A renowned professor and a pioneer in the field of quizzing, he had not received his dues for seven long years despite his association with the government in training aspiring civil servants. How could such a situation be possible? He had his students all over in the higher echelons of administration. His son was also an officer. In her weekly column for Different Truths, Hemashri exposes the inhuman administration that marginalises the good.

He was my favourite professor, and I never missed a single one of his lectures. He made the subject so very interesting. He was unique – very soft-spoken – and had a great command of the subject. Our professor was also a renowned state quizmaster, a pioneer in the field.

I met him as an economics major at the oldest and most prestigious college. His lectures on Gandhian economics were so inspiring that I remember them vividly to this day. He once explained Gandhi’s concept of education to us. According to Mahatma Gandhi, education is about three things. Head to think clearly about what is right or wrong. Heart to be filled with kindness, love, and compassion for fellow human beings. Hands to work and to appreciate the dignity of labour. Thus, education involves cultivating these three organs.

After many years of leaving college, I happened to be working in the education department. To develop web content, I had to conduct extensive research on the definition of education. To my pleasant surprise, the definition my professor presented proved to be the best. Once again, I felt a deep sense of gratitude to him. It was during this tenure that, in the year 2008, I visited my university to learn about the procedure for PhD registration. After many years, I met my favourite teacher again. He had the same smiling face, though the ravages of time were a bit visible. After I met with him, I met another teacher. When she learnt that I was working in the Education Department, she told me that my favourite professor had not received a single penny of his pension dues even after seven years of retirement. She also asked me not to let him know that she had informed me about it. I met his wife, who was also a teacher in the same department, to learn the details. She also confirmed the matter and requested that our conversation remain confidential.

I felt surprised and agonised to learn that this renowned professor, a pioneer in the field of quizzing and one who has been associated with the government for imparting training to aspiring civil servants, has not received his dues for a long seven years. How could this be possible? He had his students all over in the higher echelons of administration. His son is also an officer. The next day, I started my inquiry. I went to the person who handled pensions relevant to government colleges. When told about the problem, the knowledgeable assistant’s first reaction was, “Madam, he has not visited our office.” I felt very annoyed. He meant that the renowned professor should have made the obligatory visits to review his file and follow it from table to table to ensure he received his dues. I could make out he was the only person who could help, and I would need his help. So, without expressing my reaction, I asked him about the pension procedure. After that, I located his pension file. From the file, I learned that our renowned professor served the prestigious college for 32 years, but when he had just three months left before retirement, he was transferred to another government college. None of these two colleges processed his pension prayer. I contacted both the college principals. The principal of the college where he served for 32 years said he was still employed there, so they could not process his pension. The principal, to whom he served for three months, said he was there only for three months, so they had no record of his service, as he had not even produced the last pay certificate from his earlier posting. Both the explanations were logical, but the question remained unanswered: “Who will process his pension?” After the initial rounds, instead of getting a clue to solve the crisis, I actually faced another question: why did a genuine man like him have to be transferred to another college after 32 years of service, only to serve for three months? Is it not harassment? The “whys” kept haunting me. Suffering purifies the soul, and the sufferer of such “whys” feels more challenged to find out the “Urohi Gosor Ur” (to trace the root cause of the problem).

We had an officer in the premier college entrusted with the administrative role. I talked to her, requesting to find out the details of the pending case. She informed me that the file of my favourite professor possessed no relevant documents. The concerned principal was not at all bothered, informed the officer. Finding no other option this time, I met the senior officers of the higher education department to appraise the case. My boss said that he knows my professor well. I had already become an irritant to many with my overpersuasive nature. I used to follow up on many pending issues for people who approached me. Every pending case was documented as a case study. So I thought my professor should at least visit the senior officer once, since they know each other. Also, it would empower me to pursue the case. I kept requesting my teacher to come once and tell his story. I tried to convince his officer son to send his father. I wrote a very harsh email to the professor’s son, who was my junior in service, telling him that if he cannot send his father to my office, I will be convinced that he is a “Kania” (an idiot). After one failed attempt to meet the senior officer, he finally met my boss. My boss was convinced, and a strong instruction was issued to the principal of the most prestigious college to send the pension proposal of the renowned professor who had retired from service seven years ago. On receipt of the proposal, the reluctant principal finally sent the pension proposal. On receipt of the proposal, it was processed promptly. Sympathy for the harassed soul facilitated the process. Thank God his wife was a working lady; otherwise, I do not know how he would have survived for seven years. It took nearly one year and a few months to finally see the fruit of the process. He received all his pension dues.

It was a great blessing. I enquired with several sources to understand why my favourite professor was transferred from the college just three months before his retirement. Several reliable sources stated that his immediate junior professor was in a hurry to become the principal and was also due for superannuation. So my teacher had to be removed to make way for the junior person, who was well-connected, to become the principal.

Every time I met my professor, he would thank me profusely. He had no idea how much I owed him as a student, or that I could never repay him. He had no idea how much satisfaction I got, for he received his dues. There was a rule that if a person’s pension was delayed due to someone’s fault, the person responsible for the delay was supposed to pay a penalty. I asked my teacher to submit a petition for compensation. He only smiled and did not reply. The smile said it all. I could make out he does not want any more “jhamelas” (troubles). Who would like to parade before the robots tied to outdated rules?

To invite him to his son’s wedding, he came searching for our house, the address of which he had taken earlier. At that time, we were living in a congested rented accommodation. My husband and I were taking out our papers to write some pending reports, and the whole room was covered in papers when he arrived unannounced. I felt very embarrassed when he arrived amidst such chaos. Despite our repeated requests, he did not have a cup of tea. I thought of inviting him to dinner and having a good talk with him. It never materialised. He passed away a few months back, after a brief illness. I could not visit his family after his death. I could not write an obituary. I could not have that long talk with him. Some deaths create a vacuum.

Something precious he gave me years ago shall remain with me forever.

Education is all about the three Hs: head, heart, and hands!

Maybe hearts have become only a machine to pump blood in and out through the arteries to keep us clinically alive. Heads have become powerful supercomputers to do the calculations for self-gain all the time. Nothing beyond self-interest is even thinkable by people supposedly committed to serving. Hands are chained to do only white-collar jobs! In the real world, full of practically smart creatures, people educated in a 3H way constitute a minuscule minority. One of my fatherly bosses had told me once, “Your training as a bureaucrat is incomplete. You are emotional. You get involved. Be cool.” For a moment, I felt a bit awkward and inadequate. After careful reflection, I decided to follow the more practical approach. My heart shall always guide me, and my head will be an obedient follower.

People fascinate me, and their stories inspire me to continue this voyage of collecting more life stories.

The man who taught me the essence of education and the three H’s, perhaps, was the worst victim of a system which lacked compassion. I believe removing him from the post after 32 years of dedicated service to accommodate someone else as principal was a poor decision by the head. This responsible head did my professor a disservice. The principal of a renowned college had no concern for this long-retired professor. The principal had to be forced by an official order to process the pension proposal. He had a heart of stone. It was a divine hand that everything happened by chance so that we all could garner several pairs of hands to resolve this long-pending case.

Someone told me that my favourite professor was admitted to the ICU. I was planning to visit him. After just two days, I received the sad news that he was no more. The man who tried to inculcate the essence of education in generations of students did not even bother his dear ones much. He slipped away silently…

Rest in peace, my dear Sir!

©Hemashri Hazarika

Photos from the Internet

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Hemashri Hazarika

Hemashri Hazarika is an Officer of the Assam Civil Service since 1997. Her research on Assam Civil Service brought reforms in 2015. A first-class Postgraduate in Economics from Gauhati University, she was awarded JRF/NET by UGC in 1997. Her experience as a bureaucrat has sensitised her to human sufferings. A solutionist by passion, she takes an active interest in issues related to Governance, Development, Women, Children, etc. Reading, Writing, Speaking and Painting are her hobbies.