The
world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page.
-
Saint
Augustine
Mahatma Gandhi travelled across the
country before he dived fully into the Indian Freedom Struggle. It is equally
important for all of us that we understand the pulse of the nation, before we
embark upon our respective journeys as administrator of this nation. Travel has
often been regarded as the best way to understand and sensitize one towards
ground realities existing in the country. I have read a lot about colour and
diversity of the country, but the last two months gave me an opportunity to
live it, to feel it and to imbibe it into my soul. I must extend my deep
gratitude and thanks towards the Govt of India and the Academy, to present me
with such a wonderful opportunity to explore my beloved motherland – at places
where a few have gone, at places where civilizations have prospered for
centuries, at places where divinity can be experienced and at places where
modern dreams take shape of world class infrastructures. I can do nothing but to be amazed and admire
the beauty of her landscapes, the divinity of her soul, the richness and
diversity in her culture, the glory of her past and the promises for her
future. Such is my country, my motherland – India.
We left the academy on 20th
of December 2014 with excitement in our heart, dreams in our eyes and heavy
luggage in our hands. Our first stay was none other than a forward post on the
slopes of hills in Mendhar Sector in Rajouri District – just 400m away from the
Line of Control. I had only heard about LoC in news, but it was a time to live
it along with my brave jawans sharing their bunkers, toilets, kitchen and more
importantly, their laughter and agony. I feel privileged to have stayed at such
a critical place, where you are just a shot away from death, in the duty of my
motherland. Trips to Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Delta, HQ and support units of 5
Grenadiers, enhanced my understanding of the working culture of the army and
the harsh environment in which they operate. Patrolling, ambush in night and
raid demo – all are experiences which will keep reminding me of my stay. But,
something that is closest to my heart is Barakhana – a farewell dinner hosted
in honour of someone who is going on pension, the sympathy, the thread of
belongingness was deeply touching. The leadership qualities of Bhatti saheb is
what I am carrying forward from this place. I am thankful to army to present us
with an opportunity to fire weapons like Pistol, MMG, LMG, INSAS rifle and AK
47. The inhospitable weather conditions, the tough terrain, the fear of death
and add to it, the distance from the family, the conditions in which our army
guards our border without an iota of slackness and with utmost sincerity and
motivation, I don’t have words to sing their praises of glory. Only thing, I
can do is to work equally hard and with passion, so that they do not have any
problem when they deal with civil authorities. Equally fascinating was our trip
to Indo Pak border at Jaisalmer, which was manned by Border Security Force. The
patrolling on camel, jeep and foot, night surveillance – everything is done
here. But, there is a difference between the conditions at International Border
and Line of Control. IBs are more stable with not much activities of
infiltration, especially after border fencing has been completed. But, the extremities
of temperature in the desert, for hundreds of km no habitation is found,
conditions are really harsh to operate and only the brave can survive. Next in
line was Airforce station at Jodhpur. In a two day attachment we got to see
modern aircrafts – MiGs, Sukhoi and
helicopters. MiGs takeoff and landing is truly an enthralling experience. Next
was the turn of Navy at INS Hansa, Goa. We visited the air force arm of the
navy. We went to visit the aircrafts, their hangers and maintenance station.
The high point was the simulator room which simulates the flight. It was a
wonderful experience operating flight in simulator where you get a feel of
conditions in exactly same manner as if you are manning the flight. The visit
to Navy Museum helped us understand the working of the navy and the structure
of ships. After having covered Army, Navy and Airforce in isolation, we met
officers from all three wings under one roof at Defense Staff College,
Wellington. A state of the art, world class institution imparts training in
strategy, planning and inter force coordination to the few selected elite
officers from Army, Navy and Air Force. We also, got a chance to visit training
centre of National Security Guard at Manesar, a force that specializes in
handling insurgency and terrorism operations in India. Although in existence
since 1984, NSG has gained tremendous popularity after their success operation
in Mumbai Attack of 2008. We were shown demo on how NSG operates in different
emergency situations and maintain VIP security. I must admit that visit to each
one – Army, Air Force, Navy, BSF and NSG, was a unique learning experience for
me that enhanced our level of understanding about these forces – their culture
and mode of operation, introduced us to various operations conducted by them,
sensitised us towards the harsh working condition under which they operate and
am sure all this will contribute in enhancing the level of coordination between
civil and military authorities in joint operations we undertake.
The external and internal frontiers of
the nation are very much secure and unconquerable and hence, we move towards
improving socio-economic conditions of the poorest of the poor section of the
society. First such visit was to URMUL in Bikaner, which is working to improve
the conditions of people living in arid regions of Northern Rajasthan,
especially Jaisalmer and Bikaner district. URMUL functions as a multi nodal
agency, providing infrastructure to sell milk, handicrafts as well as providing
school education to girls. This has resulted in bringing economic prosperity
and social balance in the region. We also, visited a village whose inhabitants
came from Pakistan during 1971 war. URMUL provides work to girls and women who
do beautiful embroidery and hand work on various clothes which are sold in
market. In Mumbai, we visited a NGO called Masoom, which is doing a good work
for night schools running in Mumbai. They oversee the working of schools; have
enhanced their functioning capacities leading to drastic improvement in results
in Secondary Examination. The schools which used to give 30% pass results have
achieved 80 -85% pass result. A perfect example of NGO- Public partnership where
NGO does not own anything but is only providing support to government schools
through proper interventions. I also, visited one of their night schools and
was amazed to see the enthusiasm to learn in the children and working
teenagers. We also, visited Mallahatti village in Ooty, where small tea growers
have formed a cooperative society, which has improved the socio-economic
conditions of villagers. The most satisfying part is this whole cooperative is
run by women. A visit to tribal school in Chandrapur, which I can easily put as
one of the best managed schools. The school has a bank, library, vegetable
garden and smart class, all managed by students themselves. The children seems
to well aware in general studies and teachers all energetic and committed. All
this has been made possible by having a management committee comprising only of
women whose children are studying in the school. When we came back to Delhi, we
got an opportunity to visit Night shelters – Rain Basera, run by the government
for homeless people. This is an effort to provide a roof over head to each and
every one. These are really changing lives of thousands of people living in the
poorest conditions. Working in tandem are the government agencies, whether I
talk of e-governance facilities in Jaisalmer or e-office at Sindhudurg or Water
and waste treatment plants at Chandigarh. All these are making a conscious
effort towards providing better and transparent governance to all.
Third in chain are the institutions that
are making us self reliant and taking our economy to the commanding heights.
The Pride of the Nation – Nuclear Power Plant at Tarapur, is one of the icons
of Modern India, showing our worthy place in the world. It was a dream comes
true for all of us to make a visit to Nuclear Power Complex where all four
reactors along with Power house and Central Control Room are housed. A high
security zone area along the coastline of Arabian Sea, where the scientific
marvel of India is present. Experience and study of Mumbai Metro Rail,
Mangalore Chemicals and Fertilizers and Tea Factories at Ooty, showed us the
glimpse of varied sectors of our economy. Each one of them excelling in their
field and setting new benchmarks worldwide.
Moving to the softer part, India is the
birthplace of three major religions of the world. We have a culture and society
where we have assimilated all religions and imbibed them in our lives and soul.
The attractions of the trip were Divya Darshan of Mata Vaishno Devi and Lord
Balaji at Tirupati. Cleansing of mind and soul, experiencing divinity in the
surrounding and peace of mind, we take blessings of Supreme Being to bestow us
with the powers to stand on ground of morality, dharma and truth. The management
of lakhs of people who visit these temples daily without any fail, providing
them with accommodation, food and the best experience in darshan is a goliath
task and are possible only with God’s blessings. We were fortunate to visit
Tanot Mata Temple at Jaisalmer ( witness of Battle of Longewala in Indo Pak War
1965 and with Mata’s blessings 250 bombs went unexploded), Karni Mata Temple at
Bikaner ( temple of rats) , the famous Siddhi Vinayak Temple at Mumbai and
Srikalhasti Temple in Tirupati. Visit to churches of Goa and Mangalore, took us
to the European architecture of 16-17th century when Portuguese and
French landed in India. And last among all, was visit to the Temple for Freedom
Fighters, the Cellular Jail, popularly known as KalaPaani. We visited the jail
and relived the dark period of British rule through the music and light show,
which narrates the story of KalaPaani. I bow down million times in the respect
of martyrs of Indian Freedom Movement.
With the human civilization history of
more than 5000 years, India has a rich historical background. The majestic
palaces of Rajaputanas kingdom of Bikaner, Jaisalmer and Jodhpur stand
testimony to the grand power of Indian rulers and kings in the past centuries.
Junagadh Fort made of red sandstone, Jaisalmer fort of yellow sandstone and
Mehrangarh Fort all are glorious examples of military acumen and top class
designs to build unconquerable forts. The strength of these buildings is as
such that they have stood strong to all attacks from human to nature for last
500 years. Laxmi Niwas Palace of Bikaner and Ummed Bhawan of Jodhpur are two
grand buildings who with their grandeur and beauty can mesmerise any visitor
and are second to none. They are the symbol of wealth and prosperity as much as
of architectural richness of Medieval India.
We have studied a lot of cultural
diversity of India, but you must live it to feel it. Whether I talk of
Rajasthani dance and song at Camel Festival of Bikaner or Handicraft Mela at
Jodhpur or Dance Show at Jaisalmer, the tune of “Kesariya Balam Padharo Mhare
Desh” still rings in my ear. From the folklore of Rajasthan where the music is
from the local instruments we moved to Cruise Dance of Goa, performed by
fishermen and other artists on electronic musical instruments. And, there was a
folk dance with villagers of Mallahatti village in Ooty, the richness in art,
dance and music of India is beyond comparison. Visit to anthropological museum
at Andaman exposed us to lives of Jarawa tribe who still live as nomads and
hunters. It is quite unbelievable that such a variety exists in India.
India is perhaps the only country
bestowed with beauty of all geographical landforms. The mountains, glaciers and
valleys of Himalayas to the Plains to Ganges to the Deserts of Rajasthan to the
plateaus of Deccan to the beaches of Goa and Andaman, you get all you wish to
see. Some of the most beautiful views we had of snow covered Pir Panjal range
at Mendhar, Desert Safari at Jaisalmer, Lively Beaches of Goa, Pristine beaches
of Sindhudurg and heavenly beauty of Havelock. All of these are a must visit
and are in my list of second visit.
Different people call this journey by
different names, some call it Bharat Darshan, some call it Winter Study Tour,
but I call it a “Learning Trail”. It has been rightly said; nothing can teach
you better than experiencing it yourself. I along with my 17 friends lived each
and every moment, felt the pulse of the nation, understood diversity and colour
of tradition and culture we have. India is not just a geographical boundary or
the law of land that binds her people together, it is the common thread of
“Being Indian” that runs in our blood, in our genes. It is this emotional
connect that we share, binds us as a country together. I will cherish these
memories for life long and will keep the spirit of a traveller alive in me.
