RINN & ME...... 3

Trials :-

As our plants were getting commissioned, we had lot of trials for existing products to match what was already being produced as well as make trials for making new products. My dependence on RINN was increasing day by day.

All that I had to do was to carry out the trial and then arrange the materials. RINN would take all precaution, segregate, line up the material, pack, label and arrange everything ready for me for on ward shipping.

I also used to feel sentimentally that her hand had a magic touch and whatever she did with care got instant approval.

Thus things were looking good in the factory front. Because of all round appreciation and admiration RINN became the Team Leader in packing department. She was too happy of the new position and started working with further dedication and care.

There was a Chinese machine for which two technicians had come for installation from China. RINN got hooked to the machine from the word go and started taking care of the entire teamin the machine. The high speed machine was looking like it was made for her and started dancing to her tunes!

I was very happy with the developments and started enjoying the job as things started falling in place in the jig saw puzzle. Volume of production was looking up month after month. Our inefficiencies were also going down ward with steady slow trend of defects and rejections.

Now we were about to complete a year in Madagascar. But my lingual skills have not at all improved. Whereas RINN who used to ask “ Do you want me ?” Now started asking very coherently “Do you need any help from me ?” and started using words like “Sincerely” ; “ Hypocrisy”  etc. with ease.

By now I had learnt that she has a younger brother who was school going who is seventeen years old. Her mother was some thirty eight years old and her father was in his early forties working in some workshop. 

As RINN knew that I am a strict vegetarian she would never say that she had beef or chicken for lunch. She would say some vegetables name and say that she had the same in lunch with rice. I also came to know that to save money she would walk two kilometers a day in the morning to catch the local mini bus and evening depending on the time of going out she would either walk or go by mini bus to home. Her journey from and to home took approximately an hour a day.

As a family as we were living inside the factory I would just leave office and be at home in five minutes flat.
                                                                                to be concluded........

RINN & ME .............. 2

EARLY DAYS:-

I moved to Madagascar in June 2015. I had no exposure to French language. Therefore my French was next to Zero. Having loaded my brain with so many languages like all South Indian Languages, Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Punjabi and Thai , I was in no mood for learning Malagasy language. Malagasy as a language was far too different from all the languages I knew . I could get only ” Salama” a general greeting, “ Manavoona”…. How are you !, “Sara Bee”…..  very good in all these years.

But as my job involved getting things done from locals, I was trying to figure out ways and means of getting a working knowledge of Malagasy.

We were filling various vacancies in the factory. I was trying to get people with some working knowledge of English. But it was proving too difficult. As local people start learning English only in their class 6 and by the time they finish school they forget the same. Moreover getting such highly educated workers was also proving to be difficult.

Members of my team, fellow Indians were also getting frustrated with no English speaking members to translate and get things done. When we recruited a lot of workers RINN came as a very pleasant surprise as she could speak and understand English. Because of her congenial nature she was very becoming very popular among the team members too. 

As the plant was then in trial stage that time she used to work in all possible location and was very active in learning all aspects of production and packing apart from helping in cleaning, mopping and arranging things on the floor.  Slowly she got used to our way of working and was sought after by all in every department as a day to day trouble shooter!

I could now find someone to talk to and understand Malagasy culture, way of life, food habits etc.  I learnt that average Malagasy family has access to running wanted for only limited duration despite abundant rains, free flowing rivers etc.. They have Spartan life style with minimum accessories. Even a fan in the home is a luxury.  Meal generally consists of rice, rice and more rice with limited sprinkling of meat, beef, pork / fish which are the can not afford with their earnings!

Despite availability of many fresh fruits, people eat Banana almost daily other seasonal fruits if available free are cherished and relished. Thus they made their days good with Jamuun, Avacodo, Guva etc. Otherwise they cannot afford to buy!!

Despite all these tough life the general smile on RINN’s face would never ever fade despite back breaking work sometimes.

In the initial days there were some tough days when we failed to make an acceptable product due to lack of acquaintance with the machine or some batches would go bad. I used to be demoralized and sit in a corner in the packing hall brooding. RINN would come and tell me to put a smile on my face and face the challenges. She would state that things would certainly improve for the better. This used to spur me up to become more active and enthusiastic.

I was also constantly told by RINN to learn Malagasy language which she tried to put in my hard head one or two words every day!

RINN & ME.....1

INTRODUCTION:-

We come across many people in our life. These interactions are due to personal, social, professional, community, family, official reasons. Every encounter with someone makes an impression in our mind!  Some people make a lasting impression on account of the way they conducted themselves, the way they treated you, the way they solved your issues, be it personal or professional or something else. Some people make a very bad impression and you wish you never had a chance to meet them in the first place.

This piece is about a person who has made a lasting impression in my mind and my approach towards work.

When I moved to Thailand for an assignment, I used to meet people with very long Thai names. As the same cannot be used in daily usage their names used to come along with a ready to use short names like Tum, Jum, Pop, Ton, Toon etc. Similarly this person in Madagascar has been nicknamed as RINN by me for this write up!

There is another reason for calling this person “RINN”is because in my childhood days my father used to force me to go through a book called "Wren & Martin" which he used to say as the Bible of English Grammar.

The name “ RINN” Rhymes well with “Wren”. Therefore, I chose this name “ RINN” for this lady of twenty two years old .

She is tall by Madagascar standard say approximately 5 feet 5 inches.  Comparatively fair skinned, even teeth and short hair, lean and lanky. Her Lower lip is with a typical pout. Her fore head is a bit broad. Her hair used to be wavy with a good luster.

But due to unknown reason she had cut it a bit short to have it in the form of a bun, probably to accommodate the same in the green color head gear which she had to wear while working. Her hands and legs are long with delicate fingers. Her face mostly used to have one or two pimples earlier but off late they have vanished. The wrinkles on her neck used to make her look like an angel or some sort of a Greek statue! Her eyes are a bit small by Indian standard and eye lashes are neatly trimmed to look like an arch!

The most appealing aspect of this person is her gait. She used to walk erect with fairly long steps, as if she is about to sprint!!

She is a fun loving person with ever smiling face. The reason for the smile is never known. As someone who loves pranks and easy going nature it is natural for her to sport a smile all the time.           

                                                                                          to be continued ........

ANNUAL APPRAISAL….. TALE OF THREE MUSKETEERS.....3

It was decided to transfer the three musketeers to our factory attached to head office. Generally, these people do three to four hours of Over Time every day to meet their growing financial burden. The same was to be stopped immediately in the new location. They would be divided in different sections and departments to avert contact with each other.

The news of the transfer spread like wild fire. It was an unanticipated move. With the summary dismissal of QA Manager and transfer of Three Musketeers the factory discipline was restored to normalcy immediately.

Three Musketeers were reluctant to accept the transfer order. They were called one by one and told of the transfer. They were also told that, if they did not take the letter and report in the new location very next day their service would be terminated, as the company was free to do so. This put in considerable fear and one by one they took the letter.

The next day they reported to the unit attached to HO. They were welcomed by the unit HR head. He subtly but firmly  told  them that they should not be under the misplaced impression that they were going to be there permanently and should look for opportunity elsewhere as the management was not very happy with their deeds.

They all stayed together and did different shifts in different timings. Whenever they were free they plotted together. First they approached the Deputy Inspector of factories and cried their heart out. He called me and told me to take them back in our unit it was politely denied.

Later they approached the authorities in Electricity department. He was also told that we have better things to do than this sort of discussions with him.

Meanwhile, I started getting pressure from domestic front. PG’s wife was calling my wife repeatedly as we all used o stay in the same colony. My wife had told her that it was an official decision and she had no say in that. The next day she called me on my cell phone and stated that her baby was missing PG and without him she would never sleep etc. I told her I had no role in that and she could not get any help from me in this regard.

Meanwhile MT and his wife called on me at home. He was very apologetic and told that he was misguided and ill informed by the other two. He told me the sequence of events that led to this fiasco. His wife was putting a sad face and stated that without Over Time and two establishments their whole family would be ruined as they were spending too much money for transportation too.

But I had to put up a firm face and tone. Offered them tea and then asked them to move with life.   

Mean while pressure from our HR made all three to submit their resignations after three months and thus by June all of them left their job.

But MT was a smart chap. He by then moved his strings in Delhi and from someone in central minster level had called our MD to reinstate MT. To oblige he was taken back. He was teased by all and sundry that with such an influence he should have got a posting in Central Government. He stayed for a further period of three months and left on his own.

Thus Appraisal time always reminds me of this episode which taught me how to handle tricky situations with care and concern to avert any precipitation!!

ANNUAL APPRAISAL….. TALE OF THREE MUSKETEERS......2

       The final increment list was prepared by me alone and it was kept in top confidential manner without anyone getting a scent of the same. The same was taken to the Vice President in HO and got approved on a one to one basis without any one getting a scent of it.

A few Managers were nosy and tried to find out from their sources in HR department. But they drew blank as no information was available.

April Salary was to be prepared with revised wages. The list signed by the MD was handed over to HR Manager on 25^th April to make the salary preparation. By then news started tickling to people in the shop-floor.

List of promotions were announced and the ones promoted were indeed very happy. They came and thanked me personally for recognizing long pending, deserving cases which were ignored due to nepotism.

By then QA Manager had a list prepared of his staff in his own good wisdom with actual increment given and what should have been the increment that should have been given. Poor chap he did not have any discretion, but left the paper with one of his lieutenant. He promptly came and handed over the same to me.

This document then became the main evidence to terminate the services of him as he was in the list meant for firing.  Poor Chap had an unceremonious exit.

There was a group of three old time shift in charges (Assistant Manager Rank ). They were all in night shift. They had a secret meeting amongst themselves. The three musketeers …MT ( Mr.Empty), AS ( Mr.Ass), PG (Mr. Pure Gas)… they ganged up the next day. Like the previous year there was an application in Chaste Hindi. With all that they wanted an audience with me by the end of the day.

A meeting was arranged in the meeting room. All was well till I went inside the meeting room. As I entered, I was shocked to find that the room had every one from Asst. Manager, Supervisory and Clerical Grade levels. I calmly took the letter they wanted to give. Then told that things were made clear to them in the beginning of the financial year itself and everything was done in a fair manner. If they had anything to discuss and debate they got to wait till the papers go to the board.

It was a charged atmosphere and no one was willing to listen. They wanted immediate declaration and announcement of fresh revision of salaries. It was evident from the tone at the meeting that the old Plant Manager was also behind them and the whole thing had his blessing !!

With the HR Manager’s understanding we told the team that they had no choice other than waiting. With that I had to return home as I had some visitor waiting for me! As soon as I reached home my blueberry went ringing! I was told that the team had walked out of the factory en mass and they were luring others to follow suit.

I had a few trusted Managers and they started calling me one by one stating that they would man the positions even if no one returned.

In the meanwhile a few unions too reached out to the group who had walked out of the factory ask them to enroll in their union.

After a few hours, better sense prevailed. Everyone walked back to their respective work spot. Thus that day’s night shift was over without any event.

When we reached office next day, we quickly got our acts right. We had a conference call with our Head of HR, Vice President Technical and MD. It was decided that we would not yield to the pressure.

                                                ………………….to be continued 3

ANNUAL APPRAISAL….. TALE OF THREE MUSKETEERS....1

It is time of the year, when companies ask their employees to sit for mandatory annual appraisals! The final quarter of every financial year.. Jan, Feb., & March brings jitters in the minds of employees!

Management by Objectives (M.B.O), Key Result Areas (K.R.As,) Key Performance Indicators (K.P.Is) what not! As someone had posted jokingly in a social website, during Appraisals employees are shown as if they are far too insignificant and their contribution to the organization is totally negligible.

The same employee, after a few months when he puts in his papers and sits for an exit interview the same boss praises him to the sky and tells him that he is the future of the company. He is a core committee member, has a bright future and what not!!

Well, I had my own share of experience in both sides of the table, attending employee appraisal as an employee. As well as arranging for a year appraisal with K.R.A and K.P.I for my staff in a company.

 It was 2014-2015, a year after a year of getting used to the Himachal way of working in an organization in Himachal Pradesh! The organization had an unique culture of employing mostly known people referred to by one another. This was done to bring in a sense of closeness and ease of working.

The same thing started proving detrimental to the organization as the company started growing and bringing in funds from VCs etc. Thus touch anyone that would set a cascade of reaction across the organization.

Most of the people were from UP in Supervisory and Assistant manager level, who because of years of experience have moved to their glorious level of incompetence! Every manager had his own team of cronies and would jeopardize working of the company if it warranted to safeguard his own interests.  

Everyone had his own zones of Comfort and would never ever move from that. People would not even move from one shift to another as they did not want to manage, monitor and control different crews!

Now they were surprised by terms like K.R.A, K.P.I etc. But as I had made them to sit for appraisal every quarter and feedback mechanism was very active quarter after quarter they had no way out from it.

Around February one of the supervisors came to me and told me not to waste my time with appraisals etc. as all things would not work in that factory. He also warned me that like the previous year, the Plant Manager would instigate people to write a petition and move the board to approve revision of annual increments!

I had a very miserable feeling that I would be let down by the board. The previous year a group of three old supervisors ganged up and did the same. There was a Chaste Hindi application signed by one and all Supervisors. The same was taken to the board in HO. Then we were constrained to revise the increments. This had happened as the Q.A head done the same unilaterally to keep his departmental morale high!

I spoke to my VP and got his unwavering commitment that no such thing would happen this year.

All Managers were called for a one to one meeting. They were told to give the list of Promotions well in time with justification.  They were also told that the final appraisal would be done by a team of three Senior Managers and approved by me based on the ratings given.

A few supervisors told that they would be quitting and therefore they were not going to sit for the appraisals. In the end final list of appraisal and increment was prepared omitting them .They were not given any increment.

                                                 to be continued.....

MY TRYST WITH INDIAN LAW .....6

VCs wife was not told about the arrest. My wife moved to their home to take care of her in the night. As VCs cell phone was with the police officials, in switched off condition no one could reach him on phone. But local population could sense something amiss and started flocking to VCs house.

I could hardly sleep that night, as I was scared of the reaction of our Managing Director and other Board Members. Though they were told VC was in Judicial Custody no one would imagine he was in a cell locked up !!  

Next day we went to the session’s court. The matter of VC was listed for late evening . Though we could meet him and offer food etc. we could understand that he was sulking and angry. By late evening he was let out by the magistrate and he was told that he should attend to the hearing whenever called for.

We asked VC to take a day or two rest and return to work. In the office by then UP mafia had become so strong many were upset that I did not handle the case well as I was exonerated in the beginning.

There was a review meeting in our HO. MD was very reasonable and told that if in a position one did not mind the meta talk ( body language) one was bound to suffer. He was telling about the case of one of his close friend who had slapped a servant belonging to SC/ST and had to suffer a similar fate. We could understand that the same was told to break the ice in the meeting as well as to satisfy the ego of VC. In private he told me that I could not have anything more than what I had done and told that VC was bound to suffer like that which would teach him a lesson.

After a few months things were in status quo. VC had quit the job as he was not given a good feed back in that year’s appraisal. He wanted to go abroad, that was the rumor he was spreading. I had quit the job to move out. Following which PK was found sucking his thumb as he did not get anything out of the case.

In the end to get out of the case VC offered him INR 25000 ( < 400 USD). This was done by arranging a one to one meeting between VC and PK. PK then moved to Una Sessions Court and stated that he was misguided and ill informed. Therefore he filed the case.

The matter was then closed once and for all. Poor VC had to come from Kanpur to Una three to four times to get himself free !!

Law as people say is an ASS ! I learnt it the hard way !!

MY TRYST WITH INDIAN LAW....5

The local lawyer was recommended by the district law officer. He was young and seemed to be a reasonable person. He had an office near one of the prominent hotel in Una. The office was small and Spartan furniture. When we reached him he was firing his assistant who was busy typing something on the lap top. We sat in a small bench awaiting his attention. When I looked around I could see on the wall a photograph of our local Industries Minister smiling.

As I was staring at that smiling photo the lawyer became aware of my apprehension and told me that his father who was trading in commodities in Una Market was a congress man and therefore he had kept that photo.

He got hold of all the papers and then asked about the brief background of the case. Then he told me he would file for a bail in sessions court the very next day. He told me that VC should be in his office the very next day by 9 AM. I told him of VC’s wife’s pregnancy and asked him VC should not go behind the bars even for a day. He took details of the same and asked VC to bring Pregnancy related papers the next day.

We were a bit relaxed and reached home late.  Next day morning I went of factory and VC as usual very lackadaisical approach reached lawyers office by 10 AM. I was getting repeated call from the lawyer. By then two police Constables were in my office. I told them that VC would come late as he had taken his wife for a medical check- up.

By the look on their face I got the feeling that they were not convinced. After an hour I got a call from my wife that police constables were in my house and they were asking for VC. In the mean while VC’s wife had come to the balcony and started abusing the constables why were they looking for her husband. She was also throwing weight of her father’s glorious past as police officer in Kanpur.

These were enough for the police to get irritated enough for direct action. By then I got a call from our lawyer that VC was under Judicial Custody as ordered by the local magistrate. We rushed to Una court and found our own VC sitting in the sun sipping tea along with police men.  

I was told by the lawyer that in these SC/ST Atrocities case arrest / judicial custody was mandatory. No one could escape. When we asked him when he would be released we were told that the magistrate in all probability release him the next day.  I could understand that this was purely a whimsical decision left to the magistrate.

Using a common contact met the magistrate in his chamber privately and explained our VCs case. We told him about VC’s wife’s condition. He was sympathetic and listened to all our pleas very politely and asked us to take leave in view of his work pressure.

We then met the local police man arranged for their dinner along with VC in a restaurant nearby. After dinner blanket and other accessories were arranged for VC to sleep peacefully in JUDICIAL CUSTODY !!
                                                         .....to be continued ......

MY TRYST WITH INDIAN LAW .......4

When SP visited I received him politely to our main conference room. After initial pleasantries and tea etc. he got on with his business.

 I was asked to attend the enquiry first. I was asked by him what was my caste. On seeing my Tilak he himself wrote “Brahmin”. Then the Plant Manager 1 was called. He was a “Sharma” and hence against his name was also written as “Brahmin”. Now it was the turn of the 2^nd Plant Manager.

When he was called, he barged into the room opening the door with his foot. He was on the cell phone. When he was asked his caste he was speaking arrogantly and told no caste. The SP was a bit disappointed with his behavior. Thus VC who was the 2^nd Plant Manger was found to be in the wrong side of the law by the SP. Based on the suspicion he was implicated in the case.

 We were exonerated. A FIR was filed on the insistence of the Minister and congress union against Plant Manager 2 Mr. VC. VC hailed from Kanpur in UP. His father and brother were lawyers in UP. His father in law was a retired DSP in Kanpur. Because of this he was under the illusion that nothing would happen to him in this case. Police Men came to our factory and took declaration from all three of us about our native, home town address and permanent residence address etc.

They were stating that they would send police man to our home for verification of our activities in home town. To go and verify VC’s home they took money from us and travelled to Kanpur. VC had arranged for their accommodation in local hotel etc. where they stayed for a week. Despite that they returned without any document from Kanpur police station verifying the antecedent of VC.

This too put the local Police off as they thought that VC would arrange all that to get out of the case.

Our company had a regular lawyer in Shimla who pleaded all our tax and related cases. As advised by our commercial head we wanted to use him in this case too.   VC and his colleague went and met this lawyer in Shimla. But he was very casual. He told that so far no conviction had taken place under this act etc. He did not even file for an anticipatory bail.

I was periodically updated by the local police station and district law officer who had become a good friend by then. One day DSP called me and took me aside and told that they were under pressure from Shimla to file an update about the status of this case. He showed me on his computer screen the reports periodically filing by way of lies to dodge further proceeding. He also warned me, if we did not do anything may be our VC would go behind bars.

As Shimla lawyer was not useful we found a local lawyer in Una and handed over the case to him. By then it was becoming a regular feature to see Khaki clad policeman visiting factory in search of VC. We used to ask VC to stay at home or go elsewhere.       

VC who used to stay right opposite my house was getting disturbed by now. His wife was pregnant and was in an advanced stage ready for delivery. She did not seek any help from her mother or mother in law and wanted to manage the delivery all by herself alone. This too was putting pressure on VC.

Keeping this in mind I fixed an appointment with the local lawyer one evening and wanted to meet him in his home as visit to the Sessions Court was proving tiring. We did not have any place to sit and talk freely. 

                                                   ........to be continued 

MY TRYST WITH INDIAN LAW......3

There was lull for 15 days. Then our local SC/ST neta came to meet me again. This time it was to ask for a favour  of asking for a donation for Valmiki Day organized by him in his village. I told him he could collect a cheque after three days. But he wanted all in cash. INR 5000 was paid for that. Then he wanted me to be the chief guest. I had to decline as I did not want to be seen with him on stage.

He was also sore that PK had taken the case to Congress union and local neta who was also a minister. He was also of the opinion that they were trying to fish in troubled waters without keeping genuine interest of PK or his family’s welfare in mind. I told him the nature of any politician was that only !!

After a few weeks there was a call from local news paper agent who wanted to share a very secret information in person. I gave him an audience in my office. I was told that our Congress Union along with local people were planning to publishing a story on the PK case which would be very damaging to the company. I said they were free to do whatever they wanted and I could hardly stop them.

In return for this valuable piece of information he wanted an advertisement to be released on the birthday of the local minister facilitating for the yeoman service he was rendering to the local population. As it was a customary practice to keep the minister in good humor I had to agree to that too!!

There was a call from local DSP’s office stating that PK had lodged a complaint against three of us under SC/ST atrocities act 1989. He wanted to visit our factory and enquire about that.

He called on me in my office. The complaint was shown to us. In that it was alleged that one of the plant manager had called PK in an abusive manner taking his caste name and claimed that there was no place for such people in our organization. He had taken the name of local Congress Union office bearers as witness claiming that they were standing outside and heard the abuse.

This was far from truth and everyone was aware. The DSP saw our factory. Gone through PK’s personal file and he was convinced that the case was a fabricated one to harass the management. However he took me aside and told me that to satisfy the minister’s ego I should take PK back to avert confrontation.

I told him now much water had flown down the bridge and there was no scope for taking the case back. I also told him that the management was prepared to face the consequences.

By then I came to know through reliable sources that the case was advised to be closed by DSP and accordingly SP had signed the papers dismissing the case.

Meanwhile PK was becoming desperate and he called me repeatedly. Though, I had blocked his calls, one day as he had called using some other I picked up the call. He was desperate to get back to duty as his family was claimed to be starving. He was claiming that he had filed the case under SC/ST act as he was lured by the Congress union that he would be getting money to fight the case.

Sometime later Congress led union went on a hartal in front of Una Collectorate. Their demand was to reopen the case alleging that  the DSP was in hand in gloves with the management.

The District Collector called me and asked me what was our stand. I had told him very politely that we were firm on this and no going back. Then he asked the SP to investigate the case.   

MY TRYST WITH INDIAN LAW......2

PK had little scope for escape and he was promptly moved to another section as a prelude to removal. PK had sensed that and was becoming alert. With the management’s permission he was given marching order to our main factory in Punjab some 100 KM away from PK’s home.   

PK refused to accept the letter of transfer which was promptly sent by registered post later with acknowledgement due. Thus entry to PK to the factory was stopped. Later we came to know PK’s Rasa Leela and his alleged heart throbs within the same department.

As per routine practice in HP local Congress leaders have started calling me one by one. They were insisting that PK should be taken back and reinstated in the same department and same role immediately.

I stood firm on my stand and refused to entertain any such calls. Then the local Congress leader paid a visit along with PK’s school teacher who also happened to be the local area Sarpanch of the village. When PK’s alleged scandal was told to them they were shocked and appreciated my determination in weeding out such miscreants.                                                           

By then PK had sensed my stubbornness and moved to the Congress led union for help. PK’s brother was also working in our company and he was a union leader in Congress affiliated union. Congress led union then took him to the Industries minister.

There was a delegation of SDM, Director of Industries, Pollution Controller and Labour Commissioner all unannounced to our factory on a surprise visit. First there was a request and then threats to put me down and show me my way to Chennai by all of them en-mass.

Management was with me and they supported till the end. Thus nearly two months had elapsed and PK did not get salary or any financial help.

One day there was a visitor to my office along with the HR manager. This Gentleman then showed his visiting card which stuck me like a ton of bricks. He was the State President of SC/ST employees.

He categorically told me that if we do not take PK back there would be riots outside the factory as their number was far too high in our rolls.  Till then I was not even aware of “ THE SCHEDULED CASTE & THE SCHEDULED TRIBES PREVENTION OF ATROCITIES ACT 1989 No.33. “.

I had to show him PK’s personal file to him and stressed the fact that the track record of PK was not good. He had issues earlier including physically man handling fellow worker earlier.

By then this Gentle Man had become close to me as he had a Rakhi sister in Madurai (TN) and showed me his snaps with Great Indian Political leaders like Bhuta Singh who was a leader of SC/ST group , Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi etc. I told him that though, I admired him and his leadership my hands tied in this case. He then wanted to speak o our MD. I told him he was free to do so.

                                                             to be continued ........

MY TRYST WITH INDIAN LAW......Part 1

I have been always a law abiding citizen and respect the laws of my mother land INDIA. Ever since childhood, we were brought up as law abiding students by teachers, parents and everyone. Even when accepting any job offers, I have amply made it clear to prospective employers that cutting corners was not my cup of tea, on account of this have lost a lot of money by way of salary which does not cause any regret in my life.  I value a good night sleep much more than that.

But for a few instance of traffic violations, there were no issues with law all through my life.

But all these things changed a few years back, when I was on employment in Himachal Pradesh. As a unit of the company, we had more than 1600 people on our rolls. Apart from that we used to employ a lot of contract workmen time to time to meet the seasonal demands. These workmen used to be supplied by labour contractors.

These migratory labour used to come from places like Bihar, Jharkhand, UP etc. These contractors used to bring labour to the factory. They used to stay within the factory premises to take care of their wards. They used to be provided with a few rooms and facility to cook within the rooms. Company used to pay money to the labour directly and a over- riding commission to the contractor every month.

Thus there used to be good rapport between the local supervisory staff and contractors. Some Supervisors were alleged to be in the pay roll of contractors, as they used to be found dining, partying with the contractors. This had led to some acrimony among some of the contractors and I had prior information that some mischief by way of inflated numbers, extra over time, proxy etc. being done by one supervisor by name PK.

 PK was put under watch and he was soon caught red handed with such malpractices and relevant documents. PK was one of the old school supervisor and a local person too. He was vehemently opposed to local communist union. In our factory we had three unions one by congress party and the sitting MLA from the area was the industrial minister of the state. Second one was Communist union which was more popular among the workmen and staff. Third one was dormant BJP union which was living in its past glory.

                                             ............ to be continued ...

PALAKOLLU ...WEST GODAVARI DISTRICT. MARRIAGE EXPERIENCE

We are bound to visit so many towns, Cities, Villages, States and countries. A few we remember for our life time. A few we never want to remember anytime.

One beautiful small town in West Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh, which I shall never ever forget is called PALAKOLLU. This is a small town on the banks of river Godavari. I was living in Andhra Pradesh for nearly three years since 1982. I was stationed in a place called Guntur. I was not knowing, Telugu the local language in 1982 when I moved to Guntur. But in a span of six months i became quiet fluent in the language at least to speak and understand.

I had the opportunity to travel to various places in coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh like Nellore, Chirala, Singaraya Konda, Tanuku, Vijayawada,Tadepalligudam, Sattenapalli, Tenali, Narasaraopet, Eluru, Rajamundry, Kakinada etc. But the opportunity to visit Palakollu came in the form of a marriage invite. One of my classmates was getting married in Palakollu sometime in the early 1983. Thus we were all told to attend the wedding in Palakollu on that particular day. There was a group of six to seven boys who all joined together in Guntur railway station in the morning. We took a train to go to Palakollu and reached the destination around 1 PM.

We went to the station master and told him that we had come to attend so & so’s marriage. The Station Master asked us whether we represented the bride’s party / bride groom’s party. When we told that the Bride Groom was our class mate, his total approach towards us changed. We were given a bench to sit, the best he could arrange in his small station. Then he immediately went to call the bride’s father stating that Bridegroom’s friends had landed in chaste West Godavari Telugu. He then told us that a bullock cart was on its way to pick us up.

We were then taken to the bride’s house. We did not know that Telugu marriages were generally performed in the night and guests especially from bridegroom’s side landed up only in the evening. We were told to wait for a few minutes and then served with tender coconut water. We were then told that fresh rice was being made for us to eat. After a rich Andhra Bhojan we were told that we would be taken to a cinema theater to see a Telugu movie.

We had the fortune of watching one Krishnam Raju’s movie. Generally in South India ladies do not sit by the side of male members ( at least then) in busses, trains and especially in cinema theater. In Pallakolu, a girl was sitting and watching the entire movie by my side without any fuss.

Once the movie was over we were taken back to the Bride’s place and shown beautiful rooms to get freshened up. The type of bathroom so lavishly built and accessories there made me to wonder whether we were in some star hotel. Nice perfumes, soaps, hair oil etc. were on the shelves. We were made to help ourselves.

When we entered the marriage hall we could see some of the most beautiful girls all decked up from head to toe in gold. There was not a single girl without the OTTIYANAM (waist band made in pure gold!!). There were damsels with golden anklets (In South it is still a taboo to wear gold on the foot!!). Lavish display of wealth from land giving out golden crop was visible everywhere!!

In the late evening my friend, the bridegroom landed with his whole family. He was sorry that he was not there to receive us when we reached there. But we told him that we had the best reception which anyone could have ever had in Palakollu in his absence!!

Thus unknowing the local culture and custom we landed in a marriage party much earlier than the anticipated arrival time. We were treated very politely and taken maximum care by the bride’s party. We were made comfortable and  made to enjoy the local hospitality to the fullest possible extent in Palakollu !!

Oh to be a driver !!!

Oh to be a Driver !!!!

One tribe I love with my whole heart is that of Drivers, professional drivers. Be it a cab driver, Chauffer, Taxi driver they are a breed apart. They are admired by all and sundry because of long hours they put in staying away from family and friends. That is probably the only reason even lord Krishna chose to be a charioteer for Arjun in Mahabharat !

Whenever I hire a taxi, anywhere in the world, I try to raise a conversation with the driver. This apart from helping me o develop the much needed rapport helps me to send my time usefully during the drive to elicit necessary information about local gossip, political trend, news about all & sundry, at times even tips on local stock market !

We were on a conducted tour in KL, Malaysia a few years back. The driver of the minivan acted as a tourist guide. That was the time Don staring Sharukh Khan was released. After initial warming up our driver cum guide had all of us bursting with laughter giving snippets of his encounter with Sharukh & Priyanka Chopra. We got to the brands cigarettes smoked by them and what not !

I was working with a MNC head quartered in Mumbai. The Managing Director of the company was driven around in a Toyota Corolla those days. The joke in the Head Office was after the MD the next powerful man in the organization chart was the Driver of his car as he knew more about the company than any Vice President et. al.

I was sometime back constrained to travel too frequently to Ahmadabad in Gujarat from Hyderabad. As a unit was coming up for our company the travel was inevitable. Mostly I used to take the early morning flight from Hyderabad. To make the pick-up and drop a routine regular activity I had tied up with a local cab operator. He was very resourceful person and call him at anytime he was around to reach you in ten fifteen minutes maximum.

The interesting thing with him was he used to give juicy gossip every time you take a ride in his taxi. Once he was cursing loudly the evils of modern life style related denigration in social values etc. As he was only in his thirties then I told him in chase Hyderabadi what was wrong with him and how come he aged so fast in a span of two or three weeks as only the previous week I had used his taxi. He told me that only a few days back he was hired by a middle aged woman from the airport. As he was entering the city to drop her in to the hotel where she was supposed to check in she asked him about the availability of drugs in Hyderabad and if he was in the knowledge of any reliable supplier.

Our friend lost his breathing and quickly disposed he off at the hotel and refused to entertain her phones the next day stating that he was busy and tied up !!

The height of best driver I have ever had was this one from Ahmadabad. This gentle man was sent through our regular car hire. He was on time to pick me up from the hotel. He was driving as if the road was his private property cursing two wheeler drivers, pedestrians, fellow car drivers in his choicest cuss words. I had to make him to stop the car and give him a piece of my mind.

He then reduced his curses but was driving at break neck speed. Then on the way to thaw the ice he was interviewing me about my background, professional experiences, mission of the trip etc. Then I asked him politely whether he was playing the role of Human Resource Manager part time in some company. He burst into laughter and told me indeed he was a human resource personnel who got retrenched from a big power supplier in Gandhinagar.     

Then he started narrating his life story. Where he studied , when he got married, number of children etc. By then we reached the factory. On seeing the crowd of personnel hanging for interview he became a HR Manager again. He told me he would short list the candidates according to age, experience, domicile etc. and send short listed candidates for the final interview by me. Thus my days job became all the more simple, but in order to be sure I had to ask the chosen / short listed candidates whether any money exchanged hands !!!

Bidding good bye !!

The toughest thing in one’s life is to bid someone “Good Bye”! though "good bye" is something which holds good till we see / meet again, i dread the thought of bidding good bye to anyone!  

I equally do not enjoy receiving anyone either, be it in airport, railway station or bus stand. by and large planes, trains and busses do not come on time. we got to wait, wait & wait endlessly in places where little facility exist. crowded, without the comfort of good seating, air conditioning (most places do not even have fans!!)…. that too in very odd hours.

but in life one cannot avoid these rituals of receiving and bidding good bye as both are inevitable.

.

there were times when i had gone to the wrong railway stations as in city like Hyderabad there are three railway stations big ones in which interstate trains arrive, Hyderabad, Secunderabad and Kachiguda. Once my brother was coming from Mumbai for the first time to Hyderabad. I went to Secunderabd station to receive him. After a great wait I learnt that the train reached Hyderabad and the Journey for it ended then & there. By the time I reached home my brother was already there to receive me.

Once to receive my boss I went to Airport in Chennai. By the time I reached driving my car, my boss got lift from someone and reached his hotel. Thus the day began on a bad note and continued whole day!

forget about reception now let us go to send off !! it is certainly a very painful experience, especially when it involves members of the fairer sex ! Tears, more tears and many many more tears!

We were moving to Malawi on 1^st May’1995. My father had a brain tumor surgery a few weeks back. despite that as a brave man he consoled my mother when we were moving out of Chennai to Blantyre. The scene is still very vivid in my mind ! My esteem of him rose many more notches that day !

There was a time when I had to see my daughter off for her college in Raipur. Her train was from Chennai Central and I had travelled along with her from Bangalore to Chennai. In Chennai I could spend just ten minutes with her as my return train to bangalore was about to start. I handed over her to my brothers in Chennai station and ran to my train only to start crying inconsolably as my daughter was shedding tears when she bid me good bye! Though I had put up a tough front in front of her I could hardly control my tears during my journey to Bangalore !!

One Good Bye for me which I shall never forget in my life span ! It was my last working day in Thailand. I was warned by my wife to return home in time. She was also insisting that if possible I should avoid visiting office that day ! But I was asked to be there for the first half. Therefore I was there in my cabin after winding up all & sundry waiting for the clock to reach 12 Noon !

By then one by one all my team started coming to my cabin with a plastic rose ! I accepted all of them with great humility ! after that all the flowers were made in to bouquet and handed over to me. then i told my right hand man that time was up and I must leave. By then all the pregnant girls who were given light duty by management lined up in front of my office, followed by team leaders, supervisors, shift in charges, Asst. Managers and Managers. There was literally a procession in front of me. Around 70 people in all walked slowly with me up to the car park. I was seen off from there by the General Manager.

My car was Driven by my right hand man. Then from home to airport he drove the car. In the airport I was seen Off by him.

Thus at times, I used to joke that in the Thai “Good Bye” I have seen a rehearsal of my funeral with bouquet instead of a wreath !!!  

WANTED ANOTHER FORM “ JALLIKATTU” IN MARINA BEECH CHENNAI

“Jallikattu” was a popular sport in Tamil Nadu. The sport was conducted to encourage youth to tame bulls with bare hands by hugging and climbing on the bull holding it’s hump tightly. The winner was rewarded with money, marital alliance with the chosen bride etc.  

After Pongal Celebrations this year around 18^th Jan’17, there was a big fur over in Chennai ! The iconic Marina beech was besieged by youths from all walks of life and their demand was to allow controversial JALLIKATTU claimed to be a marital sport of Tamils. It was projected as an issue of restoration of “Tamil Pride”. As all political parties wanted to take active part in partaking the sensitive issue to their political gain center had to carefully handle the issue to avert any precipitation. Rest is history.

The past one week’s happening in Tamil Nadu are indeed very disgusting to put it too mildly. Elected representatives, so called M.L.As have to be huddled in a resort and kept in hostage condition to avert a political crisis by one section of the ruling party.

It was well known and foregone conclusion that the leader they were electing was bound to be declared an offender under disproportionate asset case. But still she was chosen as the leader of the party. Later she was  in a hurry to be nominated as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. The one who was warming up the Chief Minister’s chair for her was forced to tender resignation under duress.

The one who resigned woke up after a few days and revolted against the new chief minister. Thus enough fodder was provided or all TV channels to run these news as SASI KALA KAARI and what not with great captions, narrations, graphics, designs etc.

The most disgusting and disappointing points in this episode were the following:-

Police Personnel who are never available to render any help to the needy and wanting were thrown around the resorts were these elected representatives were housed and rapid action forces were also there on standby mode !

The number of SVUs in around Golden Beech resort were beyond anyone’s imagination.  See the pitiable condition of public transport buses in and around Tamil Nadu. These elected representatives are travelling all around in these high tech cars.     

There were claims and counter claims on how and who paid money for this jamboree wherein our elected representatives had a gala time. Going by very conservative estimate of they had stayed in MLA’s hostel not even one percent of that amount would have been spent on maintaining these elected representatives.

People were roaring like Lion initially and after the Supreme Court verdict the roar got completely silenced.

I as a “Tamilian” feel that Tamil’s pride has been seriously tarnished  by the following events:-

By having a proxy CMs again and again who are remote controlled by corrupt sentence serving politicians.

By having MLAs of this nature, who are easily prone for manipulation by their corrupt leaders.

By having seriously compromised on the image, status of one of the prosperous states in this country which literally went into a state of limbo!

By having elected representatives, who are nothing better than “Pawns” in the power game. With little respect and regard for the people who chose them they surrendered their self respect to a someone who took them into hostage!

By having CM’s who talk about spirits and ghosts to guide them whereas when they came to power they came on the plank of “ Rationalists” !

Thus to overcome these issues we need to bring all these MLAs to Marina beech. They have to be put into a Jallikattu game and the people from their respective constituency should catch them and question them for their acts of omissions and commissions.

Then only “Tamil Pride” shall be restored !!

Is there anyone from the youth brigade listening and willing to act !!!  

L. P. O...Local Purchase Orders

The word "Demonetization"  gained global publicity after the declaration of Indian Prime Minister on
8th Nov'16 regarding the high denomination notes INR 500 and INR 1000 ! Till that time no one would
have ever thought about the word. At least I was not in the habit of using this word.

But much before that, when I used to live in Malawi, a small country in Central African region wherein
I was precisely doing Demonetization without even aware of it. Looking back it made great sense to recollect the funny way we have been adhering to the principle of Demonetization !!

I landed in Malawi in May'1995. First overseas job and the expectations of the "Board" as the bosses always used to refer themselves were very high. Though the job was not at all difficult getting into the local nitty gritty was a bit tough. In MNC type organisations things were all defined in black and white. So you are expected to play your part in the orchestra and leave without even looking back. But in a small set up ( But for Malawi it was something like the empire of TATAs !) it was like that. You were expected to play not only your part of the music but also set the mike, organize the Chorus singers, check electrical connections and then ensure that there were no jarring notes !!

On arrival, I was given a book called as " L.P.O" book which was nothing but a purchase order. I was told that I could sign and leave the same with local hair dresser, restaurant, stationery shop, Petrol Bunk, Dairy, travel agent, Physician, Dentist and what not ! Apart from the above outside parties who were serving me in individual capacity, there were suppliers to company who were also happy with L.P.O !

Company felt that it was in an advantageous position as the L.P.Os always issued against 45 days to 60 days credit payment. Things were going well and as they say proverbial lull before the storm, one day the storm did break out !!

Whenever we sign L.P.O there was always a carbon copy in the book. One clever purchase assistant mastered the art of doing exactly my signature and that too in style ! On reconciliation the Financial Controller found out that the L.P.O of mine was being used in Big Bars and other related joints. As a teetotaler my presence in such joints was impossible. After a careful check the extra L.P.O book was found in the Purchase Assistant, that too with my Counterfeit signature !

The Purchase Assistant had to confess and got booted out the very same day !  

INDIAN MARRIAGES-Prospective " BRIDE" viewing

"Marriages are made in heaven" thus goes the common saying ! But all things remaining more or less equal, still in India by and large "ARRANGED MARRIAGES" are common ! Mostly people think that marriage is one of the biggest lottery and if every thing goes well in married life then life is made. If things do not turn out as anticipated then life becomes a hell.

In order to avoid these risks, plus in order to have a safety circle (SURAKSHA CHAKRA) people prefer an "ARRANGED MARRIAGE". By arranged marriage what I mean is one in which parents and elders of both sides boy and girl meet, discuss, deliberate and then conclude the alliance. In the eventuality of anything going wrong then both sides can sit and re-discuss and then try to do course correction.

As the Tamil poet Kannadasan penned in one of his Tamil film songs  " Getting a good wife is a boon from God !". I do not think anyone can say this anyway better than this. This is equally true for husband too ! As the cart of family is pulled by both male and female equally ... assuming that in the same direction !

There are many aunties, mamies who are specialists in marital net working. Their brain power is much sophisticated than any super computer in terms of storage, retrieval and matching alliances at the speed of light ! They sort, store, retrieve alliances based on Caste, Gothra, Sect, Region, Language, Place of residence, NRI ( Non Resident Indian) , RI ( Resident Indian), Green Card Holder, East Coast , West Coast etc.

Turn to any matrimonial column in leading dailies, weeklies you can see the plethora of advertisements that appear. Over and above that there are websites who specialize exclusively in various language matrimony !

After the initial match making by these aunties / Mamies then there is exchange of horoscopes. While some families swear by this, some families are not keen. After the vetting of horoscope by family astrologer and rating based on number of matching points then we come to the status of Bride Viewing !!

This is a very important stage of any Indian marriage. As this one gives an impression about the status of the bride's family, living condition, close relative circle, life style etc. Generally a date is selected by the prospective bride groom and informed to the bride's side. They are in a state of alert on that day. If the alliance is a local one there are no issues as they can drive down, meet and go. Otherwise the bride's family is expected to arrange for pick up, stay and transport for the family which is going to visit.

In Karnataka the bride is supposed to be taken to the bride groom's place for the initial meeting which is all the more complicated. As the lady will be feeling like fish out of water in an alien environment.

In order to make these things very comfortable now a days both families meet in a common place like a restaurant over a cup of tea or coffee and meet each other. My father used to boast that in his days the boy and girl just met each other on the day of the marriage and everything else was left to the full control of parents.

In early part of 80 s the prospective bride groom and bride got a chance to meet within the house for a few minutes to exchange a few words. During that time too some old lady or small boy / girl used to come and peep in to know what was transpiring.

There are special types of snacks and sweets for this ceremony known as Bazzi & SOZZI in South India (Type of Halwa made with Soozi ).

I knew a Tamil boy from US who used to come every year and view more than half a dozen girls in a span of a week or so moving from one metro to other. After enjoying the prospective bride's family's hospitality would go back to Bombay and contemplate how the girl would look in Jeans, How she would look in Punjabi Dress, How she would look in American Skirt etc. In the end he ended up marrying someone who did not look good any of the dresses !!

After the bride viewing then the the prospective groom's family should make the decision and revert. Now a days both the boy and girl take lead in deciding whether the match should progress further or not. There are cases when the girl chose to turn down the match just before the day of engagement after having undertaken a few dates with the boy !

So nothing is certain and confirmed until the proverbial three knots are tied !!

AMAR SEVA SANGAM ...A BEACON OF HOPE !!!

In this tough competitive world, people with 100 % full fitness, complete intellect, adequate disposable income, plus enormous surplus funds find it difficult to think about others, leave alone desiring and working for others.

 Rich man wants to amass further wealth for his generations to come, middle class man wants to move up in the social ladder so he can flaunt his new found status, lower middle class man wants to move up &  acquire at the least a few gadgets and accessories so that his life becomes a bit more comfortable. Down trodden and people in below  poverty line want to make their lives at the least comfortable enough to meet both ends and are able to have two square meals a day.

In such a tough world there are two people who despite getting confined to wheel chairs at the prime of their lives after having spent their early part of youth with full mobility including that of playing and having fun in their college and school days.

This is the story of Sri S Ramakrishnan who was a final Engineering student studying in one of the prestigious colleges in Coimbatore (Government College of Technology). In the final year he went to attend Staff Selection Board tests for Navy and while attempting a difficult maneuver fell down and became a paraplegic someone crippled from the neck and got confined to wheel chair due to the multiple spine injury leading to paralysis below his neck.  

He was taken to Pune for further treatment at rehabilitation center for spinal cord injured patients. But after a period of time the doctors gave up on him stating that he was beyond cure. Thus Ramakrishnan a bright young final year student of Engineering found his life at cross roads. Apart from his dreams, his lower middle class family’s dreams were also shattered on account of the accidental fall.  

Ramakrishnan was motivated by one of his doctors treating him in Pune Dr. Air Marshal  Amarjit  Singh Chalal  who told him that if God had spared his life, it was with a purpose which Ramakrishnan had to search and find out. The totally dejected Ramakrishnan started his life on wheel chair with total dependence on his family even for moving a page of a book he was reading apart from all day today activities in late seventies in his native village Ayikudy, in Thirunelveli district.

The rural setting of his native village Ayikudy gave him ample time to think. He was concerned of the educational facilities of the village. Therefore to guide and mentor the local students he started a tuition center with a few students. In 1981 Amar Seva Sangam was founded and Siva Saraswathi Vidyalays was also founded with 5 students.  This later became small elementary school for the local folks. From there the seed for a high school came.  If you trace the progress of education wing of Amar Seva Sangam Nursery school in 1981, Middle School in 1991, High School in 2009, Higher Secondary School in 2015. There are 700 students and of them nearly 10% are handicapped.

In 1992 Sri S Sankararaman a charted accountant by profession with a flourishing practice in Chennai moved and joined with Sri S Ramakrishnan. Shanakararaman is also wheel chair bound on account of Muscular Dystrophy. He functions as the Secretary of Amar Svea Sangam which is having an able President in Sri S Ramakrishnan.

Some of the commendable activities of Amar Seva Snagam are:-

1.       Home for Children between the age of 5 to 17 with free food, shelter, clothing, medicine and medical aid equipments etc. In 1981 there were 5 children and now the strength has gone up to 70 plus and most of them are having motor disability.

2.       Sangamam school for special children.

3.       Early Intervention center for children with disability.

4.       Orthopedics Center

5.       Medical Testing units.

6.       Spinal Cord Injured Post Acute care center

7.       Disabled youth training center

8.       Vocational Training centers for Tailoring, DTP, Typing, Home appliance repair training, Toy Making, Handicrafts.

Some of the leading institutions that have regular association with Amar Seva Sangam are:-

1.       Sir Dorabji Tata Trust,

2.       Handicare International Canada

3.       Give India Foundation

4.       Canada Star India

5.       Asha Foundation

6.       Sir Ratan Tata Trust

7.       Grand Calleyes Canada

8.       Kamakoti  Trust

There is no point in listing the awards and accolades won by Amar Seva Sangam and its founders as the same may run into a few pages.

The organization is run with a ISO Certification. Renowned and able patrons manage the activities as a board. Annual reports are available with complete transparency.

Please pay a visit to the website. If inspired please contribute your mite by way of donation or volunteering.

www. amarseva.org  is the website.  

SMILE

SMILE :-

“Smile” is the shortest distance between one end of the lip to the other end when the same forms a straight line!!

It has a bigger brother called “laughter” which comes out with too much of noise and reverberating into echoes if more than two people are involved.  A child smiles and laughs for no reason. As a man or woman ages the first thing they shred is smile. Whether it is part of growing up process or simply due to day today stress and strain we human beings give up smiling first and then we claim that we have grown up.

It is found that certain sections of population are more prone to serious type of faces than others. I have seen most of the people working in government sector, that too in areas, where they have to have people to people  contact on a daily basis…like banks, post offices etc. give up smiling first. Whether it is salary day or the last day of the month it becomes the same for them. On the contrary, they are expected to put up a genuine smile every time when they interact with a customer.

I have seen people in Bangalore, Karnataka, South India are found to smile most often. This I am writing after having travelled to most part of India. In the case of hearty burst out laughter no one can match people from Punjab !!

I like Bhutan as a country, because it is the only country, probably in the world to give importance to smiling faces and like GDP it measures happiness index every year!!

In my fairly long experience in Africa, one thing I have noticed with natives, is the smile. Most of them burst out into laughter most of the time. When they meet with even a stranger they smile and greet without any inhibitions.

Their lives may have many uncertainties, day to existence is very challenged, family size is very large as for most of them only recreation is “procreation”. Living conditions are very poor in most of the countries, there is no potable water despite vast lakes and rivers, Electricity is not available in most parts, most of them commute to work by foot that too running most of the time to reach their work place in time. By and large their bosses are mostly ”slave drivers” as they use abusive language and push them from one place to other in work.

Most of them are too preoccupied about their next meal. Salary is paltry and working conditions are pathetic and despite all this every African work Man when they meet each other there is so much of smiles, laughter and noise due to clasping of hands and high fives etc.  Whenever they find someone walking nearby when they are eating the entrant is invited to partake the food though the food may be too meager.

Take the case of Indians mostly working as expatriates working along with natives in Africa. Most of them are fairly well placed and earn many more times the natives. They have fairly large bank balance locally as well as overseas. Their life style is very good compared to locals as they stay in good houses in great communities under privileged security. Their children go to the best of best schools. They have paid holidays to home as well as to envied destinations. Despite all this how often do they smile leave aside laugh!

It is indeed a great blessing to laugh one’s heart out either for a joke, or on account of a funny episode or even just like that. Please sit and introspect the last time when you had a hearty laugh !!

As a matter of routine every morning, as I enter my work place, I have the habit of greeting each and every person on the shop- floor right from security, janitor, packers, machine operators, Technicians, Supervisors, Managers and then move to my chamber to get going with my routine. This I have been practicing for quite some time as it helps me to access the strength at the shop-floor, morale of the staff and workmen as well as to gauge the style of work going around.  If there are any course corrections to be made the same can be made then and there in time.  

The other day, I was a bit stressed on account of work pressure. I just moved into my office skipping the morning ritual of mine as I was busy with some pressing thing. After finishing the same, I moved in a hurried manner to shop floor. Then I felt a bit tired after few minutes of walking and I sat on a work bench by the side of a lady packer as there was some vacant space. I realized later the lady was the one who was pulled up a few weeks back for going out for a smoke early morning at the commencement of her shift by me. I looked at her and was about t enquire her well being. Before that she told me politely “ Papa…smile please !”.

Her words hit me like a ton of  bricks.  Well despite getting dressed up well and moving far and wide I forgot to wear the most important accessory that day ….SMILE !!