Sometimes some people are walking history. You will get a similar feeling after meeting Ram Prakash, who is driving an auto in Delhi at the age of 80. Born in 1945, just two years before independence, Ram Prakash has seen many governments rising and falling in Delhi after independence. Apart from this, he has also seen the accidents happening on the dark roads at night and the lamps of hope shining in the light of day. The time when houses in Delhi were plastered, things like police booths, traffic and metro did not exist. At that time, the days and nights in Delhi were not so noisy. Technology was not so advanced and people were also not so modern. Let us know the story of that period from him, in his own words.
Women were not seen then
The atmosphere of Delhi was different 60 years ago. Here women were not seen on the streets at eight o’clock in the night. Nor were there many companies where girls could work. Even if a single woman was seen in a VIP area like South Delhi or a railway station, it was the responsibility of the taxi driver to take her safely. At that time the profession of driver was considered very honest. I did not see the drivers taking drugs at that time.
Where did you come from and settle in Delhi?
Ram Prakash says that when Hindustan-Pakistan was formed, I was two years old. My family lived near Lahore in Pakistan. My father used to tell how he came to India after locking his food shop and house and could never go there again. After coming here, first lived in a slum in Paharganj. To earn his living, he sometimes did farming for others and sometimes worked as a labourer. He raised me and my two brothers in extreme poverty. The Prime Minister of that time then gave us a house in Geeta Colony for Rs 900. At that time this amount was also very heavy for our family. My father had given this money in three installments. Came to Geeta Colony and reared buffaloes and did dairy farming. The house in which we have been living for 65 years is Geeta Colony. Sometimes there used to be soil filled with cow dung.
After telling the story of his childhood, Ram Prakash further says that when I regained consciousness, I saw only India. My father had seen a lot of struggles. With difficulty he had bought a rickshaw worth Rs 9000. His father had bought the rickshaw by financing it from someone. My father did not run it, but my two elder brothers used to run it. Even today when I think about it, I feel that I have never seen such a struggle. The riots of 1984 had happened only once before me. When people were looting shops in front of us. People were beating people of a particular community a lot. During that period I also did not work for about a month.
Only the very rich had cars
Well, when I passed 10th, I also started driving. Regarding the Delhi of that period, he laughingly says that at that time, one was ashamed to call Delhi the capital. At that time it seemed like a small town. In our times, there were only Lambretta type heavy vehicles for passengers, in which goods were loaded and passengers also sat. I drove it for nine years, then the Vespa car came, front engine cars, then rear engine cars came, then CNG and now even electric cars came. In those days, we used to drive petrol cars, there was no traffic then. Used to run the whole day on petrol worth four-five rupees. At that time there were not so many cars on the roads. Only the very rich had cars.
Regarding the traffic, he says that at that time we used to stand at the red light, there was no traffic or jam like things. Even at places like Qutub Minar, India Gate or Red Fort, only a few people were seen.
I have still had those plates for 20 years, someone had forgotten them in my auto.
Ram Prakash says that in the last 60 years, it happened many times when a passenger forgot his luggage, so I went to give it back. Once a passenger was dropped near GTB Hospital and on the way he saw that he had forgotten his bag in the car. When I went back from ITO, he was standing outside the hospital. He thanked me very much because all his medicine prescriptions and cards were in the same bag. Similarly, once a boy entered the office and forgot his purse. I came to her reception after giving her the purse. When I met him after a year, he recognized me and started giving me money saying that you had saved my documents. But 20 years ago, an incident happened when a man passed by the road, stopped on the way and sat in a car. The next morning I saw that there was a box kept behind the seat in which black ceramic plates were kept. Those plates are still kept safe with me. Who knows when we might find him?
had some bad experiences too
A lot has changed in the last 15-20 years. Recently a boy sat for Rohini from Connaught Place. I was 72 at that time. Now he landed in Rohini and was lying unconscious. When I went to the police station, no one listened there either. Then a boy helped me, brought him back to consciousness by sprinkling water and got me the fare. Similarly, 15 years ago, he took a boy to a hotel. He said wait for five minutes, he is coming, I kept waiting for an hour and he came. When I got angry, he got angry with me and started threatening me. But we also meet very good people. Many people leave after paying more fare after seeing my age.
I traveled by plane in 1970
It was difficult to earn Rs 30 by driving an auto the whole day. At that time I used to give 22 rupees to my father. I used to keep the remaining two-three rupees for my tea and water. Ram Prakash narrates an incident from the time when he went to visit Kashmir in 1970. He laughs and says that when I came back by plane, there was a lot of discussion in the family that we did not even see it, you came sitting also. Now see how people are going in the planes.
There was not so much crime then
Ram Prakash says that there was not much crime on the streets in the 60s. There were not so many police booths then. There was no work for taxi drivers at Jamna crossing, they had to go to Delhi. At that time, Connaught Place and Karol Bagh were considered Delhi ‘city’. From there we used to drive auto till Lajpat Nagar, South Delhi. At that time, the fare from Connaught Place to Greater Kailash was Rs 4.5. It was a VIP area, everyone was rich. In the same areas, women etc. were seen in the evening but their clothes were not as modern as today. To be honest, girls had a completely different lifestyle in the 60s.
‘I am standing on my own feet, my teeth are also real’
Today my son is working at a good place, but I do not want to be a burden on him. That’s why I keep myself fit even at this age. I try to earn enough to support myself and my wife. This work also gives me energy. After waking up in the morning, I first drop my grandchildren at school and then start driving the auto. My children refuse to drive an auto at this age but I feel fit. I take only BP medicine, BP also remains under control. The reason is, I don’t take any drugs, I just drink tea and water. To be honest, when I started earning my living on the streets, there were not that many liquor vends in Delhi and the drivers did not drink alcohol at that time. Gutkha was not prevalent at that time and no driver even drank alcohol. Due to my routine, I eat food with my original teeth only.
Many companions moved forward…
When I look back today, I see a whole host of responsibilities. I had two daughters and a son, we educated all three children, completed their graduation, then married them. My entire life passed in this. We did not pay attention to leave this work and do something else, we made the same mistake. Many people went further ahead.