BLINDING CORRIDORS
Caught between the mesh of rays
Light plays with life's existence
The people I know and myself
Tangled and attached to the wires
Being cut away from darkness
No sunshine here
Theres only grey
As nature's breath
Is choked away
Clouds of poison fill the sky
Will we stop to question why
We as a society have become quite reactive - every problem sparks a resounding reaction that spreads like wildfire for a while, post which we revert to the way things were. However, the potential to bring about a change could have more far-reaching effects, if we recognise the signs before disaster strikes.The pollution, the dust, the filth, the contamination of our cities - it's staring us in our faces. No matter how much we look away, how much we try to turn a blind eye, it's screaming for our attention. This is the pitiable state of our cities. Our city structures are now beyond despair. We continue to look away, continue to ignore, and neglect our cities that are falling apart. Wake up, before the last of our cities that are home to us crumble apart. We have to stop normalising disaster and raise the flag before it’s too late.We definitely have a taste for risk-taking. Or else, why would we think all sort of live wires hanging over our heads are no big deal? To add to that, we are living in a tropical region, which means monsoons visit us every so often. Definitely, a recipe for disaster.
Why are we so apathetic to what’s happening around us? Why do we suddenly become vigilant and reactive after that bridge falls, or that building topples over, or someone gets electrocuted?
Why do we protest do once these disasters have already struck - when we could be making an even bigger impact before crisis hits home?
We have to stop normalising disaster and raise the flag before it’s too late.
India generates 150 million tonnes of waste in a day. With no environmental friendly processing for the waste, the garbage is extremely hazardous, heaped together at landfills usually in the city’s outskirts, with scavengers often including young children working in unsafe conditions to segregate it.Over 46 million Indians are exposed to contaminated water. In fact, India has the highest number of people in the world without access to safe water, and are forced to live with contaminated water. Many children in impoverished villages and even in ‘developed’ cities like Mumbai grow up living with impure water.Around 60 % Indians do not have access to safe and private toilets. A report by Water Aid states that “If all 774 million people in India waiting for household toilets were made to stand in a line, the queue would stretch from Earth to the moon and beyond.”Over 10,000 people were killed in India in 2015 because of accidents by potholes or damaged roads. On an average, 400 people are dying on India’s roads daily. Potholes, damaged roads and hazardous driving conditions are now a way of life in India.Of the world’s 1.3 billion people who live without access to power, a quarter — about 300 million are Indians. Another problem is erratic or unstable power supply, particularly in India’s villages, where several Indians continue to live in the dark.We have waited for a complete downfall of our city structures, and been very casual about the collapsing infrastructures. the warning signs are all around us.
We live in buildings that are in shambles and could crumble any moment. We are oblivious to the danger that’s lurking in the corridors. We walk down staircases that could any time open into an abyss of pain. But we continue to trudge on, oblivious to our surroundings.
On assignment with Jaagore