A Jubilee Studded with Diamonds

10^th December 1962 was a historic day for the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun. It was the date on which the President’s Colours were presented to the Academy and the illustrious personality who presided over the ceremony was Dr S Radhakrishnan who needs no introduction. The 30^th regular course passed out during the parade and the gentlemen cadets were commissioned the next day. The IMA has travelled a long distance during the last sixty years. The pictures of the majestic Chetwode building then and now are given below, to tell the tale.

IMA, in 1962

IMA in 2021, with the COVID masks on

To mark the diamond jubilee of this momentous occasion, they decided to celebrate the anniversary in a befitting manner. They are super-senior citizens now with grey hair and wrinkled faces, but their spirit is intact. They chose the Ashok Hotel in Delhi for their get-together and spent three days in regal style. My friend, Col Vinod Kumar has sent me a video clip based on the pictures taken during the occasion. It gives me great pleasure to give you a link to the film below: 

The Tailpiece

I saw the 30^th Course from a distance of two terms since I attended the 28^th course. When we passed out in Dec 1961, they had completed their second term. I have some unforgettable memories of their charismatic cadets and would like to narrate one anecdote. At the farewell dinner hosted by Imphal Company, a brief entertainment programme was organized. After a few songs and skits, the Master of Ceremonies chose to introduce the ‘passing out’ GCs to the audience. He first called upon Under Officer Fateh Singh and spoke a few words. He called him a double dealer and hypocrite and accused him of presenting a wrong picture of the administrative problems of cadets. The UO went back with a sheepish grin on his face. He then called a few more of my course-mates and meted out similar treatment to them. Apparently, he knew many secrets which we had been hiding from the juniors. This went on for about twenty minutes, and he had finished no more than six or seven out of the 33 of us and we were all scared of being ‘exposed’. I was wondering how the proceedings would go on when he suddenly said, “Gentlemen, the dinner is getting cold, so I will stop here. At any rate, the rest of them are not worth talking about!”.

You should have seen the look on the faces of those who were spared the agony of his caustic words! The name of the 30^th course GC is Sudhir Vombatkere, and  I have been able to fish out his picture, then and now. I must also add that he chose to remain conspicuous by his absence during the jubilee in Delhi.

AN APPEAL

The reunion organized by the veterans of the 30^th course was, indeed, unique and will go down in the annals of the history of the Indian Military Academy. It was the manifestation of camaraderie and guild. It will be an inspiration for the subsequent courses. The very idea inspires awe and the execution must have taken a lot of effort. Col Vinod Kumar has done a superb job in creating the video clip, and has translated “Yeh dosti, hum nahin bhulenge…” into an unforgettable narration.

If you have something to add to this story, kindly click on ‘comments’ at the end of this post and record your message.

The above picture with the names of the participants has been sent by Ashu Sharma. It certainly adds value to the post.