The 2023 Karnataka assembly polls are behind us. The government is firmly in place. Congress is in power. The voters have delivered their verdict. In doing so, the latter seem to have carried out a mighty duty as a citizen — to vote, and get that black indelible mark on their left forefingers as a certificate. Now they have gone back to their lives like nothing has changed … and that’s the reason why nothing actually changes except the party that comes to power to take control of the government’s reins.
Rampant traffic violations; inadequate, faulty or just plain absent civic amenities; lack of civic sense; being a party to corruption, and more: For all these, we have the government ready to be blamed and put in the dock, irrespective of the party at the helm, notwithstanding the fact that we are as much a party to all of these relentlessly persisting problems over years and decades — again, irrespective of the party at the helm.
We turn a blind eye to the fact that for every ill that we come across, we are looking for solutions from the government. If a solution fails to come, we blame the government.
While at that, no thought crosses our minds that we can play proactive roles as citizens to prevent the adverse impact of the ills haunting our society.
Look at the roads in the cities and towns in our state. Most of them lack footpaths to provide safe walking zones for pedestrians. And where footpaths do exist, people still walk on the roads as if programmed to be in the paths of overspeeding vehicles that can well mow them down, and many do.
Take this tragic incident that occurred in Bannerghatta on Bengaluru’s outskirts on Wednesday morning. Bhuvan, a four-year-old boy, walking with his elder brother from his house to buy milk at a nearby store, was run over by a speeding water tanker from behind. The child died a little later, declared “brought dead” at the hospital. As happens in most such cases, the water tanker’s driver fled the scene, fearing being thrashed by the angry mob that had gathered.
Two things here: first, the driver was at fault for overspeeding, and not realising that his act can potentially claim a life on a road without a footpath, and that pedestrians were present; second, children emulate adult behaviour, and in this case it was about walking on the road with a child as young as four walking on the outside, when he should have been away from the speeding vehicles.
The government’s fault: no safe walking zone next to the road, which made the child vulnerable to a deadly driver’s indulgence with speed to get to his destination. A death under the BJP government is no better or worse than a death under a Congress or any other one. Death is death. A precious life nipped in the bud! Gone!
The party in power is not on our minds when we openly spit or urinate on the roads, or wherever possible, for quicker relief. We don’t care whether it is BJP, Congress or JD(S) in power when we are half party to a corrupt act, like paying bribes, discreetly or indiscreetly demanded by some government employee, so “we can get our jobs done faster” — and yet complain about corruption reaching high levels in the state.
The government is a facilitator, a collaborator. It must provide what the citizens need for safety and sustenance of life. The citizens decide the government through voting. But after having done that, it is no good to turn away to endure the harsh effects of problems persisting due to indifference from the citizens themselves. They need to remember: the government is of the people, by the people and for the people!
nirad Mudur
Deputy Resident Editor, Karnataka
niradgmudur@newindianexpress.com