“A father’s tears and fears are unseen, his love is unexpressed, but his care and protection remain as a pillar of strength throughout our lives.”
– Ama H. Vanniarachchy
Devoted, dedicated, loyal, sincere, trustworthy, righteous, moral, honest, benevolent, patient - he was amongst the most virtuous person one could have ever known. Deeply devoted to his family- an ideal son/brother / husband/father; to his work –the perfect employee, taking ownership of his role, committed to the company and really living to the values created by the culture of team; to his friends - the most loyal, trustworthy and dependable; to the society- a man with a golden heart who would always come forward to help anyone in need. He would stand steadfastly for what is right and never tolerate a wrong being done. He would very seldom lose temper, but if he did, generally for something wrong being done, anyone would quickly withdraw and it would prove that “sometimes you need to get angry to get things done”. You had to know him to believe that all these virtues could be there in one person. Or else a brief chat about him with any of his relatives or friends would leave no doubt.
Born in Dera Gopipur on 7th August 1928, he had 3 brothers and 4 sisters. His father was a headmaster of DB High School, Nurpur, Distt Kangra, Panjab (the University of the Panjab had its headquarters in Lahore) and mother a home maker. Initially they resided in Village Batala, Tahsil Khushab and District Shahpur. His grand parents lived in Lahore and the family would visit them often. After partition, the family had status of bonafide refugee from West Punjab (Sargodha district).
He did his schooling from the same school where his father was a headmaster. He did his Matriculation with first division in March, 1945. He did his Intermediate in 1947 from East Punjab University and Bachelor of Science in April, 1950 from Government College, Ludhiana under the same University (but with headquarters now in Chandigarh).
As per his college certificate he had interest in athletics and was “good in hockey and volley ball”. He was rated as “most dependable”, “good natured and well balanced” and “has intelligence without pedantry and a friendliness which is not officious; was deservedly popular with both staff and students.” The virtues were thus imbibed in childhood.
After his graduation he joined the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) office in Shimla. He would find time to socialize and made good friends. After marriage the socializing continued. Shimla being a touristic destination there were frequent visits of relatives.
A daughter brought joy in their lives in 1959. He went on deputation to Dhanbad where their son was born in 1964. Subsequently they had a brief stay in Dugdha before he shifted to Ranchi, having been absorbed and transferred to the Hindustan Steel Limited office. Here they spent the golden years of their lives.
They ensured that their daughter and son went to the best schools in the city, Loreto Convent and St Xavier’s. Children education and grooming was a priority in their lives. Despite the financial hardship due to sharing of part of his salary for supporting his mother and family after his father left for heavenly abode at an early age, there was no compromise on the grooming or education of children.
He was a devoted father and husband but he was a devoted son first. He would ensure that he spent ample time with his mother and that she was very comfortable. In the words of his youngest brother “Very loyàl and devoted to his parents, so much that he won't lose a minute in providing any kind of service. In the year 1980-1981 our old mother was to board a train from Delhi railway station platform on the other side of the overbridge. As I learnt later he carried our mother on his back to board the train. Such was his devotion towards parents.”
His brothers and sisters adored him for being a responsible brother. He would make sure that he and the family regularly met them. While at Ranchi, the family would visit relatives in Punjab/Delhi every year during the summer vacations. He would try to extend all possible support to relatives and friends in times of need.
He was very innovative and would repair/maintain most of the household equipment. He would also make some household equipment himself. Immersion rod, homemade dalda tin tandoor, device to pluck fruits, gadget for bursting crackers, self-fabricated gilli- danda/cricket bat, pup’s kennel- these were just a few examples of his innovative mind. He would even reverse the collar of his shirt himself in an endeavor to have it last longer.
He was very patient. He would come back home tired from his work but constant queries of children never irked him. He would reassure his wife “Curiosity is the force of a hungry mind. We should encourage it since it drives learning, thinking and reasoning”, he would say.
At 12.30 at night, his visiting niece’s son insisted on having peanuts. Since all shops were closed, he drove more than 20 kms on his scooter in search of peanuts. 
He was a fighter. He had a very serious road traffic accident while driving on his scooter from Ranchi to Jamshedpur to visit his niece. He was unconscious and critical for many days. It was his resilience, commitment towards his responsibilities and the prayers of his wife and family which probably help him come out of it. He even visited Punjab straight from the hospital to attend the marriage of his brother in law!
When Hindustan Steel Limited became Steel Authority of India Ltd. (SAIL), the headquarters shifted to Delhi. The family had to thus shift to Delhi in 1979. The evening and weekend socializing with friends got curtailed but he made partial amends to that by maintaining a close liason with relatives. Though the financial and logistical strains of living in a metro like Delhi, added fresh burden, they managed to use their reationships as a stress buster. There was the added advantage of being closer to their daughter who was doing medicine from Patiala.
Time flew. They got their daughter engaged to a young handsome Sikh doctor from Patiala. The date of marriage was fixed for 28th March, 1982.
Preparations were on full swing but came to a standstill on that fateful day, 27th February 1982. His daughter had come unannounced and unexpectedly in the evening the day before. They had been asking her to come for some final shopping and arrangements but since leaves during internship are restricted, she wanted to reserve them for the marriage. But the day before she had an ominous dream about dad, forcing her to rush to Delhi, in the process picking up a fight with her senior when he refused leaves. She was relieved to find him hale and hearty. Seizing the opportunity, they planned to do the final shopping for gold the following morning.
In the morning he decided to go to a relative for advice on where to shop for jewelry. He went on his scooter …… but never came back. A bus knocked his scooter down on the main road within Rajouri Garden. Someone took him to a nearby nursing home. He breathed his last the same day. He may have survived this accident also had he got appropriate medical care. But that was destiny. The premonition of his daughter had very unfortunately come true!!
He may have left but his memory is etched in the hearts of the family, relatives and numerous friends whose lives he touched with his love in its simplest form – unpretentious and unwavered.
