U-Turn

It was a pleasure to drive down the four-lane NH7 from Madurai to Tirunelveli and then to the tip of India, Kanyakumari. The diesel Indica could not take us above 120kmph though the smooth road offered me the chance. I could experience a complete transformation of what was called a national highway a few years back. Now I get to race on the highways without any harm to anyone (including me), lots of huge trucks save a lot on fuel cost, journeys done by state bus corporations get slightly more comfortable, supply chain companies get to earn more on prompt deliveries, and a customer sitting in one corner of our huge country gets to buy what he wants, whenever he wants at a lower price. A big thanks to the prestigious NS-EW corridor of the National Highway Development Project. These highways will make a positive impact on our GDP figures as well. But wait...I could see a toll gate down the road that is going to take some 50 bucks from me. Well, there is nothing called a free lunch. I better pay up and continue my drive whizzing past the tree-bottom temples and dried-up river beds.

But someone reminded me that I was an honest tax payer; I had paid the road cess too for sometime, in addition to the road taxes I coughed up when I bought this car. Naturally I presumed that all my payments had gone into making these fine highways and it was our basic right to have a good road. Looks like I was wrong. These brand-new four lanes needed huge funds and the petty payments we made were obviously not enough...and of course, there is a host of areas like defence, law and order, education etc fighting for the money we gave. So there is this flashy parade of toll gates from time to time to break the monotony of the long drives and to remind us there is no free lunch. Fair enough.

One fine morning I wake up to see that I have gone almost bankrupt and all that I am left with is an old moped; In search of some job I drive down to the next city on the highway; I am stopped at the toll gate; I do not have anything to pay; I am not allowed to proceed further; I take a U-turn; I decide to take the old highway to the city, though not smooth, it is free for all.

Alas! The old road is no more. I have nowhere to go.