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BOTH FOR TEXT AND PIX.
Chapter 18
Breaking News:
Our long time friend, Ashok Ravat has
married Yogini ModaK a colleague of his
from Mumbai Grahak Panchayat, one of the many social service organizations he
is active in. Congratulations! Yogini and Ashok. Look forward to meeting our
Bhabi.
…oooOOO…
Now to get on with the story of Forbes n I:-
FFC had also set up factories at
Aurangabad. One was a ceramic factory, the modernized version of the spark plug
manufacture which was in Kurla. The other was to be the expansion of the Tap n
Die manufacture which was at Chandivali. Once when IR conflict was at peak,
Khandwala ordered Chandivali machines uprooted and transferred to Aurangabad. Later
when we had IR trouble at Aurangabad, and one of our Managers was stoned, he
ordered the same machines to be uprooted and transferred back to Chandivali,
which had settled into peaceful state. So it was Crompton all over again,
albeit on a smaller scale and with the Directors being in the fray, hands-on.
When our Manager was stoned, the police did
not act; so I went off to meet the Police Officer. He said that we know he has
been stoned; but we have no proof who has done it; so we cant do anything. In a
burst of anger I told him: so you will act only when we produce: a dead body,
the accused, and five witnesses to the act? Phew!! Those were exciting but not
happy days.
But there was a happier side to the job in
Forbes:-A year after I had joined Forbes, Khandwala (GK Esq) had
authorized me to travel to Europe n USA
to meet with the Companies who had stakes in the Group Companies. He was also Inspired to set up an in-house education and
development facility.
My first overseas trip had been a full decade ago when Esso had sent
me to Bangkok for a training conference and I had added Malaysia and Singapore
to my plans. I am not counting the boat trip, perhaps
Calcutta-Singapore-Calcutta that I must have made with Papaji and Bibi ji as a
2 year old toddler.
After completing the European leg of my journey, I sat
drinking beer n eating Pitta balls in the Bar with my resident cousin Billa n
nephew Tolly n Rosa. We said bye bye and I proceeded to board the flight, only
to find:- Gate Closed! I missed the Amsterdam - New York flight and
had to fly out the next day. My bags had duly travelled ahead. Those were the
days when Security was not such a bad word in civil aviation. I should call that
a ‘night in Amsterdam without a tooth brush.”
On arrival at JFK I was standing at the
curb waiting for a ride to town. A taxi came along and rode over one of my soft
bags.
A porter pointed out to another: did you
see that: the Cabbie ran over his bag.
The other retorted: what is so great:
cabbies run over people.
That was the first of my several trips to
USA. I had worked for an American company for 15 years but it was to be up to
Forbes to make me a frequent flyer to USA, and around the world. In those days,
if you had a destination in USA, you could convert that trip to round the
world. I met up with GK n Astad in USA and visited some plants together. I returned home via Los Angeles, Hawaii, Tokyo n Hong Kong! Sukhjit
still treausres the Mickimoto pearls I got for her.
I went on a campus recruitment drive, along
with Dr. T Ranganathan, then President of IVP n Uday Malik the Deputy Managing Director of Goodlass Nerolac Paints. We selected two trainees for the Personnel
Department; Madhu Katariya from FMS Delhi and Subaiah from XLRI. After an informal introduction to the Group,
they were assigned: Madhu to be the contact for the HO management personnel.
Subiah for the Factories.
Soon thereafter we chose TB Jayraman to
head the Training function. Jay had come
out of Indian Oil; so we had something In common. He was a good trainer and raconteur
as well. In course of time Ranga, Jay and I became some kind of storyteller
team in the Group. At the drop of a hat…. As Ranga would say.
So by n by we had a goodly HO team in
Personnel department. I started a morning
tea meeting of all Personnel Staff in my office…all levels. It was a
nice bonding session of HO n some other visiting Personnel staff… usually
Ghankar from Patel Volkart would join. I had to egg on the persons concerned to
share information of the happenings in their area.
In course of time, Madhu got married, and
left us to join a Consultancy firm. Subaiah left to join Stanchart. He was in the
HR Team there, when Mickey applied for a job there.
Madhu continued with the consultants in a
flexi time arrangement that allowed her to bring up her family. Finally she
settled down in Delhi. Subiah went to Dubai.. and the just the other day I
heard of his sad demise.
Subiah was a great pal to the youngsters in
the Company and Mickey n Vicky. He was into Soccer and the boys loved that. He had
married but we don’t know what came of
that. We mourn his passing away. Age 60-61 is rather premature in these
days of longevity.
One particular evening, GK invited me to a
‘walk’ at the Services Club. I had earlier read a huge big file in which
earlier Personnel n Accounts Dept Heads had drafted proposals for ‘perquisites’
of Managing staff but these had remained on file. I was keen on improving
things in Forbes. Here Perks were handed
out on case-by-case basis and there was much heart burning n hardship.
During that evening walk I spelt out the
major changes we needed to make in Management salary and perquisite structure. As GK seemed receptive, I asked him, how to go about it. He gave me the secret:
Get together with CT Gadhiali, the
Company Secretary and prepare a board note. Bingo! The new structure was
approved and put in place. In Crompton it needed only the MD’s approval. But in
Forbes, most companies were run as if Board Managed. So Board Notes were the
means to put wheels under any proposal.
Another new thing for me was being summoned
before Board meetings of the various Companies of the Group: to be introduced;
to be asked about the Personnel situation in that particular company, quite
often the IR angle, etc. In Esso, the equivalent of this were the Committees on
Management Compensation. In Crompton, there was only one occasion where I
joined in a meeting with the Board… the IR crises meet that I referred to
earlier.
Folks, like in a family, each organization
has its own decision making model: The real one and the formal one.
Also, friends, you can learn something from everybody; From GK I learnt, Do it Now. From Astad I learnt, be clear n precise. From Ranga I learnt that what looks simple may not be so simple. From Jay I learnt that work n fun can be combined....
More in my next...
.....oooooOOOOOooooo.....
Picture Gallery follows:
Please forgive any errors in Captions
But do please point out the errors.
 |
| Ashok with Yogini She is recovering from a fracture in the house |
 |
| Devoo n Indu Kothari Devoo had introduced me to Forbes and turned out to be a good friend n supporter throughout my career n thereafter. |
.JPG) |
| Madhu Malik, nee Katariya n her daughter Anjali with Sukhjit at home 2011. |
.jpg) |
| Obit for bright n energetic Subiah |
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| Nephew Tolly n Rosa in Rotterdam - 2012 |
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| My cousins Billa n Harmohan on a visit to Mumbai |
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| Dr T Ranganathan President of IVP n later FFC. |
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