Literacy drive

THE LITERACY DRIVE



Madam Swapna preferred to go by a Hop Stop town bus to her residence rather than a noisy auto rickshaw. She was accompanied by three school children who missed their bus. The seats were all occupied and equal number of passengers was standing in side the bus. Some how or other she could force her way and asked two young boys to vacate the seats for her and the children .All four of them could adjust in that seat with the youngest one sitting on her lap.
Spandan after looking at the writings in side the bus in front, asked “Mum, what does this ‘Fast ads’ mean?”
She kept quite as if she has not heard him. This is spelling mistake should have been “First aid”.
‘What does that box contain?’
“Supposed to carry emergency medicine but now replaced by screw drivers and fused bulbs.” was her answer.
After some time Bapun asked ‘madam see this one!’
Swapna was already off mood due to the heat and the rattling noise of the bus, was furious but kept her cool, it was written “Handicraps’
Yes- this too is wrongly written should have been ‘handicap’.
The young girl Munmun not to be left behind, yelled ‘this to our right, is a better one’-‘Lodis’
The headmistress asked the conductor while paying the fare, ‘who has written this?’
‘ A Painter madam’
‘That’s alright but the spelling is wrong’.
‘He is a graduate now doing the job of a painter.’
In the next stoppage two eunuchs forced our headmistress to vacate the seats meant for “Lodis”
Swapna could bear no more as she had the glimpse of literacy drive, the social changes of the city and decided to get down in the next stop.
“Spandan” with a broad smile said “Mum- Mum now I know who are called “Lodies”