These are just some of the howlers, and not kiddish ones, snapped on the Capital's roads by bureaucrat-photographer Nisheeth Katara. Katara, who had recently put up an exhibition of photographs clicked at the Bharatpur bird sanctuary at the Queen's Gallery in the British Council, is now working on a series of signboard bloomers in the Capital and outside.

Katara, who is very serious about seeing the funny side in slogans and signs, says, ``It all started at the Jim Corbett National Park some three years ago when I saw a funny notice there.'' The notice read: ``Ramganga river is inhabited by crocodiles. Swimming is prohibited. Survivors will be prosecuted.'' Was the Director, Corbett Tiger Reserve, being funny? Katara photographed this and came across yet funny notice at Amber Fort in Jaipur which said: ``Complaints about elephants to be made here''. ``Now what complaint can there be against the poor creatures!,'' muses Katara.

Once onto the business of documenting such instances, Katara realised that there was plenty of fun to be had back home in Delhi where he is posted. ``I often enjoy reading the light couplets painted on auto-rickshaws. But I was quite floored by the out-of-metre and meaningless lines painted on one: Kis ki mazal hai, jo chhedhe sher ko; Gardeesh mein gher lete hain kutte bhi sher ko. It was evident that it was not just the English language which was raped in these curious notices which defy communication.

Another funny one was by the SHO, Rajendra Nagar: Saavdhan apni gadhi ka dhyan rakhein. Yahan se chori hone ka adesh hai. (Warning: Look after your cars. For there are orders for the cars to be stolen from here). The sense of the couplet turned upside down when the the word andesha (apprehension) turned into adesh (orders). Or does the police really order thefts of cars. The SHO's notice certainly indicates so.

Some other funny ones are a shop boasting of quality steel furniture with scrap piled above the board. If residents of Kasurba Gandhi Marg threaten to shoot robbers, residents of Karol Bagh are being pretty mild when they place a notice saying; ``Parking prohibited. Tyres will be punctured.'' Katara plans to hold an exhibition of this collection in the near future.