The Hindu : National : "Days on the bus were not bad"

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Dec 20, 2004

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National

"Days on the bus were not bad"

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI, DEC. 19. The Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, who is known for his humility, won several admirers today while inaugurating the underground section of the Delhi Metro project. In nostalgia mode, Dr. Singh recalled how he had travelled by buses on the same road beneath which the Metro tunnel was built.

Describing the day as a red-letter day for Delhi, Dr. Singh said as a citizen of Delhi, he considered it a pleasure to inaugurate the Delhi University-Kashmere Gate underground section of the Delhi Metro.

Stating that it was a sentimental moment for him, the Prime Minister said: "I have spent many hours of my life travelling on these roads — below which the Metro rail will now run — sitting in a bus like so many of our fellow citizens on my way to work.'' As a member of the faculty of Delhi University, he commuted by public transport to work. Only, at that time Delhi was not as big and crowded as it has now become. "It was easier to commute by public transport and my family and I did so without too much difficulty," Dr. Singh said.

However, over the years the city has grown at a faster pace than the public infrastructure which the Government and the city's authorities have been able to provide. And so, "today, I believe it is a nightmare for many to commute, be it by personal transport or public.''

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