*Camaraderie? Fuggedit!*

 *Camaraderie? Fuggedit!*

Like the Buddha sat *Mohammed Tamim.* In the middle of the road, literally. Not on the tarmac. But inside the truck with fresh bricks from Baghbat. He and his crew were on their way to Dadri and then the rear tire burst due to overload or whatever in the middle of the night of September 1, 2021 - the day after the American troops vacated from the soil of Afghanistan after 20 long years. 

"Just five kilometers to my destination and then this," quipped the smiling tall single time namazi daily told me from the "conductor" seat on the Noida-Greater Noida Link Road. I noticed two pairs of legs jutting out from the blanket behind the beard-sporting Tamim. He was engaged watching some Hindi film song video on his handset when I halted during my morning walk spotting the truck in the middle of the highway. Trucks, cars, and two-wheelers were whizzing past unmindful of the road obstruction. 

Tamim's truck tire burst half-past one. He had no stepney. "Jaroorat nahi hai," said he because "hamare gaddi kabhi taqleef nahi deti hai!" Great hopes. Calls for assistance had gone and help awaited. How soon? Tamim has no clue. But he is patient and stoic. Like the Buddha. Waiting uncomplainingly is part of truck drivers' DNA perhaps. Help may come in two ways: a spare tire may be brought to replace the burst one; or, the load may be shifted to another truck which may proceed to the delivery point and Tamim's gaddi may be pushed to the side of the road for repair. All in the realm of possibility. 

What piqued me was the recalcitrance of fellow truckers and other passers-by. Why none stopped to help the stranded truck driver? Have we lost the basic human touch? Forget about non-truckers. Why even are fellow truckers not coming to the rescue of Tamil and company? I am baffled.

A week ago, I ran into another truck accident between Beawar and Sirohi in Rajasthan on my way to Ankaleshwar, Gujarat. The coal-carrying truck turned turtle in the early hours 24 hours ago. No human loss but the vehicle was badly damaged. Surveyors came to assess the damage to decide the insurance payout to the fleet owner. Another truck came to shift the coal load to complete the business. 

The owner was on the site to oversee the damage-control ops. The driver assistant who was sleeping behind the driver at the time of the accident narrated: "no passing truck stopped. Everyone was in a hurry. No cars stopped. Driverbhai was bleeding and I had no idea of what to do. Mobiles were stuck in the heap and unable to trace. I was crying. After 10 minutes, a motorbike stopped. That person took pity on the driver and rode him to the nearest hospital." Yes, the driver is safe. 

The same story as that of Tamim in Greater Noida. No help to the accident victim. Heard of the "Good Samaritan" campaign? You and I had, but not other road users, it appears. 

January 2020, a similar story on the Palanpur crossing in Gujarat when my car was hit by an empty Tata truck and no passing truck came to the truck driver's assistance to sort out the problem. Why do we behave the way we do?  

One more display of a hearlessness episode of road users. Let me take you to October 2011. Again a past midnight story where I was physically present. It was raining cats and dogs on the Satara-Pune stretch and I was a co-passenger in the Mercurio Pallia Logistics car carrier with ten Hyundai i10 cars from Chennai to Gurgaon. 

All of a sudden, our 22-meter long carrier died in the middle of the two-lane national highway. Engine died. Short circuit and therefore no lights. Driver assistant Pinto Sahu jumped out to pick up the reflective yellow and red triangle safety alert and placed it at the rear of the vehicle to divert zooming vehicles of all types. He was also flashing his mobile phone light. Wise move. Meanwhile, driver Umesh Rana tried to figure out the electric fault and fix it. 

Yes, you've guessed it right. None stopped to assist. Thirty minutes, Rana fixed the problem marginally. The Engine started, but none of the lights at the front or rear worked. He managed to steer the 22-meter long car carrier to the service lane a kilometer away. Even a cyclist would have outrun us. 

Yes, when in trouble on highways, no one comes to help particularly the truck drivers. Day or night. Pity, they are called the backbone. Pure wordplay. No sympathy.