NEW DELHI, Nov. 6 -- In the early 1980s, after residing in various places in Patna, I eventually settled down on Road No. 14 in Rajendra Nagar, very close to Bahadurpur Gumti, a level-crossing where one sometimes had to wait for up to half an hour for trains to pass in opposite directions. There was no certainty of crossing the massive gates due to the uncertainty of the train schedules.

One of the most comical scenes I witnessed at Bahadurpur Gumti was the growing impatience on the faces of two youths. They had a bicycle and were in a hurry to cross. An immobile goods train blocked their path. After deliberating among themselves, they decided to manoeuvre the bicycle to the other side beneath the train.

As they strenuously struggled t...