Looking for Leaders - continued...

Abhinay, Rahul and I met the Additional DCP (Traffic) for Cyberabad, Mr. Ashok Reddy today to discuss about our plan. He really liked the idea and has asked us to submit a proposal stating what we want to do and how we want to do it.
We hope to submit the proposal by next week. Meanwhile, here's how you can help:

• Spread the word - chances of this project being successful get better if more people are aware of it.
• Speak to your HR/powers-that-be about pitching in with donations.
• Volunteer to manage this project within your company. You don't even have to step on to the road, just make sure that your company's employees are aware of this project and are willing to try this experiment that is good for everyone.
• If you know any higher ups in any FM channels or newspaper companies that would be willing to become media partners for this project, please pass on their details to us.

Please post your comments.

Looking for Leaders!

A couple of folks got in touch with me last week to work on the traffic problems we face. We have decided to work on the traffic issues based on the strategy in this post.

Also I hope that my nomination for the Pepsi MTV Youth Icon Awards will be helpful in reaching out to more people. ( AND BTW, PLEASE VOTE FOR ME) :)

We are looking for LEADERS who have the drive, passion and commitment to bring about a change in Hyderabad.

It is going to be very tough; It may be a thankless job but it will be very fulfilling. The same people you are trying to help will question your actions. The same people will argue and fight with you, but you will have to look at the bigger picture and carry on!

It will involve a lot of grit and dedication from your end; lot of sweat and tears as well! But when we're successful, we would have made our city a better place to live in- for us and for generations to follow.

The stretch of road we're targeting is from Jubilee Hills checkpost to Kothaguda junction.
Groups of LEADERS will manage the below entities:

• Autos
• Cabs
• APSRTC buses
• Pedestrians
• Citizens who use 4 wheelers and/or 2 wheelers to commute

You will have the chance to work on real problems that plague almost every citizen ... and solve these problems. If you consider yourself a problem solver and believe that you can make a difference, then please join us. Send me an email at sikhoya at gmail dot com or you could also join the Traffic Google group and send an email to the group.

Techie nominated for MTV award

This was the headline of the article in The Hindu about me today.
Incidentally the reporter, Abhijit Dev Kumar, helped a scooterist in a hit and run case this week. A two wheeler rider got hit by a Maruti Suzuki Swift car and the person drove away without bothering to stop. Abhijit then dialed 108(please use this number in case of emergencies - AMAZING Service) and called the ambulance - all this in the middle of the night!

Noticed something here? The scooterist got hit for no fault of his. Just because there was an inept person behind the wheel of a car, some poor soul on the road got hurt. This was exactly what I was trying to avoid by stopping the cab driver from driving rashly, but we all know how that story ended.

Here is the link to The Hindu article:
http://www.hindu.com/2008/11/06/stories/2008110657890200.htm

Excerpt:

Techie nominated for MTV award
Hyderabad: The ire against Hyderabad’s traffic is quite evident in his blog. His initiative, ‘Free the left lane’, inspired young professionals to regulate traffic near the Cyber Towers junction. Meet Sameer Mehta, who was recently nominated for MTV’s Youth Icon Award for his initiative on traffic that started last year through ‘trafficinhyderabad.blogspot.com’.

A solutions architect from Sum Total, an IT company, Sameer often got stuck at the Hitech City crossroads on his way to work. “I saw that most motorists blocking traffic at the junction were well-educated professionals working in IT companies. When I got to work, I decided to write about traffic in the city, especially about keeping the left lane free. Most of the traffic jams are caused because the left lane is blocked,” says Sameer.

With close to 12,000 hits and 68 posts about traffic on his blog since July 2007, Sameer is now making a short documentary on the traffic scenario. To vote for Sameer Mehta, visit ‘ http://www.mtvyouthicon.in.com/nominee.php?id=46566’ or via SMS, “Icon SM” to 56882.

My MTV video

This is the video that will be aired on MTV when my profile is covered:

http://mtvyouthicon.in.com/video.php?id=235