Tracking 'em down...

It wasn’t the first time I was at the Howrah Railway Station, but yes, it had been years since I was there. The cleanliness of the newly extended platforms spoke of the efforts that were being put in to keep such a heritage clean. It felt good. The platform was full of travellers waiting to take the long distance train. Along with families and couples going out for a vacation, there were young students and working professionals taking their first leap into world outside Kolkata. The mothers were somehow keeping their tears at bay, the fathers giving out tips on how to take care of a difficult situation.

The other platforms for the local trains were packed with hordes of people plying between Kolkata and some neighbouring towns. It is a regular affair that such people come down to Kolkata early morning, get done with their day’s work and then go back in the evening train. It made me wonder how hectic must it be for them and how little time they must get for their family or for themselves. What all we humans have to do for the mere instinct of survival.

I remembered a similar scene from the Sealdah Railway Station when I was going to a cousin’s place. It was miraculous how the crowd moves in all directions but there is nobody to manage. One staircase is for everyone to go into the station as well as go out. Every single person is in a hurry, including the labourers who carry heavy loads on the trolleys. And yet, there is no point where people get stuck. Everyone moves in a flow and reaches his destination. It feels as if you are in a trance.  You remember where you started from and you realise that you have reached your destination, be it in front of the train or at the exit gate, but you do not remember how you managed to scoot through the thick wave of people coming from the 13 platforms all at once. I remembered hearing stories from my grandfather that there used to be tram lines as well! The Sealdah railway station was established in 1869 and trams used to ply till before the year 1978.

As these memories dawned on me, my heart started to feel heavy. I was leaving behind so many memories. I was on board to start of life afresh, in a new city. It was the first ever time I was travelling alone. This brought me to break the weird silence between me and my parents. The emotions of all three of us were genuine but nobody wanted the other to fall weak. As the train arrived an hour before the schedules departure, everybody formed lines in front of the gate to board their bags first. it came to my mind that the railway authorities are doing a pretty good job thinking about the convenience of the passengers and sending the train to the platform one hour prior so that everyone had enough time to board their luggage and settle down.

I noticed that the announcements for the local trains as well as the long-distance ones were very accurate. The voice was loud and clear, and repeated a number of times in three different languages for everyone to hear and act accordingly. In the hustle and bustle of boarding the train and settling down, it was already time for the train to depart. The families bid happy adieus to the couples going out for travelling, and the most genuine emotions rolled down the cheeks of the mothers as they blessed the apple of their eyes for a new beginning. As the train started on the tracks, I wanted to take as much of my Mom and Dad’s presence as could. So, I refused to move from the door till the time the platform wasn’t visible any more. A lot of memories buzzed in my mind and time flew by. It was a weird feeling as I was excited to start a new life and yet I wasn’t able to forget the fact that I won’t be seeing my parents everyday from now. And with all this on my mind, I didn’t realise when the train rocked me to sleep.

There was ample amount of time the next morning, for me to think about the previous day’s experience. That reminded me of the stories my Grandfather told me about the Howrah railway station being way busier than any human being in Kolkata. The way it handles the rush created by the arrivals and departures of long distance and local trains of 23 platforms, is simple commendable. It was established in 1854 and within a year’s success was electrified in the year 1954. It can be said that the Howrah Railway Station is a gem that adorns the west bank of the River Hooghly.