😎THE OBSERVER-(M-21)😎

06 Sep 2020

FIRST DAY IN THE REGIMENT

      When i first affixed my signature on the dotted line, my knowledge of the Army's organisation and functioning was restricted to Commando-comics, news articles, movies and some books.Just a vague idea that the Army had an element which actually took part in live combat and another which gave logistic and technical support.Training in OTA beìng infantry-centric gave further credence to this view. Classes on other arms and services were thus given only secondary importance by me. A year spent in the Regimental Centre and College of Military Engineering as a Young Officer had broadened the outlook a little but the disappointment at not being an infantryman was yet to go.

       In Jan/Feb 1983,i landed up in an Engineer Regiment which happened to be on Exercise in the deserts of Rajasthan. I had bare minimum professional knowledge about my new role as a Platoon Commander in a Field Company. This Coy was one of the four that made up the regiment.Maybe I should have been a more attentive & keen learner during the YO's Course.

         Now coming back to my first day in the unit and my meeting with my Company Commander. After going through the introductory formalities with Maj R  ( Coy Cdr.) i  informed him about how after inadvertently landing up in the Corps of Engrs, i had barely managed to scrape through the YO's Course with a "C" grading.

He took this bit of news in his stride albeit with a little surprise at my audacity in conveying it so bluntly in the very beginning.Seasoned campaigner that he was,he did not loose his composure. He told me not to worry much about all that as the practical side of things was very different from the theory taught in Course.It was a big relief for me to hear this. I took an instant liking to this stern officer from Hoshiarpur with a majestic personality and a  deep sonorous voice.

That over, he introduced me to Subedar KS, Senior JCO of the Coy. Well-built  and a weather - beaten  veteran, this sardar with twinkling eyes & a mischievious smile lurking behind his bushy moustaches welcomed me with exaggerated(so i thought) politeness. In his younger days, he had been a boxer of repute and his appearance  showed that.After silently sizing me up with a critical and sharp eye, he escorted me to a parked 1xton which was to be my home henceforth. 

By the time i finished setting my regulation bedding and black steel trunk at the back, it was time to go for lunch.I accompanied Maj R to the Mess and met the other officers of the regiment. Beer was followed by lunch and i was given an informal warm welcome by all the officers who turned out to be a jolly lot.There was much talk & genial leg-pulling about my brand-new jeresy.Orders were noted down for sending a JCO to Ludhiana to procure similar jerseys for those interested. I also met the two other subalterns in the unit, each posted in a Field Company. The one immediately senior to me was a tech entry from IMA who had joined six months before me. Yes, he wore two stars on his shoulders officially while the other who had joined six months before him wore the same but with the aid  of a proforma paper promotion. He was ex-NDA. Not for nothing i keep harping on this tech/non-tech issue,it was a big one.

The afternoon that followed was ideal for a snooze & i seized the opportunity gladly. Remember, the previous night had been spent on the train, mostly sleepless & full of anticipation/apprehension at what stood in store for me. After all, this was my first day in a new environment, a rebirth of sorts. I was woken up from my siesta by my sahayak (Pathak), for tea, which was welcome. He, the driver(Yunus Khan), Yakub Bhai Vadodara( junior Clk)) and yours truly made up the foursome who were to live/ sleep/travel in and around the 1xton under a camouflage net for the next couple of months or so.The smeall tent on one side which served as the bathroom was for my exclusive use. 

Come evening, i was the first one to hit the mess. Before getting hold of a tot of rum for myself,i politely waited for others to trickle in and set the bar into operational mode.It was heartening to note that Maj R and most of the others were also rum-guzzlers & smokers and there was hardly anyone who was a teetotaller. It certainly started looking like i had reached my true home at last. My respect for my Coy Cdr grew thousandfold as i observed him enjoying the evening. This respect increased exponentially in the following days and months when i saw him in excellent form during Company bara-khanas. What further endeared him to me was that on such occassions, he insisted on me matching him drink for drink, with the Coy Sub watching approvingly and giving  whole-hearted company. 

The arrival of the CO in the Mess introduced a somewhat sombre note into the proceedings. He had been busy the whole day, attending a High-level Conference .There was going to be a Sand-Model exercise at the Brigade HQ before the impending major formation- level  exercise. Over a drink,the CO briefed about the latest developments while the rest emptied their glasses & listened attentively. There was a marked change in the atmosphere after the arrival of the CO.The smiling,jolly faces were replaced by serious ones. The Mess NCO marched smartly in and announced - " Shriman bhojan tayyar hai." Everyone emptied their glasses and sat down for dinner. Thereafter  everyone retired for the night with the information that there would be a unit Sand-model exercise the next day in which all officers would have to take part as members of Syndicates. Syndicate work - what a comforting sound ! Throughout the YO's Course, i had taken part in such work in mostly silent mode, opening my mouth only when no other option seemed to exist.Could i manage things the same way now?

This was the question foremost on my mind as i settled down for my first night in the desert.

THE OBSERVER-(M-20)

 😎THE OBSERVER-(M-20)😎

WED 02 SEP 2020

What a nice feeling it is when one takes a trip into the past, ignoring the travails and tribulations of the present. YO's Course in CME, Pune came to an end and we all were despatched home on a short spell of leave before joining our respective units. I had been told that the unit was in Chandigarh. A Railway Warrant to that place had accordingly been issued. A formal DO letter to the Commanding Officer intimating how proud i was to be joining the unit, blah blah along with my E.T.A. was dutifully posted by me. But one day a jawan from the unit landed up in Delhi with instructions for me to join the unit at its Exercise location  in Rajasthan instead of  Chandigarh, the regular location. First thing i did was to go to South Block and procure a  brand new shirt Angola and Jersy OG  which i was told was the working uniform then prevailing in the unit. Travelling on the metre- guage section from Delhi Junction for the first time in life , i reached the nearest Rly Stn ,  Shri Dungarhgarh early in the morning before sunrise. Having shaved and put on my brand new, sparkling No. 1 rig, i stepped out on the deserted platform in the middle of nowhere in semi-darkness. Not a soul was in sight. After some time i spotted a Madras Sapper officer, Capt Tikoo.It so turned out that his unit & mine were part of the same Engineer Brigade. He told me to join him on his journey to his own unit in the Dak 1×ton, which was parked outside for picking up Mail. 

The desert landscape with its sand- dunes was fascinating, as were glimpses of the odd camel or village well. After dropping off Capt Tikoo, i reached my own unit location.Once again, like my initial arrival at the Bombay Sappers Regimental Centre after passing out of OTA, the reception at the unit was not what one had been taught to expect. Our DS in OTA, Capt Gill, had briefed us about it. From the way he had described it, i was expecting a special reception commitee of sorts with an officer playing the role of a sahayak or driver and so forth with a lot of ragging thrown in. But it turned out to be hardly any different from the kind of reception i got at the Centre.Nobody seemed to give a damn about the arrival of the fresh 2/Lt. At least in the Centre, i had put down this lack of personal attention during  the reception to the sheer immense size of the establishment. But seeing a similar situation in the unit i was destined to serve in now was extremely disappointing.I steeled myself for the worst. It so turned out that during the course of this particular exercise, the unit had been constantly on the move and had reached this particular location late the previous night. The entire unit was spread out on the sand off the metalled highway with vehicles parked under camouflage nets in pairs.Narrow tracks connected them with metal marker signposts showing directions. Most of the guys were fast asleep at that hour except those on essential duties. The sentry at the unit entry-gate on the highway announced my arrival to the Adjutant over telephone. He directed that i should be taken to the Officers Mess and then report to him after breakfast. I reached the field Mess which was a lean-to attached to a 3xton parked under  camouflage  nets .The staff was busy setting up the place. i looked around and eased myself into the most comfy-looking armchair i could lay my eyes on.In no time at all, i heard a voice behind me from the lips of a guy who had shimmered in & materialised out of  thin air -" Ye CO saab ka chair hai." Right then and there, i  broke the world record for the sitting high jump. i leapt up as if i had sat on red-hot coals & tried to figure out from where this magical voice had emanated. It was Dondappa, the Head Waiter. Tall and well-built with a huge Veerappan-type moustache, this soldier from Coorg took his responsibilities very seriously indeed.He took real pride in his charter of duties and believed that putting the green youngster in his proper place was foremost. Gathering my wits and trying to look as nonchalant as was possible under the circs, i looked over this specimen from top to bottom . He stared back without blinking and i decided that this was definitely a hard nut to crack. Postponing the idea of setting his notions right to a more ooportune moment, i quickly gulped down breakfast & went to meet the Adjutant, Capt B. He had just woken up and was shaving, sitting in the back of a 1x ton. My double-time salute seemed to amuse rather than impress him.He first looked at me from gleaming new Jap-cap & field epaulettes to shining ammunition boots and then asked ." Where did you get that jersey from ? " When i told him , he asked the Junior Adjutant to check the label on the jersey later and give him the details. With that, he told me to proceed to the Company

Commander, Maj R. 

. ……...to be contd…………...

YHE DAILY OBSERVER-49

 😎THE DAILY OBSERVER-49😎

Mon 31 Aug 2020

WTF !!! What a way to begin yet another week. Ye ho kya raha hai?

Things had started becoming somewhat dull on this site.Learned honourable members had started becoming extra-polite and careful with their comments, lest anyone get offended and take the extreme step. The site which used to hum like a hornet's nest suddenly started sounding like a bunch Sunday School choirboys discussing good deeds with the padre after a particularly moving sermon.So the sight of Sirohi leaving the group was seen by The Observer as a golden opportunity to introduce some  fireworks into the system after speaking to him. Sirohi's voice on the phone immediately after he had committed the act sounded as if it is coming from far far away and the tone was one of shock and bewilderment at what his finger had done when he tried to find Wishard's phone number in order to greet him personally. He was full of apologies and keen to get back .

A little before the message of Sirohi leaving the group came on the screen, there had been a highly academic interaction between USG and Vidur on the China imbroglio. There was nothing before or after that which could have offended even the Pope, leave aside a hardened old rum-swigging soul like Sirohi. Hence this message was posted by me :

     " Just spoke to Sirohi. He is very angry for all the false statements on the Chinese situation & other such irresponsible and insensitive comments on this site. So he left ".

After a long silence, during whuch presumably many guilt-filled souls checked out the messages that had been posted earlier, Ian had this to say :

      "Very insensitive to get angry with others views,everyone is free to have his view no matter what it is."

My Response :

   "Ian, he is angry with you also for the jokes u have posted."

Ian : " He seems to be leading a very restricted life." ( This message has since been deleted )

Rakesh Gulati :

  "What does that mean Ian? "

Sanjay Mishra ( replying to my msg) :

Why what does he believe in

" कोई हमारी धरती पर नहीं घुसा है "

Oberoi ( Reply to Rakesh's msg ) :

In a shell. Horse blinders.  Rakesh anything more to explain 😊

Ian :

Not open to others views

Vidur Nevrekar :

Sharath, I know Sirohi well.

I know him yet better after two (could be beer or may be Patiala)

He is very dear friend and sensible man to get angry with similar thinking people.😜😂

Ian :

No wonder tum Brig bane😂😂😂

Vidur :

Sirohi was on bd.😜😂

Naithani :

Sirohi ki ungli phisal sakti hain leking mann aur dimag nahin ,even after 2/4 large.🍻🍻🍻🍻

Ian :

Sale hum saab budhe ho gaye hai par still get senti on minor things like, Likes & dislikes

Vidur ;

Look who is talking😜😂

VK Duggal ;

Agreed. Rootha Na Karo MERI meri Jaan is one message to be sent to all.

Ian to me  :

Politics & religious posts stopped earlier,now turn to stop views and jokes as well.

Ian to Vidur :

😂😂😂😂 you seem a changed man😄😄😄😄

Alfred :

Guys let's not get over worked up, Shirohi will come back where else he will go

Vidur :

Who is getting worked up?

Sharath to aisehi maza le raha hai😂😂

Rakesh Gulati to Oberoi :

No no thanks umesh. I am a wise man today after your lessons on wisdom.

Oberoi to Rakesh :

Kabhi kabhi hum bhi tang adda lete hain

Rakesh :

Koi nayi baat karo😀😜

Vidur to Oberoi :

कभी कभी❓❓❓

Rakesh Gulati :

Taking a break friends. And let me assure you that neither has anybody prompted nor am I worked up. It is only and only personal reason. Bahut dheet hun. I don’t give up so easily. So let nobody take the credit for my departure from the group. You guys are awesome! Take care. Stay safe. Stay strong!

And finally signing off: 

“ kyun darein hum zindagi mein kya hoga. Har waqt kyun sochen ki bura hoga. Badhte rahen manzilon ki aur hum. Kuch nahi mila toh kya, tazurba toh naya hoga”

Vish :

Bhai log can someone make me understand one thing. Even if it’s for personal reasons why should someone leave the group. Why can’t we just avoid opening the group messages. Singleton whiskey case for who can make me understand this 🤪🤣😜 We love Rakesh & will miss him till he returns.

Nirbhye :

Vish, even if one does not actively contribute,  just being part of the group is fun, and sometimes fun is stressful too, being away fro fun/stress sometimes is meaningful. just my thought though.

Vish :

You are right Nirbhye. I just love to read every comment posted, though I don’t contribute much still I feel I am connected with the happenings in the group.

A Court of Inquiry will assemble forthwith to determine the circumstances under which Rakesh Gulati left the group at midnight.

Presiding Officer : Mohinder Pratap

Members : Navnit Kumar

                  T L Verma

                   VK Duggal

Proceedings will be submitted to The Observer so that case of Singleton promised by Vish Pathak can be claimed immediately.

HAPPY ONAM TO ALL

THE DAILY OBSERVER-48

 😎THE DAILY OBSERVER-48😎

Sat 29 Aug 2020

MS. KOMAL SIDHU EXCELS IN YO'S COURSE WITH A(I)

RPS KANG BLESSED WITH A GRAND-DAUGHTER

RAKESH GULATI LAYEST TO JOIN IAN KERR & RPS  IN  THE GRANDPA'S CLUB

ENGAGEMENT CEREMONY OF NIPUN S/O RR HANDA IN DUBLIN

US GILL SHOOTS OFF A FULL-LENGTH MELODRAMA

ARUN PARASAR'S SAGA GATHERING STEAM 

Three notable events yesterday have prompted the publication of this edition of the TDO after a long gap. Earlier in the month Ian had announced the occassion of the birth of a bonny son to his daughter. Yet another " Chubby Cheeks " now graces the earth with his presence. Ian is even more overjoyed as he managed to use this event as an excuse to pack off his better half to Bangalore. As per latest reports, he is busy giving a new colour to NOIDA after having painted the tricity red before that.

Pandit Tripathiji was so overjoyed on the announcement of the auspiscious birth of a son to Ian's daughter Melanie,  that he promptly blessed the entire Course for early grandparentship. Soon after, Kang announced from Calgary that his son, Navraj had been blessed with a daughter. Yesterday, a little angel descended in the home of Rakesh Gulati's daughter and it was a real treat to see the exultant & proud grandfather announcing the event . Even more so were the enthusiasm shown in the congratulatoty messages that followed. And then there were the blessings and congratulations to Manjeet Sidhu, his better half and Komal Kaur Sidhu for her excellent performance with an A(I) in YO's Course. What more can one ask for ? A long melodramatic, emotional tale penned by our own

talented Saint Soldier author from Zirakpur. Some humane points to mull over ! Rakesh has been entertaining the group with sher-o-shayari, with Saxi and then Jha lending a hand in jugal-bandi.

Meanwhile, Arun continued his saga of Regimental life in his own inemmitable classic style. The narrative is gradually catching speed and brings back fond memories of unit life.

It was so cute to observe Grandpa Kerr ( Mark-1) in op role - -- making discrete enquiries about the latest rules regarding carriage of liquor by Armd forces personnel to and from NOIDA. Even cuter still to see Manjeet Sidhu come up with his observations on the subject. Trust Manjeet to be confident that practically nothing had changed since the time he was staying in NOIDA years ago. Luckily, VS Naithani was able to come up with the latest rules. So while once again congratulating all the grandpas in this group and conveying the blessings of everyone to the little ones, there is a word of caution . Please do not do anything silly like leaving the group or taking part in any other disgraceful activity of that kind. After all, just give a thought as to what the grandkids would say to that. Because on the occurence of any such event ( activity unbecoming the honour & dignity of a GC/Offr and a grandpa), the same shall henceforth be immediately conveyed to the grandkid concerned through a special edition of TDO sent directly to the said grandkid !

Have a great weekend , all grandpas and grandpas-in-waiting !

THE OBSERVER-(M-19)

 😎THE OBSERVER-(M-19)😎

……..contd from M-18……….

Wed 26 Aug 2020

What all changes a little music can bring into life ! Soon after returning to Pune after the camp at Marve, came one of the major annual events in C.M.E. - the Musical Evening. By then, the songs we played along with our Sri Lankan friend had become so popular that we were specially recommended by our Course Officer to perform in that event. While going for practice sessions, we got involved in other numbers too and met a lot of interesting people in the process.

I played my favourite solo Arabian theme and also accompanied some other singers. The medley of three Sri Lankan songs started with an invocation to Lord Kataragama ( Sri Lankan equiv of Ganapati bappa ), followed by two Desmond D'Silva byla numbers - "Soodamanike" and "i had a lovely bunch of coconuts." In the process of  going through the various levels of rehearsals, one of the Cdrs decided that Chandrasiri, our Sri Lankan friend, would have to speak out a few words by way of intro at the start. He had to describe how we had happened to meet each other on the beach by chance during Camp Marve and then went on perform together. This poor chap had never in his life sung in public and he was so quiet by nature that till that point of time, no one in the Course even knew about his existence, leave aside hear his singing. His immediate reaction was to refuse point blank. But u all are well aware of how things are once the Big Guys have made up their mind on such issues, it had to be done. We wrote down a few words for him to speak and somehow managed to cajole him into doing his bit. To help him further, we always had a warming -up session with rum in my room before going for formal practice. The adm arrangements at the venue were also perfectly suited for us with a backstage bar readily available for further boosting of the morale as and when required.Once we got up on stage for the Sri Lankan number,Chandan would softly strum on his guitar while i began the speech for Chandrasiri by prompting him gently. He would begin rattling out the necessary  words.The moment there was some hesitation in the speech, i would kick off the song with prelim music on the harmonica. The entire show was a big hit and he became a star. Other participants in the event were Senior offrs and families from other Courses and Staff from CME & BEG as also some professional civilians.For days after the show was over, we would regularly have impromptu sessions of music at the Offrs Institute very frequently with both booze and music flowing freely and everyone enjoying. I used to be in charge for signing common chits at closure for all that was consumed. These sessions would continue till long after the official closing hours of the Instt. During the course of one such evening, the waiter came to me with a chit which said  ……..-" Wash Basin - one nos." 

 My first thought was that i had had one too many and asked someone to confirm whether i was reading correctly. It was confirmed. One of our dear enthusiastic batchmate appreciator of music had broken a wash-basin in the bathroom after leaning on it for support. Accompanying the waiter to the bathroom, i saw our man's hand bleeding and washbasin smashed. Took him for minimum dressing. Next day, there was a  big hue and cry in the classroom with the Course Offr shouting that the whole YO's Course had been disgraced due to the incident. No names  had come out in the open somehow, although it must have been quite clear as to who the culprits were. The washbasin was duly replaced by the same evening with a major contribution by the perpetrator and add-ons by others.Till then, i was not even aware that these things not only cost money but quite a bit too. Whenever i happened to visit CME later ( which was very often ), i never tired of showing everyone the washbasin installed by us to anyone who would care to listen.