The Cook at Duliajan

Throughout my career  of 30 years in the Bank, I  remained in big cities working at big offices mostly under top executives. I had always got appreciation alike from bosses and  my peer colleagues. I earned the recognition of  a brand- first as a man of foreign exchange and then a man of credit.  As a Scale IV executive in New Delhi , I was next to General Manager and worked with  as many as five  GMs  and all  had impeccable trust on me. My advices on credit proposal were generally  honored   and accepted by them.   One  GM  complimented  saying that once a GM  works with me for one month would never leave me and the other  went to extent of writing in my Performance Appraisal Report that “ Mr ---- with six year of service remaining is an asset to the bank” and he showed  me the PAR as well. 

But life never goes in the same direction- topsy- turvy turns always come in one’s life. In a single show the grace was lost and  I landed myself  at a small branch in a small place . Initially anguish over powered me   that with such exposure and experience, it was undesirable – on the part of the management to post me here and on my part to stick to the bank wasting my hard earned skill. 

However, I decided to stick and enjoy the beautiful landscape, culture and pleasant weather of the North East without any stress of office work. I decided to give whatever best I could to the branch and the staff members out of passion only without any ambition for promotion. The environment in the branch has become so friendly, amiable and peaceful that I can vouch everyone is enjoying working. 

One day our cook in the bank, earning Rs 1200/ p.m.– who does not speak good Hindi and I do not understand good Assamese – in  private managed to say something which I also managed to understand. It was like this, “ You do not smoke, do not eat paan or gutka,  neither do you drink. Branch has also become peaceful. If you remain here for two years, it will be blessings for us”. His feelings straightway touched my heart that all compliments, appreciations I received from my bosses and colleagues have become dwarf before this simple sentiments of the cook.