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A glimpse of a Dimapur city bus at the railway gate. On its first ride, the NST bus won the hearts of passengers—thanks to its affordable fare, and the comfortable ride. The city bus service, if more buses could be brought in, would greatly help the citizens of Nagaland’s business town.[/caption]
Dimapur, Sep. 15(EMN): “
City bus, city bus Chumu, Chumu jabole ase ahibi,” (Nagamese for ‘Come, come, we are going to Chumukedima’) the bus conductor shouted repeatedly when the green bus stopped at Burma Camp in Dimapur, its first stop.
Almost after a gap of 12 years, the Nagaland State Transport’s (NST) Dimapur city bus service resumed on Saturday with a prayer of dedication by Rev. K Chumben Kyong of the Lotha Baptist Church at the NST station before it set out for its schedule from 6am to 6pm. Two buses, initially, are travelling from the Railway station gate—the pick-up point—to Chumukedima, the destination. NST officials have assured to bring in more city buses within a month.
One could spot ambiguous expressions on people’s faces as the new city bus passed the streets from the starting point. Leketol Naleo, a student of St. Joseph University at Sovima village, who resides at Netaji colony, was leaving for his class. He made his way into the bus at the starting point. The happy student told
Eastern Mirror: “I read in the newspapers about this new bus service in the city and was eagerly waiting and finally it is here.”
Another passenger who boarded the bus at Burma Camp said that he usually spent INR 100 for petrol to travel all the way to Chumukedima. Sanjeeb Dhar, a former student leader of Public College of Commerce at Dimapur, said that the service would be helpful particularly to the students’ community—it is much cheaper.
On being asked whether he would continue to use the bus service, he replied, ‘time factor is something one has to consider; if at all bus reach on time, it will be an added advantage.’
As the ride continued, a few passengers were able to motion to the conductor and catch up.
However, as the bus service was new, it was understandable that many passersby squinted at the green transport vehicle. A few students along with district transportation officials journeyed together close to 12 stops out of 22. It was after the pick-up point at the Dimapur Central Jail junction that a few passengers accumulated.
Unlike the time when the bus started off, returning from Chumukedima was altogether a different experience. At the faithful, friendly yodelling of the bus conductor, people readily came forward to board the bus.
However, owing to its being a service on the road after a long time, the driver had to make quite an effort to stop for passengers at random places i.e., non pick-up points, provided a parking spot was available.
A woman who resides in the vicinity of Patkai Christian College narrated her unpleasant past experiences from having to travel on the deplorable roads in Dimapur. Chase, the lady, is a government teacher. She did not want to be named in full. The teacher said it was “not safe” for one to travel by auto rickshaws.
“I have to bear with frequent accidents and exorbitant cost of autos for five long years, owing to my workplace at Nagarjan and my residence at Patkai,” Chase told
. She went on to say that she used to spend approximately INR 200 per day on auto fares alone.
“If this bus service was introduced earlier, I would still be at my previous workplace,” said Chase, who is now transferred to Seithekima due to the distance from her workplace.
By this time around, the bus was almost full except a few empty rows at the rear. Passengers kept pouring in and one could feel an aura of exhilaration despite the dusty and bumpy roads of Dimapur. A bit of traffic congestion, particularly at Purana Bazaar, and the scorching heat of the sun were somewhat annoying though. The mirth and excitement inside the bus as passengers gladly embarked onto their destinations was quite the takeaway though.
When the driver drove past a crowded auto rickshaw stand near the railway station under the flyover, the bus was welcomed with a loud cheer from the auto rickshaw drivers along both sides of the road—but the cheers somehow sounded cynical and sarcastic. The passengers then alighted there and the bus headed to the Dimapur NST station.
The bus conductor, who, by the time could have been worn out from yelling “
” beamed and told
that the ride was “
” (‘good’).
