From today onwards, I no longer am
the ‘sarkari babu’. A title which I accepted first with reluctance, then with
frustration, followed by the understanding of its importance, then with
responsibility and finally with a lot of pride.
Even though I come from
a family of government officers, I never ever wanted to be one. The idea of
going to a same place, doing the same work, meeting the same people everyday
never appealed to me. But somehow, I landed one for myself. Within a span of a year,
I tried to get out of it. And trust me, I tried really hard.
But as they say, life
is what happens when you are busy making other plans. And before I realized, it was around eight years of working in a
government office.
They say your first job teaches
you the most. I learnt too. I learnt that it is easiest to blame the government
when you are on the other side of the table.
I learnt that it is not that easy
for an outsider to understand why things happen in a certain way in a
government office. I learnt that being a government officer came with a lot of
responsibility towards your country. I learnt that even though you are a
smallest part of the government machinery, you can contribute if you want to.
I also learnt that going to a
same place everyday could bring a lot of stability. I learnt that doing the
same work everyday could become your forte. I learnt that meeting same people
everyday could be comforting.
I don’t remember when did I
change from being somebody who never wanted to be a government officer to
somebody who started defending when people blamed government for everything.
Every workplace has its own pros
and cons. This one had too. But as I leave today, I leave with warm
friendships, lessons and learnings that will last a lifetime and times that
will be etched in memory forever.
~ From an ex - Sarkari babu (Just felt
like calling that myself one last time)
