ARCH i TECTURE: 2011

U. આજે ઓછા લોકો છે. ચાર જાણ નથી આવ્યા, એ સેંત બદ્ધાજ તામ્હારા .

D. પાક્કા મારા ને ? અછાં, ચાલો નીકળીએ .

राजू, चल, समय हो गया है | एक बार final गीनती कर ले.

U. સુરત માં થી ખાલી બે લોકો ને લેવ્હાં જાઉં પડશે. એ internet booking છે. OK? ચાલો Bye !

C. गीनती हो गया, चलो निकलते है |

This was a conversation between the usher, the Driver and the conductor (respectively) of a Neeta Volvo bus from Ahmedabad to Mumbai.

The usher came, checked the list given to him by the Neeta Volvo branch office in Ahmedabad, and ushered passengers with tickets into the bus. Then made sure, everyone was in proper seats and then then rechecked the list and discussed what to do with the absentees' seats.

He phoned on their numbers. Kept trying and waited until it was time to depart. And then discussed with the driver that those seats could be spot sold to interested travelers at other stops.

After discussing all this, the usher left the bus. Meanwhile, the driver was getting impatient to leave. He asked the conductor to do a final headcount and they would start the bus.

Once everything was done, the key turned to ignition, the door was shut, the red curtain behind the driver was drawn and the journey began.

At every stop the bus made, one usher came in, seated all the new passengers to their respective seats and left. And whatever leftover seats that were spot sold, the money was split (unoficially) between the driver and the conductor.

Such entrepreneurial opportunities are tapped into largely in our country only. At train stations, before sms booking confirmation etc, there used to be a few guys hanging around who would go and check if your name was on the confirmed passenger list or not. In times of rush, with lot of luggage, when one doesnt have the time to check the list, such people were life savers !

The garbage collection network involves entrepreneurs at every level - the garbage collecting guy in the building, to the garbage collection truck (the municipality), the garbage dumping crew at the dumping ground, and the re-usable scrap collectors at the dumping ground.

There are so many people in India who do the usual kind of work in the various existing systems that there is no space left ! Hence, the rest have to invent work from within these systems to survive.

It is not only how they work that is interesting, but also, the kind of work they invent.

More such systems need to be mapped.

The photograph is from inside the Neeta volvo from Ahmedabad to Mumbai. The conductor's hand comes up to hold the curtain rod to be able to stand steadily.