PEPPATTI BRANCH - AaLAPPUZHA
published 11:50:16 AM gmt 03/22/12
last modified 20120328
last modified 20120328
I made a trip to alappuzha recently – on 23.2.2012 to be precise. I had booked a seat in the jansatabdi express of that day which starts at 0600 hrs ist from tvm. The problem started from there on.
TRAIN TICKET BOOKING
IRCTC
indian railways
I have an account with the indian railways online ticket booking system and that makes one able to book a ticket from the comforts of ones home just paying ten rupees to the irctc and another ten to the bankers. Well; I am not allowed to do that; my account has been compromised - “security reasons” based on “intelligence” information.
I am not allowed to book tickets online but all the same I am allowed to see the vacancy position in the various trains on various days and before going to pattom I had checked the availability of 23 feb 12 for the janshatabdi – there were more than thousand seats vacant.
When I boarded the train the next week I found that I was allotted the middle seat, the most inconvenient of the three. there is an option for choosing the window seat in the application form and I have done that. but then the booking clerk has to feed the request into the system manually – obviously he did not do so. And there was this very fat man already occupying the window seat.
I tried to bring down the hand rest between his seat and mine so that I can have one seat fully to myself. The gentleman made a noise,
ANNARAKKANNANUM THANNALAYATHU
The next best thing was going to the railway booking office at pattom where there is hardly any queue for even many of the locals do not know about its existence leave alone the outsiders.I am not allowed to book tickets online but all the same I am allowed to see the vacancy position in the various trains on various days and before going to pattom I had checked the availability of 23 feb 12 for the janshatabdi – there were more than thousand seats vacant.
When I boarded the train the next week I found that I was allotted the middle seat, the most inconvenient of the three. there is an option for choosing the window seat in the application form and I have done that. but then the booking clerk has to feed the request into the system manually – obviously he did not do so. And there was this very fat man already occupying the window seat.
I tried to bring down the hand rest between his seat and mine so that I can have one seat fully to myself. The gentleman made a noise,
“llcha.. “
that means NO.
his bulk was overflowing into my seat. Every time the gentleman was breathing in I was being pushed to the side.
I managed to sit in the seat for the first couple of hours of the journey and the last hour of the journey i travelled standing near the door.
by the way, I had missed the train the previous week. that time when I went to the booking office I had again asked for a window seat and I was told by the booking clerk, that there were no window seats available for the day I had asked ( that time he did give the choice of window seat as is expected of him). So rather than travel in any other seat I postponed my journey and chose the next day and got a window seat allotted. - I carry a pillow along and can comfortably take a snooze in that seat.
that is how the “intelligentsia” became aware that I am keen on a window seat and even would postpone the journey for that and ensured that I end up with a middle seat. Heard of the saying “annarakkannanum thannalyathu”; every law abiding citizen of this country is expected to contribute to the war efforts against me to their fullest potential. i will later on be telling you in detail about another group of annarakkannans -the state bank of india, statue trivandrum -695001
PEYPATTI BRANCH - ALLEPPEY
There was not much of a reception in kochi for my main destination was alleppey. the main idea of my going to ernakulam was to procure a few bottles of a particular brand of whiskey from the naval canteen. this particular brand I found had the minimum standard and suits my pocket. unfortunately army canteens over here in tvm do not stock this variety and the miser that I am the one I got over here is not upto even my standards -just bland. Except for the odd peppatti in the bus there was not much of activity and there were hardly any pBirds in ernakulam.
However the peppatti branch of alleppey was on full alert – they probably were on red alert on the day when I missed the train and were at it with a vengence this time to compensate for the earlier miss.
The main purpose of my trip to alleppey was to transfer my ex-service registration from the district sainik welfare office at alleppey to thiruvananthapuram. I had my name registered with the alleppey office while I was working there and I had been to the sainik welfare office there only once, or twice may be and that was in 1993 - I mean I had forgotten the way. So at the bus station I made enquiries. And a woman employee of the ksrtc confidently told me that the sainik welfare office was near sd college and so I took a bus to that area. once I reached there I realised that the information was wrong for the sainik welfare office was some where else. However they had an army establishment at this place and so I decided to enquire at this office about the location of the sainik welfare office. In the bargain I met this
GREAT MAN
I went to the receptionist who rather than answering my question involving a tactical secret like the location of the sainik welfare office directed me to the office upstairs – obviously a reception had been arranged for me upstairs and the receptionist had instructions to send me there rather than disclose the location of the sainik welfare office.
in the office above I met a man probably the head clerk for he was sitting at the entrance at the head of the other seats in the room. I asked him if he could tell me about the location of the sainik welfare office – is there any thing abnormal in it ? A stranger at a particualar locality asking where such and such an office is located ! All you have to do is say that you know or do not know and if you feel like guide me. or you can even say you are busy that is all.
But this chap was taking on airs; his manners were so rude, he is a discredit to any civilized set up leave alone an army establishment.
I was really amused by the arrogance of this member of the clerical staff of the army unit there and before leaving i switched on to a tone of mock reverence and profusely apologized to the great man for my impertinence in approaching such a great man with my silly questions about the location of the zilla sainik welfare office.
Well; if I say I have never talked to such an arrogant character I may be wrong. A similar incident had taken place long back in ernakulam. As I was walking back to my home at kizhakkambalam at about 11pm a police vehicle had pulled up close to me, stopped near me and an assistant–sub–inspector-of-police started questioning me. He continued even after I told him that I am a local resident going to my home - I had even shown him my driving license. The fellow was just trying to be funny. This assistant–sub–inspector-of-police was also talking in the same vein as the clerk I mentioned above.
Not only that, during the conversation the assistant–sub–inspector-of-police was taking orders from some one hiding in the back seat and in an identical manner this great man, the clerk, was also taking instructions from some one who was sitting inside the office and whom I could not see.
I am certain the “instructor” the director of the drama in both cases, is from the peypatti branch.
the fact of the matter is everybody who knows “what is what” is shit scared of the peppatti branch and they always have their way while I am treating the peppatties exactly as what they are – bloody shit, and they are being made to run round in circles. it is a question of their prestige and the peppatties have to do something or other to save their face. that is why these desperate attempts. now that I have been putting these things on the net the next time I go to thiruvananthapuram they are very likely to let loose one of their hired thugs on me - I do not care.
sainik “welfare”
Well; ultimately I got the whereabouts of the zilla sainik welfare office at alleppey kind courtesy some locals and the ex-service chaps in the security branch of the state tranport corporation. In fact immediately on my getting down at the transport station – from ernakulam I made the trip to alleppey by bus – the first thing I did was to go to the security post in the transport station but unfortunately for me there was nobody there and then this woman who is also on the staff appeared and told me that it is near sd college and in fact I asked her if she was sure and she reassured me – well I should have been more careful and that way, I could have avoided taking the “darshan” of the clerk maharaj.
The whole peppatti branch of alapuzha had been mobilised as if the president of india was visiting the place and I was being trailed by the peppatties and their pimps and the pBirds all over the place. All the same I got my job done at the office some how or other and came back.
sainik welfare office is a dept of the kerala government. I am not at all impressed by the sort of “welfare” that they are in the habit of providing.
long back I had been to the sainik welfare office in thiruvananthapuram, their directorate in fact, to find out about getting my service counted for increment and all some time after I joined kerala government service. I made enquiries in person at this office and one of the staff from the clerical side told me that I am not eligible for any such thing. the staff were in the middle of a heated discussion concerning t the singer udayabhanu and his kin then I was crest fallen and was going out when I accidentally met the director's PA who took me to her office and gave me the details of the rules and within no time I got ten increments added to my basic salary.
later on when I met the director in person I told him about the incident, how I would have missed my increments but for his PA. He said I should have met him in person – that time the director was an ex-service officer (and a war casualty if I remember correctly). I feel that does make a difference. in the alleppey sainik welfare office there is a board that every one should approach the clerk and not the welfare officer.
I told the director that the fellow who had sent me off was a staff member of the sainik welfare office who is getting paid to do this very job and he ought to know; and this character was telling me with one hundred percent certainty that I am not going to get anything of the sort! now If I had gone back and asked him why he gave me the wrong information rest assured he will say that he never said any such thing to me – this type of characters have no scruples at all and that is why the are big “successes” in life. of course there was the PA but these are the exceptions.
the only reason for my approaching the sainik welfare office is that it is this set up that issues the identity card for ex-service men and in certain defence establishments at least, like say for example the naval base in kochi, they insist on an ex-service identity card for entry - canteen card is not accepted as an entry pass. so I per force would want to get that identity card and will put up with the arrogance of the staff to procure it and then turn my back on them for good. let us hope the tactic works out.
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