Did You Give Something?

As one travels from one part of Bangalore to another, he can see the changes that have come over years. Once upon a time, Whitefield was considered to be outside the city. It was just 5 years ago. But now, a traffic jam in this area too is considered as normal. The same has been the state of many other parts in the city. Once considered as remote places, these areas are now attracting a lot of traffic, and hub-drub of the city.

And as you are stuck in a traffic-jam, you will definitely feel miserable. The noise around you, the pollution caused by the vehicles, the pot-holes, that you would have encountered on the way, & the ones that you will encounter on the way to your destination, all this will make you wonder as to what has happened to the city that is supposed to be the 'city of gardens'? Did you realize as to how many gardens did you actually see on your way?

What I find most disgusting is the state of the people in Bangalore; especially those who come here with the dream of earning their livlihood and leave the shadows of their cruel past behind.
One can see a lot of low-class workers, busy in thier daily-jobs, everywhere in the city. Be it a fly-over (something that has made a big hue-and-cry in the city), restaurant, railways, construction, you will find many people working here. They jostle into the BMTC buses, in the morning, carrying their lunch in a small tifin-box, and then busying themselves in the work that will provide them their daily bread.

But there is another class of people who cannot afford this. Let's go back to the traffic-jam where you are stuck. Did you notice somebody standing outside your car, extending his/her hand, expecting a coin from you? Or did you see a small girl, doing acrobatics on the footpath, so that her physically-disabled mother can get somethng from you? Or was it an old man who was trying to sell you a packet of ear-buds for a meagre 5 rupees, which will mean something to him, if not to you?

Did you give them something? A small coin, a packet of biscuits, a banana, or similar thing? Or did you ignore him and drove away once the signal turned green, like me?