Editor's Notes
Last evening, I was
ready with the announcement for
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| we got only 73 slabs... |
I sat - my eyes glued to the 'labourbureau' site. Thought for a moment, why these statistics people required all the 31 days to finalise statistics of the previous month. 'Last day' seems to be their Mantra. When the month has 30 days, they can manage statistics in 30 days. If it has 31 days, they will require all the 31 days... Well we can't help.
I waited. Quite patiently so. Then came a terse 'announcement' - this time M. Aboobucker was
to reach me first. Hurriedly tried to arrange a revised announcement and finally managed to upload the news a few minutes past seven.
The fact is, I had to wait the whole evening in sheer anticipation of this news. I know not, sometimes, how much time I utilise, rather wait for, for a news to come and flash it for my pensioner-friends. Especially on days when court is taking consideration of pension related matters, there are phone calls, emails requesting to intimate the news as soon I receive the same. Such calls do come from across the country. They say sorry, apologize profusely for the inconvenience caused to me, but I tell them, there is no problem they can call me any time, it will be my pleasure to serve them.
Saroj Bhavan - Here at Calicut, Wednesdays are important to me. I attend the pensioners meet at Saroj Bhavan every Wednesday. But on 22nd January (which happened to be a Wednesday) I could not move out of my house. Virtually I was before the laptop the whole day. Yes, you know the reason. I had to upload an important news for the pensioners. I got the news late in the evening. First, the news over telephone, was from a 'reliable source'. It was received at about 5 pm. By 7 in the afternoon, I think I received something in writing.
Yes, there was one more adjournment at Raj. HC.
But I was more worried about the meeting at Saroj Bhavan here. I missed it that Wednesday. Meeting pensioner colleagues and discussing hot issues still give me the necessary 'purge' and that invigorates me for the next one week till we meet again there. A staunch AIIPA man myself, it is at Saroj Bhavan here I give vent to my feelings to my close colleagues with whom I have the freedom to make any criticism. It is only last wednesday, I made a scathing attack about their recent 'post card' campaign. I said, you have old methods of doing things. You should change with times. A pensioner had returned the post card to Saroj Bhavan criticising AIIPA's wisdom in sending such post cards.
The fact is, I had to wait the whole evening in sheer anticipation of this news. I know not, sometimes, how much time I utilise, rather wait for, for a news to come and flash it for my pensioner-friends. Especially on days when court is taking consideration of pension related matters, there are phone calls, emails requesting to intimate the news as soon I receive the same. Such calls do come from across the country. They say sorry, apologize profusely for the inconvenience caused to me, but I tell them, there is no problem they can call me any time, it will be my pleasure to serve them. |
| Saroj Bhavan - AIIEA & AIIPA offices & AIIEA Guest House at Calicut. |
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| at the centre, 'editor' stressing a point with all the vehemence at his command ! |
But I was more worried about the meeting at Saroj Bhavan here. I missed it that Wednesday. Meeting pensioner colleagues and discussing hot issues still give me the necessary 'purge' and that invigorates me for the next one week till we meet again there. A staunch AIIPA man myself, it is at Saroj Bhavan here I give vent to my feelings to my close colleagues with whom I have the freedom to make any criticism. It is only last wednesday, I made a scathing attack about their recent 'post card' campaign. I said, you have old methods of doing things. You should change with times. A pensioner had returned the post card to Saroj Bhavan criticising AIIPA's wisdom in sending such post cards.
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| 1000-rupee note has just become a 100-rupee paper! |
Soaring prices - This time we got only 73 slabs against 82 or 84 slabs we were expecting. We are atleast getting pension. Parity and Revision are issues we discuss these days. These are days of severe inflation. A casual labourer in Kerala demands Rs.700/- for a day's of casual work. Within another year or so, it could be a round figure of one thousand rupees. It must be
much more outside Kerala. Last evening when I went for my usual cycle ride, I got my cycle's loose chain adjusted - cycle mech. applied his spanner back and forth and collected Rs.20/-. As if to soothe my feelings, he didn't forget to apply a few drops of oil here and there to give me a feeling he has done a job...
Life becomes miserable... We have at least pension to bank upon. Also a medi-claim policy to meet medical expenses. But think of the 'aam aadmi'. It is a wonder how they manage to meet both the ends !