The Glass City of India

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Once a humble grain of sand, now a broken bottle, it returns to Firozabad – the city that shaped it. Transformed into glass, it witnessed the packed factories and shimmering chandeliers. As it awaits a new fate, it sees how the city has evolved: cleaner streets, safer workers, and a resilient spirit. Yet, challenges remain. One day, it will break again. But in Firozabad, nothing is ever truly useless.

Hi! I am a broken bottle and useless for everyone. Now I am in a truck, and after a long time, I am returning to that city. Thinking of the city, which changed me completely from what I was earlier.

I was sand before. But what I was going to become, I didn’t know. The journey continues from a desert, which was my home earlier, and after that in a truck, willing to know where it goes. And the truck reaches its destination. It was a city called “the city of glasses—Firozabad”.

And as the truck took its turn, I reached a factory where the glasses were made. Thinking, now I will be one of them. In me, they mixed soda, ash, and lime and put me in a furnace, which has a temperature of 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  plain glass. Glass bowl and many more glass items! 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 looked alike to me.

I was in a truck, seeing the city inside. The chandeliers in the shops – how beautiful they were! The shops were few. Every one of them was unique with its own vibe. I wish I could be one of them. The beauty mesmerised me, but I can only keep these in my memories.

I thought that was an end in this beautiful city… But wait.

When I was broken, I thought that I was useless from then on. But I am returning to my birthplace 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?

While thinking about this, I reached my destination: the Glass City. Looking around, the city had completely changed. Back then, when I came to this city, before entering, one knew that they had reached the city because of the smoke coming from the chimneys. The smoke used to cover the sky, turning it black and causing an increase in temperature. Due to the increase in temperature, a kind of heat wave always came from the city. But now, the city is cooler than before and has a clean sky.

When I entered the city, I saw the market of beautiful chandeliers. The city is more developed than before. Now, the city has more shops, more security cameras, more cleanliness, greenery, and parks where the kids play together and smile happily. But as I wait for what I will be, the truck takes its turn—my life also takes a 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 in this city. But some things have changed.

The process of manufacturing glass bangles starts; the batch for it was preparing. There was sand, just like me before... In sand, soda ash, limestone and borax are added along with other additives and colouring materials. They are poured into a pot furnace in which I am, and other broken bottle pieces like me are also added. But this time they are doing it with more safety. We are heated up at the temperature of 1300–1400 degrees to melt us. Once again, I am a molten glass. 

I am now taken out of the furnace with the help of an iron pipe. Before, when they used to do this, there was no safety, but now at the holding site there are safety buckles that protect their hands. Earlier many accidents happened, where many of the workers got burnt from the fire of the furnace or from the molten glass. But we still need to take more precautions from any further accidents, even from the smoke coming. After many processes, we are further drawn into a spiral coil of bangles. I am a bangle spiral now. I am taken out of the spindle and cut with the help of a pencil cutter to separate the single piece of bangles from the spiral.

I am finally a single glass bangle, but with a cut. Now, like me, other uncut bangles are sent to the workers for joining the end. After we all joined, the worker strung us together, and in the stock were, like me, many bangles tied in strings. There were really many. I really understood why this city is a bangle city; every street through which I passed, I saw bangles of different designs and of different colours, which make them very beautiful. I also wanted to be beautiful like them, but for now I am here in storage.

I remembered this place before; many places on the roads were filled with water, many people were 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, and I am happy that my favourite city is getting better.

And one day, a person came and took all the bangles with him. Once again, I am seeing the city. The man took us into a godown where many workers are already working on bangles. I am excited to see what I will look like now. I am waiting and listening to the workers who are talking about how many other cities are rewarded for their cleanliness, development, better education, and more such things. But none of them has been given to our city. After going through many processes, I look so pretty. Now, I am getting packed to leave the city.

In the truck as I leave, I think about the city and how it has changed so much and is getting better day after day. But still many things need to happen, as the workers didn’t use safety glasses for their eyes. In the houses where small kids were playing, the small pieces of bangles are there, and almost all workers are women in such houses, and they make their kids work as well. I know they are working hard to make this city, and I wish their hard work pays off and that one day the city is also rewarded for its beauty, which I can see and 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 to see my city as more developed but always connected to its roots, where I am never a waste. That’s why it is called: “The Glass City – Firozabad.

About the Author

Smriti Gautam

Smriti hails from Firozabad, famously known as the “City of Bangles.” She is currently pursuing a B.H.M.S. degree with the goal of becoming a doctor. Alongside her medical studies, she also remains dedicated to pursuing her passion for writing.