Special Mention - Creative
/The Glass city of India
Hi! I am a broken bottle and useless for everyone. Now, I am in a truck, after a long time, I am returning to that city. Thinking of the city which changed me completely from which I was early.
I was a sand before. But what I was going to become, I don’t know. The journey continues from a desert which was my home earlier and after that in a truck, willingly to know where it goes. And the truck reaches to its destination. It was a city, called “the city of glasses – Firozabad”.
And, as the truck took its turn, I reached in a factory where the glasses were made. Thinking, now I will be one of them. In me(sand) they mix soda ash, lime and put me a furnace which has a temperature nearly 1200-1300 degrees, that was much! But still they all do it. Well, after melting some of us(molten glass) was now turning into a plane glass, glass bowl and many more glass item. Wow, how cool or may be hot to see it! I was turned into a glass bottle and then taken out from there with those who looks alike me.
I was in a truck, seeing the city inside from the truck. The chandeliers in the shops, how beautiful were they. The shops were few. Every one of them was unique, have it’s own vibe. I wish I could be one of them. The beauty mesmerized me but I can only take those only in my memories.
I thought that was an ends in this beautiful city, but wait. When I was broken I thought that I am useless now on but I am returning back to my birth place (as a glass), Unbelievable. I am wondering now what will happen with me, I am a broken bottle now, how will the city recreate me or redesign me?
Thinking of it and I reached to my destination, the glass city. Looking around and the city is completely changed. Back then, when I came to this city, before entering in, the people knows that they reached over there because to the smoke coming from the chimnies and the smoke covers the sky turning in black, causes an increase in temperature. Due to increase in temperature a heat wave always comes from the city. But now, the city is cool then before and a clean sky.
When I enter the city I see the market of beautiful chandeliers. The city is more developed back then before. Now, the city is having more shops, more security cameras, more cleanliness-greenery and the parks where the kids are playing together and smiling happily. But I am waiting of what I will be and the truck took its turn, my life changing turn once again, I am again in a factory. This time I am going to become a glass bangle. I saw that process earlier when I was before in this city. But there is something change.
The process of manufacturing glass bangles starts, the batch for it was preparing. There was sand, just like me before..... In sand soda ash, lime stone, borax etc are added with other additives and coloring materials and is poured into pot furnace in which me and alike me other broken bottle pieces are added. But this time they are doing with more safety. We are heated upto the temperature of 1300-1400 degrees for melting us. Again I am a molten glass.
I am now taken out from the furnace and with the help of iron pipe. Before, when they used to do this there was no safety but now at the holding site there are safety buckle which protect there hands. Because, earlier many accidents happened where many of the workers were burnt from fire of the furnace or from the molten glass. But still need to take more precautions from any further accidents even from the smoke coming. After many processes we are further drawn into spiral/coil of bangles. I am a bangle spiral now. I am taken out from the spindle and cut’d with the help of a pencil cutter to separate out the single piece of bangles from spiral.
I am finally a single glass bangle but with a cut. Now, like me other uncut bangle are sent to the workers for joining of end. Once after, we all are joined the worker string us together and in the stock were like me many bangles are tied in strings. They were really many. I really understood that why this city is a bangle city, every street through which I passed I saw bangles of different design and of different colors which make them very beautiful. I also wanted to be beautiful like them but for now I am here in a storage.
I remembered this place before, many places on the roads were filled with water, many people was suffering from dengue and malaria and there was no facility to throw the garbage. But now, the roads are clean, the municipality truck is spraying medicine for the mosquitoes in each Street and municipal workers are taking garbage from each house. The city is changing, I am happy that my favorite city is getting better.
And, one day one person came and took all the bangles over there with him. Once again, I am seeing the city. The man take us in a godown where many workers are already working on bangles. I am excited to see how will I look like now. I am waiting and listening to the workers who are talking that how many other cities are rewarded for their cleanliness, development, better education and many more. But none of them is given to our city. After going through many processes, I look so pretty. Now, I am getting packed and leaving the city.
In the truck when I am leaving, I am thinking about the city how it changed so much and getting better day after day. But still many things are needed to happen as the workers didn’t use safety glasses for their eyes and in the houses where small kids are playing the small pieces of bangles are there and almost all workers are female in the houses they make their kids to work. I know they are working hard to make this city and I wish their hard work pays off and one day the city is also rewarded for its beauty which I can see and I can feel.
I know one day I will be broken and become useless for everyone but not for my city and I will come back here. That time I wish I can see my city to be more developed but always connected to its roots where I am never a waste. That’s why it is called as “The glass city – Firozabad”.
Written by:
Smriti Gautam
This piece is part of Nagrika’s Annual Youth Writing Contest. Through the writing contest we encourage youth to think creatively and innovatively about their cities.