Showing posts from September, 2020

Quarantine: The experience sitting all alone on Quarantine!

Corona Virus, or the Novel Coronavirus Infection was a new term for me then. I had heard of Corona infections originating in China, and spreading to the Middle East and Europe. Kerala had already reported the first ever case of infection in India - and successfully treated the patients as well. As we neared the end of February, multiple European nations were hit, and India had started imposing travel restrictions from various countries.  March 04, 2020: I, and a few of my colleagues, became primary contacts of a case who had symptoms very similar to Corona infection and a positive history of travel to an affected country. While the said person was sent for testing, we were quite unaware of what should we be doing next. Calls were made to higher-ups, and we were told to go on "self-quarantine". People weren't wearing masks like we do now, but pharmacies in the city had already began capitalizing on the demand for masks. The ubiquitous surgical mask, which sold for less tha

Intercity buses: India versus US!

The United States of America has a fairly widespread and established intercity bus industry. Freeways of the US established intercity buses has a preferred mode of transport for people who cannot afford to fly. Railways, or Railroads as they call it in the US, is often an option that is not considered a first-choice for many - AMTRAK is famous for its delays, and is considered "slow". Operators in the US are licensed by the Department of Transportation (DOT) of the US government, and operate legally by providing tickets.  India, on the other hand, has a fledgling highway network. Four-laning of National Highways, and development of access-controlled expressways are progressing in many areas of the country. The Golden Quadrilateral highway network moved a lot of passengers from trains to buses. A characteristic difference of the Indian railway network is that, the railway network developed much before the highway network. Although the Indian Railway network is by no means '