Chat-n-Chat taking a 'serious' course...
I found the nostalgic memories of
contributors to LICPC quite interesting.
As you said they
" make life lively and meaningful."
On an average each one of us must have spent more than 35 years in active service of LIC.( I spent 40 Years and 8 months.) Atleast 1/3 of each day of service we must have spent our time on duty and with colleagues. Natural that we think of bygone days at this age. Extrapolate a bit and some of us think of our college days and the first crush also. And the good times we spent with our bosom friends some of them no more.
So when contributors Subburathinam, Aboobucker and SD Sarma wrote about Automation Struggle and NOW ask us what we think about it in retrospect, particularly its fall out, each one of us may have different perceptions. BUT it must be said that the fight against automation of clerical work in LIC was unique and a first of its kind which profoundly influenced the lives of LIC employees and the institution itself.
How did the average employee understand what automation was all about in 1960s and with a spill over to 1970s? Leave alone the great debates and polemics. We can go on thinking about the split in communist party in 1964, split in Congress party in 1969, split in AITUC in 1971 so on and so forth and come out with our own analysis of the course the Automation Struggle took in those tempestuous years. The political splits influenced the working class organisations and as part of working class the then united organisation also was influenced by those splits. In its publication Tryst with Trust, LIC of India briefly touched on the role of unions also. There they mentioned that AIIEA was affiliated to AITUC !
So when contributors Subburathinam, Aboobucker and SD Sarma wrote about Automation Struggle and NOW ask us what we think about it in retrospect, particularly its fall out, each one of us may have different perceptions. BUT it must be said that the fight against automation of clerical work in LIC was unique and a first of its kind which profoundly influenced the lives of LIC employees and the institution itself.
How did the average employee understand what automation was all about in 1960s and with a spill over to 1970s? Leave alone the great debates and polemics. We can go on thinking about the split in communist party in 1964, split in Congress party in 1969, split in AITUC in 1971 so on and so forth and come out with our own analysis of the course the Automation Struggle took in those tempestuous years. The political splits influenced the working class organisations and as part of working class the then united organisation also was influenced by those splits. In its publication Tryst with Trust, LIC of India briefly touched on the role of unions also. There they mentioned that AIIEA was affiliated to AITUC !
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| EDITORIAL 'CARTOON' COMMENTS |
The present generation with a PC on each table operating 4th generation devices and raising hands in helplessness when systems fail, cannot understand the fears of that generation in 1960s. You tell your grand child who uses his mobile to access internet now about your fears of Computer and the valiant fight you conducted, it may be amusing for them. That is the onward march of technology and IT. But in those days with a mixed composition of staff from erstwhile private companies and a good percentage of post nationalisation recruits, the fear of loss of jobs weighed heavily.
In those days also there were those who told that introduction of new technology cannot be stopped for all times and one has to accept technology with necessary safeguards in the matters of job security, emoluments, promotion opportunities etc. Now in retrospect donot you feel that what they said became a reality in 1980s with introduction of microprocessors, decentralisation of work, creation of more vacancies in promotional grades? 1965 to 1977 was a dark period for both employees and LIC.
We used to feel Mr. Bhide took his revenge on LIC employees. Many employees with post graduate qualification, an additional AFII or FFII to add, retired in the grade of Assistants. By the time some opportunities were created in 1980s they were not enthused even to apply for promotion saddled as they were by other priorities in life. If the thinking to throw all computers in Arabian Sea continued what would have been the position of LIC now? Could we have competed with private players doing the work in a manual way with violet pencils and carbon papers and adding long columns of figures manually and mentally? For that matter when did LIC give calculators to its staff? Earlier there used to be 2 comptists only at D.Os! and adding machine itself was a novelty!
If some one now questions what we think in retrospection what can we say? We believed what the leaders told us that 36000 jobs out some 50000 would be eliminated. We fought against possible loss of jobs. In the process we suffered losses at individual level also. Which fight was conducted without sacrifices by an earlier generation? There can be debates even now about the line adopted by the then united union. Whether they stoked primitive luddite fears in their followers and whether their thinking itself is backward or forward. The debate can be endless.
Our fathers travelled at best by trains. Now many of us go by flights. Were our fathers ignorant or are we more intelligent?
One point before I conclude. What did the automation struggle achieve? Well for one I can say it produced a fine band of dedicated trade union leaders and activists. Those activists were thoroughly knowledgeable and worked with dedication in office. They also fought with more dedication against what they perceived to be injustice.
We used to feel Mr. Bhide took his revenge on LIC employees. Many employees with post graduate qualification, an additional AFII or FFII to add, retired in the grade of Assistants. By the time some opportunities were created in 1980s they were not enthused even to apply for promotion saddled as they were by other priorities in life. If the thinking to throw all computers in Arabian Sea continued what would have been the position of LIC now? Could we have competed with private players doing the work in a manual way with violet pencils and carbon papers and adding long columns of figures manually and mentally? For that matter when did LIC give calculators to its staff? Earlier there used to be 2 comptists only at D.Os! and adding machine itself was a novelty!
If some one now questions what we think in retrospection what can we say? We believed what the leaders told us that 36000 jobs out some 50000 would be eliminated. We fought against possible loss of jobs. In the process we suffered losses at individual level also. Which fight was conducted without sacrifices by an earlier generation? There can be debates even now about the line adopted by the then united union. Whether they stoked primitive luddite fears in their followers and whether their thinking itself is backward or forward. The debate can be endless.
Our fathers travelled at best by trains. Now many of us go by flights. Were our fathers ignorant or are we more intelligent?
One point before I conclude. What did the automation struggle achieve? Well for one I can say it produced a fine band of dedicated trade union leaders and activists. Those activists were thoroughly knowledgeable and worked with dedication in office. They also fought with more dedication against what they perceived to be injustice.
If only the present generation imbibed their quality of work
while you work and fight while you have to fight, nobody need
worry about future of LIC. What a fine leadership we had?
They slept on mattresses spread on floors in ordinary
choultries side by side with activists. Now you have to seek an
advance appointment if you have to meet even a middle level
leader, that too after meeting the intermediaries.
B. Ganga Raju Hyderabad