If only I had become a doctor

When young, I was fascinated by the aeroplane. Our house was not too far from the airport and some of our neighbors who stayed in our area worked in the airlines. I would see them go for duty in their company buses and longed to be like them. I did choose the aircraft industry but as luck would have it, I went into the aircraft-manufacturing stream. I was in my early 20s, got an appointment in Kanpur and from there moved to Nashik. I have been in Nashik for more than half a century and my son chose to join the IT industry. Today, I sigh and wonder if only I had become a doctor, my life might have been different. This is because today I realize that the medical profession is loaded with money. I hope my friends who are in this profession would agree with me.

Medical profession is a noble one because it is all about healing people and saving lives. Sanjay Dutt proved it in the 2003 Bollywood movie Munnabhai MBBS. It was a blockbuster and one cannot forget the message of Dr. Asthana (Boman Irani). It was that personal feelings should not influence the decisions of the Doctor. However, in the scenario of 2022, one observes that specialization has played havoc with this noble profession. I read somewhere that there are dentists who specialize in the upper set of teeth leaving the lower set for others. A time could come when there could be separate opticians for the right eye and the left or the right arm and the left or the right leg and the left. If only I had opted for this profession in my youth, today I might have been rolling in money. All I would require would be a degree, a suitable location to set up my clinic and contacts among other doctors. That way I could refer my patients to others more knowledgeable than me.

My job interview over a cup of coffee

When I came for interview to Nashik in December 1966, I was offered a cup of coffee at the interview. I had been waiting since morning and, when my turn came, it was 3pm and time for tea. Among other interviewees were people who had retired from the Indian Air Force, the Indian Navy and, of course, from HAL Bangalore. Most of them were older than me and appeared to be knowing someone or the other already employed in Nasik.
I was the only odd man out.
Anyway, the board members sat on the other side of the table and, while the bearer served them tea, one of them asked me what I would like to have. I replied coffee and so it was.
Then, as I sipped the coffee, I waited for their barrage of questions and was surprised when they asked me a few questions not related to any technical subjects.
One question I remember is – ‘Mr Ghose, you are so young, how can you control a group of workers? (I was 22 years old at the time.)
I replied that I had undergone a trainee Supervisor course in HAL Kanpur and had worked also there for a year. Hence, I was confident of my ability.
What I left unsaid was that the workers in Kanpur were much more aggressive and they carried knives with them which they would take out, if annoyed.
Then another member popped the question – Mr Ghose, you have dressed as if you are going to play cricket. Do you know that you would have to dirty your hands?
I looked at him, gave him a sheepish grin and nodded. I was wearing a light colored shirt, white trousers and a black belt.
My coffee cup empty – so were theirs. I braced for more questions that would be more technical in nature. But – no. They had no questions. My interview was over.
The Chairman of the board handed me a slip of paper and smiled.
Thank you Mr Ghose – our office will contact you further. Please go to the cash department and collect your train fare on the way out.
And – that is what I did. I pocketed the money, went to the hotel, packed my suitcase and came to the railway station. The train was at 11.30pm and I had to pay a porter to push me into a compartment through the window. The train halted for only a couple of minutes and I did not have any seat booked hence, getting pushed into a compartment was the only alternative. (to be continued ... )

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