Why is a missing flight a bigger tragedy than a train derailing?

When Malaysian Airlines flight MH370 went missing, it was one of the top trending news stories for weeks. Out of 239 people, 227 were passengers.

Till date we are unsure about what exactly happened to the passengers and the staff. That the families of the absconding travellers have decided to hunt for the plane's debris in Africa only shows that the common man puts his foot down sooner or later. But things don't look good; there is little hope now. India witnessed a similar tragedy in yet another rail accident when the Patna-Indore Express derailed in the early hours of November 20 - killing more than 145 people and injuring hundreds, several of whom remain critical.

The Hindi media has significantly covered the latest catastrophe. On the other hand, if internet statistics are to be believed, it seems like the English reader has expressed his sorrow after barely scrolling through the updates, and already moved on.

Are the ones who lost their lives in the Patna-Indore Express rail accident mere numbers for us? When did we start keeping a tab on the death toll like a cricket match update? Are we so immune to tragedy and human loss today that it doesn't shake us up anymore?

Is it because the ones who died were not travelling on an expensive ticket? Is it because they were not flying by a more comfortable and posh mode of transport, like an airline? They died travelling in second class, non air-conditioned compartments. The real Indian aam aadmi was the passenger: the low-paid working class, the student and the like.

Why is it that the well-read, middleclass doesn't shed even a tear until "one of their own" is affected? What is the point of calling India the world's biggest democracy if the majority is treated like a herd of sheep?

Isn't middle India guilty of selective empathy, and choosing to express grief and vent on the basis of socioeconomic status of the dead? Has our idea of mourning too become brand conscious? Amid the rescue and relief operations, those fighting for life eventually died. Both the dead and the living were pulled out of the rubble. Scores of men, women, children and the elderly were inconsolable. In that moment, they were incapable of chest-beating and applauding the country for its glorious achievements: be it demonetisation, Agra-Lucknow expressway or winter session. They were the "anti-nationals". Did they see it coming?

While the victims were fighting for their life, a few kilometres away from Kanpur, PM Narendra Modi continued wooing the public for the upcoming UP polls; of course, after paying lip service in wake of the train tragedy. But this only made matters worse. Help didn't reach the needy in time and the death toll only rose further. Insensitivity now had a face and it was in the form of scrapped Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes.

The UP government too was busy taking the new road project on a celebratory test drive. Neither the state authorities nor the opposition had anything other than sympathy to offer to the victims. Had it been Delhi Metro's derailment or a 26/11-like attack in Mumbai, the situation would have been quite different. The English news media would have left no stone unturned chasing and playing their "Breaking" or "Exclusive" stories. The middleclass would have lapped it up in one go. Both the ruling government and Opposition would have taken to the streets in droves.

Had it been an airline instead of a lowly train, the entire nation would have wanted to know. Everything would have moved at the speed of a Japanese bullet train. In terms of social media, the news would have gone viral then. It's unfortunate that we are still building castles in air when India is light years away from providing basic infrastructure and social overheads to her citizens.

The Indore-Patna Express accident is a tragedy. Dismissing it as just another mishap will be a blunder - as inhuman as unconstitutional. Because it is the poor, we see their deaths as mere statistics. Today, we are a burning example of an insensitive, cold people. Just as PM Modi invoked Bob Dylan at the Global Citizen Festival, "The Times Are A-Changin".

(Translated from Hindi by Radhika Sharma.)