He sat in the verandah, bent over the table covered with
paper, with steaming coffee cup in one hand and the other holding the paper in
place and turning pages. There is a light breeze today, making it difficult for
him to hold the paper in place with single hand. So he finished drinking
coffee, set the cup aside and devoted his complete attention to the newspaper.
His wife was preparing breakfast in the kitchen, spreading
delicious aromas throughout the neighborhood. He generally starts with the
first page; but today, when the paperboy flung the paper, it dove right into
the bucket of water set aside for sprinkling in the garden. He immediately
retrieved it, but the first two pages were already damp. News articles on the
first page were illegible. Trying to separate the two damp sheets only resulted
in tearing them. So he laid them in sunlight for drying and started from 5th
page.
He read first few lines in the editorial; the editor once
again wreaked havoc on the government for its inability to prevent accidents.
“How can the government prevent accidents?” he thought to himself. “The drivers
and passengers should be alert at all times. The government can regulate until
a certain level. After that, it’s our responsibility. And the government has to
make sure periodically that the infrastructure and machinery are fit as per
standard regulations”
His thoughts continued in this direction when his wife
entered verandah to collect his empty coffee cup. She listed the vegetables
available and asked him what he would like to have in lunch. He waved his hand
resignedly as if to tell “whatever you wish”. She turned around saying “I gave
you choice and you declined it. So, don’t go to your mother complaining that
I’m not cooking your favorite dishes.” He smiled to himself.
She was about to step inside when the dry paper in the
sunlight attracted her attention. “Are you so lazy to pick up the paper?” she
asked mockingly as she picked it up. He responded likewise saying “why do you
jump to conclusions? We have been together for 23 years and still I can’t get
used to it yet. If I am really lazy, I would be the one amongst us who is …” he
thought for a second and added “chubby.” He raised his head to look at her
expression when she heard the last word.
He saw confusion and shock instead of mock anger. Also, she
didn’t seem to have heard him. She was looking at the main paper. He was
immediately concerned. He got up, reached her and shook her, asking what
happened. When she didn’t respond, he looked at the headline she was staring
at. It read “12 youths killed in road accident”. That caught his attention. He
grabbed the paper from her hands and read the details:
The accident happened near a small village in a northern
state where a bridge built across the mighty river collapsed at around 2’o
clock in the morning due to heavy floods. An aerial view of the site and damage
occurred can be seen in the above picture. Unfortunately, a tour bus carrying
30 persons, including staff, happened to be crossing the bridge at that time.
The death toll is 12 and increasing by the hour. According to one of the
rescued passengers, the bus fell into the river and was carried away by the
strong current for about 1km, where the river took a 90 degree turn. The bus
was lodged in the muddy bank due to the strong pushing current. But by that
time, 18 people were missing. So far, 12 bodies have been recovered along the
river banks, as far as 4km downstream from the bridge. Both missing and found
(dead/alive) passengers are listed below for the benefit of victims’ families.
The official report is still due. The water level in the river receded for now,
but the officials say it is only temporary and more floods are inbound.
He didn’t notice his wife collapse on the architrave. He
didn’t even hear her bawling. The neighbors quickly gathered at their doorstep,
some came in. But he continued reading. He reached the list of 'found dead' and
read carefully each and every name. He stopped at the seventh name and read it
again to confirm. He dropped the paper and ran into the house. Women in the gathering
were consoling her without even knowing why she was crying. Some of the men
followed him inside.
He turned on the television and tuned in a news channel. One
of the neighbors, who already read the newspaper and guessed what must have
happened, took him by hands and seated him in the chair facing the television.
The news channel was displaying the images of the deceased. One of the images
on the screen is same as the one that stood beside the television. Seeing this
from the architrave, the mother’s cries rose but the father never rose from the
chair for the rest of his life.
