Life, Lilies and Surf

Chapter 3

Hope on, hope ever! though today be dark. 

    The sweet sunburst may smile on thee tomorrow     (Gerald Massey)

It was almost a month since she joined as a clerk.  She had learnt from her friends  Krishna and Satya Bhama, called shortly as Bhama that her aspirations for getting high ranking post in recognised government service was possible only by writing the all India competitive examination.  In order to get a service of her choice, she should have a high rank in the merit list. The minimum qualification of for appearing in such an examination was a bachelors degree of a recognised  university.   How was she to overcome this obstacle ?  She had to take the present post of clerk due to family circumstances.  Even getting a clerk's post was considered rightly as a windfall.  In those times, banks were in private sector and unless you had lot of pull and recommendation of weighty person, you cannot get a job in a bank.  There were only two dozen public sector companies and  only one or two were in Madras.  But when one makes up ones mind and strives hard to achieve the goal, nothing is impossible.  She was tenacious, well focused  and hard working.  She found a way out by enrolling for graduation in Utakal University to pursue bachelors degree in arts. That was possible by sitting in Madras, pursuing the text material and finally appearing for the examinations in one of the centers.   She would go to Orissa and write from Cuttack.  That was the distant education and it was considered a second rate degree.   Universities at that time distanced themselves from distant education.  Universities wanted students to attend colleges for full day or be in compass, as a resident student like Benarus Hindu University or Alighar Muslim University.  She diligently pursued her studies in the evening and holidays.  She appeared for the examinations in Cuttack and successfully cleared the course.  Thus she got a graduate degree that would make her eligible to write the competitive examination.  How does it matter if it is not a famous university ?  What would matter is the performance in the competitive examination that would take her to a  covenanted service with a great start in life. Amidst the turmoil of routine work in the office and industrious busy study for the university degree, the only relief was the friendship with Bhama and Krishnan.  They were already graduate degree holder before entering the office. 

 The great plan talked about by them was about taking the All Indian competitive examination and coming in the final merit list to get a coveted service of their choice.  All important services like Indian Administrative Service, Indian Police Service, Indian Foreign Service, Indian Audit and Accounts Service and other few important Class I services would permit direct recruitment from the merit list that would finally come from the Union Public Service Commission, the independent sovereign body that would conduct examination and interviews and  select persons.  The examination was a tough one and required very good mastery over the subjects chosen.  It is not merely qualifying in the examination but getting a high rank was needed to get a service.

Krishna was a great help for both the girls, Latha and Bhama.   He got the books, materials and references to prepare for the examination.   He was also appearing for the examination and was quite hopeful of coming out successful, getting good rank in the merit list and going to a good service.  In the office, Latha could get a good name by her sincere work.  Her behaviour and  looks and accepting any work given to her created a very good impression about her.  She did not want to have any problem as she was concentrating on her  goal of becoming a superior officer in a superior service.

The results came in the newspapers, when she cleared the written examination for the all India competitive examination.  She was then to appear for the interview.   Bhama was also successful in the written examination and was preparing for the interview.  They were the only two in the whole office, who could come up to that level.   But poor Krishna could not make it.   His friends stared commenting that Krishna was left behind by Bhama and Rukmini.  

The interview was a great hurdle in those days.  The top bureaucrats who constituted the Board of Interview mostly believed that only sons and few daughters of top civil servants and persons who studied in reputed public schools and got masters degree from famous universities were fit to become direct recruits to covenanted services.  Higher posts in government hierarchy, in their opinion,  needed blue blooded lineage of top bureaucrats.   They usually did not consider it as a scoring point, if the candidate was born to a humdrum lower functionary in government, or was from trading or business background.  But it should also to be said to the credit of these illustrious interviewers that they could not be purchased by the prominence of parents or copious largess of money or subtle patronage of the wealthy and powerful.  No doubt an outstanding person also could not be brushed aside, even if he had no backing on the above scores.  It was lineage plus outstanding scholastic career and high scores in the written examination that counted.   Of course lack of lineage could be compensated by brilliant performance in the examination and astute impressive behaviour in the oral interview. The fair sex did not have any unfair advantage due to their gender.  

The heroine of our story prepared well and remembered rightly that genuineness in approach and frank and truthful replies would pay dividends in any interview.  After all the interviewers were men of great standing, who had vast experience in  judging people, having worked at least three decades in top positions in the states and federal government or seen hundreds of students as educationists. The oral interview was rightly called as personality test.  She did her best and was very faithful and genuine in her replies for the questions asked.  She prayed hard that the final merit list should contain her name in a decent high level to ensure appointment to a good service.

She remembered through out her life the memorable day  the morning newspaper carried the merit list of names and how to her immense happiness her name was there in the list at a high rank.  It was history in the office.  From the lowest of the lowly post she would go straight to a post even above that of her immediate superior in the department.  Bhama could get administrative service and that was also a great achievement.   Krishna was the first to congratulate both of them without any jealousy or dismay about his position.

End of Chapter 3.