One Night In An ATM Counter

Palden Chodra is 28 years old bachelor. He has just arrived from Mongar to his new place of posting here in Thimphu. It is his first official posting. He was placed in Mongar for two years after graduating from the College of Natural Resources; Lobesa, Wangdue Phodrang. He is an Agricultural Officer and a strong believer and self-proclaimed guardian of our cultural and traditional ethics.

when he last visited his great grandmother  in their village, she kept him busy asking him to settle down soon so she could die happily after witnessing her only  great grandson’s marriage. This was the only wish she had like all great grandparents do. It was his last week in the east. And every single word uttered with her soothing voice is still audible to him. And like all loving great grandsons he did secretly promised to fulfill her last wish sooner.

Almost mysteriously, just after a month or two of his stay in Thimphu-the capital of Bhutan, he and his Miss Perfect happened to dash each other on the crowded pavement along the Norzin Lam. The whole scene unfolded in perfect slow motion similarly how it happens in all the romantic movies of Bollyhood. Her long silky hair danced in the air revealing in mini-seconds her beautiful face.

Palden Chodra missed a heartbeat, took a long deep breath and kept blinking his eyes in even slower motion when he saw what he always wished for. She had a typical Bhutanese face cut; Plump rosy cheeks, small eyes and sharply cut lips. He even heard a romantic tune coming out of Dramyin( Bhutanese wooden guiter) played in some far distant place with a husky voice humming in the background. The ‘time warp’ smoothly came to its normal speed when he heard the final note of that romantic symphony. But in the normal speed of time his eyes suddenly caught the sight which utterly displeased him.

image: Dramyin   source - culturalinfusion.org.au

Syeldon Rewa wangchuck is her good name. She is Harvard graduate and is flawlessly westernized. She is an Assistant Manager in one of the financial institutions in Thimphu. But why on earth was Palden Chodra displeased!

The ‘self-proclaimed guardian of our cultural and traditional ethics’ saw her wearing LEVIS jeans tightly fitted around her legs, stylish boots warming her feet and Northface jacket covered the top half of her body. He never wished such garments invade the simplicity of his wardrobe, his house and our nation at large. The sight of her garments did disturbed him but the beauty of her face still made the unfinished symphony of ‘love- at- first -sight’ to continue.

A friend at his office advice him to wear some decent pants and shirts after office hours whenever he makes an appointment to meet her, loss some extra mass especially around his tommy and reduce the consumption of ARA (home manufactured alcohol) and DOMA (a combination of a betel nut, lime and a wild leaf which is customarily chewed after every meal in Bhutan). Palden Chodra agreed on exercise in order to reduce the size of his tommy but was adamant not to wear pants and shirts and to reduce the consumption of ARA and DOMA. 

In his desperate attempt to woo her, without tarnishing the ethics, he toke her to watch the  latest Bhutanese releases in theaters around the city, to MART and to the SHAREE SQUARE for some shopping. Though he was uncomfortable on the elevator he wore smiles on his face. Interestingly the day of their last outing on which they had spent a time together in Centenary Park was on the eve of Valentine Day but sadly Palden Chodra was unaware of it.

Late that night, his friend called to inform him about this special occasion of lovers on the following day. So immediately he rushed to the nearest ATM Counter to withdraw an amount of money to purchase a gift to his darling. His frequent attempt to withdraw money from ATM counters that night was in vain. And out of sheer frustration Palden Chodra spat a mouth full of DOMA on the screen of one of the ATM Counters.

The following morning, on the romantic day for love buds, Palden Chodra received a call from General Manager of a Bank. He was caught red handed spitting on the screen by the CCTV hung inside that particular ATM Counter the previous night. He was ordered not to repeat the act again. The news was already spread among the staffs. And as luck would have it Syeldon Rewa Wangchuck, who lately had started to show some affection to him, works in the same Bank as the Assistant Manager.

Two days later he receives another bad news. His lovely Great Grandmother left for her ultimate home in the skies.

  

# its a pure work of fiction and should not be affixed with the names of characters, institutions and individuals who might have experienced the same incidents narrated in the article.          

Rich man in a Hospital Room and unhealthy vegetables in The GNH Nation.

Yesterday I visited my uncle who has been admitted in the JDWNRH, Thimphu for a week or two. It was a cold evening as usual. The hospital was jam-packed with attendances and visitors who came to pay visit to the sick and ill relatives during the evening visiting hours (6:00pm – 8:00pm).

Image: Thimphu Hospital (Photo:panoramio.com)

After our brief conversation on his status he started to share the worries Doctors at JDWNRH were bothered by. The concern was imperative. My brief visit to the hospital did prove something. The ward on the top most floor of the hospital, where my uncle was, had only two empty beds eagerly waiting for their occupants.

The Doctors had advice each patient personally on the previous day, to ask their attendances to have the vegetables cut and washed with hot water before it is cooked and brought to serve the sick. They believe the vegetables coming from bordering towns of falakata and Hasimara in India aren’t that healthy. Which i think the issue should be taken up seriously beyond the walls of hospitals because the vegetables and fruits that are imported from the Indian towns even reach to the village in the east where I was once a community school teacher. No wonder, the only two empty beds at the hospital might have been occupied as you read this line.

Thimphu being the capital city of Gross National Happiness country; the place where the concept took its first breath interestingly houses the largest population of most fashionable yet most frustrated citizens. Searching a place to park a car gives a sharp crick on the back of one’s neck, walking down a street at night scares many, looking for an apartment with a decent rent disappoints a score, the frequent soaring of already high rental charges and the increase in the price tag of commodity goods are few areas I believe where people instantly get frustrated.

We wear the most fashionable garments bought from the biggest shopping Malls in our country. These Shopping malls are just four storied buildings yet ironically furnished with elevators and lift. And in the name of saving time deprive us from the easiest form of exercise- walking. We drive the most expensive cars showcased in the largest glittering showrooms in our country built on our own fertile lands across the Express High Way but at the end of the day, the fruits and vegetables on our dining tables and in our plates are imported from the lands crippled and poisoned with chemicals.

Image: bhutanmajestictravel.com The Express High Way

Back in the hospital, my uncle shared me something that really moved me. Just beside his bed there lays a rich old man groaning. He keeps on worrying how he would be able to recollect his money credited to relatives and friends within country and abroad. He is often found counting his money bending his weak and wrinkled fingers. And late at night he unkindly requests his roommates at the hospital to chant Gayatri Mantra (the most sacred mantras in Hinduism which helps to remove obstacles in life) along with him.

The journey from no: 217 to no: 1

The very appointment here in Druk School has been an emotional event for me. i came from a small community school in Trashiyangtse which is almost 600 Km away from here. My previous school, Lichen Community Primary School ranked 217^th out of 500 plus schools in our country.

With the appointment letter in my hand I had a lot of mixed feelings in my heart. I knew I got what I always wanted because back in 2009 I had applied for a post of teacher in Druk School but was not appointed. Having not being appointed then I joined the Light Drukyul Project as a Contract Teacher. And when I finally got the appointment letter last December the scale of challenges waiting ahead for me, in my new school, slowly started to sink in.

The journey from no: 217 to no: 1 was indeed more emotional but the appointment brought in more challenges. I knew I have 216 reasons to be happy but I was also aware of 216 new responsibilities that will be entrusted upon me and I was sure that I should be professionally 216 steps forward in the classrooms of Druk School.

With these empowering feelings in the back of my mind I spent the beginning of this year in preparing myself to confront the bright and the brilliant learners. To borrow Robin Sharma’s (Author of “The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari”) words ‘Awareness precedes choices precedes change’; Browsing the internet for new ideas in education and viewing youtube videos for additional information was the order of the day. I was aware what I needed, found so many choices and started to change.

And interestingly I too found truth in that old maxim that says; “Ask and thy shall receive”.

Facilitator explaining the Kagan's Cooperative Learning Structures

NAME TAG

A telephonic invitation from Druk School to participate in the “Training on Transformative Pedagogy for 21^st Century Teachers; Facilitated by Royal Education Council, GNH SEED SCHOOL Instrumental Leaders and Coordinated by Rinzin Research and Consultancy Services” on the 2^nd of February and the subsequent days of learning the Kagan’s cooperative learning structures solidified my preparation for Druk School.

The Workshop wall

This is indeed my story, an anecdote of a teacher being blessed with the latest educational wisdom but it isn’t an end in itself. The journey of teaching in my new school with newer skills and strategies is yet to begin. All said and done, I believe I was born a passionate teacher but Thank You DRUK SCHOOL, Facilitators from Royal Education Council and Rinzin Research and Consultancy Services for Coordinating the Five Day Training that simply ornamented me with skilful strategies and for making me a better TEACHER.

NIIT Chenphen Rigphen; The Fishy NAME within came true yesterday!

Image: yanatravel.com

I know the NIIT Chephen Rigphen Project is an ambitious project. I don’t have anything to talk about the  impact and the 'enabling and enhancing' goals the project have. What I want to address here is the poor, undemocratic and almost already fixed placement of second batch of Trainers announcement yesterday.

I believe the first batch of trainers was placed according to their choice of placement. That’s well and good. But the placement announced yesterday and the last minute recruitment of few graduates, who were initially not shortlisted as trainers, to fill up the empty slots made the matter worse.

My sister is one of the trainers. She got her placement in a Lower Secondary School, somewhere in east. The School is three hrs walk from a road point. The village has been provided with electricity since 7^th march, 2011. The weather is moderate so said a GAO officer there when I called him up for some details. But the concern officers at NIIT Chephen Rigphen were acting cool in placing the second batch of Trainers.

The second batch of Trainers were asked to write down their choice of placement earlier alike the first batch but the placement was not done according to the choices made by the trainers. The reason the management cited was the arrival of electricity in places not mentioned as their choice. Interestingly my sister had chosen Samtse Dzongkhag (two slots were available) as her choice of placement but she was denied of it and the placement were allotted to candidates who had never opted samtse Dzongkhag as their choice. Now, why on earth were they asked to write their choice of placement if the management cannot fulfill their wishes? Neither were they provided to lucky draw their own placement which probably could have been fair and more democratic. On which my sister said she was willing to go happily.

Today, when my sister requested the Officers at the NIIT Chephen Rigphen to give her any other placement that has not been provided with a trainer due to the shortage of candidates, she was told the management has already hired some candidates (the initially not selected graduates) to fill the slots. Initially rejected candidates were given more privilege than the shortlisted. They were also placed in more favorable places where at least a farm road connects their place of posting. The management did also remind my sister that the placement has been fixed by the HRO officer who is currently out of station and they have no authority to bring any change in the placements announced.

If the following incident is at all not coincidence, the management and the HRO have a big hand in placing the candidate in his own choice of placement.

From the beginning of their orientation program which will conclude by this Friday, one of the trainer candidates, who also use to come driving his own car, was always found promising himself that if he gets his placement under Thimphu Dzongkhag he will serve the Project else he would withdraw his candidature. Fairly enough or due to sheer family backup he got his choice of placement. Che- means one and Phen- means benefit!

The Last chronicle of “Today’s Phuntsholing Town: A long romantic affair on the line

When dust begins to settle down in evening on the pavements, streets and roads of phuntsholing, small groups of young minds, school boys and girls, come out of their houses in the latest outfits available in the market.

PIC:Lonelyplanet.com

A couple of week earlier a fellow blogger Mr. Passang Tshering(maestro among Bhutanese Bloggers)  blogged a post regarding nuisance created by a group of youngsters;

There wasn't a day I didn't see groups of youth swaying by road under the influence of some intoxicants. And today some of then crossed their limits on to my car.. My poor already-injured car was peacefully parked alongside several others when a group of boys practiced their boxing skills on our side mirrors.
My wife and another car owner shouted from their windows only to get back all sorts of slang. I was in the class when my wife called me up, she informed me that the culprits were head in my direction and that I could track them down by the side of the Doti river.
The kids were totally senseless and one boy was bleeding badly from the cut he got from punching our mirrors. To my disbelieve there were two girls in same conditions making a show out of themselves on the road where hundreds were passing by.

Source: http://www.passudiary.com/

I often find a group of youngsters be seated in circle in a small tea shop down stair Namgyel Phodrang Shopping complex where I frequently visit to enjoy the delicious momo served there. Some in their new yellowish Korean hairdo, few with tattooed arms and Super star, all star, D.C and Red Bull and other brand of shoes were warming their feet. One day on my brief sitting I overheard one of them glorifying his friend’s inability to remember what had happened the previous night. He mentioned that they were involved in a fight where his ‘friend in the question’ single handedly had knocked down two of their rivals. I just wish his otherwise heroic friend was not under any sort of intoxicants. 

Just the other day, I found myself in between some boys while walking down the street in front of Mig Cinema Hall. On my right a couple of boys were saying something to the boy who was walking on my left side. The boy said nothing but simply raised his middle finger! Good Lord, they were close friends else I just might have been sandwiched by blows and kicks. I was as embarrassed as were the onlookers.

This is what’s happening in mild cold of this winter under Phuntsholing sky. Other stories that I heard from a student of the High School touched my heart with much vigor. The student revealed to me that during their school days his female classmates ask him to tattoo on their hands. And his male mates and others would cross the Doti River in lunch breaks to the other side of the river just to get drunk. That’s one part of the story. More shocking and even more heartbreaking for me as an educationist was to comprehend that the students drag themselves back to their SCHOOL. I wonder how they pay attention to the lectures presented. And amidst the chaos I can only pray and wish more strength and patience to teachers and parents in places where youth issue is a big concern to befriend, guide and mold them to better and productive citizens.

To tackle the current issue of traffic I believe another new bridge over Doti River has been laid on papers and to solve the shortage of LPG (cooking gas) another supplier agent which would fulfill the requirement of all the commercial consumptions is also entering the market soon. The supplier might ease the problem. The poor management of waste, large number of people and the malfunctions of ATM counters could be reasoned to the arrival of large number of people on their pilgrimage. But those should not be excuses for concern authorities to step back. I believe they must be also having a tough time and must be giving their best to provide the services. Better luck for them there!   

But as of now everything, everywhere, somehow is really not working well. In past few days even B-mobile lines are not clear or gets disconnected frequently. Here, I am not being critical at all but what is happening here is a matter of concern to all of us. It matters to me, to my family and it matters to my neighbors if these things keep on happening the way it is happening! If concern authorities don’t gear up but opt to keep bragging about pass victories and successes and rely on excuses I fear more days of worry, waiting, frustration, disappointment and less peace of mind are knocking the doors of the dwellers of this part of the country where Gross National Happiness is the mother of all the ideologies preached, practiced and believed in.

PART II: Today’s Phuntsholing Town: A long romantic affair on the line

Yesterday morning my brother and I had to wake up much earlier than at usual time. My mother had instructed us the previous day to take the empty LPG cylinder to the LPG booth below truck parking to get a new filled one. We somehow managed to win the battle of the morning bed. By 7:00 am in the morning we were out and at the place.

You cant spot me here because i am hidden by the truck

I was 97^th person standing in the line that kept on stretching as the clock tick. Out of sheer curiosity I asked one of the ladies behind me whether the queue is always this long.  On which she only replied with a YES nod. After almost 1 hr and 40 minutes of waiting my turn arrived. I had to show my LPG consumer card to a security guard (belly bulging doma(betel nuts) grinding machine…sorry I can’t describe him better) before I could get in to make the payment.

 I was aware that the card holder should come in person if he has to get a new filled cylinder. I was also informed by a notice on dusty wall that the date to get a new one must be at least after 15 days from the previous delivery. The Card I was holding belonged to my brother-in-law but the date of pervious issue was on 25^th October 2011. which mean that i could have refilled 4 cylinders if I had come on every 15^th day. My brother-in-law was out of station to attend some workshop but i thought the date of last issue could provide the chance to get at least one new filled cylinder. But my logical thinking was not entertained despite my numerous requests. My brother and I came with the same empty cylinder back home.

Later in the afternoon I went to Jaigoan to do some shopping where I shared the incident with my uncle who informed me that there are many people who earn Nu: 100 per cylinder (filled) when they sell it to third party within Phuntsholing town or in the bordering Indian town of Jaigoan. 'It’s a thriving business’, he said. He was as equally disturbed as I was on having to come in person the card holder himself to get a filled cylinder. He narrated an incident;

Once he happened to be alone at his resident. His wife and children had gone to village and his father -in-law, the card holder, was in Mumbai on some personal trip. At home the stove went off and he had to put up with his neighbor and resort to other means of cooking till his father in law returned. He strongly feels as I do that it is reasonable to get the cylinder filled only once every 15^th day but the need for the card holder to be in person to collect is pretty much problematic.  

Photo taken from Taxi Parking; nightmare of traffic at day light

 On returning home after the hot conversation and shopping I was caught in another queue…GOSH!!!...this time it was a long line of vehicles stranded in a heavy traffic jam. It took almost 1 hr 2o minutes to disperse. It was the longest waiting on the road. Thankfully it was raining yesterday else the dust from the side of the roads and from the pot holes on the road could have made the waiting even worse. The whistle of the traffic police is the order of the day this winter here. No wonder the latest excuse for arriving late at office or at home could be ‘sorry I was caught in the traffic jam’.

In between Bus Terminal and RICB colony; Evening dose of Traffic Jam 

The rush of the people, honking of cars, streets filled with litters and over flow of septic tank elsewhere is slowly eroding my love for this town……(to be continued….next is the last issue)….

 Somewhere in Phuntsholing Town a narrow street is littered with plastics and papers

In front of Truck Parking; A septic Tank over flows.

Today’s Phuntsholing Town: A long romantic affair on the line

This winter Phuntsholing Town neither could please me nor appeal me. I found this place at its worse situation ever. The condition of roads, dust, frequent traffic jams, crowded streets with pedestrians, failure of public services, poor management of waste, gang affiliation among students, long queue in front of ATM counters and even longer queue with  frustrated people waiting to fill LPG Cylinders at various booths. Bitter feelings crept in my heart to see one of my favorite towns suffer. It was as if I am experiencing first hand breakup of a long romantic affair.

My acronym for ATM is "Any Time Misery" 

The first thing I did when i first arrived here was to collect my ATM card from the Bank of Bhutan (bazaar branch) which was processed in my brief visit in last summer vacation. The concern officer then had told me that the branch was running short of cards and I can only avail it after few weeks. I didn’t had that long time to wait so decided to collect it in the following winter vacation. So here I was holding my own ATM card with considerably a good Bank balance to pop out frequently from that metal box and to make believe others that I am some Lakhpati or Crorepati. The stylish tall lady in the chamber inside issued the ATM card and informed me that it will get activated only after 24 hrs.

In the following day I went to Samdrup Jongkhar to help my parents shift to samtse. It was my father’s 13^th transfer in the span of 32 long years of dedicated service to the nation. Four days had passed in packing the stuffs.

Vehicles moving form SJ to P/Ling and G/Phu via Assam state.

On the fifth day, the last day to stay in the east, I was in need of some money so decided to finally use the ATM Card proudly. I flipped it few times between my fingers before entering the closed and secured room (where lots of money is kept inside and a curious small camera hung in one corner of the ceiling….funny part of it is that no matter where you stand inside you feel it is watching you always). To my disappointment there were no one outside or near by the ATM counter to showoff (I know you want to laugh your heart out….ok.. fine..do it..haha) but even more disappointment came when I inserted my card. ‘This card is not in the record’ read the thick screen in front of me.

Frustrated as I was I immediately called up the number posted on a piece of paper by the side of the screen to inquire. The officer on the other hand agreed to fix the problem. The system took another 24 hrs to mend the service. The opening ceremony of my ATM card was very good. I withdrew Ngultrum 40,000. Now here, i don’t want you to concentrate on the amount of money I withdrew or wonder how I spent it, the point I want to raise here is that the concern BOB officers (Phuntsholing BOB) who were accountable to activate my Card within 24 hrs of issue has shown Spectacular carelessness in their duty and has defamed the whole service.

That was in samdrup Jongkhar where not many came to use the ATM facility at once. Had this incident occurred here in phuntsholing it would have embarrassed me a lot. The day my card became active I was eagerly waiting to utilize the card where onlookers would be more in number. I got Excited because i was now back in Phuntsholing town after settling my parents in samtse.  And Phuntsholing town gave me the waited opportunity. But, I waited, waited and waited in a long queue which never seemed to get shorter. Finally when my turn came I was flashed with an instruction that stated ‘Host is busy….. Please visit to the nearest ATM counter!’ The waiting and the almost rude instruction dissipated my excitements. The nearest ATM counter was chained with even longer queue of people.

At times the ATM Counters do play some game. My sister once had to face it. She wanted to withdraw Nu: 3,000 from the ATM counter (T-Bank) situated in the Tashi Commercial Complex to do some purchase for her 18 months old baby girl. The screen kept on instructing ‘Please Try Again’. At her third attempt the transaction receipt still revealed that she has been debited with Nu: 0. She then left the counter for another one nearby.  On her way an alert message in her mobile beeped. It stated that Nu: 3,000 has been debited from her account. Thankfully when she checked her balance via mobile sms the balance was untouched.

Other services were also infected with the same disease and much disoriented. By Five o’clock in the morning people line up in front of LPG booths to exchange an empty cylinder with a filled one. 

….to be continued………..