By Geetika Vasudeva:
A normal Monday morning. Mr. Sharma is getting ready for the office. Suitcase, files, handkerchief – everything in place. After the sumptuous aloo paranthas, Mr. Sharma sets out for another long day at work on his scooter. While waiting for the signal to go green at one of the traffic lights, he sees a woman lying on the footpath, unconscious, and a young boy, his face smeared with tears screaming for help. Banging on car windows, running around barefoot in the scorching heat, the boy keeps on shouting incessantly. And the light turns green! Mr. Sharma, though feeling bad for the boy and his mother, moves ahead like everyone, thinking that somebody else will definitely help him out. Little does he know, that the entire city is full of Mr.Sharmas, who consider reaching office on time more important than a human life. A normal day in our city, indeed!
The recent case of a woman bleeding to death after giving birth to a baby on a footpath in the capital, just proves the fact that today’s Indian is devoid of emotion, love and compassion. So engrossed we are with ourselves, that someone else’s misery and pain fail to pierce the strong walls of indifference enclosing our hearts and minds. So concerned are we about our own conveniences, that a human life doesn’t seem worthy of our time.
There’s is an urgent need of breaking this deafening silence and a desperate attempt required to restore the lost love. We can better the situation only by changing as an individual, only by realising that it could be you or me the next time and the whole world passing by, only by finding a voice!
So, it’s time to bury Mr. Sharmas existing in each one of us and become a person who thinks and feels for the people around, who won’t move ahead at a traffic signal thinking that somebody else will come out to help, who’ll be free from the shackles of indifference.
SaveLife Foundation is one such organization working India that combines community volunteerism with Healthcare, Technology and Law Enforcement to facilitate immediate rescue and care for road accident victims. To know more and join them log on to http://slfindia.org/