Schizophrenic India: The Missing Link

The bridge in the background has been under construction since more than a decade. It can save a 5 day detour, needed to reach Likhabali. However, local contractors who make millions out of their monopoly on ferries, in connivance with all other vested interest, have prevented it. The entire Indian army setup and the civilian population depend on rides on dilapidated ferries for transporting everything - from FRUITS to FORDs - In Assam

Schizophrenic India: Differently Abled

On the wheelchair is my friend and guide who has been challenged in multiple ways. He was kind enough to show me his house which allowed me to explore the place much deeply. His wheelchair was given to him by the collector himself and not the Panchayat and has been an important transition in his life from the days of his "patra-gaadi" which he used to drive with his hands on the floor. - In Shivpuri, MP.

Schizophrenic India: "Bordering" Works

The roads to the China border are in miserable conditions, these road-rollers were encountered every few kilometers and are responsible for fixing the seasonal damage of the roads as soon as they can. 
P.S. - China has metalled black top road till 600m of the LAC for its troop deployment

Schizophrenic India: Tales of Sorrow

A still from the "Ram Rajya" of Orchha, where Lord Ram is regarded as the ruler (and the idol is saluted by the police, not just worshipped). The temple complex provides room for a number of destitutes for begging. Each one of these elderly people has a story to tell - this lady here wept while narrating how her children left her to fend for herself.

Schizophrenic India: The Timeless Man

The cute old man here came asking for a lift to the army transit camp in Arunachal where we made an unscheduled night halt. He was fun to talk to - but when asked his age, he said - "Don't know, how does it matter - I am having fun". This showcases the attitude of most tribal people in these remote corners of our country - In Arunachal Pradesh

Schizophrenic India: Bharat & India

I had always looked out for a picture that shows the two INDIAs - moving in the same direction but at a markedly different pace. Maybe this ox-cart and the siren-blaring SUV captures it. (Accidentally clicked from within my car keeping only the setting sun in mind)

Schizophrenic India: The Pensive Indifference

The old man sat pensively indifferent throughout our "inspection visit" at his village. A few minutes of casual street-talk with him revealed that what we were shown was just the terminal head of the village (declared to be connected to the national highway), the bulk of the village remained inaccessible on foot due to the terrible sewage conditions that has left all its streets in a mess of human excreta. This is the "effectiveness" of visits by senior officials! — in Shivpuri, Madhya Pradesh.

Schizophrenic India: Martyrs and the Unsafe Citizens

This is a now-unused memorial to commemorate the naxal martyrs. We came across this in our visit to an anti-naxal setup in Gaya District. The policeman on the left was involved in the Road-Opening Patrol (R.O.P) that was necessary before our movement in this area could be deemed "safe"

Schizophrenic India: Poverty and Royalty

My friend here is a dalit land-less agricultural labourer who has been out of work since the last few days. What moved me was the flagrant display of royal power on the wall behind him. This district which is infamous at the world stage for its malnutrition levels, has been the "summer capital" of this royal family. I wondered how, despite his living condition, this man could ask for a perpetual stay of the clan (as the writing on the wall behind him shrieks) — in Shivpuri, Madhya Pradesh. Clicked on December, 2012, this picture was moving enough to make me write on it. 

Schizophrenic India : Jugaad & Jhar-Jhari

The omnipresent "Jhar-jhari". It is an improvised motorized transport that uses the motor used in water pumps to rotate the wheels. Costing as low as 40k, it can carry upto 15 people and can be stuffed to the brim with baggage. It's use however is technically Illegal — in Gaya, Bihar.

Schizophrenic India : Scientific Disposal

When we visited the uranium mine near Jamsdhedpur, I was asked sternly not to display any of the pictures that i clicked within the mining complex - Nuclear energy being a "strategic interest of the nation". This is the view of the site where the uranium mining waste is disposed in the "most scientific and safe way" (words of the mining officers) — in Jharkhand, India.