#202: From my unlocked diaries: Bus route # 137

Last week it was - the day of the Ayudha Pooja. ?I was walking on the road near Malleshwaram 18th cross (in Bengaluru) near the BMTC (Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation) bus stand, one of the oldest bus stands in Bengaluru.? As I was crossing over towards the bus stand, a BMTC bus bearing route # 137 was just entering the bus stand. ??

On seeing route # 137 my memory immediately went back to the year 1983-84, almost 40 years ago when I was in MES (Mysore Educational Society) college. For almost 2 years, till the time my dad got me a cycle, the BTS (Bangalore Transport Service - as it was called back then) bus was my only affordable mode of transport.? Armed with a student concession bus pass (which costed about Rs. 25 per month), it was this bus route # 137 I travelled daily from my home in Vasanthanagar to Malleshwaram 15th cross, and then walk all the way to college.

Curious on seeing bus # 137, perhaps after decades, I walked up to the bus just to take a nostalgic 'peep' inside as it made a stop at the 18th cross bus stand!? Of course - it was never the same bus that I travelled back in the 1980’s.?

But, what caught my attention was the total absence of any Ayudha Pooja decorations, even on the day of the festival? It is the day when all sorts of vehicles, especially the buses are cleaned and decorated in a very colorrful manner.? But route # 137 wore rather a dull look on a festival day…

I could not hold back asking the driver in Kannada – “How come your bus has no decoration at all for Ayudha Pooja?”

Pat came his reply – “Sir, what can you decorate with INR 100 Ayudha Pooja budget they give us for each bus. All I can buy for INR 100 rupees is 4 lemons for the wheels and 2 bananas, that’s it”.

I guess one of the popular guarantee schemes of free bus travel for women has taken its toll - on Ayudha Pooja bus decorations!

As I walked away from the 18th cross bus stand, my thoughts went back to the year 1983-84, when I travelled almost daily on route # 137. ?Back then route # 137 plied from Domlur bus depot to Yeshwanthapur - going via Indiranagar, HAL 2nd stage, Cantonment railway station, Guttahalli circle and Malleshwaram; it still plies on the same route even after 4 decades!

Back during my college days, I vividly remember both the driver and conductor of route # 137 morning shift were a terrific and energetic combination.? They were so full of life, always punctual and kept the bus spic & span every day.? They treated the bus almost as their 2nd home, extremely passionate about the vehicle. It’s a shame, I cannot remember their names.

Back then it was such a luxury - they even had a radio and tape recorder fitted and played popular Kannada film songs. ?Though buses in those days never had a hydraulic door system, the conductor made sure no one stood on the footboard.? Remember – those days footboard, ticketless travelers were a menace!

The conductor was a strict but compassionate.? He made sure that the seats reserved for ladies and the elderly were never taken by others. ?Though route # 137 driver was a driver in a hurry, he made sure he never braked abruptly and always stopped exactly at the appointed bus stops, waiting for everyone to get off and get in.

Extremely friendly, the duo even knew each of us by name, and always welcomed us with a smile. The divine aroma of Agarbathi and fresh jasmine flowers always filled the air.

The best of route # 137 was during the Ayudha Pooja.? Driver and the conductor took it upon themselves to clean the decorate the bus fully. They even installed goddess Chamudehswari idol inside the bus, the distributed sweets and puffed rice to every passenger starting from a day prior to the Ayudha Pooja.

Thinking back I am sure all the Ayudha Pooja expenses costed much more than ‘budget’ that was allotted to them.? But the duo took pride in keeping it that way.?

Hopefully BMTC buses get their decoration ‘budgets’ back next year? I know not if there are still such enthusiastic and committed drivers and conductors around in BMTC today, like the duo on the famous route # 137 back in 1983-84....??

As I got into my parked car, I realized my thoughts just traversed the sands of time; I had just gone back four decades! ?But I see some things have never changed – and among them, the Malleshwaram 18th cross BMTC bus stand and the route of bus # 137!!

Oct 13, 2024

Balu

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