On the eve of a Landmark - 1- /778

        LANDMARK EVENT -1  TRANSPORT

THREE QUARTERS OF A CENTURY I BELIEVE IS A LANDMARK FIGURE AND IF ONE WERE TO ASSOCIATE THIS WITH ONE'S AGE WHICH IN MY CASE IS JUST AROUND THE CORNER  , IT DOES COME WITH ITS LOT OF PLEASANT MEMORIES AND SURPRISES .

TRANSPORT AND VEHICLES : 

Bicycles 

The first fancy that one may remember as a kid is learning to ride the Bicycle . In those days , one could not afford to have a cycle of their own , these Ricketty - Racketty contraptions had to be hired from the street corner Cycle Repair cum Hire shop for a then princely amount of 25 Naya Paise Per Hour . Finding and Funding the resources for the same from our  Guardians or  Parents required - days if not a whole Week of your good behavior at home .

It was a momentous day when I finally managed to pedal my way on a dilapidated kid cycle on an empty street 30 , Sector 10 of Bhilai . The bruises on the elbow or knees was of no concern . In early teens monkey pedalling on the ROBIN HOOD Cycle lent rather  reluctantly by my somewhat older and employed  Cousin to Cycle in the Open Ground at our place of stay in my father's Railway Officers Quarters at Shalimar in Calcutta is still fresh in my mind, 

My own cycle was a 29 Inches Eastern Star Ladies Bicycle which was my proud mode of transport to School everyday .

Motor Bikes : 

I had a fascination for Motor Bikes right from my Elementary School Days in Kharagpur . The figure of the Portly Krishna Moorthy Sir who came home to teach me Tamil during the Weekends is still fresh in my mind . He used to come HOME  in a LUNA which was no more than a cycle with 30 cc Petrol Engine . Keeping his 120 KG plus huge  frame perched on the tiny seat of the Luna must have taken some doing from him  !! . Krishna Moorthy Sir had ignited a spark in me for all types of vehicles in my later years . His efforts to teach me Tamil however was a total failure though . That let me assure you that was due to no fault of his . GOD REST HIS SOUL !! . Yours truely could never bring it upon himself to learn the language . A shame indeed !! .

In my later years and just out of College , I had the privilege of gallivanting around Mumbai from Andheri to Worli Sea Face on the on the Vespa and Royal Enfield Bullet vehicles borrowed from my friends Jadhav and Srinivasan . Except for once , I had never come to the notice of the ever vigilant Traffic Cops . Whether it was due to my prowess as a Driver or due to the in efficacy of the Policing Team is a question that begs an answer .

After Employment at Madura Coats and until now , I  have been the owner of Royal Enfield Crusader ; Jawa ; Rajdoot ; Two Ind Suzuki's; Bajaj Kawasaki for various durations and the Current Bajaj CT100 has kept me company over the years .

My escapades with the 4 Wheelers have also had me  try my hand with the Willy's left hand drive Jeep at Bhilai and during College Days trying my hand with the Fiat Padmini 1100 -  MRZ 1319 ; my dear friend Mukulesh's Car and driving it almost into the Arabian Sea at Nariman Point in Mumbai . That was the first and last time he ever let me handle the Car . We have together covered every nook and corner of Mumbai in  our 4 year association during our College Days and then later . At Agasthiarpatty and Bangalore, I  had the pleasure of driving around in my Own TATO NANO which I had named as PICANOL . PICANOL by the way is the name of the Loom Manufacturer which had/ has  been the source of my Livelihood during my Entire Madura Coats Days .

And finally Flying ; I have lost count of the number of times that  I have been airborne across the World ; but that first free flight on the Midget of a Plane owned by the Kirloskers from Mumbai to Poona courtesy my friend Mannu has stood the test of time and is still etched clearly in my mind .

So Till Next time on another Topic :