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Young World
A big thank you
ESHA CHATTERJEE
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Did you ever think of thanking them?
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Photo: K. Bhagya Prakash
In gratitude: Addressing the gathering.
A big “Thank you!” was how schoolchildren across Bangalore acknowledged traffic policemen and their work. Certainly they were familiar with these policemen who are always around their schools, stopping traffic so that they can reach the school gates safely. It was to show their gratitude that the Children’s Movement in Civic Awareness (CMCA) organised Traffic Police Day 2007 recently. The gathering of policemen, children, parents, school staff and members
of CMCA assembled at the Bishop Cotton Girls School auditorium. In contrast to the ’rough’ image that policemen are generally associated with, one got to see smiles on their faces. Needless to say, the policemen, who are on their feet for hours on end braving the elements and air and noise pollution, were not used to being appreciated. “It’s a thankless job,” many of them confessed.
Gratitude and more
Schoolchildren presented bouquets to the dignitaries and presented thank you cards and gift hampers to the policemen. Some also tied friendship bands and distributed chocolates to the lawmen. Being within a school auditorium and not on a busy road guiding traffic was something the constables appreciated. In fact some were very eager to open their gift hampers and take a peek at the contents within even as they answered their roll calls in a way that would remind one of their own school days! Some of them were moved to tears by the display of affection. “Children are powerful messengers of change,’ said Vrunda Bhaskar from CMCA and hence this initiative to use them to spread the gesture of appreciation. “Policemen work very hard to control traffic in Bangalore. They’re there all the time on the roads, even when its raining!,"said Raveena Ashok, an eight standard student from Sacred Hearts Girls High School. Her classmates Sanjana Nithyanand and Ananya Suraj added that the police always tried their best to control the increasing traffic of Bangalore. Shubham Bakliwal, a standard nine student from Bishop Cotton’s Boys School, said he and his friends have been trying to make their parents, friends and neighbours aware of the tremendous contribution of the traffic police to society. On their part, the traffic police force has come out with a book, “Road Safety for Children”. The smiles were still present on the faces of the policemen when they finally left for work. What amazing things two simple words, “thank you” can do!
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