Driving in India isn't scary

Is what I think... after one year of my involuntarily self-imposed curfew
on driving.

I finally gave up on my efforts (atleast for the time being on some of my
initiatives) of not increasing my carbon foot-print. The public transport
system in Pune is horrendous and that would be an understatement. The
buses are from the stone age, the bus-stops (where the buses hardly stop btw)
from the iron age and showing all signs of it, the routes if you could decipher
would fetch you a prize in a puzzle competition, the staff being the royals on
service to mere mortals at their mercy!

No, the local trains are no better. Well, they do stop at the stations, but are
so overcrowded that I couldn't take the train that I used to a couple of years back.
The same train that used to appear so spacious and airy and comfortable was
choc-a-bloc with people bringing in the fragrances of their land that make your
nose shrivel up in the luxury that is offered only in a few malls in India.
India's population is growing up so fast it is increasing the burden on the
infrastructure at exponential rates!

And the monsoon playing truant didn't help one bit. The monsoon setting in is
going to open up another pandora's box! With the extreme heat going on it was
impossible to reach office or home without having drenched your clothes in
sweat. (Well, yeah I know I am exaggerating, but it is not very far from the truth)

So after all the efforts to not add to pollution I took my vehicle out on the mean roads
of Pune. Contrary to my fear and anticipation, it wasn't that tough driving on Indian
roads again. The roads in most parts of the city are fantastic and offer a good drive.
Yes, driving discipline left a lot more to be expected but still not that bad. The
left-hand/right-hand drive confusion can also be cleared up quickly and you can
have a smooth sail. It took me approx 45-50 minutes to cover a distance of I would
say 25km. Not bad, eh!

All in all was a good decision to drive the car. I hope to do car-pooling in the near
future to get rid of my guilt (and ofcourse some of the leg pain that exists due to
the strenuous drive) :-)

Drive Safe and Follow Traffic Rules.