Essay on Half an hour in an OmniBus

In big cities, most of the people travel by Omnibuses, minibusses, and taxi. The common men travel by buses that ply in different directions and over long distances. Bus journey is a common experience. The city buses are generally overcrowded. Some are rickety and noisy. They emit smoke and pollute the atmosphere.

I seldom travel by bus. My motorcycle being out of order, I walked up to the 7 No. bust stop. After waiting and running up and down, I was fortunate to get a lift in a private bus. The bus was already packed and 50% passengers were standing. I pushed my way after some jostling and elbowing. I had been invited to a birthday party. I was dressed in fine clothes. It was the only bus connecting Federal Area. The buses are generally over crowded during peak hours.

The driver was rather rash. He suddenly applied the brakes. I lost balance and fell on an elderly gentleman sitting on the seat. He frowned at me and I apologized to him. After some time, fat gentlemen trampled on my foot. I shrieked but he simply laughed away. I was hanging with the ceiling bar and shook to the marrow of my bones. It was like a blackhole and I cursed myself. The bearded conductor played the main role in overloading the bus: I complained to him. Instead of getting a courteous reply, he taunted me by saying: Why don’t you travel by car or taxi? It was a slap on my face. I pocketed the insult for I was helpless.

I looked into my watch: I had been in hell for over twenty minutes. I looked at my clothes. They were all soiled. In spite of cold weather, I was in a sweat. At times I wished to get down and walk on foot. The bus was so crowded that I could hardy get down. People were smoking freely in spite of ‘No Smoking’ inscriptions. Some mal-stomach spoiled the air. I put my hanky on my nose. What a nuisance! It was rather a punishment for boarding the auto horse.

Some young chaps had a quarrel with the conductor who took the money and refused to give the tickets. Infact our national life is full of corruption. I was ashamed of being a part of it. Some elderly passengers pacified the youths. The conductor also used some offensive language. Some remarked: ‘The bus belongs the Police Officer’. Gradually the pressure became light. I heaved a sigh of relief. The drivers was racing with the other buses. He dropped me one stop ahead of my destination. I thanked God for relieving from the black hole.

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