IIT ke naam par ‘dhabba’. I used to think it applied to me you know. Because I had not been able to anythng spectacular. Anything pathbreaking.  But I can change that opinion now. I may not have done my alma mater proud but I am not a ‘dhabba’. And the change has occured yesterday as I met Alok Shekhar, a junior batchmate from IIT Kanpur who is sitting in a senior position in AAI. The meeting was scheduled for a technical discussion. We had done some research on the inherent error introduction in the transformation of coordinates from WGS 84 to Everest and the effect it had on subsequent analysis and calculations for permissible height calculations. I tried explaining to him how the maps prepared by AAI were incorrect by two to three seconds. Also there were errors due to the fact that they were made by hand. By a draftsman whose hand could shake. I tried suggesting that using high resolution satellite imagery or using the technology of photogrammetry could give better results but to no avail. His whole deal was ‘chalne do’. ‘ yeh to sarkar ka kaam hai. sarkari tarah se hoga’. And of course he was more keen on talking about his holiday in the backwaters of Kerela. Aise log desh chalayenge. It pained me. To see an intelligent mind in such a complete wasteland. He came across as a brain dead man. The bureaucracy, the large cabin, the titles have gobbled him up. He is in a coma. And what is the point talking to a comatose guy. He should stop saying that he is from IITK. He has allowed the sytem to kill him. Too much of comfort and food and security ensures that a dog will not run, not bark, not do his job. And that is what has happened to these ‘babus’. All of them are ‘dead’. ‘Rotting’.How can they run the country? It is beyond me. Sorry Alok, I expected better from an IITK guy.  Even Appu who was with me understands that there is loss of information when data is transferred from one format to the other. But then her mind is still alive.

I then tried meeting S.N.Sharma (AGM-NOC) who sits in the NOC department and is supposed to interact with the public for their relevant cases. I tried showing the researched documents and information to him.  He pushed the papers away saying that I could take them elseware. That he did not need them. I felt disrespected and humiliated. I told him that if he did not need the information, he could throw it in the dustbin. To which he replied, ‘yahaan mat aaya karo’. I told him that the public could come here for clarifications and justifications but he continued to be rude, arrogant and demeaning till I chose to walk away. It was unfortunate that I had asked my daughter to accompany me for this meeting and she was a witness to this humiliation and disrespect. And after watching this we want our children to study. To excel in academics.  What gives S.N.Sharma to humiliate anyone just because he is sitting in that ‘sarkari chair’. Does he know it all? Is there no need for him to learn after getting a government job? He has complete knowledge just because he is sarkari? And our research is useless because we are hungry for knowledge, for our daily bread and butter. Because in their eyes we have ulterior motives? Oh come on, grow up guys. We run because we have no government funding. We are lean and mean and we have to keep learning else we will die. You guys are neither living, nor dead. You are in limbo, in some kind of dream, just as shown in the movie ‘Inception’. Mr. Sharma has shown the levels to which a ‘Sarkari officer’ can fall. Dis-respecting women. Dis-respecting technology. Shame on you Mr. Sharma.

We are still struggling with the software. I argued with Hariom, with Chandrakant, with the entire team. The basics, the fundas need to be clear. We used to say in our graduation days ‘funda gol hai’. we are still struggling with that. ‘Funda gol’.

Chandan is doing a great job of getting the constituency maps uploaded in the shop for the upcoming elctions in U.P. I mean we are late but as they say, better late than never. His focus is clear and he is working with a single minded devotion. ‘Arjun ki aankh’. Like a laser beam. Maybe the shop will generate more money than our other projects. Inshallah. God willing. Best of luck Chandan.

Ritesh is sorting the technical glitches in the shifting of domains, websites and the SSL certificate. The energy levels are high. And we are all running.

We are running our race.

‘The Race’.