" SEND THAT BUG LETTER " TO HIM...

My life, my struggles.

An American tramway company received frequent complaints from the travelling public about bug nuisance in the tram compartments.  And whenever company received these complaints, they promptly replied the complainants that bug nuisance will be soon put to an end.  People who received replies from the company appreciated the earnestness of the company in solving the problem and sincerely thanked them. This continued. 

 Once a complainant received company's reply. 

It was found to his utter surprise, instruction to send a reply was also found clipped to the letter he received.  The slip clipped read: "send that bug letter to him"!  So goes this familiar story...

My friend in the SDM's secretariat told me this story when he saw the letter I received from Shri N. Balakrishnan, Secretary (OIC) of LIC Central Office in reply to my letter sending him the details of work reduction program undertaken by me in the L&M Department of Kozhikode Divisional Office.  Secretary's letter promised, he is examining the suggestions sent to him.  A committee has been constituted for this purpose.  And the Secretary (OIC) promised to write to me as soon as possible.

Receiving a reply from the Central Office and that too from a Secretary was big news those days.  It may be a new experience for an ordinary employee in a Divisional Office to have the good fortune of receiving such a letter. So I was really proud.  I showed the letter to my friends.  They were also a little surprised.  I believed, LIC was changing fast.  And with bated breath, I waited for the reply from the Secretary (OIC).

In the meantime I continued my work in the L&M Department of Kozhikode Divisional Office.  I got these suggestions implemented in the Department, thanks to the large-heartedness showed by Shri AR Menon, Manager of the Department.  I demonstrated the improvement brought about in the work of loan disbursement.   Later the Department also won an All India prize for maximum loan disbursement.  But that much awaited letter from the Secretary (OIC)  never came to me.  My friend in the SDM's secretariat was proving to be correct in his assessment of the situation.

That letter I received was also proved to be a "bug letter" as my friend was telling me from the very beginning! 

_____________________

In India, we call it a 'stone' letter.  Here I don't mean, Secretary (OIC) has personally done any wrong to me.