Dear IRASians and other IRAS Timers,
Today I recollect that day in Mussoorie long back - it was 16th of July 1975, the time around 11 in the morning. We had
just reached the hill station after a short road journey from Dehradun, taken aback by the cold and foggy weather after the warm and humid plains. We had
assembled at Library Point on the Mall, waiting to be inducted into the much sought-after Civil Services.
It was about three months later, shortly before we were to complete our Foundation Course in the National Academy of Administration, that we were informed about our service allotment - for me the Indian Railways Accounts Service. We reported at Railway Board in the 1st week of November 1975. And today, almost exactly 33 years later, I am finally demitting service.
This journey of 33 years, like all long journeys, has had its ups and downs. There have been many rewarding times; sometimes, fortunately not too often, there have been frustrating times. But always, the journey has been challenging and interesting. Never a dull moment, as they say!
During the course of my career, after my probation on WR, I have had postings on ER, CLW, CR, WR, Railway Board and finally RLDA. I stayed for 14 years in Mumbai, 7 in Delhi and considerable periods in Bhusawal, Chittaranjan and Kolkata. It is apt that my final postings were in Delhi, the place where I was born and where I finally plan to settle.
Of all the places where my family and I stayed, Mumbai would always have a special place in our hearts. It was there that we faced a personal tragedy when my younger daughter Gazal fell sick and later passed away when she was 14. We would always remember our friends and colleagues in Mumbai who stood by our side and enabled us to survive this tragedy. Mumbai's place in our hearts was further cemented when our elder daughter Sonal got married to Hemanshu, who is from Mumbai, though both of them are presently working in Dubai.
Later, during my posting in Railway Board as Executive Director Finance (Commercial), I was fortunate to be there during the time when the now-famous turnaround of Indian Railways took place. Along with Commercial Directorate of Railway Board, we in Finance Commercial Directorate also contributed our bit through the preparation of various proposals & schemes which resulted in sharp increase in earnings of the railways.
My last posting, on deputation to RLDA, was by chance. After having been kept waiting for a posting for a few months (one of the most frustrating periods of my career!) , I was nominated to RLDA as Member Finance. But we, the members of the First Board of RLDA, took it up as a challenge. We overcame the constraints of office space, logistics and manpower and managed to set up the systems and procedures as well as the basic IT infrastructure in record time. Therefore, as the present Chairman took over and Shri R P Gupta joined as the second Vice Chairman, we were well-poised and did put in all-out efforts to garner some much-needed earnings for the Railways. However, certain problems both in the internal and external environment ensured that our efforts would not need reach their logical conclusion. In that sense, my approx. two-year stint in RLDA is a mirror image of my 33 years in the Railways - challenging and interesting but occasionally frustrating!
It was after my younger daughter Gazal passed away in 1999 that I discovered Internet in a big way, initially for grief support and healing and later through the opportunity of some creative work (which, incidentally, also helped the healing process) in web page designing. My passion for this work and for IT has continued and I am glad that I was able to contribute to Railways through design, development and maintenance of websites like IRAS Times, IR Pension Helpline (which was a boon to pensioners till it lasted) and IR Suggestions (which I specially made for Mr Rana when he was CRB). Once a railwayman always a railwayman, it is said. After my retirement, I would like to continue to contribute in some way to Railways, if possible through my passion for IT.
In the end, I would like to thank all
my colleagues who accompanied me on this journey. I would not have been able to achieve whatever little I managed to achieve, without all your help and
guidance. IRAS and IRASians would always be in my heart, wherever I am. Thank you and God bless you!
Alok Bhatnagar
