Rickshaw Riding

Rone Tempest’s article (Feb. 6) on rickshaw riding in Calcutta was very accurate.

I have been in Calcutta several times during the monsoon season when the heavy rains flooded much of the central, downtown area. I usually stay at the Grand Eastern Hotel on Old Courthouse Street. This is an elegant old hotel from the days of the Raj. When the rains come, the water gets so high that the front door has to be sandbagged at least a foot high. Naturally the street and sidewalk out front are completely awash with swirling water. In order to get out of the hotel, one must take off shoes, roll up pant legs, and venture forth searching carefully for open manholes and other dangerous obstructions.

Rickshaws are forbidden to use the street in front of the hotel, so one must slowly walk to one of the side streets to hail a rickshaw wallah. Often times the rickshaw is the only way to get from here to there without getting completely soaked.

The Calcutta rickshaw pullers were given the option of converting their coolie-type rickshaws to bicycle rickshaws, which seemed more humane, but they refused. Their reasons were that bicycles are prone to breaking down frequently and, therefore, are too costly to maintain.

JOHN M. POSSLEY

Upland