Vrikshamandir Audio

Most of my former colleagues  are now very senior citizens. Many of them are not technology savvy. To set up this blog dedicated to audio stories was a technological challenge for me too.

It has taken me three days to finally figure out a way to upload audio files on Vrikshamandir. I decided not to take help from any of my young friends from the IT companies in Gurugram who would have done this in minutes. But at this stage in my retired life when there seems to be plenty of time at my disposal and at times question arises;

“जिनगी में अब अउर का है ?”

तब तो कुछ ख़ुराफ़ात तो ज़रूरी है !

इस ख़ुराफ़ात के जड़ में थी एक बतकही ।

What motivated me to do was a conversation and exchange of messages I had with Dr SC Malhotra ( NDDB 1972).  I requested him to contribute stories for Vrikshamandir.

His reply was “Typing is an issue with me Shail Babu”.

I said “Please record your story and share the audio file on WhatsApp. I will type it out.”

He obliged after a couple of reminders.

However, after listening to his recorded story, I decided to upload the audio files as received from him.

His voice is same as before. His story telling style is as usual ग़ज़ब.

Dr Malhotra ki kahani unki hi jabani

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डाक्टर मलहोत्रा की कहानी उनकी ही ज़बानी

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1- Dr Malhotra describes his job hunt in 1972

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2- Dr Malhotra describes his interview for a job at NDDB in 1972. That was his first visit to Anand too!

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3- Dr. Malhotra describes his bus yatra from Jagnath Mahadev to Amul and meeting legendary Dr Ashabhai Patel for Medical Examination and visit to TB Hospital for  X ray 

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4- Dr Malhotra describes his joyous moment of getting an appointment letter , meeting farmers from Rohtak , having preetibhoj with Rohtak farmers visiting Anand and Shri Tribhuvandasbhai Patel founder Chairman of Amul (whose 26 th Punya Tithi is today 3rd June 2020) and visit with legendary Dr AAChothani to villages in Rohtak

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5- Dr Malhotra continues his story. His return to Anand and moving from Pathikashram to Campus. Meeting Mr. VS Kulkarni our Estate Officer cum Hostel Warden those days. Shri Kulkarni made the NDDB campus what it is today. Shri Kulkarni was earlier working with the Aarey Milk Colony.He was the one who made the campus beautiful through his meticulous planning and laying out green lawns, planting trees, creating flowers beds and setting up such high standards of maintenance right from the beginning.

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6- Dr Malhotra after having settled in the NDDB hostel shares details of the training ( हिंदी में रगड़ाई) he and other members of the multidisciplinary team of 16 comprising Veterinarians, those having qualifications in Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Dairy Technology, received under Dr AA Chothani and Dr HC Gupta others at Amul. He also describes how he was pulled up on one occasion by Dr Gupta for not behaving in a manner befitting an employee of farmers.

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7- In this episode Dr. Malhotra decides to give a twist to his  story told so far..

Instead he speaks only about Dr. Kurien.

How Dr. Kurien could be like a child while talking to a child and showed leadership of purpose while motivating field staff through his writings.

Dr Kurien wrote in a letter to Dr Chothani .. ……..

Dr Malhotra recalls, ……..”Dr Chothani, Tell your boys they are not there to collect milk. Had I been after collecting milk only I would have  hundred ways to collect milk and send milk to Rohtak or Delhi. Tell them that they are there to build organisations. They are there to replicate Anand. They are there to have confidence of farmers. Milk will flow if not today after five years it will flow. Tell them not to get disheartened…..”

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8- Dr Malhotra started sharing  the story of his professional life journey  from 1971 when he completed  his Bachelors Degree in Veterinary and Animal Husbandry from Hisaar in Haryana.

He shared how he visited Anand for an interview at NDDB Anand and got selected  not only by the interview panel but was found fit  by  the legendary Visiting Doctor of Amul and NDDB those days,  Ashabhai Patel. After initial training at Amul and then field visits and on the job training under Dr AA Chothani in Rohtak and movement from Pathik Ashram to the “luxurious” environs of the NDDB hostel.

He spoke about  the extraordinary  leadership of Dr. Kurien and how Dr Kurien motivated the field staff.

A journey which began from Haryana now reaches Kerala the Gods own Country via Gujarat. He continues his stories of Dr Kurien in episode 8 as well, his meeting with Dr Kurien… Enjoy Cheers !

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9- After a break of about three weeks, Dr Malhotra has come out with another edition of his audio story.

This time it is titled  “Dholi Jeep” धौली जीप . He shares stories of the  time he spent in Rohtak and Gurgaon as Apprentice Executive  working with different Team Leaders.   ( MK Sinha, Dr Chothani Dr Subnis ( Amul) and others ) and in the absence of a Senior Team Leader  becoming a Team Leader himself.. Lot of learning and becoming street smart ! Being posted  in that area during the emergency time and moving in a White Jeep with Operation Flood written on it  with the logo of  the  “drop” 

people used to get confused and run away lest the Good Doctor does an operation  on them …

10- Once upon a time, before independence of India, Kheda milk strike happened. At the call given by Sardar Patel milk producers of Kheda refused to supply milk to Polson for sale to consumers in Mumbai. The Kheda milk strike in a way gave birth to the idea of cooperative dairying and Amul was born. This happened under the leadership of Shri Morarjibhai and Shri Tribhuvandasbhai.

Come mid 1970’s around emergency time the NDDB spearhead team in Gurgaon / Rohtak of which Dr Malhotra was a member did something that led to a milk strike of another kind. Not the milk producers this time the Dudhiyas  went on strike and there was no milk in the city of Gurgaon which is now called the millennium city!

In episode 10 let us hear from Dr Malhotra about this reverse milk strike when Dudhiyas refused to supply milk in Gurgaon !

He also explains his views of the secret of success of Operation Flood and Bombay style living of SHT members in Gurgaon.

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11- In this 11th episode Dr Malhotra shares in his own style some interesting stories of the contrasting lifestyles of NDDB employees like him in mid seventies. While living at the NDDB Hostel Anand employees like him had access to having a room with attached bath and white linen on the bed but when they got posted in the field they had to make do with whatever was available like using the open fields in villages of Mewat region of Gurgaon for answering the nature’s call, walking with holdol on head and suitcase in hand on a dark night with dogs barking behind in search for the house of the village Sarpanch so that they get a place to sleep and also get some food!

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12- Dr. Malhotra  after a gap of over a month shares 12th episode of his audio stories. This time he talks of school days and some thing called neem garam ( नीम गरम ) . Listen to his new rendering of his school days. We all had school days didn’t we?
His village as described in this audio clip to me appeared to be more like a taluka town or a Kasba. I have not shared this thought with him. What is your view?

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13 –  Dr SCM after a long time returns with another offering of his audio stories. The Bihar election atmosphere, rekindled his memories and he fondly remembers his “foolishness” when during the 1977 general elections he refused to give a vehicle to the office of Election Commission.

His hard work, innocence and sincerity towards his   job probably saved him from the harrassment he would have invited  for NDDB & himself.

Interesting life experiences ..the Malhotra way…. 

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14. Senior Citizen Dr SCM recalls his “Once upon a time days” when he was NDDB Spearhead Team Leader at Bhatinda. His memorable two meetings with Dr GB Singh the then doyen of Dairying in Punjab!

It was at Bhatinda where farmers shared with him and his team as to why the farmers supported the NDDB Spearhead Team despite apparent lukewarm support with an undercurrent of opposition from the Government Department. Proving the oft repeated statement of Dr Kurien ” Farmers are very intelligent” !

15. After a long time, in this 15th episode of his life’s interesting twists and turns,Dr. Malhotra in his usual (बेबाक़) style shares his fascination for becoming a Guard in the Indian Railways immediately after passing out from school. Listen to his story as to how he missed the opportunity and could not become a railway guard. And then how he landed up at the Veterinary College to take up B.V.Sc & A.H instead of BDS at college of Dentistry. The story does not end .. as he miserably failed in getting selected as a medical representative. What a miserable interview that must have been. But it all happened before he appeared for interview at NDDB.

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