The Lonely Shadows

            It was chill morning in the hilly town of Gangtok. Drizzling but I could still here birds chirping. It's 0510 hours and my cell phone rings, I receive the call of the driver who has arrived at the inspection bungalow. My home form last 4 days. I went downstairs to direct him towards the parking space. Crisply dressed in combat uniform, the driver as well as the co driver greeted me with a salute. Unaware that I am yet to be commissioned and still just an officer trainee of the Indian Army but as a norm I greeted them back with a Jai Hind.

            I told them to wait for me as our departing time form Gangtok to the Bagdogra Airport was 0530 hours. I took  shower, wore clean set of cloths, picked my bag and bid adieu to my family members who were still there for next one day.

            Awkward silence in the military jeep. After some time the two soldiers somehow realized that I might not be a person of that stature and probably, just a relative of some high ranking army officer. A happy go lucky youth enjoying the amenities of military. Finally, I broke the ice by asking about the formation of their organization present in Gangtok and I was briefed about it. In return, I was asked about my flight timings and what work I do. 

 

            I am an officer trainee in the Indian Army. The two soldiers herd it right and regain their steadiness. The nervousness was quite visible on their face. I wasn't expecting that at all. So, I tried to ease the air inside the vehicle by asking more about their deployment at the Indo-China border & after sometime the smile and the ease returned. It worked. I don't support the high hierarchy system in the forces. The free environment is my thing and trust me it works well  always and every time provided if I have the mentally sound people above and below me.    

       
            We took a halt at a small dhaba shop which had nothing of my interest but the driver wanted to have breakfast. I just ventured around and saw bottles of liquor displayed on the shelves of that small dhaba. Fuck yes ! That's fucking chilled beer and breezer.

            This has happened with me before too and happens always. Whenever I am alone or away from my family I tend to buy a can of beer or a bottle of light liquor just for the sake of buying it. It's as casual as buying a pen from a stationary shop. With no delay I bought a bottle of chilled Jamaican breezer. I had not had the taste of Jamaican breezer since long and then I saw the watch , It was just 0730 hours and I was about to have alcohol as my breakfast. Never mind, I enjoyed it.  

    
            After 2 hours or so I reached Bagdogra airport. The 2 soldiers greeted me and drove way back to Gangtok. The moment I entered the airport lobby. I was told by a flight attendant of the airline that the flight is late by 1 hour 15 minute and will depart by 1250 hours. I, dumbass still induced with the time crunch schedule theory in my head had already reached airport by 0930 hours. There was enough time for me to wander and use my hollow mind. Fairly irritated after experiencing the humidity and heat of Siliguri town on the way that too after coming back from Gangtok which was heaven in terms of climate. I was under discomfort thanks to my gastric problem triggered by the Tibetan and Sikkim's cuisine I was feasting on from the last three days. I went to the washroom but came out running almost out of breath because of the pathetic scent coming out of the dirty washroom. I decided I will control till Delhi's airport or use the one in the aircraft.     

            I sighted a 3 chair bench in the corner of the terminal which was already occupied by 2 men. Hoping that the fair guy with light brown beard sitting in the middle won't object my occupancy on the last vacant seat, as it might be already occupied by one of his pals. I advanced towards the bench and sat comfortably. Nobody objected. It was actually vacant.

            Okay! what to do ? Took out my cell phone. No new messages/notifications//quora. No, nothing to do and 3 hours more to kill. The cell phone rings, it was of the fair guy sitting beside me. I heard his conversation a bit. There was pain in his voice and he didn't want to talk much. He informed the person on the other side of the call that his father  expired the last night and he was heading home for the last rites.   

            This also gave me a shocker and I came back to the reality form the bubble which was just recently built in which i was dreaming, complaining, flying and what not. I was no one to react to it but I wanted to do something about it. I started observing that person. Hardly in his mid 20s almost of my age. Must be in some college doing his masters enjoying his hostel life till last night with girlfriends and mates. His world must have turned upside down after getting the call at 0200 hours saying 'Your father is dead'. What could a hostel student could do at 0200 hours after hearing the news of his father's death. 1000 miles away from home and family, alone. Every second after that would have been like sharp pins being injected in and out on your body simultaneously  with the ticking of second hand of the clock. You are alive & sound but you cannot do much about your mother who has just become a widow and moaning miles away from here. You are in your hostel room, shocked, helpless, hopeless and sad. It's difficult to cry from men and at that moment it's difficult to even move a muscle.       

     

            I could see all that on his face. How he was trying to hide it all but then it's not possible every time. he takes out his handkerchief and cover his face with it, wiped the tears. The tears started rolling down again and the handkerchief was not much of a help. I could see his eyes, it was red and the sorrow was deep filled with tears.        

             It was a sentimental moment for me too, I was moved and felt sad for that guy. Should I console or let him be alone in his private moments. Who am I anyway to intrude into his privacy and trying to help which won't have much effect on his situation. I thought of bringing him water but he was already having a bottle of it in his hand baggage.       

            That man had all the resources and hell lot of people around but he was the loneliest and most helpless living thing in that airport at that time. Even I had stopped myself to help him.     

      

            Next moment, he got up and took his baggage along for check in and he went away. I cursed myself that I couldn't do anything it. I didn't even initiate the consoling shit. What the fuck was wrong with me? These things will haunt me for some time. Shit happens and sometimes you cannot do much about that shit. You are alone in this universe and you cannot change it. Mostly life is lived in moments which can be cherished or cursed but in all we live alone.

Young Officer from the India Army v/s Indian Police and the mighty Indian Media

The February, 2012 incident, where high drama prevailed at a police post in Pune for nearly two hours after 2 Indian Army officers from the College of Military Engineering, Pune got into an argument with the traffic police. The young officers were intercepted by them for crossing a bridge not meant for two wheeler. Further led to a mini fight between them when a police personal came in and ordered to fine them the maximum amount because once he was held up by Army authorities for ridding his bike without a helmet in the same CME campus from where the army officers came. At that time helmet was not compulsory in the city but it compulsory inside almost all cantonment areas in India. Seemed more of a revenge, than implementing the law at the place by the cops. Being harassed, the young officers in their 20s called their course mates from CME which was around 6 km from that place. As they arrived, the hungry media came in, the place was circled with a crowd of around 200 people including 60-70 police personals hitting the young officers. Here is the video which will give an insight of the situation.

I have lived in Pune for almost 18 months that bridge was hardly 3 kms away from my university. Apparently, there are no sign boards or a traffic police personnel to direct two wheeler to take alternate route. No, I am wrong- Yes, police personnel are there but at the other end of the bridge only to fine people or I must say to earn some descent amount of bribe to make their day a success.
Most of the Indian armed forces personnels are not locals and are from different parts of the country so,they don't know much about the local traffic system. There are few facts about the Indian Army officers which i got from various sources and found them pretty interesting.
The officer to men ratio in the Indian Army is approximately 1 is to 160, however during the Kargil conflict the ratio of the casualties was 1 is to 10. That is after for every 10 soldiers are martyred, the nation also looses an officer. This ratio is highest in the world. These are not mere statistics but speak volumes of the quality of the officer cadre that led their men-from the front. Leading from the front requires raw courage, undying zeal and relentless enthusiasm. How do these boys, no more than 23 years old , an age when their counterparts in the civil society have not even figured out what they want to do in life, are able to muster such a strong sense of purpose as to lead men into fire? Many say that this comes from the rigorous training that they are made to go through, toughening the mind, body and spirit. An aggressive spirit is ingrained in them that makes these men to lay down their lives for the cause of a forgetful and ungrateful nation. They are not uneducated, under qualified then why do they have to leave their comfortable civil life and an opportunistic corporate fat paying job for unthankful job. I asked one of my senior, who is presently serving as a young officer in army posted in Kashmir, he replied with a short answer- 'You will only know when you will wear this olive-green uniform'. His reply made me more interested to know and dig more on this issue.
Coming back to the Pune incident- The case in question is the recent unfortunate turn events took in Pune resulting in confrontation between the Defence Forces, egged on and catalyzed by the media. The aim is not to discuss the events but to give an insight into their cause. Owing to operational and security reasons the defence forces are generally shrouded in a cloud of mystery evoking curiosity and speculations. This not only provides the media with a sea of unexplored opportunity to dig their nose into any issue concerning the Armed forces but also places on them the responsibility to exercise discretion in the publication of any such issue. Care should be taken to ensure that the media’s role does not jeopardize the security of personnel or information and most importantly tarnish the image of the Forces. A country’s Defence Forces symbolise not only its strength but also the character of the nation. A blow served to the image of the Defence Forces not only lowers the morale of the force but also the faith of the common man in them, the biggest boost for the morale of any soldier. No denying the fact that the course taken by the Army officers in this case was not the best one, neither the wisest-but a careful analysis of the facts will reveal that the belligerents were all young officers in their early twenties. When these officers initially introduced themselves as ‘Army Officers’ all it implied was that they deserved to be treated in a dignified manner, they really were not asking for too much. These men spend months and years of their lives in god forsaken places guarding our frontiers or training-totally aloof from civilization, the only communication to the outside world being occasional letters from near and dear ones. So when a person declares himself as an ‘Army personnel’ it does not mean that he considers himself above rule of law, it only means- - I have been living far away from civilization in a place you could hardly spot on a map for months so that you can stand here without fear, grant me that respect. - Expect me not be conversant with the changes that have taken place recently or new signboards that you may have put. - I have no permanent home and neither does my family and every some years it’s a new town or city I’ve to call home. - I will someday put my life in peril for you and all my countrymen, expecting nothing but respect and gratitude in return. - I put my life so often in peril that I know no fear( often misinterpreted as arrogance). These young men lacked thoughtfulness agreed and with some provocation got aggressive but remember here that these men are trained to be such. A seasoned and reasoning man lacks the spontaneity to jump in the way of fire without heeding for personal safety for no personal gain of his own. It is these young men with this aggression who led the Indian Army to historic victories and for God’s sake not criminals. A matured handling of these officers by the police and subsequent handling of the issue by the media could have averted tarnishing the image of the Armed Forces in the eyes of a gossip happy nation.

Source- Youtube, Google.