2011 Best of India and Nepal
India’s traffic is, well, unique. Our guide Girish gave us the official Highway Code of India:
ARTICLE I: The assumption of immortality is required of all road users.
ARTICLE II: Indian traffic, like Indian society, is structured on a strict caste system. The following precedence must be accorded at all times. In descending order, give way to cows, elephants, camels, buffalo, pigs, goats, dogs, heavy trucks, buses, official cars, pedal rickshaws, private cars, motorcycles, scooters, auto-rickshaws, handcarts, and pedestrians.
ARTICLE III: All wheeled vehicles shall be driven in accordance with the maxim: to slow is to falter, to brake is to fail; to stop is defeat. This is the Indian drivers’ mantra.
ARTICLE IV: Use of horn (also known as the sonic fender or the language of the road).
Cars: Short blasts (urgent) indicate supremacy, i.e. in clearing dogs, rickshaws and pedestrians from path. Long blasts (desperate) denote supplication, i.e. to oncoming trucks “I am going too fast to stop, so unless you slow down we shall both die”. In extreme cases this may be accompanied by flashing of headlights (frantic). Single blast (casual) means: “I have seen someone out of India’s 1 billion whom I recognize”, “There is a bird in the road which at this speed could go through my windscreen”, or “ I have not blown my horn for several minutes.”
Trucks and Buses: All horn signals have the same meaning, “ I have an all-up weight of approximately 12.5 tons and have no intention of stopping, even if I could.” This signal may be emphasized by the use of headlamps.
ARTICLE V: In the absence of seat belts (which there is) car occupants shall wear garlands of marigolds. These should be kept fastened at all times.
ARTICLE VI: Overtaking is mandatory. Every moving vehicle is required to overtake every other moving vehicle, irrespective of whether it has just overtaken you. Overtaking should only be undertaken in suitable conditions, such as in the face of oncoming traffic, on blind bends, at junctions, and in the middle of villages/city centers. No more than two inches should be allowed between your vehicle and the one you are passing – one inch in the case of bicycles or pedestrians.
ARTICLE VII: The 10th incarnation of God was an articulated tanker.
Read MoreARTICLE I: The assumption of immortality is required of all road users.
ARTICLE II: Indian traffic, like Indian society, is structured on a strict caste system. The following precedence must be accorded at all times. In descending order, give way to cows, elephants, camels, buffalo, pigs, goats, dogs, heavy trucks, buses, official cars, pedal rickshaws, private cars, motorcycles, scooters, auto-rickshaws, handcarts, and pedestrians.
ARTICLE III: All wheeled vehicles shall be driven in accordance with the maxim: to slow is to falter, to brake is to fail; to stop is defeat. This is the Indian drivers’ mantra.
ARTICLE IV: Use of horn (also known as the sonic fender or the language of the road).
Cars: Short blasts (urgent) indicate supremacy, i.e. in clearing dogs, rickshaws and pedestrians from path. Long blasts (desperate) denote supplication, i.e. to oncoming trucks “I am going too fast to stop, so unless you slow down we shall both die”. In extreme cases this may be accompanied by flashing of headlights (frantic). Single blast (casual) means: “I have seen someone out of India’s 1 billion whom I recognize”, “There is a bird in the road which at this speed could go through my windscreen”, or “ I have not blown my horn for several minutes.”
Trucks and Buses: All horn signals have the same meaning, “ I have an all-up weight of approximately 12.5 tons and have no intention of stopping, even if I could.” This signal may be emphasized by the use of headlamps.
ARTICLE V: In the absence of seat belts (which there is) car occupants shall wear garlands of marigolds. These should be kept fastened at all times.
ARTICLE VI: Overtaking is mandatory. Every moving vehicle is required to overtake every other moving vehicle, irrespective of whether it has just overtaken you. Overtaking should only be undertaken in suitable conditions, such as in the face of oncoming traffic, on blind bends, at junctions, and in the middle of villages/city centers. No more than two inches should be allowed between your vehicle and the one you are passing – one inch in the case of bicycles or pedestrians.
ARTICLE VII: The 10th incarnation of God was an articulated tanker.
Sambar deer, Ranthambore
