) The rear LCD screen was pulled down, and the DVD player was switched on. The run was painfully slow, and we ended up taking about 40 minutes to reach Satellite bus terminus itself. We had a 10 minute break at Satellite, for passengers to use the washroom, and also have some light snacks. No passengers joined us here.

Back on the road, the run was even more slow. The slow run continued until we crossed Kengeri. Once past Kengeri, our boss meant business. He started picking speed quickly. Overtakes were mindless, left-right-center! The Retarders gave a "slicing" sound everytime the brakes were applied. BUT, sharp brakes meant passengers leaping forward - the same feeling carried over from a Volvo. I was swept off my seat atleast twice in the run (I turned cautious after these). The brakes were damn good. The bus had great grunt for overtakes, and one could sense the flow of raw power as and when the driver attempted overtakes. Many brakes and dives later, we were in Mysore at 2140, 3 hours and 20 minutes after we started off from Bangalore.

We headed out for dinner. Just while heading out, I spotted another Merc heading out to Bangalore. Just as we were back, it was the same bus that brought us preparing to head back. While Bharat was pestering me to travel in the same bus, I was adamant at taking a Volvo. The next bus was indeed a Volvo, an 8-year old Mark-I Volvo!!! Despite his numerous requests to take the Merc, I remained adamant we take the Volvo. Finally, at 2300, boarding for the Volvo started. The first impression on getting into the bus was.. the bus has held up really well. The interiors, although a bit weary, still looked intact. The bus was vibrating as if the engine was mounted without bushes. We started off at 2330 from Mysore. There was no conductor on board, the driver doubled up as a conductor as well. There were all of 5 passengers on board! The lights were switched off soon after we started off.

The bus, although 8 years old, was riding so smooth, putting many of the new buses to shame. The noise levels were well under control, and so were the vibrations during the run. There was a bit of noise from the rear axle while going through rough patches. The driver had this nasty habit to shifting to neutral the moment the bus hit a down grade - it was downright irritating, and we ended up idling often. The bus was dependent more on its momentum to reach back, than any tractive effort. Despite the horrific driving style, we crossed Kengeri at around 0130 - two hours since leaving from Mysore. Once past Kengeri, the driver expressed some sense of urge, and he kept accelerating often. We were finally at Kempegowda Bus Station at 0145. We had called up for a Meru Cab.. I was dropped at home by around 0215, and Bharat continued his journey home..

On a comparo.. While I might be branded biased to a particular brand, I felt the Mercedes Benz Intercity coach had no specific advantage over a Volvo as far as a passenger in concerned. Except the fact that the bus is made by a brand known for premium cars, the average passenger would equate the ride with the 'now household' brand 'Volvo'. The ride comfort was more or less the same, except may be for slightly less vibrations at Idle (not in my opinion). The interior lighting was certainly 'light years' ahead of the Volvo. The leg space, and seat width were certainly lower, and too tight for comfort. The bus picks up amazingly well, and the driver was all in praise for the pick-up of the bus (not sure if that was a sarcastic remark, since the bus struggled to get moving from Majestic). The driver, who was in charge of our ride, rated both buses equal - none was claimed to be better than the other.

Small yet significant things.. Excessive use of plastics in the interiors gave an overall cheap look to the bus. For some reason, Plastics are not associated with durability in India (atleast among the general public). The Air-conditioner appeared to be RPM specific - the bus hardly cooled when it was at idle (despite the AC panel displaying the set temperature to be around 21*c), but it cooled amazingly well once the bus started moving - better when we hit better speeds. While this might help improve fuel efficiency, the general public might get irritated sitting in a stuffy bus in traffic snarls. The AC vents can only control the direction of air flow, not the volume. In case of the Volvo, once can adjust both the direction and volume of air flow.

Conclusion.. Certainly not worth the hype the bus has created. The bus is equal to its competitor, the Volvo 9400. While the Mercedes Benz O500R is powered by a 305-hp 7.2 litre engine, the Volvo 9400 comes with a humble 290-hp 7-litre engine. Both buses seat 45 passengers, in 11 rows, with regular push-back seating configuration. Both buses come with retarders, and similar bells and whistles. At the end of the ride, both the buses are strictly equivalent to each other, strictly from a passenger perspective. While Volvo revolutionized the bus industry, and made 18+ hour bus journeys more comfortable, it would be fair on our part to expect Mercedes to further revolutionize the segment. What ever be said, the most benefited by having two amazing products are passengers, who now have more choice!

Mercedized.. all in a day!

2010-10-14T17:02:00.000+05:30

Monday, October 11, 2010 was a day I would not like to forget in my life.. a red lettered, three-pointed star day! The day was earmarked for "Travel(ing) with the Star". Yes, you guess it right - that was the day I did a back-to-back trial on two Mercedes Benz products in Bangalore. The two reviews would come in two parts. Presenting part-1.

One fine evening while crossing the foot-over-bridge from the mofussil section to the city section of Kempegowda Bus Station, I saw this pink (or rose?) coloured bus parked all set to head to the airport. Unable to believe my eyes, rushed off to the bus - yes - it was the MCV C120LE City Bus that Mercedes Benz has provided for trials with BMTC. I was thinking that the bus was returned after trials (coinciding with news paper reports that the bus was to head to Mumbai for trials with B.E.S.&T., and some rumours that the bus would be tried by KSRTC in Mysore). The spotting appeared as a surprise for me. But the time was already past 5, and I did not have enough time to have a short run in the bus. A program was set for the next day.

Front view of the MCV C120LE

Rear profile of the MCV C120LE

Accordingly, I landed at Majestic (the common synonym for Kempegowda Bus Station) around 1 in the afternoon. I was partnered in crime by fellow busfan Bharat Narayan. The stream of Volvos to the Airport continued all the time. The bus (Mercedes) came in at around 1350, and was parked behind a Volvo. As soon as the Volvo left, the Mercedes was parked ready to leave. On enquiring with the conductor, we came to know the bus would leave only at 1420. The crew went out to have their lunch in the meantime. We got into the bus and started feeling the bus.

First impressions.. The interior design is pleasing. The curves are smooth, and the colours are too good. The designs make the bus look spacious. The seats were of a different design, but were too hard. Very little cushioning. The leg room was tight. The bus had a total of 38 seats. The bus has 6 row of four seats (2x2 layout) and the last row of five seats in the "upper" section of the bus. The forward section has 9 seats - 2 rows on each side, facing each other, and one single seat over the wheel well on the right side. The exterior looks old school. The finish is far from being called a "premium" product. The colour is pleasing - a welcome change from Red. The rear door opens inwards and not swinging outside.

The engine was switched on 10 minutes to go for the journey. The AC was switched on. The AC vents do not have controls to adjust air flow volume or direction. The controls are sorely missed - especially given the mixed weather of Bangalore. Some passengers like to have air blowing on their face, while some others like to keep the vents closed. The rear door was closed well before the journey began. The bus started off dot at 1420. The vibration levels at idle were really low. The bus felt a bit sluggish at the beginning, especially when starting off from a stop. The power delivery seemed linear, substantiated the fact that there was no jerk whenever the driver pressed the accelerator pedal. Those familiar with the Volvo will also be familar with the jerk everytime the bus starts or stops.

The jerk was thankfully absent in the Merc - the bus just glided out of bus stops every time. It was sluggish every time it started from stop. The ride comfortable was nothing great to mention, except that the annoying vibrations at high RPMs were absent. The bus rattled heavily, directly pointing fingers are poor quality of fittings inside. Our ride was about 25 minutes long (Majestic to Hebbal) - coverirng a lots of signals and enough up grades. The bus feels a bit underpowered initially, but picks up later.

On a comparison note.. The annoying jerk and vibrations of the Volvo are absent in the MCV C120LE. However, the quality of interior fittings leaves a lot to be desired, especially with the "premium" image the manufacturer seems to project. The seating capacity in both the buses are same - 38 each. Volvo provides three extra foldable seats in the lower portion, in addtion to the 38 fixed seats. Space utilisation seemed much better in the Volvo. The legspace and the cushioning in the seats are anyday better in the Volvo. The Merc also seemed to have slightly narrow seats - fatsos like me wouldn't like them :)

The Volvo is powered by a 290hp 7-Litre diesel engine, while the C120LE is powered by a 256hp 6.4-Litre diesel engine. Both buses feature Automatic Transmission. The MCV has two openable side windows while the Volvo has sealed glasses throughout. The C120LE has a rigid opaque partition between the driver and the passengers, while the Volvo has left the area open.

The MCV C120LE is a true competition to the Volvo 8400 (B7RLE) in terms of ride, but the quality of interiors needs to improve a lot. The exterior design could have been far better than the current design which reminds us of old desi-buses. Overall, a good product - if only the pricing is right.

Conti... A nostalgic journey to the past

2010-10-13T17:36:00.000+05:30

Conti Travels, or UMS Conti, is a established bus operator based in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu. UMS, or United Motor Service, was launched in 1920. Since then, UMS turned into one of the most efficient passenger transport company in this part of Tamil Nadu. Conti Travels was the first Inter-city coach service in Tamil Nadu. UMS operated a few city buses in Coimbatore, under various names. I have vague memories of them, but I distinctly remember that their buses were well maintained during the mid-90s. UMS diversified into various business, and are now a formidable name in the electronics manufacturing industry.

The Conti Travels "bus stand" on Avinashi Road

UMS is headquartered at Avinashi Road in Coimbatore, not very far from the Railway Station. I was a regular passenger in Conti Travels during the mid-90s, traveling very often from Coimbatore to Alappuzha and back in their coaches. Their buses used to be white in colour, with "Intercontinental Coach" painted in blue on its side panels. The buses used to have 2x2 seating, with a single front exit door. They never had any TV or other entertainment system. The drivers were unpredictable - some guys were damn quick, while some others crawled along. They always sent two drivers for the 6 hour journey to Alappuzha from Coimbatore. If my memory serves me right, they were the first operator to introduce Air Buses out of Coimbatore. Conti had regular services to Alappuzha, Kottayam, Ernakulam, Chennai and Bangalore back then. The services to Kerala started returning losses as newer operators started operating.

The services to Kerala were consolidated, and they cancelled all services to Kerala and retained one to Trivandrum - which too fell through very soon. Currently, Conti operates only to Bangalore and Chennai. Conti Travels operate out of their own "bus station" near the Avinashi Road flyover in Coimbatore. The bus station used to have a decent snack outlet, and passenger waiting area as well as restrooms. My last visit to their "bus station" was in October 1998 - a good 12 years back! And, my last trip was in one "Azad" built Airbus running to Alappuzha. 12 years down the lane, I desired to travel once again in their bus... and this trip was special, very special.

One trip to Bangalore was hovering over my head for over a month, and one fine evening, I decided to make it the next day itself. I called up Conti and inquired seat availability - thankfully, they were available. Bags were packed quickly. I started off from home at 7 in the morning, and luckily got into a KSRTC bus to Thrissur. The first thing I did on reaching the Thrissur bus station was to get details of the next bus to Coimbatore - that was at 0850. The bus, RAK675 of Kottayam, came in at 0830, and we started off only at 0900. The run was uneventful - the road was horrible, but the driver did a good job. The bus reached Palakkad at 1030, and we started off at 1045. The halt at Palakkad was supposed to be only 5 minutes long, but it turned out to be 15 minutes long after a few passengers went 'missing'. I was dropped right outside the Conti office at 1150.

My bus to Bangalore..

The first thing I did was to get my ticket - the bus was more than 50% full by now. The ticket fare was only Rs. 370. I was initially allotted seat 27 (the last-but-one row). After paying for the ticket, I went out for lunch. Lunch was from Sree Annapoorna, near KG Hospital. I returned soon to Conti, and just as I reached there, my bus was brought out from their garage - the Isuzu LT1 (Swaraj Prestige) bus. The bus has an Irizar designed body, powered by a 230hp Isuzu rear-mount Engine. Complete with all bells and whistles, the bus has 36 semi-sleeper seats. The bus features a 7-speed manual transmission. I got my boarding pass, and left my baggage inside the bus. My seat number was now changed from 27 to 22. The bus was clean - both inside and outside. All curtains were drawn and the seats were in their regular position. An air-freshener was used, and the smell inside was pleasant. The engine was started at 13:20. The departure was perfectly on time, at 13:30. The bus had some 10 passengers when we started from Avinashi Road.

Inside the Isuzu bus..

The Driver cabin..

The 'conductor' came around checking if everything was well, and if any one had any specific request. The entertainment system was playing out a local FM station. The AC was noisy at the beginning, since the blowers were set to the highest speed. The engine noise was feeble, and the ride was amazingly smooth. It started drizzling a while into the run, even before we reached Gandhipuram. We had three pick up points at Gandhipuram, and at the end of all pick-ups there were 26 passengers on board. We next pulled into the "Omni Bus Stand" at Ganapathy. Conti Travels has an office inside the bus stand, and a guy from the bus stand came into carry out a headcount of the actual number of passengers inside. Satisfied with the papers produced by the crew, the guy signalled the bus driver to start. We finally started off at 14:00.

On the run...

The bus takes the route via Sathyamangalam, Athani, Anthiyur, Mettur Dam, Thoppur, Krishnagiri, Hosur and terminates at the Conti Travels office on Richmond Road in Bangalore. Although the route offers some (very little) advantage interms of distance, the route is predominantly two-laned, with quite some rough patches in between. The main road, via NH47/NH7 is now 85% four-laned, and offers much faster travel between Coimbatore and Bangalore. The driver was initially slow. The ride was really comfortable, and the bus was taking rough patches very well. Forward jerking while braking were less intense as compared to a Volvo/Mercedes. The noise levels were low - important considering the fact that I was just two rows away from the engine! Vibrations were absent (at idle as well as on the run, even at high RPMs).

The two Contis together at Mettur Dam

The driver maintained a very good pace through out. Overtakes were a pain on the two-lane road, since the traffic appeared pretty high on the day. We were soon trailing the KPN Multi-Axle Volvo, which started off a while before us from Coimbatore. We stopped for a break at Mettur Dam, around 1645. The restaurant was small, and there were no washrooms. I felt pity for the ladies traveling by the bus. While we just stopped, our pairing bus (from Bangalore) too arrived. Both buses were parked one behind the other. The break lasted till 1715. Our bus was the first to start off after break. The bus ran around the dam, and then the thermal power plant and finally hit the state highway to Thoppur, via Mechery. The drivers changed after the break. The run from Mettur to Thoppur was painful - we were running through towns during evening peak hours, when factories were just leaving out General Shift Employees. A huge number of trucks and buses on the road made matters worse. We had to trail trucks for long periods before a gap to overtake was found.

The road condition got worser as we neared Thoppur, but the ride inside was amazing. Once on to the National Highway, at Thoppur, the bus started picking up speed again. The bus faltered badly at Thoppur Ghats, and it struggled to climb up the ghats - However, more than the underpowered nature of the bus, I felt the driver wasn't gearing the bus properly. We struggled up the ghats, while a KPN Multi-Axle volvo overtook us through the left with ease. Our struggled repeated at every ghat section, and we were losing time at every Ghat. The toll-stations were chaotic, while just one or two lanes kept open despite heavy traffic. Our driver kept losing his cool every time we reached a toll-station, and it took an average 15-20 minutes to clear each toll. We stopped at a fuel station near Shoolagiri, for passengers to stretch themselves. We reached Hosur around 8pm. We had a longish halt at Hosur for some unknown reason. I was finally dropped at Bommanahalli around 2100. The journey took 7 and a half hours.

Another view of the driver cabin..

Some miscellaneous points... The Isuzu LT134PR (Swaraj Prestige) bus was launched in India, in June 2008. Two years into the market, the bus has been making ripples recently. Off late, many major operators in Bangalore have purchased these buses. Conti Travels were operating Isuzu buses initially on the Coimbatore-Chennai route. They were only recently introduced to Bangalore. The crew were not very happy with the bus - mainly because its underpowered. However, on flat roads, the bus picked up speed at an amazing pace. The AC is of Denso make. The passengers get individual ac vents and reading lamps. The overall ride was excellent - on par with other premium bus offerings in India. The engine did feel underpowered for the Ghats, but is reportedly fuel efficient, and would save money for operators on the long run. The bus is definitely recommended, for its excellent ride quality.

Why is Kerala RTC's premium services proving dud?

2010-10-12T19:21:00.000+05:30

The Kerala State Road Transport Corporation offers various "premium" services both within the state and on selected Inter-state routes. The premium portfolio of KSRTC includes 33 "Super Deluxe", 20 "AC" and 3 "AC Garuda" buses.

A Super Deluxe bus..

Super Deluxe buses are non-AC buses with Air-Suspension and 40 push-back executive seats. All the existing Super Deluxe buses were built by KSRTC's Central Workshop, on Ashok Leyland Viking 222" WB Chassis. These buses feature sliding glass windows, and a single entry/exit door. As evident from the image above, the buses lack a very important 'feature' - Attractiveness. The bus looks like a badly built contraption, which no-one would in their wildest dream think is an Air-suspension bus. The interiors are pretty decent, and the seats are comfortable. There is no partition between the driver cabin and the passenger section - this results in light from oncoming vehicles directly flashing on passengers' faces.

An "AC" bus...

The "AC" buses used currently by KSRTC are the first generation TATA Globuses. The buses were built by ACGL, on TATA 1616 Chassis. These buses have a fixed glass, and are airconditioned using Thermoking overhead AC units. The buses have 45 seats, all with push back facility. The seats are regular ones, and do not have thigh support. These buses are maintained poorly (as evident in the image above) - more than maintenance, the bus itself is of poor quality. Yours truly was "un"lucky to have traveled in one of these just 3 months after they were introduced - the buses rattled badly and the ride was no where near being called "comfortable". One gets to know each rough patch on the road very clearly inside the bus. The Airconditioning in most buses are faulty, and buses are often cancelled due to fault in the AC system. Leakage has been an issue with these buses since a long time, and the media had recently highlighted the issue.

An "AC Garuda" bus.. Its a Volvo 9400..

The "AC Garuda" are Volvo 9400 buses. KSRTC operates three such buses - but has suffered seriously from reliability issues. Given the less number of buses, there has been increasing incidence of service cancellations, with the scheduled bus going to the workshop. There has also been incidence of certain antisocial elements disrupting the services by stone-throwing and other damaging measures.

Why are these services proving a debacle?
This is the million dollar question for KSRTC. The premium services of KSRTC (56 buses in all) form only a shade more than 1% of the corporation's fleet strength (of 5556 buses). The main reason why most services fizzle is reliability - service cancellation without any information is the norm in KSRTC these days. In a recent incident, the Ernakulam-Trivandrum Volvo service was cancelled, and no information was provided to passengers who were waiting for the bus for a long time. Not only that the bus was cancelled, no alternative was provided. What ensued was a mad rush for the buses that came later, and at least a handful of passengers who would think twice of planning to travel by these buses.

Reservation is not provided on a substantial number of these services - the reason why they are kept off the reservation system is: KSRTC is not sure if the bus would run. Providing reservation would mean refund of the money to passengers, and also bearing associated losses. The Trivandrum-Palakkad AC service was recently taken off the reservation system. The reason: The scheduled bus spends more time at the workshop than actually running! AND, KSRTC has no spare bus as a back up!

Of the 56 'premium' buses with KSRTC, only a handful operate on intra-state routes. Others are on Inter-state routes - to be more specific, on the Bangalore route. While private operators run AC buses out of Kerala on many lucrative routes, KSRTC is still to wake up and run buses - its good that they don't start another unreliable service.

What can be the solution to this problem?
Purchase more buses, from reputed manufacturers. There should be adequate spare buses for each class of service. Introduce more such services so that they are more visible among passengers, and have more recall. Introduce reservation on all such services - this forces a level of reliability. There are more ways of improving the service.. it is just that the authorities should wake up and dare think beyond introducing more and more ordinary services. Make a humble beginning by replacing long distance services with premium services - nobody with a sound mind would decide to travel from Kottarakkara to Mookambika, or Trivandrum to Mangalore by a Super Fast bus. Introduce a premium service, and encourage people to upgrade.

A testing month!

2010-10-12T18:44:00.000+05:30

Its been just 12 days since this month started, and its already been testing! Oh! Don't get me wrong: I've been testing different buses over the past week. It all started on October 8, 2010, with my first ever ride on an Isuzu LT1 (Swaraj Prestige) bus. Yesterday had something bigger, two tests back to back! A Mercedes Benz (MCV) City bus (C120LE) running on trial with BMTC, and then the Mercedes Benz Intercity Coach (O 500 R Two-Axle bus), recently introduced by KSRTC (Kar).

Other than these three new products in the Indian bus market, I had two more firsts in my life. My first ever journey in a Kerala RTC "Super Deluxe" bus, and also a Kerala RTC "Super Express" bus. So the days ahead will be dotted with a few trial reports, and some photographs. Be sure to be right here!

For the railfans: Sorry to disappoint again - the only bit of railfanning I did was seeing the 2008 Shatabdi rushing through Bangalore Cantonment yesterday behind a WAP1.

Exploring the controversial freight ghat! (Part-2)

2010-10-01T12:20:00.001+05:30

...It was more of a doze than a sleep. I could clearly hear whistles blown by gangmen, gurgle from umpteen streams and falls on the route, and the regular clickety-clack. We were certainly crawling (the ghats have a limit of 30kmph) - the weather was cold. I remained partially awake as we continued our crawl up the ghats. All this while, my coach was a beehive of activity, and the lone TTE was pulling apart his hair one by one - and was continuously being mobbed by passengers with unreserved tickets. To make matters worse, almost all stations between Mangalore Junction and Hassan issue manual tickets - the TTE is handed over a chart at each station. Each station has a quota of 8 seats each, and for these 8 seats, there would be atleast 20 passengers waiting!

The commotion over seat allocation, and the rightful occupants making their claim over the unreserved passengers added to the show. I jumped out of my berth as the train neared Sakleshpur. The hum of a consist of WDG4s were barely audible, and it slowly got stronger..It got even stronger as we entered the loop line at Sakleshpur. I got off the train - it was pinching cold outside, and I had no protective clothing as well! I decided to check out the bankers first. The bankers were already uncoupled. My train was quickly cleared, and crawled its way out very soon. I headed straight to the canopied portion of the station, and settled on a bench. A railway staff quickly directed me to the waiting room, when I informed that I'd be waiting till the pairing train arrives.

The waiting room is about 12x12 big, with three metal benches lined up around the walls. The walls were damp, from the recent rains. I managed to doze off for a while on one of the benches - by the way, two were already occupied. I woke up around 2 AM. I walked around on the platform - it was unbearably cold now. I took a couple of pics of the station, and then waited for the pairing train to arrive. The Yeshwantpur-Kannur express arrived around 0240. The train was brought in by a KJM WDG3A. My partners in crime, Jayasankar (from Chennai), Bharat Narayan, Vibin and Sanket (all from Bangalore) got off the train, and we all ganged up to decide our next course of action.

The day began off at an unearthly 5 AM. We were to take a freight down the ghats. (The trip was done with due permission from relevant authorities). Twin WDG4s did the honours of take the empty BTPN rake down the ghats, 55 kms away to Subrahmanya Road. We were told that the train would take 4 hours to finish the run, including a crossing at Yadekumeri. We went down to Subrahmanya Road and returned up the ghats on the Mangalore-Yeshwantpur 'day' express. After a sumptuous meal, we headed down the ghats in another freight. We were down by around 1830. I am leaving the 'juicy' part for you all so see. The slideshow below will display selected images of the awesome journey we had through the misty ghats.

After freshening up and some heavy dinner, we were back at the station to get into our link back home. We all were taking the Kannur-Yeshwantpur express. I was to get down at Mysore, and the rest were off to Bangalore. All I remember about this journey was the rush and the commotion at the station. There was little, or no, information on coach positions. We were booked in S4. On enquiry, the guy at the ticket counter said it'll come right near the counter. (Thankfully, it did). The crowd waiting to get into the train was heavy, and made for a stampede like situation when the train came in. We had 'compact' accomodation. I got on to a Middle berth as soon as the train started off. I vaguely remember seeing the TTE - I fell dead asleep even before we started ascending the ghats. I woke up at 4am, just as the train was pulling into Mysore station!

We traveled down the ghats twice and up the ghat twice (I did it thrice) over the day. It was tiresome - none of us were 'tuned' to this kind of travels. But, the ghat route is a must-do for any railfan! Please do it just after the monsoons - the climate would be cool, plus the misty mountains would make for an amazing view.

Read Part-I of this post here. I returned from Mysore to Kerala by bus. I had posted a travelogue of the bus journey a while back right here (Read the post here).

Exploring the controversial freight ghat! (Part-1)

2010-09-17T12:03:00.001+05:30

Since my relocation to Kerala in June 2009, my railfanning outings have been on an all time low. The number of dedicated trips too has hit the rock. The only recent one has been to the Punalur Metre Gauge line (read it here). After long 4-and-a-half months of hibernation (as in not railfanning), I was heading out for another one. This one was a long pending dream - a strenuous ghat section, where trains proceed up and down with utmost caution, and a line that was in at the eye of a controversy.

Some of you would have guessed it right. For the uninitiated, the talk is about the controversial ghat section between Sakleshpur and Subrahmanya Road. This ghats lie on the Hassan-Mangalore Railway Line. The ghat is being referred to as "controversial" since this ghat section has been cleared for operations with a lot of conditions - including a moratorium on operation of Freight trains when a passenger carrying train is operation along the ghat. The railways earn their bread from these Freight trains, and suspension of their operations mean huge losses for the railways. This cause a lot of resistance from the zonal authorities to start of train services along this route.

The line from Hassan to Mangalore was originally built as a Metre Gauge line - and was opened in bits and pieces between 1976 and 1977. The line was closed for Gauge Conversion on September 20, 1996. The ghat section between Sakleshpur and Subrahmanya was, and is, considered a challenging section. The gauge conversion of this section has handed over to a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) formed for the purpose - the Hassan Mangalore Rail Development Company Limited (HMRDC). The company has the Government of Karnataka and the Railway Ministry as majority stake holders, while Mangalore Port trust and a couple of other bodies too as minority stake holders.

The Gauge conversion took a very long time, and is marked in red-letters in the Indian Railway's history. Although the first bit after conversion was opened in January 1998, the rest of the works took forever to complete. The first section to be opened was Hassan-Sakleshpur, a distance of about 42kms, in a 1 in 100 terrain. The next "bit" to be opened was between Mangalore and Kabakaputtur, a distance of about 44 kms, another 1 in 100 terrain. The section was opened in December 2003. Another bit of line from Kabakaputtur to Subrahmanya Road, 42 kms in distance, 1 in 100 terrain, was opened in July 2005. The big fish took long to come - the Sakleshpur-Subrahmanya section. This section, 55 kms in length, is a ghat section with 1 in 55 grades all along. This section was opened in May 2006 for freight services, and December 2007 for passenger operations.

Controversies aside, this section is a must ride for any railfan. With 57 tunnels dotting the 55 kms section, the section was twists, turns, tall viaducts and eerie gorges every where. Not just for the railfan, the section would enchant any travel freak. This is one section that was long on my list of must-dos. (The list is long, but would not like to divulge it for now). Enough with the introductory dialogues, lets now get into business.

Getting the mandatory approvals from my parents for the trip wasn't easy - it came around slowly. Once the starter turned green, I was on the job of booking tickets. The trip was designed overnight and bookings were made quickly. I was joined by, rather I was joining, Jayasankar (from Chennai), Vibin, Bharat Narayan and Sanket (all from Bangalore). I planned the trip in such a way that I join them directly at Sakleshpur, while they came in on the 6517 Yeshwantpur-Kannur express. I took the Ernakulam-Kannur Intercity from Thrissur to Kannur, and then the 6518 Yeshwantpur Express from Kannur to Sakleshpur.

My journey early in the morning - around 0620. I had a brisk walk to the nearest bus stop, and got into a KSRTC bus to head to Thrissur. Did some bus fanning at the KSRTC bus station, and then headed off to the railway station. Had my breakfast from the Food Plaza at the railway station, picked up the days' newspaper and then headed off to the Platform where my train would arrive. My train came in around 0815 (or so), behind twin WDM2s. The leading loco was WDM2 #17620 of Golden Rock. I did not notice the number of the trailing loco - but that was dead for sure. My coach was 2007-built, wrapped in advertisement of LuLu Gold. Although my ticket said I had a window seat, it turned out to be a Middle seat instead! I slept almost through the entire distance, and did not notice anything special on the journey. I hadn't slept the previous night, and utilised the 4 hours of run to catch up a few winks. I reached Kannur right on time, and then headed off to hospital to meet a relative of mine. I returned to the station post lunch, just with some time to spare for my next train.

The ad-wrapped coach of ERS-CAN Intercity

My next train, 6518 Kannur-Yeshwantpur Express, was already on the platform ready to head out. This train shares its rakes with another Bangalore bound train, which departs an hour later from Kannur and reaches about an hour earlier at Bangalore (6528 Kannur-Yeshwantpur Express, via Shornur-Salem-Hosur). I was in S3, and had a Side-lower berth (#71). The loco in charge of my train was WDM3A #18704 from Krishnarajapuram. The Loco crew were busy checking the loco. The starter turn amber dot on time - and we left at 1640 from Kannur. The TTE came around soon after we started off - and soon after the ticket was checked, I hit the bed (er! Berth). I slept almost through till Kasaragod. I resumed sleep after Kasaragod, and woke up just a while before Nethravathy bridge.

I was eager to know how far the work on the bridge was complete - was happy to see that almost 50% works were complete. We crossed Nethravathi "B" cabin and were soon approaching the point where the line from Kankanadi merges with the line to Mangalore Central station. I could see a train running on that line - and had adrenaline rushing up... That was the day express from Bangalore. We ran parallel for about 5 minutes, and finally stopped together at Mangalore Central Station. My train was a whole 30 minutes early, and we had a scheduled halt of 30 minutes at the station - adding up both, we were to remain at the station for an hour. I headed straight to the food plaza at the station for a sumptuous dinner - the food was delicious and was unusually better compared to what we get at normal railway stations.

After dinner, had a long walk to the loco to see the proceedings there. The loco had reversed by now, and the new LPs were checking the loco left, right and centre. One of the LPs was a young chap, while the other guy looked mid-aged. Both were LPs (being a ghat section, its a norm to have two LPs manning the loco) and were based at Mysore. They work all the way from Mangalore to Mysore - a distance of 309 kilometres, covered over 8 hours and 30 minutes. We started off dot at 1945 - my coach was now a beehive of activity, with passengers jostling for space every where. This train is very popular among passengers, and runs into waiting list every single day. Passengers instead take a general ticket and get into the train to capitalise on vacant berths under road-side quotas.

I was joined by two off-duty guards and one Station Manager who was heading to his posting place. I had a long chat. We crossed the Mangalore passenger at Bantwal, a twin WDG4 hauled freight at Puttur and another freighter at an unknown station. I slept soon after we left Subrahmanya Road station..... (To be continued...)

Kerala's Road Habits: An Analysis (Part-1)

2010-09-16T00:08:00.002+05:30

I have been driving since August 2004 - I am one who learned driving exactly after I turned 18, and took a licence 40 days after my birthday. Its been 6 years of driving now, and during this period I have driven in Maharashtra, a brief stretch in Gujarat, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.

I have been driving daily through a typical Kerala-style highway since January this year - a distance of about 66 kms daily. I believe these 8 months were enough for me to make a conclusion on driving habits. Keralites are among the most educated lot, and people here (am too a keralite) have a special sense of driving. Here are some brief notes on the most common habits I've noticed over the past few months of driving here: (The post does not intent to harm anyone. BUT, it certainly is intended to tease your wrongdoings.)

Habit #1: Dog in the Manger:
Most of us would be familiar with the dog and the cow story. There is one habit commonly seen among drivers in Kerala, which is awfully similar to the dog in the manger. Many drivers in Kerala believe its extraordinarily safe to drive at 30-40kmph in the middle of the road, and not giving way to faster vehicles. This is one very common scene these days on the few four-laned roads in Kerala. The trick here is, the thumb rule in Kerala is (of course, this rule is valid across India) not to overtake through the left. AND, drivers in Kerala meticulously follow this rule. Most, so-called, safe drivers do not give way despite repeated honking on the highways - the typical 'do not eat; also not let others eat' attitude of the dog.

Habit #2: Start early, drive slowly:
You should be wondering whats wrong with this! But, the catch is here. Many drivers in Kerala follow this habit while overtaking. The commonest style of overtaking in Kerala is: Honk when there is no space to overtake. When there is no vehicle in the opposite side, pull immediately to the overtaking lane a.k.a. right lane. Keep driving at the same pace, which is essentially the same as the vehicle you are trying to overtake. Do not downshift, do not accelerate more. You keep going at the same pace, and the vehicle out of its own scare would pick up a km/h or more extra speed. After running parallel for about 2-3 minutes, you finally go ahead of the other vehicle. AND, by this time, there would be vehicle on the opposite side. So the vehicle following you would be one vehicle behind - this habit overlaps with Habit #1.

Habit #3: Left or Right, Centre is the best!
This is not exactly a Keralite habit, but is seen among most drivers in India - especially bikers and auto drivers. The habit is to drive in the middle of the road. In any traffic block, especially on two lane roads, the middle lane (Err! the middle portion of the road) is certainly occupied by bikes and autorickshaws. Notice the image below.

As you can see, the road is a narrow two-laned road. (Did I mention this: This is the starting portion of NH17!) All 'respectable' vehicles are lined up on the left side, and moving forward in an orderly queue. See where the bikers are. If you notice the image properly, vehicles coming the opposite direction can be seen. What benefit do bikers obtain by this? (Other than delay others). Bikers should be charged heavily for such dangerous driving habits - you are only forcing other to drive even badly after the jam.

Habit #4: Save Energy!
You would be wondering what is this all about! Did you know that Indicators consume energy. (Honestly, I never knew this!). People in Kerala prefer switching on their turn indicators well after they actually start turning! Isn't the Indicator actually indicated to warn the person behind that you would be turning? Whats the use if you switch it on after you actually start turning?

Habit #5: Safe Approach!
This is the most peculiar habit I have seen in Kerala. I might be wrong to squarely blame Keralites alone on this, and this might be existing elsewhere as well. "Safe Approach" is a tactic used by people who are about to enter the main road from a by-lane, especially when the road approaches at a 90-deg angle. Say, the person driving down the bylane needs to enter the main road and travel to the right i.e., he need to cross a lane to get on to the correct lane. In normal practice, the driver would continue perpendicular to the main road, stop at the intersection. Look on both sides, and once the road is clear or has adequate space, enters the main road at a 90-deg angle and bears a sharp right to enter the road (as shown to left in the image below).

But, most drivers (especially bikers, and people who have just upgraded to a car from a bike) in Kerala have a different practice. They stick to the right of the road they are driving on. Then enter the wrong lane on the main road irrespective of traffic, and then suddenly change over to the correct lane, irrespective of whether the lane is empty or not. The image above would give an idea of how this "safe approach" works. There has been situations where I've just let off my car and let what ever happens! You might be driving at a decent pace (read, above 60kmph), when a reckless vehicle (read, private bus) comes on the opposite side. You suddenly see a vehicle running coming in the opposite direction on the left side of the road - literally sandwiched between the devil (private bus) and the deep blue sea!

India's most literate state needs to go a long way in improving road etiquettes. While I still have more points to cry on, I reserve them for future posts - afterall, I need to keep this blog busy. Don't I?

So wait for the next part of ramblings about Kerala's driving habits. I am sorry to have generalise my observations pertaining to certain sadistic individuals - but a good share of the blame has to be on driving schools in the state - had they been training proper etiquette, the scene would have been far different. From what I understand, most accidents in the state happen when drivers get fed up of the habits mentioned above, especially Habits #1 & #2. If you are in no hurry, that doesn't mean the guy behind you too isn't - give way.