COMPASSION FOR THE OLD, JUST IRRITATION FOR THE REST...

I am a distraught resident of the Coimbatore city. I am blessed with a room on the terrace, right in the heart of the city. Coimbatore, for those who are, were and almost, part of the city, is a city that is sleepy, just short of lazy. The lights of every kind imaginable go out by the time its 9.00 in the night. Everyone and everything comes to a stand still. Cops and the traffic lights are laid to rest beside the almighty law. The mosquitoes that keep you in the house during the evening, driving you to an inch from blood drought, just show no semblance of existence after 9. The city becomes still. Hotels no longer cook food and just put up with the customers they cant lock behind the shutters. The only signs of life is the swarm of people, pushing, trampling and nearly killing each other to get to a bottle of some form of alcohol outside the infamous "TASMAC' shops that are strategically placed near every police station to better the people.

Because my place of work is well out of the city limits, I generally work late into the night and this is the plight of the city when I get off the bus from work and walk towards the parking lot where I put my bike each day. Today was just a little out of the ordinary.

It was 9.45 in the night. I had not had any dinner as usual. I was walking towards my bike. Today was different because I had at least a dozen tube lights, glazing with fury to rival that of the sun, guiding me towards my destination. The median that divided the mettupalayam road was just beyond recognition from the staffs that were neatly driven into them to hold these lights. 9.45 in the night, the signals were working and I was made to wait for the green to cross the road. There was a police constable waving his magic wand at me cautioning me to stay where I was. I had to wait for a whole 45 seconds for the non-existent traffic to pass. I was patient. I got my bike and drove home bound, only to be held up at a further 5 signals(please, there are only 3 junctions from where I park to where I stay). I was patient. I was still driving when I saw that the number of side-road hoardings had increased from one every 3 feet to 3 every one foot. They all lead to a blocked road(again at 9.45 in the night). The cops were feverishly diverting the steady trickle of traffic. I made my way over to the cop ad was astounded by the wonder that lay ahead. The kalaiyarangam in R.S.Puram was being worked on by what can only be described as an army. The place was nothing less than breath taking. I was sure there were more lights n there than the Eiffel Tower, or even the whole city of Vegas. It was as if the place was burning. Lights dancing off every parked car, every inch of the fire truck that was parked there, every inch of the cats eye that were neatly laid, for the first lime on a clean road. Yeah!!! The roads had been almost washed.

I could no longer be patient. I went across to the cop waving the wand carelessly at me and enquired what theses changes and fuss was all about.

I was awestruck at the response and Ive come to greatly appreciate the nation and the state for its cause.

Amidst all this power in-adequacy, inflation, stock market roller caster rides, Indian Space Probes and all, we have made some time to clean the roads, collect lights form across the world to light up the cleaned roads, lay cats eyes on the cleaned roads to better show the path, channel the electricity from every earning citizen in the nation to light these lamps, for an 82 year OLD man to cross the streets of COIMBATORE.

Please Mr.Karunanidhi, come to our city more. I like to see it being clean, at least for you.