Encounters

REMOTE TRIP TO A REMOTE PLACE

This place called Badamura (Bada-big, Mura-Mountain) is about 100 Kms from our office complex and my controlling officer, who happens to be a complete work-alcoholic idiot, on a very fine morning, said that “ Mr. Divjot Singh, you are young blood and very energetic and you wont mind going to Baramuda and come back by 7 in the evening and of course you would do your job very well”. The power of Praise, I thought. I said in a very shaky confidence “Yes Sir, Why not!”. “Okay, you should leave in ten minutes, Security escort is ready and so is your vehicle, Best of Luck” said my boss and vanished from my sight. That was quick, I thought. He was waiting for someone and anyone. So the journey started.

The Security escorts were so conspicuous that instead of assuring my safety they were inviting the rebels “Come and attack us, there is a man who works in ONGC and is ready to be killed and would give you a good headline”. I thought I am an important man for the company and hence so many security forces. A truck and two gypsies full of soldiers were there to save a single life, which would be me. After three and half hours of weary journey with regular bumps throughout, I reached my destination. I managed to get out of the car and realized “It is such a pain in the ass”; I mean the job.

In front of me was a small hill which was to be made ready for drilling in few months.

Such a waste!

I would rather come here for camping and picnic but never to drill 4000 meters deep into the ground to get some gas out of it. Any ways the work was over after three hours without any thing getting inside me worth eatable. I tried some unaesthetic sweets from a nearby sweetshop; Bengalis are very fond of sweets.They were not very good; I just felt I was eating sugar and banana mixed with rice flour. I was unaware of this species of sweets and I absolutely regretted knowing it. My stomach regretted for two days straight.

So we started our journey back to the office complex. I was feeling very hungry and so were 23 soldiers who were protecting me. At a place near a roadside dhaba, the security escorts stopped and so did my car. The commandant and three soldiers came to my car and said “Saab we soldiers are hungry so we would like to eat”. I said “Fine, go on. But this place is actually not very hygienic so I would not eat”. He said “ Saab, O.K. Give us the money we would eat and then we will proceed”.

What! What the ****!

I always thought they were employed and given decent remuneration by the company.These people are supposed to protect me and hence by virtue of it my wallet has equal rights to get protected. “This is not happening. I can’t risk my life”, so I decided to give the soldiers an unworthy treat. Till now I started to think that my driver was the only gentleman among these so many uncivilized persons. Then my driver rose from his seat and said “Saab I am also hungry, can I eat?” . “Oh please, proceed” I said. So after the lunch we again started heading to our office and reached there just in time, but only to know that another job at the same site has to be done and since I was the engineer-in-charge who visited that site, I was responsible for this and hence i was supposed to go again the next fine morning. As a part-time-work-alcoholic person I always admired the maxim “Work is God”, but now i was forced to worship and the holy place was far off as well. So I had a plan.

I went to the office early morning the next day and managed to talk to a junior of my section. I started straight.

“You are young blood and very energetic and you wont mind going to Baramuda and come back by 7 in the evening and of course you would do your job very well”.

And yes, it works!