India's Flying Draincovers!
Where my son lives in the US five 2-storey houses make a circle. And there's a common circular driveway. A drain manhole there has a heavy cast iron cover which says Made in India.
How did India-made draincovers fly West? What spurred exports? Well, it's a curious story. A Mystery. As well as History.
Under British rule the police were under English officers. Every city had cast iron covers over the manholes of drains. Then came Independence. British rule ended and the English left the country. The dawn of freedom. Soon the iron draincovers started vanishing, leaving gaping holes. When replaced they vanished again in a day or two. Slum-dwellers and other poor carried them away and sold them. People died stumbling into the holes in the dark or in rains.
A strange fact is that though Indians differ in language, clothes and customs, the basic attitudes are similar across the country. So in city after city the draincovers vanished. And state after state decided to give up iron draincovers and use concrete covers instead.
The result was that the iron-cover manufacturers were hard-hit. Their manufacturing facilities fell silent. With no hope of getting business, they realized there was only one way to survive. They would have to explore and find an export market.
So...we must be ever-thankful to the draincover thieves for spurring unforeseen exports for the country.
Under British rule the police were under English officers. Every city had cast iron covers over the manholes of drains. Then came Independence. British rule ended and the English left the country. The dawn of freedom. Soon the iron draincovers started vanishing, leaving gaping holes. When replaced they vanished again in a day or two. Slum-dwellers and other poor carried them away and sold them. People died stumbling into the holes in the dark or in rains.
A strange fact is that though Indians differ in language, clothes and customs, the basic attitudes are similar across the country. So in city after city the draincovers vanished. And state after state decided to give up iron draincovers and use concrete covers instead.
The result was that the iron-cover manufacturers were hard-hit. Their manufacturing facilities fell silent. With no hope of getting business, they realized there was only one way to survive. They would have to explore and find an export market.
So...we must be ever-thankful to the draincover thieves for spurring unforeseen exports for the country.
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