"No Man's Land"

Just returned from an India trip. After traveling on roads quite a bit within the short span of two weeks, couldnt help but wonder about indian roads.

 In my trip I visited Hyderabad, Tirupati, Karimnagar, Chennai, Delhi and Agra. Everytime I am on the road, I couldn't help but be displeased with the crowded streets, pollution, non stop honking, pot holes on main roads, etc.

   Shortly after I picked up coughing, pollution on the streets started to seem more and more disturbing. This is when i started paying attention to what has been there in front of my eyes since childhood, but I never paid any attention.

 "No man's land"

What i mean is the small strip of mud that runs along ALL the roads in India that I have seen. Even on the 'posh' roads in the city, between the road and shops or houses, there is always a strip of mud. Some places it is narrow and some wide, but it is always there. Why ??

Seems to me like the government told people 'Stay away from the roads' and everyone who builds anything next to the roads leaves a respectable distance before they build pavements in front of their stores and houses. it almost seems like the #1 rule of construction :" leave a feet of mud between your construction and the road, this land belongs to noone"

What i had been perceiving as pollution, was actually mostly this mud that was being thrown into the air continuously by motor vehicles. When I noticed vehicles that had been parked alongside the road for a long time, there was a thin layer of mud on these vehicles. when i run my finger through the dust, i can feel fine sand. I don't think pollution from exhaust of vehicles would settle like this.

It is surprising to me how people on the roads can breathe mud and not have a problem with it. People always attribute repiratory problems to increasing pollution. I think it is this mud from the 'No man's land' that is increasingly in the air as the number of motor vehicles have increased.

When we were returning from Chennai to Hyderabad, as we boarded the flight the air hostess handed us wet towels, as soon as I wiped my face, the towel turned brown. this was not pollution. this was a thin layer of mud!

Who is to take any ownership/action? the govt who layed the roads ? or every individual who owns a shop or house next to the road?