Routine ROUTINE

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Routine ROUTINE

1976: IIT KGP:

One morning our office attendant came into my room and said that our HoD, Prof HNB (God to many including me) was asking me to go to his office at once.

This puzzled me since he never did this earlier...I was taking my classes without fail and I was too junior for him to give any administrative work to me.

HNB said:

"Sastry! Take up the Time Table Job immediately. Go to Prof STA and get the lal khata from him"

"Why me sir! I am too junior!"

"Because:

1. You are a bachelor getting bored at home and so arrive in the department half an hour before everybody else.

2. You are the only one who has never taken a single day's CL in the past one decade.

3. You don't want to do this job. Many others want to do it since they think it gives them promotion...a superstition and a fallacy"

"Sir! Course Allotment is contentious. Senior Professors will jump on me if they get courses they don't like"

"That part of it I shall do. Make the Routine one week before classes start and display it on the Notice Board. Remember we are under National Emergency. Ministry wants all classes to be held without fail. As soon as the office opens, find out who is on leave that day, and send chits to other available teachers to take their classes and engage the students."

"My God! I will be massacred by seniors if I start ordering them through chits"

"Sign your chits: 'By Order, HoD'. And if anyone troubles you, send him to me"

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Many professors approached me asking me not to give them first periods, last periods, post-lunch periods, Mondays, Fridays etc etc. I did my best to please them all...it was no big job.

And the Routine was proceeding swimmingly.

And then one noon Dr B came to me and announced joyously:

"Hey! Sastry! I am no longer an Assistant Professor. I got my Professor Appointment Letter and submitted my Joining Report just now"

"Hearty Congratulations sir!"

"You know it means I now become a Senate Member. I have to go through the Agenda, attend the Senate Meetings, read the Minutes, participate in Senate Sub-Committee proceedings etc. And Senate norms require that Senate Members should be given not more than 6 periods a week. So reduce my class load from 12 to 6 immediately"

"Sir! It is the middle of the semester and it will be difficult for me to alter the Routine right away. Sorry!"

"Is that your decision? (angrily) You will hear from the HoD!"

...I never heard from the HoD :)

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And then there was this new recruit Dr S who joined during the summer vacation, and we became good friends. He did his Ph D and post-doc from Canada unlike any of us. A week before the Routine was to be made he entered my room and said:

"Hey! Shastry! I can take senior MSc Courses like Advanced QM, Nuclear Physics, Particle Physics, Mathematical Methods etc. Allot any one or more of these courses to me"

"Course Allotment is not done by me. Our HoD does it. Meet him right away and speak with him"

After ten minutes Dr S arrived and said:

"I have spoken to your HoD just now"

"What did he say?"

"He said he will keep me in his mind"

"Great!"

And two days later I walked into Prof HNB's office carrying the lal khata. As I called out the names of our 32 teachers one by one, Prof HNB dictated each one's courses from his head and I noted them down one by one.

Finally I asked:

"Dr S?"

"Oh! Give him Second Year B Tech Chemical Engineering"

And I looked at him and smiled. And he looked at me and returned my smile"

Second Year B Tech Chemical Engg was reputed to be the rowdiest class. 

And Prof HNB believed in "blooding' his new recruits and watch the fun :)

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Oh! By the way...I got my promotion next year :)

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