When I first learnt to drive, a family member told me, "Driving is about being responsible towards the other people on the road, equally as you are responsible towards your own self." The words have etched into my memory till date.
Driving is powerful. After all, who doesn't want to storm through the streets, overtaking other vehicles. We are all fascinated by speed. We love to lead. We feel good when we are far ahead in the race. It's exhilarating to boast about your high velocity ride. After all, isn't this what we have all seen in movies? And then, as usual, we try to incorporate it into our real lives.
That's when a moment of thrill can, well, kill. That's how lives, other than you, who have nothing to do with your speedometer data, gets risked. That's how there is a hit, and then the subsequent run.
We all are aware of the numerous hit-and-run cases that are on trial for long. Whether justice gets delivered or not, one thing is for sure, the future of the victim is no less than a horror story, something that one would shudder to remember, and yet, can never erase from the memory. If the victim survives, it is only with multiple injuries which threaten his will power, his self confidence and his desire to dream. If unfortunately he doesn't, it's his family, relatives, and friends, who are left to fight the biggest catastrophe of their lives, uninformed, and unarmed.
We can't ban cars. We can't ask people not to drive. How do we then stop this growing menace of hit-and-run incidents?
As a start, we have to promise ourselves never to chase speed. We might be a little late to our destination, but that's fine. At least it's better than taking someone's life, the victim not suspecting what foul play destiny has designed for him. He may be walking home, where his wife awaits him for a romantic candle light dinner, or his parents keeping their sleep at bay until their son returns. It may be his birthday today, or his anniversary, or his parents' birthday, or perhaps just another day in his life, whether it has gone well or not, at least do not snatch the right from him of embracing tomorrow.
Secondly, we have to curb drunk driving. We often return from late night parties, drunk, yet believing ourselves to be sober, and driving in that state. We may have been doing it since years, and the fact that we haven't met with an accident till date has further re-instated our believes that we are fit enough to drive even under the influence of alcohol. DON'T. Never take your position behind the steering wheel even if you had a few pints of alcohol. Why should someone else suffer for your carelessness?
Lastly, do not run. If you hit someone, even accidentally, it's your moral duty to get things right. Take the injured victim as quickly as possible to the hospital. Make sure that your mistake doesn't prove fatal to others. After all, everyone, whether in a car, or not, has a right to live. Use the road, safely, responsibly.
That's why cars were invented, to drive, and not kill.
