Why Manhole Covers ?

Today, Dr. Kamal complimented the previous article on the 'Manhole Covers', but raised the genuine question about the subject of the topic. Two other phone calls sounded almost similar. I could sense that they did not find it 'decent and decorative'. One of the friends was blunt enough to tell that it is not the story, and looks more like an 'endless essay’. While the other complained that the slide show of the pictures in the end looses the attention and get literally lost in 'bla-bla' of the narrations. [I’m not disclosing their names!] So, these are the thoughts... and possible explanations of the coincidence of many reasons!

1] The previous post on the manhole covers was in the remembrance of the young boy, Vishant, who has been missing after accidently stepping in the uncovered manhole in Ahmedabad. Even after about a week of extensive 'search’, his body is not yet recovered from the underground drainage and sewers. This whole week, this unfortunate mishap has been in the news in most of the local dailies.

2]Unfortunately Vishant was not that lucky to be rescued immediately like the young girl of some 6-7 years, brought to my hospital, some 15 years back. She was resuscitated successfully and revived. That fragrance of the fulfillment, for we all at ‘Shaishav Hospital’ was far more than the stink of the ‘gutter’ in which she was ‘near drowned’ and soiled completely. Both these smells lingered behind even after the discharge, for quite a while!

3] This incidence happened just last year, when the work of road resurfacing was undertaken in our society. From the first floor of the our house, when I was talking with my sister, an auto rickshaw suddenly stopped and out jumped the man sitting on the backseat, he gathered the 'cast-iron man hole cover', in front of the opposite bungalow, and within no time sped away, before we could react or raise the alarm. This happened in the closely guarded society, with round the clock security!

4] The competition and the display of the posters for 'The mission -Clean Ahmedabad' by 'Ahmedabad Mirror' was there at the Law Garden, last week.The under taken campaign, as 'Christina's Challenge' is for the noble cause to involve the common man of the society and to spread the values of the cleanliness and sanitation, in the community. I could correlate this well with the similar 'Art competitions ' for the manhole covers in the Western world, few decades back. [ I also contributed in a little way by attending one of the 'sunday sessions' and also by submitting the above 2 posters of the contest to appeal for 'Cleaner Ahmedabad'.]