“Slow down, Santa,” Banta says calmly.
“Much, much slower.”
Santa looks puzzled.
“Why, Banta?”
“The road is clear and dry.”
“There’s no traffic.”
“I can see the whole turn.”
“Santa, my friend,” Banta replies, “right now, you are looking only at the road.”
“But to drive safely in winter, you must also learn to read the Suraj ka Naksha – the map of the sun.”
“The sun’s map?” Santa asks, slowing down out of respect for Banta’s strange but usually wise pronouncements.
“Yes,” Banta says.
“Look at the time.”
“It’s late morning, but that cliff has thrown a deep Chhaya (shadow) over this entire curve.”
“The sun has not touched this stretch of road all day.”
“While the road in the sunshine is warm and dry, this patch has been sleeping in the freezing cold.”
“It is the perfect hiding place for the Pale ka Bhoot – the ghost of the frost.”
He continues, “An experienced mountain driver doesn’t wait to feel the skid.”
“He anticipates it.”
“He knows that any patch that lies in a permanent shadow during a cold day – be it due to a cliff, a dense forest, or the northern aspect of the slope – is a potential danger zone.”
“He reads the landscape, he reads the sun’s path, and he slows down before entering the shadow, assuming it is icy even if he cannot see it.”
As they crawl slowly and carefully through the curve, Santa sees exactly what Banta meant. The tarmac, which looked merely dark from a distance, has a treacherous, glassy sheen. It is a long patch of solid Pala.
Further ahead, they see a small car with city number plates awkwardly stuck in the mountainside drain. The driver is standing outside, looking shaken.
“I don’t know what happened!” the driver says to them.
“The road was dry, and then suddenly, it was like driving on soap!”
As they drive on, Santa says to Banta, “You are a Mausam Vaigyanik, Banta!”
“You read the sun and the shadow and predicted the danger perfectly.”
Banta smiles. “It is not science, Santa.”
“It is just the wisdom of observation that our mountains teach us.”
“To stay safe here, you must look beyond the road right in front of your wheels and read the bigger story written on the slopes, in the clouds, and in the sun’s journey across the sky.”
संता – बंता की इस जुगलबन्दी से आज हमने क्या सीखा:-
खतरे का पूर्वानुमान / Anticipate Hazards: वाहन चालकों को रास्ते में संभावित परिस्थितियों का पूर्वानुमान करने के लिये सक्षम बनाने के लिये जागरूकता व क्षमता विकास जरूरी है – वाहन चालक पास – पड़ोस की स्थितियों के आधार पर संभावित बर्फ व वाहन चलाने की स्थितियों का सहज ही आंकलन कर सकते है – छाँव वाले इलाके, उत्तर को झुके ढाल, घाटी व घने जंगलो वाले स्थान – यहाँ पर सावधानी जरूरी है / Teach drivers to anticipate icy patches by being aware of their surroundings. Shaded areas, north-facing slopes, and sections near cliffs or dense forests are high-risk zones in winter.
पूर्वानुमान करो / Look Ahead: पहाड़ो में सुरक्षित वाहन चलाने का एक ही नियम है – अपने पास – पड़ोस पर नज़र करहते हुवे, सतर्क रह कर संभावित खतरों का पूर्वानुमान / Safe mountain driving involves looking far ahead and reading the landscape to predict potential changes in road conditions.
छाया से पहले गति धीमी / Slow Before the Shadow”: पहाड़ो का एक सरल पर जीवन बचाने वाला नियम यह है कि सर्दी के समय किसी भी कम रोशनी व छाया वाले स्थान में गति को काम करना है / A simple, memorable rule for drivers should be to reduce speed significantly beforeर entering any long, dark, and potentially damp-looking shadow on a cold day.
संता – बंता की यह जुगलबन्दी आपको कैसी लगी, कृपया हमें जरुर बताये
व
इस जुगलबन्दी को बेहतर बनाने के लिये अपने सुझाव अवश्य दें।
हमें हमेशा की तरह आपके सुझावों, प्रतिक्रियाओं व कटाक्षो का बेसब्री से इंतजार रहता हैं और सच मानिये इसी के आधार पर हम अपने आप में, अपनी सोच व रचनात्मकता में सुधार करने को प्रेरित होते हैं।
सो अच्छा – बुरा जैसा आपको महसूस हुवा हो, कमेंट जरुर करते रहें।
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