On Tuesday morning, as the students of Kendriya Vidyalaya, Narimedu, gathered for the Assembly, they were pleasantly surprised to see one of their fellow students on stage smartly turned out in a blue blazer with the NCC badge and a gold medal pinned to it.
Known as a shy boy who was even afraid of entering the Principal’s room for any work till about six months ago, this morning Abhishek was a changed person. With his chin up and chest out, he shared with his juniors and seniors the experience of staying away from home and attending rigorous NCC camps. “It has set me up really well for the future,” he said by way of inspiring his peers.
The Principal Mr.C.Muthiah couldn’t stop gushing while presenting a transformed Abhishek to the students. This was the first time that a student from the school had reached this high and he explained how both academics and extra-curricular activities were equally important in life.
If Abhishek’s father, B.Karuppiah, an ex-serviceman is thrilled about his son’s achievement, the Head Master, Mr.G.S.Murugan who is also the school’s NCC officer is equally elated. In 2006, he raised the first NCC troupe in the school with 50 students drawn from classes VIII and IX and ever since has been sending his top cadets to the NCC camps. But this is the first time, he says with eyes gleaming, that one of my students lasted rigorous training in drill, shooting, marching and map reading, participated in culturals and inter-group competitions and also picked up the Best Cadet medal. “It is a matter of pride for all of us,” he adds.
After 12 camps of 10 days each and several rounds of training, tests and competitions, Abhishek was chosen to represent the Tamil Nadu/Pondicherry/Andaman & Nicobar Islands contingent at the R-Day camp. There were 141 college students and only nine school students and of them seven were from Tamil Nadu. This obviously meant fierce competition.
My parents were little worried at first, says Abhishek who has always nurtured the dream of joining the Indian Army. Based on his achievements in the corps, he hopes he will get preference over normal candidates during selections.
The NCC training moulds the youth to become responsible, disciplined and motivated citizens and leaders in all walks of life, says Murugan. “Yes, it is definitely a lifestyle change for me,” quickly follows Abhishek, “before I never got up early, now I wake up at 4.30 a.m. and go for an hour’s jogging with my father daily,” he smiles.
In the initial rounds of selection, Abhishek had to continuously prove his proficiency in English and Hindi, general knowledge and current affairs, marching and firing besides other talents and skills in inter-group competitions. He admits he loves to shake to Western music and went full blast during his performances.
With every round of elimination, Abhishek stood his ground and moved on bagging silver medal in drill and the best cadet medal in the final camp in Chennai from 18th to 28th December, 2014. Next thing he knew he was on train to Delhi to attend the month long R-Day camp.
“I was both nervous and excited and spoke to my parents almost every evening,” he says. To wake up at 3 a.m. in Delhi winter and rehearsing for the drill and basic military training for 12 hours was not easy. “But I loved the bonhomie and camaraderie that existed among the cadets and made lots of new friends,” he says. Everything was a new experience for the young Madurai lad.
From making his bed, keeping the dorm neat and chatting in Hindi to daily eating pav-bhaji for breakfast, dal-chawal and lassi in lunch and chapatti with chicken curry for dinner…I adjusted to everything with grit, he says.
His mother gave him Rs.5,000 as pocket money which he occasionally spent on buying different food items from the Parade Ground canteen. But his high point was the visit to Agra. “I bought a glass encased replica model of the Taj Mahal, the best souvenir from the trip”. He also went sight seeing in Delhi and was “able to see several VIPs” at the R-Day parade and the PM’s rally at the Garrison Grounds. “Though we were not allowed to go near them, we were invited to tea parties with the President, Vice-President, Prime Minister, the three chiefs of the Defence Services and the Director General of NCC,” he beams.
Abhishek realises that not everybody gets such opportunities. Says Murugan, when he was doing the school selection, Abhishek’s name was not there in the final list. “But he would meet me everyday checking if there were any drop outs and finally from the waitlist he went on to the best list. After the first camp itself, he always told me that he would make it to the top,” he adds.
The Tamil Nadu contingent bagged the first place in PM’s rally on 28th January and the fourth place in R-Day parade. It also won eight other trophies in different categories of competitions. Young Abhishek has returned embracing a new life and dreams. The NCC puts lot of emphasis on character building and discipline and prepares the students for life’s challenges and a better future.
Says Abhishek, “I will forever, treasure and cherish my NCC uniform given by the Government, the wonderful memories of the camps, the trip to Delhi and the beautiful friendships that I struck.” “I am a much more confident person now than I used to be, he adds.” (Making a difference is a fortnightly column about ordinary people and events that leave an extraordinary impact on us. E-mail soma.basu@thehindu.co.in to tell her about someone you know who is making a difference)
