Have License? Will honk!

The road was empty,hardly a soul anywhere. As the lone pedestrian,I was deeply immersed in my own thoughts lazily walking towards my home.The evening was pleasant,the weather was calm,birds were singing their tunes...Then at a distance behind me, I could slowly hear the rumbling of a Pulsar. Then suddenly as if the Satan had set foot, the serene atmosphere was killed.The Biker honked!!Pommmmmmmmmmm!!!
I was devastated. I looked around if there was any other vehicle on which he honked.Nope! None existed.I searched for any goat/hen/dog/street openings that may have prompted him to use his stupid horn.None that I could find.Then why? I got no answer.I examined myself to see if I was walking on the middle of the road.Nope I was walking on the muddy pathway adjacent to the road.I always believe in giving absolutely no reason for any vehicle on the road to get annoyed with me and consequently pull the trigger ie honk at me:-(.

I'm not sure when I developed this aversion towards illogical honking.But it truly pisses me off.In fact I believe its the worst thing that somebody could do to me.Road rage is a thing,where you can understand that at least the biker was getting a high out of it ignoring the other road-users. But here, it was plain insanity on his part to honk at me!!
Which now brings me to the larger question. Does honking habits really reflect a personality trait and/or just the mood of the person ? I believe it does reflect the person's nature to an extent. To investigate this point, I began to observe almost all the persons with whom I have traveled pillion on their bikes.I was able to categorize them into three broad groups.The first is the SOBER group.They are generally introvert and shy in nature and do not take the trouble of honking at all!They dread the thought of making any noise.They get nervous/uncomfortable if somebody attention is drawn towards them.They go about their rides without complaining about anything and anybody.Even if it is others who are at fault, they dare not show their annoyance.The second group of people are NORMAL level-headed people.They have periodic mood swings and definitely love to show it on the road.Like for eg. if they are in a very bad mood they just cannot tolerate any sort of obstruction(read vehicle!) in front of them while riding.Even though people of this group are sensible enough to understand that going by the Indian road conditions,either the vehicles need to slow down or get off the road to give way for them,they still like to do what they are best at-HONK and HONK!!
The third and the worst group for the roads are the FILMY riders. They are incapable of comprehending the definition of civic sense.They cant distinguish between,yellow light and green light.switching lanes is like trying out different trouser for them!They don't understand that their actions can irritate or compromise the safety of other people on the road.Most of the people in India belong to the second category. The guy who honked at me-an innocent pedestrian, obviously deserves to be in the third category.

Honking has reached such great proportions in India that it will become one of the major sources of noise pollution and worry for the Government. According to experts,Noise does not have be loud to be harmful.Noise in fact is any sound that bothers us.A barking dog or a dripping faucet can trigger your body's responses: heart rate increases; blood pressure rises; the mouth dries; skin loses color; muscles contract; and blood cholesterol rises.Sustained stress reactions to noise can lead to high blood pressure, hardening of the arteries, ulcers, indigestion, and insomnia.
Having said that, its the responsibility of the citizens of India to keep this evil under check along with an effort to maintain a nice environment for everybody to have decent tension free ride to their destinations.

The first step starts with us. Identify things that can be changed,I have written down some of them.

1) Honking when in a traffic stop even before the green light comes up.Dude! Nobody likes to stay on the road for long.I am in as much hurry as you are.But have patience.Iam only going to move once the light turns green.If you wish you can fly above me and go on with your journey.

2) Honking from behind,when somebody slows down to get ready to stop at the red signal ahead.Dude!If you think you are some alonso who can escape the red by your sheer speeding then you better show your skills in the circuit, not on public roads. What's the point in honking when you are only going to end up just a foot ahead from the person whom you overtook anyways:-)

3) Honking when somebody on the left side of the road needs to quickly move to the right as some vehicle (especially bus or call centre cab) has suddenly decided to make a pitstop. I admit I myself have honked at times in this kind of scenarios,but hey I'm trying to quit it. One needs to understand that everybody has an equal right to the road. A journey on the Indian roads can transform into a pleasant journey if only we can learn to adjust and give way for hapless cycles and other not so fortunate vehicle riders without venting our frustration by honking at them.It will barely cost you some additional minutes if you drive slow and peaceful. To avoid getting frustrated while driving in dense traffic,try to start much early.This way you wont be forced to honk and try to make way.

4) Honking to drive past everyone and get to the first position (?). I have noticed that some people just cant tolerate any other people riding ahead of them.It's as if a live race is on.They honk and honk,the person in front wont give way resulting in some ugly stares and scenes.Some people cannot digest the fact that a bus or lorry is going ahead of them.They need to get past them at any cost even if it means inconveniencing the riders coming in opposite direction. Please understand that in Indian traffic,no matter how fast you go, no matter how many vehicles you overtake,there will always be a vehicle in front of you.Try to avoid getting into an overtaking mindset.Learn the art of peaceful lane driving.Studies overseas have shown that lane driving will get you to your destination faster than mindless lane switching because the latter causes jams :-)

5) Give respect to other vehicles on the road. As a two wheeler rider, you have sharper maneuverability and control.Please don't misuse this gift to scare or frustrate the fourwheeler riders by switching lanes at will.If you must overtake a fourwheeler look for the right moment rather than making a forced entry into the little available spaces in front of him thereby inducing him to apply the brakes.A little honk can be used here to indicate your intention to
overtake so that he can be on alert.

All said and done,this of course doesn't apply on empty roads with little or no traffic.I hope that people of India become aware of this evil and try to make it a case of sensible HONKING rather than instinctive HONKING. How about a no honking day folks?