I rang up a bank official the other day to enquire about opening NRI account; he said he would call back with info, but hasn't.
An electircal lighting appliances shop that was to fix a fault in our household fittings between 2 and 3 one afternoon didn't do it. Reminded about the lapse the shopowner apologised and promised to send a man by 7 p m. No one turned up. Another phone call, a fresh pormise by ever apologetic shop-owner produced results, but two days too late.
A cable TV guy who said he would look us up around 10.30 one morning, presumably, forgot all about it. Twenty-seven hour later he turns up, unannounced. Finding us not at home, he leaves word at the apartment complex that he he would be back at 7 pm. Didn't come, didn't phone. It took a couple of more days of such rigmarole before he made it, on his own terms.
A mineral water supplier who was to send a refill can to the house "within one hour" of our call, didn't make it that day.
Moral of the story: We have scant regard for the clock; and for our own word. Mysore is a 'heritage city' where many of us still live by the calender, rather than the clock.
Why can't we make time-keeping our collective concern and take it up as a civic crusade. Here is something we could learn from Ecuador, where a group of public-spirited individuals managed to bring together the government, industry, business houses, NGOs and the public in a co-ordinated crusade to make people adopt punctuality as a way of life. They did it this way:
On October 1, 2003 all clocks in the country were synchornized; Cities and villages were plastered with posters on the price we need to pay for chronic lateness; Offices and commercial establishments signed up a promise to keep time; Stragglers were barred entry at work places, where they put up sighboards saying, 'Don't enter, work started on time'; And local media published daily list of dignitaries and officials who turn up late for public events.
Fentastic Idea very well executed by Ecudor ,I think . Attempts must be made to try it out in our City and I'm certain with a little involvement Mysoreans should pull it off (Thats the upside),but when men occupying responsible Chairs take it to be a privilage to be in Office past 11AM and set unhealtyh trends down the line . But .... who cares !
A Deccan Herald photograph (March 29, page 3) shows an empty city council hall at the Mysore corporation. The punchline is in the caption that reads: It is the usual practice (for the chair) to adjourn a meeting for lack of quorum at the corporation council of Mysore. Every time the meeting starts half an hour later than the scheduled time.
Deccan Herald (May 4, 2005) carried a 3-col. photo showing a row of sleepy invitees seated in a hall. Says the photo caption: "People had nothing to do but sleep when the chief minister was behind schedule for almost two hours at the state-level workshop organised by Dalit Sangharsha Samiti in Bangalore
Punctuality is more a way of life than an aspect of it. getting to work on time, meeting a client at the appointed hour, honouring your deadlines ....it all becomes a lot easier if you accept that fact. If you still can't get down to it, you have a couple of options left - try and get a break in Bollywood or stand for public office.
('Career Clues', Arjun Sengupta, arjuns.hyd@cnkonline.com, in 'The Hindu' - May 18, 2005)
A Deccan Herald photograph (March 29, page 3) shows an empty city council hall at the Mysore corporation. The punchline is in the caption that reads:
