Nurungukal  contd........

                                Where as other stations were open , Calicut was a covered one.It was a different world all together.Hawkers were shouting  Chaya  Chaya   and the name of other eatables in a chorus and briskly walking from one compartment  to another.. A few porters in red shirts and khaky shorts approached us to carry the luggage outside . But we  managed it ourselves. The guard and the station master looked like naval officers in their white uniform, cap and shoulder badges .Both were Anglo Indians fair and handsome . They stood apart from the crowd.

                                Every one was in a hurry to get outside and so there was  a sort of hurry bury at the exit gate and the ticket collector was busy in snatching the tickets.  A row of  horse carts were waiting for the passengers. They were known as Governer’cart. It was the first time I have seen such an elegant cart. There were also some Rikshaws and one or two private cars. The cart men and rikshaw pullers urged  the crowd to hire their vehicles. Since our place was near to the station we carried our bags and on foot reached home . It was were our uncle was staying . He was practising law in Calicut bar and  a very senior hand.

                                Chalapuram  in those days  was known for its elite crowd. Doctors ,lawyers, and fairly rich people were the residents. But side by side we could see people from lower strata  also making a living, mainly as cart men, rikshaw pullers  etc etc. It was on a Sunday we reached  there., the day when alms are offered. We witnessed  old men and  women going from house to house in batches to collect alms.  As children we could not understand the message such scenes  made on the social imbalance prevailed in those days. But definitely it had made some dents in me.  But on the contrary in another case I was  enthused to meet  a totally blind person  managing a livelihood  circumventing his handicap in the foot paths of Chalapuram  by selling vegetables. My uncle and his children were staying in a fairly big house ever since he started practising law. My eldest brother was also with them . He was an officer in a govt. deprt. Almost every student from our family had their college education  staying with uncle , including me.