During a trip to the east, I saw these deserted railway platforms from the window of my train. It was unusual to see no one running with their luggage to jump on the train, no hustle-bustle of a busy station, no food stalls, no vendors selling beverages, toys, books, cards, or anything else, a characteristic feature of train journeys in India. These platforms were just slabs of concrete standing unsheltered next to the railway tracks. They belonged to the many small towns and villages of one of the most densely populated states in the country, but had no occupants to prove that. Through the old yellowish glasses of my window, these appeared to me like places from another age.
