JOURNEYS & JOURNEYS – 15

Luggage Lost

1999 May – All India Conference of AITE Union Class III (Namboodiri) is going to be held at Erode, T.Nadu from 13 to 16 May 1999. As usual all preparations for the AIC, both at Erode and at CHQ, New Delhi are done  in advance.

There was lot of luggage to be carried to Erode. About 2,500 copies of Annual Report and Accounts ( coming to about 100 pages each) ( Present system of printing at the spot not started). CHQ publications separate.  The Annual reports were received from  press in the last moment. No time to book in the goods compartment. There was another reason. Booking will be very costly which the union can not afford, with the union entangled in court cases and disputes created by the disruptors. Com.K.M.Pillai, CS MTNL Delhi, Com.T.A.Biju, Office Secretary, Typist Com. Bijoy Chandran and some other comrades somehow managed to pack and bundle every thing. About 30 very big packets. In addition, our personal belongings. Delhi comrades led by  R.S.Chauhan and H.L.Makkar  helped.

But where to put them, if not in the luggage compartment ? Of course, many delegates from Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, U.P. etc. were in the train. Biju and other comrades took the bundles and put them in the  compartments wherever our delegates were there. It was very inconvenient, but every one took it as part of the game.  Of course, it created difficulties for other passengers. No other way. TTEs during the journey questioned, but our comrades managed.

When we reached Erode, there was another problem. The stop is only for two minutes. How to unload the luggage? Hundreds of comrades led by S.Mohan Dass, President, Reception Committee, S.Chellappa, Circle Secretary and Convener Reception Committee, P.Abhimanyu, AGS, P.Karunakaran, L.Parameswaran, M.Chandrasekharan, C.Mani, N.Sinniyan, S.Murugiah, D.Gopalakirishnan, Killivalavan, Babu Radhakrishnan and many other leaders were in the station platform with red banners and flags to receive us. I told them about our luggage and volunteers rushed to take the bundles. It was not an easy matter and the train whistled for onward journey. But the leaders managed to stop the train for a few minutes more and everything was downloaded. I always was surprised about the enthusiasm and energy of T.Nadu comrades.

Garlands after garlands. Powerful slogans. It was memorable. All the difficulties in the train was forgotten.

It was a grand conference, both in the matter of discussion and also on the decisions taken. Apart from other things Com. Sharavanan , Branch Secretary of a small Branch Harur,  presented an amount of Rs. 65,000 to purchase a new typewriter for CHQ. It was a help in time. Our comrades very well know what is to be done at any particular moment.

It will be relevant here to mention how we lost of our bundles of Annual Report and many other records while going to the BSNLEU AIC held at Guwahati from 26th to 29th January 2006. Luggage were booked in the goods compartment. When the train reached  Guwahati Railway Station there was a grand   reception as usual. They went to the goods compartment to take the luggage. The door of the compartment was not opening, probably jammed. Tried for about half an hour , but it did not open. The train started after some time stating that the Rajadhani can not be delayed and have to run on schedule. How to get the luggages before the start of the conference?

 

Com. Prabir Dutta, the energetic All India Organizing Secretary, found out the way. He engaged a taxi  to Dibrugarh where the Rajadhani will stop. The train reached there before Prabir reached. . But somehow he reached before the compartment was shunted from the platform to the yard and got the luggage and rushed back to Gauhati. The AIC was saved.

 

V A N Namboodiri  20.10.2024