NEED FOR SPEED

A 15 or a 16 year old today is no longer content with a scooty for a

birthday present.
Boys look down at it as a monopoly of the fairer sex & their male
chauvinism will permit them to ride only a motorbike or a car.
They argue vehemently with their parents to allow them to drive a car or a
motorbike.
It definitely leads to a moot point: Should the legitimate age for teenagers
to drive geared vehicles such as cars, scooters & motorcycles be reduced
from 18 years to 15 or 16 years?
According to Rashi Singh, a class 10 student, teenagers should definitely be
granted the privilege of driving cars as it will boost their confidence & give
them an air of independence.
Her friend, Surabhi Trehan, sings a different tune. According to Surabhi,
teenagers are impatient & in their over- excitement, they break all norms of
traffic. The traffic conditions in Lucknow are already pathetic & since
teenagers are inexperienced & immature, they will not be able to handle
emergencies.
There are many who second Surabhi. According to Monisa Nadeem, a class
11 student, speed is the “in” thing for teenagers. Teenagers are liable to
commit mistakes in their haste, for which they pay heavily. It is the parents’
heads which go down in shame & society criticizes them.
Her classmate, Mahvish Khan, is of the same opinion. Quoting the Sameer-
Charu incident, she says that teenagers are gullible & often tend to misuse
their privileges.
Radhika Agarwal, a class 10 student, strongly opposes her. She believes
that one cannot judge the wisdom of a person, simply by counting the number
of grey hair he has. She says that it will be safer for teenagers, especially
girls, to have their own private cars instead of having to hire a rickshaw to
go their friends’ house. There have been disgusting cases of rickshaw pullers
molesting young girls, who are often helpless. Teenagers will have a better
sense of direction & public transport will be less crammed.
Anchal Jhungpangi & Paru Tripathi of class 10, believe that a license to
drive for teenagers will turn out to be a license to massacre, a license to hit
& run accidents & a license to street racing. It is common knowledge that
‘Marine Drive’ in Lucknow is a hot spot for teenagers who indulge in rash
driving & perform the “coolest of stunts”. For many it is the official venue to
meet their rivals & settle any conflict by a “harmless” race. Many have lost
their lives, many have been left paralyzed & many are in coma for months &
spend their lives in Intensive Care Units.
Ankita Singh, a class 10 student, expresses strong disapproval when asked
this question. She says that the rate of accidents will increase if the high
school students take to driving cars at this tender age. She adds that there
is not much requirement for teenagers to travel at this age & the best &
most convenient option for them will be to stick to a scooty.
Arunima Dhawan argues that four wheelers are much safer than two
wheelers which need careful maneuvering because even a slight misbalance
can prove to be very dangerous.
Her chum, Purva Khanna, emphatically says that today even bicycles are no
longer safe, leave alone scootys & automobiles.
The senior citizens feel that prevention is better than cure. They are
strictly against the idea of a 15 year old or a 16 year old driving geared
vehicle. As per their thinking, teenagers are physically & mentally immature
& their body is incapable of tolerating even minor bruises. They are not
foresighted enough to immediately tackle a catch 22 situation. They regard
it as reckless & a distraction from studies.
Mrs. Prakash (teacher, L.M.G.C.), feels that when teenagers are in a group,
they often become influenced by their peers, who cheer them in their rowdy
activities & hooliganism.
Dr Prabhat Sharma opines that people today are so engrossed in their own
lives that they are devoid of any emotions when they witness any mishap,
little realizing that some day, the victim of a road accident, could be their
own kith and kin.
But for my part, I feel that if the teenagers learn to drive, on the
contrary, they can make themselves useful & share most of the
responsibilities in the family. There will also be fewer burdens on parents.
Looking at it as an environmental issue, the amount of vehicular pollution
will surely increase. Since teenagers constitute 55% of the population of
India, the traffic conditions will go from bad to worse. At a time when
environmentalists believe that fuel driven vehicles should be replaced by
bicycles, this proposal will surely reverse the policy of many environmental
activists.
Devika Agarwal
Class 10 (La. Martiniere Girls’ College)
devikaagarwal@indiatimes.com