My colleague Prashant and I were to travel to Allahabad that day. While planning the trip we discovered that there was only one flight to that place in the whole of 24 hours – an IA flight from Delhi which does a round trip in the late afternoon. We realized that there were not many air travelers to Chitrakoot dham – famous in the Ramayan as the place where Ram , Lakshman and Sita had spent 11 of their 14 years of exile. The place however is well connected by train.
We could have taken the direct train to Allahabad from Mumbai. But it takes exactly 24 hours and for official purposes we cannot think of such a long train journey. So we decided to take an afternoon flight to Delhi and an overnight train from there to our destination. While getting the ticketing done on the net, I found that there were scores of trains but only one of them had a smaller wait-listing.
On reaching New Delhi station from the airport we discovered the reason for the smaller wait-listing. The board showed that Magadh Express was to leave at 5 am the next day instead of the 8.10pm timing with which we had aligned our flight. The people around told us that it was the worst train and that it was perennially late. So much for our planning!!!
The experience of the two MNC executives from then up to the journey completion was smoothened only by their self-determination and amiable disposition.
7PM – Paharganj side of New Delhi station was not the best of places to be in. A tout took us to a railway ticket booking agency located in a small cubicle on the first floor of a building opposite to the station. We discovered that we could have tickets in our own name for the night journey but at a price. They charged us double but agreed to get us confirmed tickets in the Brahmaputra mail. While Prashant waited in that 1st floor cubicle, I went out to cancel the original e-ticket in Magadh express. No end to our learnings – e-tickets have to be cancelled on the net only. On my way back from the reservation office, I decided to check the timings of the Brahmaputra mail. Imagine my mental state when I could not locate that train on the list at all. For a moment I thought that we were being taken for a ride by the agents. On enquiry I found out that the mail was from Old Delhi station. Somewhat relieved, I reach the cubicle, but not before an anxious call from Prashant – as to what was happening with me.
On reaching the cubicle, we had to stretch our brains to get a way to cancel the old tickets. We called up our colleague at Mumbai and he helped us with the cancellation on his home computer. What an effective use of communication technology!
Tickets in our hand we set out for Old Delhi station. But before that we decided to get some cash from the ATM located not far away. But walking those three hundred yards took us to back to Emperor Akbar’s times. Today also the place does not have any street lights- may be the same condition as four hundred years ago. Or maybe they had proper lightings then. Just imagine the scenario – Paharganj area, almost totally dark, cycle-rickshaws around. We got the money and while returning Prashant wanted to have dinner at a 1st storey place (supposedly air conditioned). I was not very sure of the 1st storey cubicles there. Instead we had garam rotis on the ground floor restaurants.
Well-fed we started our sojourn to the Metro station on the Ajmeri Gate side. One thing that amazed me was that the authorities have managed to get the ‘Sab chalta hai’ Delhiwalla to form queues while entering stations and have their baggage scanned. We found that at all the places – New Delhi, Old Delhi and the Metro stations. Good for Delhi. Our first travel on the metro was not the most welcomed one. The train was full to the brim. I was so worried with Prashant’s purse. I don’t carry one – thanks to my everyday travel on the Mumbai trains. We could hardly squeeze ourselves into a compartment, but came face to face with another issue. A Jat was fighting verbally with another and the two were on the verge of exchanging blows. I was stiff scared, because in such cases many times the blow misses its destination and lands on someone else’s chin nearby. I had tasted one such blow in a double decker bus in Calcutta during my school days. The pickpockets move in groups and thrive on creating commotions.
The 5 minute metro journey over, we walk our way to the over-bridge to platform 1A. While waiting over there, we talk to a Russian couple. Only God knows what brings them to this sultry place. Prashant had to caution them against mosquito bites.
Brahmaputra Mail reaches Allahabad at 9.30 – a good two hours late. IA had rescheduled our flight back to Delhi to 2.35 pm instead of the regular 4.15. See everything was arranged against us. We knew we’d have to hurry up with our meeting. We get into a hotel for an hour. The hotel was set to charge us for the whole day. We settle for a 50% charge. But the un-kept slippery bathroom sees Prashant slipping dangerously. Fortunately there were no injuries.
The meeting went off well. We reach the defence airport. Allahabad is the HQ of Central Air Command. We get inside the small aircraft (but not an ATR). Time passes by. The pilot makes some announcements. After about an hour he cites technical snags and ‘cancels’ the flight. We deplane. It seems there were some big shots amongst the passengers. They manage to convince IA to send a plane to Varanasi as night landings are not allowed at Allahabad. We get ready to take up a three hour drive by ‘surface transport ‘. We wait and wait. We hear that instead of Varanasi, the plane from Delhi is reaching Allahabad only. Time ticks on. We find the pilots of the old aircraft go on board. And lo! After some time the old ‘technically snagged’ aircraft becomes ready to fly in that darkness. Strange are the ways of this land. We’ll never come to know what really happened. Why the timing was initially pre-poned, how the snag developed, how it went away on its own etc. There could have been air-force sorties, there could be VIP movements, there could be anything. But the sufferer was the common traveler.
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