Ramesh Kumar documents his travels through West Bengal and Jharkhand over several days in March 2014. Some of the key details he summarizes include: - A unique taxi service in Kolkata that cannot refuse passengers and will have their license cancelled after 3 complaints. - A tea maker at a roadside hotel in West Bengal who has worked there for 20 years and only earns Rs. 6,000 per month. - A factory emitting smoke in West Bengal that employees many local workers, though it's unclear if they have job security or benefits. - Thick forests along the road as he crosses into Jharkhand from West Bengal, welcoming visitors into the mineral rich but

1. RAMESH KUMAR

2. Kolkota Special
No Refusal Cab
Oxymoron?
*
Labour-friendly..
Mast Movement
Men, not machines, at play
*
KICKER:
Loot on the highway?
Elephantine challenge
March 20-22, 2014 :: Wed-Saturday

3. It’s unique. Yes, really unique. Spotted taxis plying with “NO REFUSAL” boldly written on their
sides. These cabs CANNOT refuse passengers to go to any place – howsoever short the distance
maybe. If they refuse, the passenger can complain to police with the taxi no. Three complaints
and, presto, licence cancelled. Obliging taximen? Oxymoron, no? But it is Kolkota… Anything is
March 20, 2014 :: Thursday

4. Vishnu Dutta makes approximately 250-300 tea daily at Sukanta Hotel on National Highway 6
towards Jamshedpur where we halt for a tea break after leaving Kolkota. He has been a tea
maker (chaiwala, like Prime Minister-in-waiting Narendra Modi!) for the past 20 years at the
same spot. I mistake him for an owner-worker. He is not. Rs.6,000 is his monthly paycheque. Is it
sufficient, I ask. He does not respond, but says he joined at a salary of Rs.75. That was 20 years
ago.
March 20, 2014 :: Thursday

5. Chimney towers spew out smoke disturbing the environment. What they manufacture, no idea.
But some economic activity is happening at this factory somewhere in West Bengal. A few
hundred, if not thousands, bellies are fed. That many pair of hands are gainfully employed. How
many of them working in this plant site are on the roles of company with social security net? Or
are they outsourced or contract labour with no social security cover? Nonetheless this is better
than availing dole under MNERGA or whatever subsidy scheme that encourages laziness.
March 20, 2014 :: Thursday

6. Excellent sunlight. Empty roads. Long
drive. Excitement. Educative.
Entertaining. Aam aadmi touch. Also,
time for bioleak. Adventure? Maybe.
Out of sitting on the greyish National
Highway 6 – less than 100 km before
Jamshedpur.
March 20, 2014 :: Thursday

7. “Woods are lovely, dark and deep …” Yes, the famous lines from Robert Frost. Crossing over into
Jharkhand from West Bengal and one runs into this thick foliage. Sun has bid goodbye for the
day and hence fading light. Branches sway gently in the breeze. Appears as if a long line of tall
soldiers standing on both sides of the road welcoming visitors into Jharkhand, the mineral rich
state, but poorly managed. “Miles to go before I sleep” @ Jamshedpur!
March 20, 2014 :: Thursday

8. A tall iron mast is being moved on wheels by 16 men near Jamshedpur. Is there not a better way
to transport these masts … say, a tractor and pull them to the desired destination – less than
200 metres from where they are lying. “It works out much cheaper to hire labour than tractor.
Moreover, there are no jobs in Jharkhand. If not this work, they will remain jobless and hungry.
You want that?” asks the local tea vendor who feeds them.
March 22, 2014 :: Saturday

9. It’s NOT highway robbery. Or loot. A friendly trucker offering some
bananas to the elephant. God-fearing truck driver. Elephant, after
all, is considered as Ganpati, son of Shiv-Parvati, the celestial
couple. The mahout is on his way back from Bhubaneswar- 420 km
away from Jamshedpur. What’s the speed at which they are
cruising? 40 km/day! Is he – the mahout – not getting bored at this
speed? “This is my business. We halt. We bless. Collect money. …
Share,” says he. Share equally? He laughs away.
March 22, 2014 :: Saturday

10. Siesta time. Hard wooden plank. Soft pillow. This
cook at a dhaba is in deep sleep. He is unmindful
of the tak-tak-tak of trucks, buses and cars plying
on the highway hardly a few metres away from
where he is resting. Nor do the pesky flies disturb
him. He’s snoring gloriously after a day’s hard
work. His bulging belly is in perfect in-and-out
mode. No fan. No a.c. Just a thatched roof over his
head. No care in the world. Until he wakes up.
March 22, 2014 :: Saturday

11. To be continued