Dilliwalahs wonder
First G-20 and now BRICS. While the red carpet is rolled out to various foreign delegations Dilliwalahs wonder why should they go through this agony of traffic snarls and diversions. If someone says that the city gets a better infra-structure because of such events – then the questions to ask range from: ‘Why have the feeder tunnels to the main Pragiti Maidan Tunnel are still not ready after 3 years of the PM inaugurating and making such a big noise about it?’ ‘What did Delhi or India gain after the Summit?’
One is forced to recall that couplet of Ghalib: बाज़ीचा-ए-अतफ़ाल है दुनिया मेरे आगे. होता है शब-ओ-रोज़ तमाशा मेरे आगे. ChatGPT translates this as : “The world is a children’s playground before me. Day and night, a spectacle unfolds before me.” Dilliwalahs can’t help but see these fleeting spectacles as akin to children moving from one game to another. Dilliwalahs wonder how easily the high and mighty shift from one grand event to the next, quickly forgetting yesterday’s drama, while the pain of the ordinary citizens remains unseen and unheard.