A train journey in U.P from one destination to another can sometimes prove to be an extremely tiring and annoying experience. I am quite accustomed to this as being an M.B.B.S student in Jhansi from the past four years while Lucknow being my hometown, I love spending time with family and keep visiting them frequently. Although there is a considerable scarcity of trains running on this route hence it's quite tough getting one's ticket booked.

Coming to the point, some of the nasty experiences I have come across are for example-:

1. A lady was sitting next to me on the train and was consistently feeling nauseous. She was willing to exchange her middle seat for my window one. She kept on insisting and I just requested her to vomit it out in the washbasin which was luckily near to her reserved seat. Without paying any heed she vomitted on my luggage smearing the packet of snacks and juice I had purchased to keep myself from feeling hungry during that long tedious journey. I couldn't even drink water because whenever I thought of quenching my thirst the entire filthy scene rewinded and replayed itself in my mind.
2. In another incident a couple wanted their kid to sit on my reserved window seat for an hour or so because he kept on harassing them with his childish tantrums. I exchanged my seat but with a promise that they will move their child or make him sit in their lap once the time elapses. But fate had something different in store for me and the child started misbehaving when I asked them to fulfill their word. I had to travel on an aisle seat of the coach as I could not quarrel with a child.
3. The third incident and unluckily the most painful one as well was when I got off the train at Kanpur central to buy a hot cup of coffee. Somehow I got back after successfully dodging my way through a lot of crowd dispersed on the obviously busy station. As I started sipping the coffee while listening to my favourite song the playful child seated behind me started pulling my earphones. In a reckless attempt to free them from his grip I had to snatch and jolt the earphones. As result of this disturbance the entire cup of coffee held in my right hand spilled on my hands and lips scalding both besides staining my favourite pair of trousers.
4. The fourth and the final incident was in which a secondary school cricket team was on their way to play a match. The teamates were sitting in front of me. The members of that team were a group of rowdy teenagers quite foul-mouthed & ill-mannered behaviourally. The T.T.E was checking and marking passenger seats on his register and when it was the turn of these group members to show their tickets they started laughing wildly, pushing and manhandling the aged T.T.E. He couldn't bear such gross misconduct owing to which he gave a tight slap on the face of the most hostile one. Following this, there was a huge outcry from the remaining team members and hell broke loose for a while.

Thanks,

Dr. Suresh Kumar Keswani