Weekend in Mangalore

After a week spent with work and friends in Bangalore, came Good Friday on the 22^nd. As my boss was away, without bothering him too much, I decided to spend the holiday at Bangalore itself. But then Deepu was furious that I didn’t plan my visit to Mangalore in advance so that I could leave Bangalore on Thursday and be with her on Friday. So I quickly made a call to my boss and requested for a day off on Saturday and rushed to book my tickets to Mangalore for Friday evening. Took the evening Volvo to Mangalore, even in the heavy downpour. Reached Mangalore by 6.30 in the morning and woke Deepu up. She was pleased to finally see me. I took a quick nap to catch up with what I lost on my bus journey.

We spent the rest of the day with lots and lots of gossip and planning for the future life in Bangalore. In the evening me and Deepu had decided to go out for dinner to some nice place. That is when we got an invite from the District Forest Officer and his family to join them for dinner at a restaurant. Having no choice, we cancelled our plans of dinner and joined the family for dinner. After a lengthy dinner we returned back home late to straight away hit the bed.

We had actually planned to go to the gym and a game of Badminton on Sunday morning. But with a late night dinner, that was not be. We woke up late, lazed around for some time and had a very light breakfast, planning to have a good lunch somewhere out.

So by 1pm we were dressed and left for Nalapad for lunch. The top floor of the restaurant called the Kadal is a splendid place with great view of the entire Mangalore coastline and the ocean. We had some good Goan seafood and returned back home for a nice nap.

My train ticket for the evening return journey to Bangalore was confirmed and I started packing. Deepu was visibly upset seeing me pack so early. I left home by 7.30pm and I am now on the evening train to Bangalore.

Goodbye ! Mangalore

The last week of December 2010, we had the Gram Panchayat elections. In fact one phase of it was on the eve of the New Year on the 31^st. Post new year, we had the election counting and the ruling party fared pretty well. So once the dust settled down, I was pretty sure there would be a long list of transfers of officers and we kept waiting for that news. As March arrived the rumors began to get stronger that I may be posted to Bangalore city as DCP. I was personally not too happy with that proposal. Somehow I had an aversion to work in the city as DCP, with so many boses breathing down your neck. I had now entered my ninth year of service and got a promotion in my scale of pay as well. This as I saw it, was the right time to leave the State Police and go on a Central Deputation to the Government of India. So I quickly put in my Papers for a Deputation to the Narcotics Control Bureau as the Zonal Director at Bangalore and also to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) as the Superintendent of Police at Bangalore. The reason for opting to Bangalore in both these cases was to ensure Deepu could finish off with her Post Graduation as well during this stable period of 4 to 5 years. Meanwhile, as the transfer lists were being prepared at the Government level, I was asked if I were interested in serving as the SP of Shimoga District. Now that I had already put in my name for CBI and made up my mind for the Central Deputation, I expressed my unwillingness regarding the district option. Now that I had made it amply clear that I don’t intend to continue in the State Police for the next 5 years, I expected that I would be allowed to continue at Mangalore till the time my Central Deputation papers are cleared and I get my orders. But that was not to be.

On 20th of Feb, the District administration organised the Mangalore Marathon. Me and Deepu participated in the mini-marathon of 6 kms. For the first time perhaps we saw how Mangalore looked like from the streets. Deepu got to meet P T Usha and the marathon turned out more memorable for reasons other than just running.

Even otherwise, the period from Diwali upto March had been pretty busy and enjoyable as well. We had family and friends visit us regularly. Bujji visited us during the monsoon but decided to stay indoors and relax for most of the time. We had both our Moms and Dads visit us and it was usually temple visits with them, Chotu was there for Dusherra & Diwali and friends kept dropping in at regular intervals. Deepu had thus mastered the art of being the perfect host, which even got mentioned in our farewell function that was to follow.

On the 21^st of March 2011, the transfer list was finally out. As I had expected, my name did not figure in that list and I was not too surprised either as I had informed the Government about my deputation plans. A day passed and to my utter shock there was another transfer order on the 22^nd and I was shifted from Dakshina Kannada to Bangalore as Superintendent of Police, Internal Security Division. This put me in a real spot. Firstly, the Internal security Division though has a very glamorous name, it has absolutely no work profile. Secondly we would have to shift all our set up here in Mangalore to a new place for a temporary period of two months. Thirdly living in Bangalore in posts like these would mean living out on your own without any help compared to all the perks enjoyed in Mangalore. Not that the perks mean anything, but it would definitely take an effort to get used to the new situation. Finally after the truth sank in, we made a plan out. We decided to avail all the joining time that is allowed under the rules and spend some quality time together. Accordingly I handed over charge of SP Dakshina Kannada to the new SP on the 28^th of March 2011 and spent the entire joining time period upto 7^th April at home with Deepu.

It was during this period that India made it to the world cup final. Having nothing to do, we volunteered to make the final match a memorable one for all the officers. Me and Deepu organised a nice party at home for all the officers and families and screened the match on big screen in the lawn. Couldn't have been a better ending to our stay in Mangalore with India's win, crowning the end.

We followed it up with a visit to the Kemmanagundi hill station and the Jungle lodges and resorts in the Bhadra wildlife sanctuary for a couple of days in Chikamagalur.

On the evening of 6^th we were given a good Send-off and I packed my belongings and left for Bangalore by the early morning flight on the 8^th. Deepu had come to the airport to see me off and I promised her that I would take charge and be back soon. So on the morning of 8^th I reported at the Internal Security Division(ISD) and took Charge as the Superintendent of police. The rest of the day was all calling-on senior officers in the city. In the evening, I returned back to the office and when I was leaving, my boss asked me if I was going to Mangalore for the weekend. I said Yes, and he just suggested that I go and also make a visit to a couple of coastal security police stations (which formed part of the ISD) so that I could fly to Mangalore officially. I grabbed the opportunity and flew back to Mangalore the next morning. Deepu was glad to see me back and we spent a long weekend at home together, extending it to Monday to visit the Police Stations. On Monday evening we had an officers families get together dinner at a hotel, hosted by the Commissioner of Police Mangalore. Finally Tuesday did come… I woke up early and took the first flight to Bangalore and reported back to duty.

This week is full of holidays (with Rama Navami, Ambedkar Jayanthi and Mahaveer Jayanthi and then the weekend) but I intend to stay at Bangalore and get some things sorted out, especially the look-out for a new house, the finalization of the CBI deputation etc. May be next week I’ll make another visit to Mangalore and spend some time with Deepu. Till then Deepu also has things planned out at Mangalore. Her driving classes, Salsa classes, yoga, gym and off-course catching up with friends.

Back to base - after Australia

After the return from Australia, it was life as usual. Amar’s wedding was over and I was not a part of the celebrations. I did catch up with some of it on return though. We went around places in Hyderabad for a couple of days and then I returned to Mangalore on the 2^nd of June. I was back on track but with some changes in my job profile. The Police Commissionerate of Mangalore city finally took shape during my absence and the new and the first Police Commissioner of Mangalore city had taken charge. That was around the days when we were in Australia. So this time, when I took charge on return, the City of Mangalore ceased to be under my jurisdiction. It’s always a mixed bag to lose some jurisdiction that way, the upside being that you are that much relieved of the work load but the down side is that you are not that important anymore. Moreover there are the problems of carving out a new unit out of the existing unit. The division of manpower, logistics etc runs into so many issues and this one was no different. Off course we were able to settle the issues quickly.

So from June 2011, I continued as the SP Dakshina Kannada district with just the rural district under my command. The Law & Order responsibilities did decrease considerably, but the office work remained the same and in fact got complicated further because of the division of staff and I had to now work with 50% of them, which meant closer supervision on the work.

Deepu returned from Hyderabad a couple of days later along with Aravind and Lisa. We visited the Kaadumane tea estate at Sakleshpur and then from there Deepu took Aravind and Lisa to Madikeri for a forest Safari. They had a fairly good time out there and returned after a day. We then spent some time at home and after a couple of days Aravind and Lisa left. The monsoon had just begun and we wished they stayed here for some more time.

What followed was perhaps the longest monsoon we’d seen here. Even up to the first week of December it just kept raining. The best part was to sit beside the bedroom window and watch the sea & the changing colors of the Mangalore's horizon.

In the month of September, while all the noise regarding the Commonwealth games was still on, the Queen's Baton relay was passing through the district. So me an Deepu went to the District border at the Shiradi ghat to receive the Baton. Was a nicely organised event.

As the monsoon was closing towards October, Deepu reminded that we hadn't been to the Sita Nadi for rafting despite living so close to it. So on the 26th of Sep, a sunday we decided to go on rafting at the Sita Nadi resort at Hebri. It was a wonderful experience.

As I mentioned earlier, the work load as far as law & order did decrease a bit because of the formation of the Police Commissionerate in Mangalore, but surprisingly even the City became very quite compared to what we had to face during 2009-10. Don’t know if the people were just tired of creating trouble or it was the result of all the hard work put in during the difficult period. Whatever the reason be, it was somehow giving a feeling that the Police Commissionerate was not even necessary and that it may have been created in a hurry.

Aussie ! Memories-3 Sydney

We landed in Sydney a couple of hours later than we'd actually planned for. It was a cold rainy day and the trains from the airport to the city for some reason took the day off. So we took a bus to the Sydney Central and from there just pulled the baggage to our hotel The Metro Central a couple of blocks away. As we entered the hotel. we were greeted by our friends who had reached there a day earlier. We quickly dropped the luggage in the room and rushed out to join the friends who took us around that day, as they were already familiar with the places. We first went to the Paddy's market to buy an umbrella and then proceeded to the Circular Quay to visit the Opera House. It was a real treat to watch the harbour bridge and the Opera House on a cloudy rainy day. After having lunch at an Indian restaurant there, we took a ferry to the Darling Harbor. We visited the Sydney Wildlife World taking pictures with the kangaroos and koalas, and as it was getting late, we quickly got out and took a ferry to the Manly beach. After a splendid view of the harbor bridge and the Opera house in the backdrop of the sunset on the way, it was already dark by the time we reached the beach. We grabbed some biriyani again at an Indian restaurant at Manly and managed to catch the ferry back in time. Returned to the rooms and relaxed for the day.

The next day ie., Monday onwards again it was official engagements for the officers during the day and the spouses went about exploring the city. In the evenings again me and Deepu would go about exploring places. On Monday we explored places around the Darling Harbour and the Sydney tower

On Tuesday we went around city and the Queen Victoria Building. That was Deepu's last day in Sydney. She was to leave for Hyderabad the next morning for Amar's wedding. So we returned to the room early and slept. In the morning she was all packed and we left for the airport. She took the 8 am flight to Bangkok and I returned to the hotel room, as all the others had left for the official tour by then.

Having nothing to do, I just took a ferry to Manly and then back to the hotel and spent the rest of the day in the room. When the rest of the guys returned, I went around exploring places with them. Thursday evening was spent at the souvenir shop buying gifts for friends and family members back home. The next day, was our last day of the Phase-3 training. We were given some time off in the morning and taken to the Sydney zoo in the afternoon, where we were to have our graduation ceremony. After a lousy ceremony and some lousy food we returned to the rooms to pack ourselves.

We were up early in the morning on Saturday and took the bus to the airport by 6am. We bid goodbye to Sydney and Australia and took the 8 am flight to Bangkok.

After a brief layoff at the airport in Bangkok, took the evening flight to Hyderabad and landed at Hyderabad at 10.30 pm. Back home to the summer after a nice cool fortnight of a wintry Australia.

Aussie ! Memories-2 Canberra and Melbourne

It was a 9 hour long flight from Bangkok to Sydney. The Thai airways flight had such colorful interiors just like the candy colors of theirs taxis back in Bangkok. We landed at Sydney Airport in the afternoon after catching those first glimpses of the Pacific and the Australian soil.

Our first week was to be in Canberra and so after all airport formalities, we got out and got onto the bus to Canberra. As there were some space constraints, me and Deepu traveled in different buses. We reached Canberra just before dark and were taken to the Australian Institute of Sports where our stay was arranged. An apartment type of accommodation was arranged for the two families that decided to stay in the Institute. So we had to share the apartment with my batch mate and his spouse. Wasn't a bad place, but we'd expected the Australian authorities to have arranged something better than this for the officers.

For the next four days the officers would attend to their training schedule during the day and the spouses explored the city. In the evenings it was often very cold, but we still did get out to explore the place together. On two occasions an Indian family took us out for dinner, once at their own place and once to a restaurant. Incidentally, the family belonged to Andhra and their daughter was studying Medicine at Mangalore. What a small world? Thursday was the last and final day at Canberra and we had planned to visit Deepu's friend at Melbourne for the weekend. After the official engagement in the morning, we were on our own post lunch. So me and Deepu packed our stuff, checked out of the room and went out to explore the city together. We went to the Canberra center, did some shopping and had some food at a restaurant and left for the airport to catch our next flight to Melbourne.

We landed in Melbourne later in the evening and were picked up at the airport by Deepu's friend's hubby Shridhar. As soon as we reached their place, it was a happy reunion of Deepu and her Med. College classmate. The next morning we were driven to Melbourne city and taken around places. Just loved the tram ride round the city.

The most memorable part of the day I should say was the visit to the MCG which was like a dream come true. I remember how during childhood we would wake up at 5 in the morning back home, to watch the Benson & Hedges matches being played in this ground. The MCG was such a distant dream then for us kids.

The next day, ie 22 of May was a very sad day, not for something that happened in Melbourne but because of what happened back home in Mangalore. It was a Saturday and I was just lazing around in the morning, planning to go around Melbourne city later in the day after lunch. Had even been to a local shopping mall and returned home by about 12pm. As I just browsing the net, Shridhar came rushing to inform that an air crash was being reported on the news channels and it says, at Mangalore. At first I thought.. how could it be... of the places... the place where I am in-charge? but as I rushed to the TV to confirm.. I couldn't believe my eyes.. and what a major crash it was and I had no role to play what so ever from here. I spent the rest of the morning just watching TV9 Kannada, on the web, watching my own officers struggle among the burning debri and look for the remains of the nearly 160 dead passengers of that ill-fated flight.

In the evening, we were driven to the beach and then drove across the city. We went up the Eureka towers and had a good view of the fully lit up city & the MCG, and then proceeded back home. The next morning we had an early flight to Sydney so we woke up early and left. We had about 40 minutes for the flight's departure and rushed to the check-in counter... just to be informed that the check-in was closed for the flight 5 mins ago. The only option left was to cough up nearly $140 and catch the next available flight. Having no choice, we cursed the airline ; ) , went out for a nice breakfast and took the next available flight to Sydney.

Aussie ! memories- 1, a day at Bangkok

Just before midnight on the 14th of May 2010, we boarded the Thai Airways flight to Bangkok from Hyderabad. Not only did we land quite early in the morning, if i recall correctly I think it was at about 5 am in Bangkok, but also lost about an hour and a half flying east. So all-in-all we could hardly catch a wink. But once you land in a foreign country, sleep is the last thing on mind. We had to first run from pillar to post for forms that were not to be found for the temporary Thai VISA and then go through the immigration formalities. it was easier in my case coz I was on a Diplomatic passport but the spouses had to go through the Q's. The Thai airport staff were definitely not what their ads show them as. They don't speak a word of English.... never mind that.. but they are not friendly either. Once we were through with these formalities, we got on to our buses and were taken to the Novotel Hotel. The moment I entered the room, the bed, the view through the window were just so inviting.. didn't realize when I took off my shoes and dozed off. It must have been about 11 am in the morning, I just remember Deepu was waking me up, telling that the last bus for the city tour of Bangkok was leaving. Having no choice, I reluctantly woke up, got ready and rushed down to catch the last bus. We missed our breakfast and we were on the bus for the tour. We went around the city visiting some famous temples, monuments and a gem cutting factory and finally landed at a busy shopping mall for lunch. We caught up with some Thai food at a place there, but we didn't like it much. We returned to the hotel room by evening and back to sleep. by 9 in the evening we were packed again and ready for our pre-midnight flight to Sydney. We caught the flight on time, but this time after a small amount of commotion at the airport, when some of us were asked by the Thai airways to cough up some extra money in the name of Airport fee (if i recall correctly).

Phase 3 training, the Hyderabad leg

In continuation to our last post, we landed at Hyderabad on the evening of 4th of April 2010. We were picked up at the airport by a driver friend of mine who was also surprisingly my official driver during my stint in CISF as Assistant Commandant way back in the year 2001. What a small world, this guy was back in my alma mater on deputation and was deputed to pick us up at the airport. I was a bachelor back then in 2001, and now he was driving us couple.

We reached the academy by 9 pm and went straight to the Mess, where I would be staying for the coming 6 weeks of training. I was welcomed by a bunch of the most mischievous of my batchmates, just outside the mess and it was a welcome I was most dreading. They huddled round me and yelled out to the others to come and see, just how much i had changed since training and what they were pointing at was my hard earned waistline and chubby cheeks. I managed to escape from those clutches quickly, introduced Deepu to them and rushed to my room. After a while, Deepu left for home in Dilsukhnagar and i continued my training at the Academy. Home and Academy were about 20 kms away. On weekdays Deepu would come to the Academy in the evenings and we'd go to the gym or the swimming pool, and on the Weekends, I would go home and we would spend the days shopping, going to the movies, dinners etc.

The six weeks that I was at the academy, I spent most of the mornings and evening at either the Gym, Badminton courts, Tennis courts or the swimming pool. I kept cutting down on diet too and by the end of the six weeks I had nearly lost about 6 kilos of weight. Not a bad achievement taking into account all those dinners and parties during the weekends. The working hours between 9.30 in the morning to 5 in the evening were a real drab. We'd have classes at the Andhra Pradesh Bhavan, a nice cozy hall to take a good nap after a nice morning workout. Nevertheless few of the talks were real interesting especially two that I can make a mention of are, Anton Musgrave on 'Lessons from the future' and the one by Sudhanshu Phalsule on Leadership. The rest were just fillers. We did have some exposure at the Indian School of Business, Hyderabad and it was quite interesting. We kept having weekly assessment tests and one final assessment exam. The most dreaded was the Theme Paper to be presented on the final day of the Indian leg of the course. Surprisingly enough, the paper that I prepared got selected to the final 10, and I was supposed to give a 15 minutes presentation on it on the final day. the topper among the 10 would get selected for a scholarship for a PhD at the Charles Sturt University, Australia. So I went on to prepare a very elaborate presentation, paying little attention to the time it took to present. The D-Day did arrive and I started the presentation to the mounting expectations of by friends seated behind. It was reagarding the 'Developing cocktail of Communalism, Organised Crime and Terrorism in Mangalore' ,the district where I was serving. An interesting topic that it was, people kept waiting to hear more and more on it, but little did I realise that I had gobbled up the 15 minutes given in just introducing the conundrum of Mangalore. The warning bell rang, the final bell rang and I still didnt realise that my time was over and I had to leave. It was a terrible disappointment because of my own stupidity and as i walked back across the hall I could see those dropped jaws trying to console me.

That was the end of the Indian leg or rather the Hyderabad leg of the training. The next two weeks would be in Australia, one week at Canberra and another at Sydney. The Hyderabad part went off well. My main intension was weight reduction and surprisingly enough I did pretty well academically as well. The best part of the entire leg offcourse was the quality time me and Deepu spent throughout that period, be it at home, academy or just exploring the city. The last week of our stay in Hyderabad we spent most of the time planning the Australia trip, the Visas, money exchange, buying phone sim cards, shopping, packing etc. Finally we were to leave to Sydney Australia by the Thai airways flight from Hyderabad via Bangkok on the 14th of May 2010.