Continuing on my theme of Unsung Heroes of Bihar and our Forgotten Glory... ( as requested by Bhavini Mistry and appreciated by Vishwas Anand, Mayank Sharma, Arun Jha and other friends ) ... let me talk about those who are vital to our national security. A few years ago I was talking to a friend in the Defence Ministry who was Chief of the Border Roads Organization. He casually remarked that but for you BIHARIS, we would have to close down our organisation. I was baffled and said it was a thoughtless policy to rely on one particular state or region. He agreed, but said that they have tried people from all parts of the country but NO ONE stays and works hard enough at 17, 000+ feet altitude... even many tough looking guys start vomiting blood at mere 8, 000 feet altitude and have to be evacuated at once by helicopter within hours, as it may be either fatal or damage brain permanently. It is only these BIHARIS who stay with us for years on end until we gratefully retire them. We have to break every rule to appease them, as they cant be recruited as army personnel,.. . They have to be classified as mere casual labourers but we treat them most lavishly, look after them and their families, their children and even relatives, send them under escorts to their village homes on 60 days vacation, at our cost, the escorts stay with them, participate in their family and social, religious functions, and BRING THEM BACK.....We just cant risk losing them. No one else can put in 12 hours a day backbreaking gruelling hard work at -20 ºC or lower temperature range, and stay with us for years on end....we have indeed tried and keep encouraging people from elsewhere... but they all quit within weeks.. No one in the civilian world even knows about the extremely vital role these nameless, faceless, illiterate BIHARIS play in keeping our border roads in shape and serviceable in all seasons... These are our UNSUNG BIHARI HEROES.... HATS OFF TO THEM!
Posted on: Tue, 11 Nov 2014 04:33:36 +0000
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