Winter has already shut shop. But did you notice some extra spring in the Spring this year? The spring flowers ran riot…. there was and still partially is, an abundance of colour and variety wherever you go. Take a walk and enjoy the Southcity-I balconies and gardens…. Spring is on fire this year…. it is making amends for the COVID hibernation I guess.
This will be my last missive for Samvada for South City-I. There are two reasons for it. The prime one which has precipitated the second one is actually the new SCRWA EC. I am not the kind who takes a sabbatical from writing or pulling legs…. but…. it is just that this new SCRWA Team has been a huge disappointment personally to a self-anointed sleuth who gathered tit-bits of information and impressed my gullible Editors and some naïve readers each month with it. I am almost out of work. The total let-downs with the current EC have been :
- Finances: Dinesh Kumar Arora, the Treasurer sends out a monthly expenditure sheet on the Colony Group leaving me no scope to call in the SEBI or conduct ED Raids and photograph bullion or ‘moolah’ stacks.
- Transformer Burns Up / Fused Lights: It’s no fun anymore. Sagar Bhola should be giving me a chance to treat him like a fused bulb, but the ‘young turk’ has no respect for a senior citizen’s evil thinking. He reacts in a jiffy. Gets the light activated or the electricity restored in less than 2 hours and then to add salt to my wounds, calls a meeting of the affected residents the next day on the next course to facilitate change of the Transformer. He also helps clear up the overgrown foliage as if that is the cherry on the cake. How horrendous!
- Water Pipe Leaking and Gardens without Care: Pavneet (proxy for Navneet) just doesn’t care for the human environment. He gets the leaking pipeline fixed, not allowing the road to quench its thirst. He chases the ‘mallis’ and makes them spruce up gardens and parks. Sheer cruelty to the weeds and to the ‘mallis’ who come to rest there throughout the day. I have seen so many sleep-deprived ‘mallis’ actually after he took over. The sweater-knitting MCG-sponsored ladies also suffered severe setbacks this winter due to him.
- President SCRWA : Raj Chopra may be officiating but he is a big nuisance too. The man just comes into every problem or issue surfacing on the Colony Group and guides or directs his Team to resolve it. He tells residents to get off the official Forum at the drop of a hat when they start getting too goo-ey and mushy with each other on Valentine, etc. How demoralizing for me!?! Why would they choose a fighter pilot veteran? The man has every problem of the Colony on his radar or on his gun sights. For folks like me whose bread ‘n butter is lapsed by EC, he is a total letdown.
- General Secretary: Ashwani is the biggest disappointment as the GS. Mere paet pe laat marta hai roz. From coordinating with every Govt. agency to disseminating key and critical everyday updates like water or electricity shutdowns, etc., he is on the ball and keeps the Colony updated. I feel like the proverbial ‘mein kya sirf ghaas katne ke liye reh gaya hu?’.
End result? I am Disappointed! My morale is low. I am hanging up my boots, my pens, my quills and ink pots. How can any two-penny-worth newsperson like me, work in such an environment? Nothing for the yellow pages seems to come up.
Seriously, this EC is almost 6 months into their tenure. They may be a bit aggressive and outspoken in their dealings but their intent to streamline procedures and fight for better living conditions for the residents is unquestionable. The only weak point I have noticed in some EC members is the tendency to be overtly aggressive and abrasive to the old EC members and some residents. Let bygones be bygones. Move on. Never forget that we are residents first and ECs will come and go, but our neighbours, more than even our relatives, will be there with us through thick and thin. A good ear and a humble attitude will win your residents’ confidence and support and vice versa.
The strongest point of this EC is transparency and that is what endears most residents to them. There seems a gradual but perceptible resident awakening for togetherness in South City-I again. A few detractors will always be there. People will always want an EC with a magic wand. But then, these are routine pinpricks in any Colony and are being well-handled by the current Team.
They had a genuine issue of non-clearance of account out-standings by the previous EC. Both parties were at loggerheads and refused to even meet. Fortunately, good sense has prevailed and both parties have had a chat in the first week of April and the matter will be hopefully closed once and for all, at the next AGM. It is for the Colony’s good.
In closing, I see a wonderful journey of progress towards a better, more cohesive Southcity-I in the coming months. My disappointment and resultant unemployment should bring a smile and pride to every resident. I would also request every resident to hold the new EC’s hand, be patient and supportive, and I assure you, unlike me, YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.
The offshoot of the ECs efficiency is that with no job opportunity now open to me with Samvada, except distributing printed editions door-to-door once a month, I have had to seek alternate, not necessarily better, environments more conducive to my livelihood. But that is another story told separately.
by Col Anil Alagh (M Block, 9312247284)
