I’m going mad

Yes, I am going berserk.

What’s causing this mental meltdown?

The 260-page Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (The US regulator)’s Medical Examiner Handbook.

I know the kind of health checkups truck drivers undergo when applying for commercial vehicle licenses in India. Absolute farce.

Pay a fee and get a favorable certificate. Corruption to the core.

Don’t believe it?

Visit any RTO. You cannot miss spotting mini clinics or physician cubicles in the periphery of the driving license authority that will issue a medical certificate without blinking an eye.

Similar to the fashion in which they obtain their driving license with next to nothing driver training in commercial vehicles — light or heavy. It is a roaring business. A driving license is a passport to a better life. License-seekers found an easy way out.

That led me to scout for what I obtained in the United States. That’s where I stumbled and fumbled onto the FMCSA manual.

What’s FMCSA? Federal Motor Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

Look how this manual describes an average driver…

The driver population exhibits characteristics similar to the general population, including an aging workforce. Aging means a higher risk exists for chronic diseases, fixed deficits, gradual or sudden incapacitation, and the likelihood of comorbidity. All of these can interfere with the ability to drive safely, thus endangering the safety and health of the driver and the public.

What’s the average profile of a truck/bus driver in America?

Male. More than 40 years of age. Sedentary. Overweight. Smoker. Poor eating habits.

The medical profile:
Less healthy than the average person. More than two medical conditions. Cardiovascular disease is prevalent.

Well, you don’t have to agree with these characteristics. Indian truck drivers have their own personal and medical profiles.

We will examine them in the next dispatch.
(To continue)