ZEROES and HEROES – A short story by Surendra
Editor’s note Col Surendra has sent us another little story. It is about ‘zeroes’ and ‘heroes’. For those who may have forgotten, a ‘zero’ is defined as a loser; a person with no aspirations or goal. Hero, on the other hand is an amazing mix of all virtues. He is a winner, whom every one admires, because he emerges as the …
ONE TOO MANY
Spiritual gurus have preached temperance in all worldly affairs. It is well known that excess of everything is evil. It creates problems. We have seen what happens to our friends when they take ‘one too many’ in the bar. What is worrying me is the fate of an extremely balanced person, Nazar Singh, who is known to have maintained excellent health through controlled eating …
IN KASAULI, THE CHURCH CLOCK IS TICKING AGAIN!
The picture you see above shows the tower of a church in Kasauli. An elegant clock is mounted at its top, which has an attractive antiquated dial. The only thing curious about this grandfather timer is that, until about three weeks ago, neither its hour nor the minute hand had moved for as long as anyone can remember in the town. …
SEQUEL TO ‘FLOOD CONTROL IN THE VALE OF KASHMIR’ by Joseph Thomas
Editor’s Note. My friend, Joseph Thomas, is an intense human being. When he feels strongly about something, he is a man possessed. Last year, when Srinagar valley was inundated by the Jhelum waters, he said that this disaster was unnecessary. Having been posted in J&K in 1962-64, having flown over the valley and done aerial survey, he knows the terrain …
‘THE HIATUS’ a short story by TS Surendra
Editor’s Note. THIRUVAZANDUR SRINIVASA SURENDRA, or TS Surendra joined the NDA in July 1962. His given name was a bit tough for his buddies, so he permitted them to call him ‘Tejinder’. Academics was his forte. The Army spotted his strength when he won the Gold Medal on the Degree course. He was deputed to go to IIT Delhi in …
MUSINGS OF A MILITARY MAVERICK- FROM CRADLE TO COMMISSIONING
MUSINGS OF A MILITARY MAVERICK- FROM CRADLE TO COMMISSIONING by Lt Gen YN Sharma It was a special day at the engineer’s residence, in the premises of the power house. A son—the first-born of the first-wife of the power parivar—had been born. Few newborns can hope for a better beginning; a celebrity father (publicly anointed as the Sun of Muzaffarabad), …
GEN HANUT of PH : “Fakhr-e-Hind”
Only those who take leisurely, what others are taking seriously Can take seriously, what others are taking leisurely An obituary that says it all A 12cm x 15cm insertion in multiple editions of the Times of India costs quite a packet. For a Regiment to shell out so much money for an officer who commanded the unit 44 years ago, …
Per Capita Soldiers in India
Has the Armed Forces pension bill become unaffordable? In 1984, a High Level Committee headed by the then Rajya Raksha Mantri Shri K.P. Singh Deo was set up which conducted thorough study of the problems of ex-defence personnel for the first time. It made more than sixty recommendations. All except two were accepted by the government. And these two were: ‘One …
‘PHOOK’ THEORY AND ‘THE HOLY BOOK’
“The sharp edge of a razor is difficult to pass over; thus the wise say the path to Salvation is hard” (From a verse in the Katha-Upanishad ) Prologue It is well known that leading men in battle, in the face of fire is a daunting task. What is not so well understood is that commanding a large unit or …
Healing power of Holy Words
Power of Mind over the Body Call me a cynic, if you like, but I have no hesitation in asserting that I have a healthy disbelief in the reports of the clinical tests which are performed on the body. Pulse rate and blood pressure (BP) are routinely checked by doctors to diagnose disease. Their well researched ‘normal’ values have been specified by …
