2nd day of joining. A completely new place, new faces as if ignoring me despite my post and besides, totally new environment i.e. from a sophisticated MNC job in NCR to a Government job that too in Punjab. Though I am born and brought up in Punjab but I have never felt like a Punjabi from inside. So it was completely a life changing decision from me.
Those of you all, who have been regularly following me through my blogs, must have got their answer by now of the question which I raised in the last blog. Once again I played with my career by changing job within one year of last job. Hopefully this is the last time I am resigning.
S.D.E.
Punjab Water Supply and Sewerage Sub Div No. 3
Bathinda
That’s what my name plate outside office and stamp reads now. It feels great when around 100 people are under you and you are authorized to make them work the way you want. It feels great when you are responsible for the water supply for whole city and suddenly your signature becomes important for payment to different contractors.
But there is other side of coin also which can’t be ignored. With big status comes big responsibility. It becomes a trouble when your cell rings 15 times in an hour and everyone complaints about their water issues. It feels terrible when all 57 MC’s of a city have your number saved in their contact list as water supply and leakage complaint box. It feels horrible when workers union goes for a rally against you.
Today it’s been a month since joining. Still I have mixed feelings about this change. I share the responsibility for the decision equally with my parents. It was basically their choice to see their son as SDO. The only way I could counteract them by having a MS call with scholarship which I could not get. The final status of the applications was 5 reject and 1 accept that too without funding. Other option was to continue my job as a structural engineer for which even I was not ready because of stagnant life. I wanted a change; I got the change also but not of my choice.
Space and words will fall short if I start comparing both jobs. In short and sweet, I have not shifted job rather I have changed myself.
Regards
Parul Goyal
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Friday, November 18, 2011
A Difficult Call to take …..
These days I am bound to think about the feeing which keeps on banging the doors of my mind, helplessly. The thinking, I have been running away from but it too has been following me up very curiously. The whole scenario got changed when I received a call from my friend Vikas informing me about the list which have been uploaded by Punjab Water supply and sewerage Board on their website which includes the names of short listed candidates for SDO post on merit basis. It was an alarming bell for me. I could not react at the particular moment for the reason I was in sleeping mode. But next day when I realized that I have been short listed and have been invited by the department for document verification, a mixed reaction ran through my mind.
I was happy for the fact that my hard work during college have paid off finally and CGPA earned is getting recognized in some way or the other. On the other hand as I was already in mid way of my MS career and waiting for universities decisions hence was not so excited about the opportunity. I already had invested 9 months and 50,000 bugs in order to get an admission call from some reputed university in United States. Moreover, somewhere down the line I knew that my parents are going to take this decision at some other level as they are obsessed with Government job (that too) in Punjab. I thought, “It’s going to be difficult for me to handle the forthcoming situation.”
As soon as I explained my parents about the list published, they burst into joy and their happiness could not be expressed into words. I was numb. I too faked my consent on the deliberation we had over phone, just to make them feel happy. Some days passed, I started getting results from the universities. Status was 2 reject and one accept. Not bad at all. I was still hopeful for my first choice. I wanted an admission with funding which I had not got it yet. It was the only way in which I could debate with them citing the positives of higher studies and negatives of a job in Punjab.
I was desperately waiting for other universities results and keeping my fingers crossed. In the mean time I started getting calls from my relatives congratulating me. Irony is that “SDO” thing happened by luck and sheer chance and was getting applauded for it but. Then happened another reject and I was shattered as I was expecting a call from no one congratulated me in getting 1300 in GRE through my 5 months of hard work and dedication it. I kind of lost my confidence and could see the forthcoming future. I left it to GOD as normally people do while they are out of options.
“Yesterday is a history, tomorrow is a mystery, and today is a gift that’s why it is called present”, are the lines which have inspired me in latest days. I heard those watching “Kung Fu Panda” and felt astonished at its usage which is so simple yet so beautiful. As they, “whatever happens, it happens for a reason.” This was the time last year when I was gearing up to take GRE and today a year later, I find myself at the opposite pole.
In the past three years since my graduation, I have never been serious about my career while I could have used this time in paving my way to future. As a fresher I was satisfied with my first company and was busy doing official work only whole heartedly. But nothing came out fruitful. When I shifted to a new firm, I devoted my time preparing for IES along with company work. That did not work out. In my third year I shifted my job once again and started looking out for MS options which again seems to have disappointed me. Had I restricted myself to one field, I could have created a niche. At this point of time, again I am in dilemma of whether to join SDO or continue my job as a Structural Design Engineer.
Keep Reading to know.
Regards
Parul Goyal
I was happy for the fact that my hard work during college have paid off finally and CGPA earned is getting recognized in some way or the other. On the other hand as I was already in mid way of my MS career and waiting for universities decisions hence was not so excited about the opportunity. I already had invested 9 months and 50,000 bugs in order to get an admission call from some reputed university in United States. Moreover, somewhere down the line I knew that my parents are going to take this decision at some other level as they are obsessed with Government job (that too) in Punjab. I thought, “It’s going to be difficult for me to handle the forthcoming situation.”
As soon as I explained my parents about the list published, they burst into joy and their happiness could not be expressed into words. I was numb. I too faked my consent on the deliberation we had over phone, just to make them feel happy. Some days passed, I started getting results from the universities. Status was 2 reject and one accept. Not bad at all. I was still hopeful for my first choice. I wanted an admission with funding which I had not got it yet. It was the only way in which I could debate with them citing the positives of higher studies and negatives of a job in Punjab.
I was desperately waiting for other universities results and keeping my fingers crossed. In the mean time I started getting calls from my relatives congratulating me. Irony is that “SDO” thing happened by luck and sheer chance and was getting applauded for it but. Then happened another reject and I was shattered as I was expecting a call from no one congratulated me in getting 1300 in GRE through my 5 months of hard work and dedication it. I kind of lost my confidence and could see the forthcoming future. I left it to GOD as normally people do while they are out of options.
“Yesterday is a history, tomorrow is a mystery, and today is a gift that’s why it is called present”, are the lines which have inspired me in latest days. I heard those watching “Kung Fu Panda” and felt astonished at its usage which is so simple yet so beautiful. As they, “whatever happens, it happens for a reason.” This was the time last year when I was gearing up to take GRE and today a year later, I find myself at the opposite pole.
In the past three years since my graduation, I have never been serious about my career while I could have used this time in paving my way to future. As a fresher I was satisfied with my first company and was busy doing official work only whole heartedly. But nothing came out fruitful. When I shifted to a new firm, I devoted my time preparing for IES along with company work. That did not work out. In my third year I shifted my job once again and started looking out for MS options which again seems to have disappointed me. Had I restricted myself to one field, I could have created a niche. At this point of time, again I am in dilemma of whether to join SDO or continue my job as a Structural Design Engineer.
Keep Reading to know.
Regards
Parul Goyal
Monday, October 10, 2011
Bhangra Rockers Rocked it….
It all started when I got a mail from organizing committee asking for volunteers for the Technip Annual Day 2011. As one of the organizers was in the same project in which I was working so I contacted her and told her to include my name in Bhangra. I had done lots of Bhangras and other dances at school level. Though I had not performed any stage show in last 7 years including 4 yrs of college but I have been an active dancer in many parties that I have attended in these years. So there has always been a sense of rhythm in me. This time as soon as I got the mail, instantaneously I decided to take benefit from the opportunity and got my name included in the participants. Annual day was scheduled for 23rd Sep, 2011. We started practicing almost one month ago. We were total 8 members including 4 boys and 4 girls. Total duration for the performance was 5 min assigned by organizers. One of the engineers who joined Technip recently as trainees took the responsibility to choreograph the dance.
First day of Practice: I met with other patrons and got to know little about them. As most of them had been in Technip for more time than me hence I could feel a bonding among all of them. I also tried my level best to mingle with everybody in the coming days. The most tedious task was to select the songs. Everyone gave their inputs which ultimately created lots of chaos. Finally what we though that for some portion alone girls will be performing and for some portions alone boys; then in the end, whole group will cover the stage. But the first song we rehearsed together was including both the parties. We kept on rehearsing after office hours regularly and even on weekends. Finally after the hard work of about 15 days we finalized our combined portion with bits and pieces of individual ones also.
First Screening: Then the day came when our first screening was going to happen in front of the organizers. We all decided to showcase out combined portion which was well rehearsed. It was around 4 minutes. It went well as feedback was nice to hear except some minor comments like energy level, duration of the song and non-complete performance. From then onwards we all were really charged up and continued to work had to make it better. With in next few days we prepared our full song and the total duration of the song got extended up to 7.30 minutes. None of the parties was ready to cut their portion at all. Neither we were ready to shorten our combined portion as it was well rehearsed.
Final Rehearsal: After some clashes rather discussions we all decided to keep the same track and named our group as “Bhangra Rockers”. 3 days were left and we all were called for the final rehearsal. As soon as we were finished with the performance, all appreciated it. We saw other performances also. All were good and within 5 minutes range. Only Bhangra crossed it with quite a high margin. After all the performances, judges gave a comment that we must shorten the duration of the song as it was not fitting in their schedule. We all were really in tension. After listening to the song carefully we had some portions which can be cut without affecting much on the choreography part. Some rest pieces were there which were included between two songs to change the positions and regain energy level. Those pieces were cut eventually to make our performance duration to 6.15 minutes. We rehearsed on it and now it was more tiring & energetic. So everyone was keeping their fingers crossed about the final performance.
The Big Day: Finally the day came and Bhagra Rockers were 5th on the itinerary. We all were really excited and nervous. Bhangra was announced as soon as fourth performance completed. We took our positions. Dance was to be started with girls’ solo performance to be followed by boys and then combined portion to create the impact in the last. It got started with the bang, girls performed really well and it was time when boys needed to enter the stage. Initially I was bit nervous and anxious due to which I forgot some steps also but I think I managed it pretty well. Soon I got over with my nervousness and was completely enjoying the performance. After some time girls again entered the stage and we were heading towards the end. About 5 minutes were over when suddenly music stopped and lights were off. WTF…Power was gone. We were standing in middle of the stage looking at each other. Everyone in the audience was cheering and shouting. Crowd was chanting, “Once more! Once more!” We as performers were overwhelmed by audience response and hall was echoed with clapping and hooting. Soon the power was back. We all too tired to perform again but looking at the response we decided to perform from the scratch once again. Girls started the performance once again with same grace and energy. We all ended it beautifully this time.
So now I can tell proudly that I am a Bhangra Dancer.
Regards
PARUL GOYAL
First day of Practice: I met with other patrons and got to know little about them. As most of them had been in Technip for more time than me hence I could feel a bonding among all of them. I also tried my level best to mingle with everybody in the coming days. The most tedious task was to select the songs. Everyone gave their inputs which ultimately created lots of chaos. Finally what we though that for some portion alone girls will be performing and for some portions alone boys; then in the end, whole group will cover the stage. But the first song we rehearsed together was including both the parties. We kept on rehearsing after office hours regularly and even on weekends. Finally after the hard work of about 15 days we finalized our combined portion with bits and pieces of individual ones also.
First Screening: Then the day came when our first screening was going to happen in front of the organizers. We all decided to showcase out combined portion which was well rehearsed. It was around 4 minutes. It went well as feedback was nice to hear except some minor comments like energy level, duration of the song and non-complete performance. From then onwards we all were really charged up and continued to work had to make it better. With in next few days we prepared our full song and the total duration of the song got extended up to 7.30 minutes. None of the parties was ready to cut their portion at all. Neither we were ready to shorten our combined portion as it was well rehearsed.
Final Rehearsal: After some clashes rather discussions we all decided to keep the same track and named our group as “Bhangra Rockers”. 3 days were left and we all were called for the final rehearsal. As soon as we were finished with the performance, all appreciated it. We saw other performances also. All were good and within 5 minutes range. Only Bhangra crossed it with quite a high margin. After all the performances, judges gave a comment that we must shorten the duration of the song as it was not fitting in their schedule. We all were really in tension. After listening to the song carefully we had some portions which can be cut without affecting much on the choreography part. Some rest pieces were there which were included between two songs to change the positions and regain energy level. Those pieces were cut eventually to make our performance duration to 6.15 minutes. We rehearsed on it and now it was more tiring & energetic. So everyone was keeping their fingers crossed about the final performance.
The Big Day: Finally the day came and Bhagra Rockers were 5th on the itinerary. We all were really excited and nervous. Bhangra was announced as soon as fourth performance completed. We took our positions. Dance was to be started with girls’ solo performance to be followed by boys and then combined portion to create the impact in the last. It got started with the bang, girls performed really well and it was time when boys needed to enter the stage. Initially I was bit nervous and anxious due to which I forgot some steps also but I think I managed it pretty well. Soon I got over with my nervousness and was completely enjoying the performance. After some time girls again entered the stage and we were heading towards the end. About 5 minutes were over when suddenly music stopped and lights were off. WTF…Power was gone. We were standing in middle of the stage looking at each other. Everyone in the audience was cheering and shouting. Crowd was chanting, “Once more! Once more!” We as performers were overwhelmed by audience response and hall was echoed with clapping and hooting. Soon the power was back. We all too tired to perform again but looking at the response we decided to perform from the scratch once again. Girls started the performance once again with same grace and energy. We all ended it beautifully this time. So now I can tell proudly that I am a Bhangra Dancer.
Regards
PARUL GOYAL
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Lucky to Get there....
The scene was terrible when I reached ISBT, Delhi at around 10pm on 12th August, 2011. I was cursing Delhi Metro for it’s under designed capacity, less number of trains in festive days and mis-management by authority. But that entire curse turned into blessings once I got to know about the traffic problems other patrons had faced in reaching ISBT that night. 13th, 14th & 15th August, three holidays had come together which was a boon for employees like us who always remain in search of these occasions to pay visit to their respective hometowns or to plan out some trip. Thanks to Raksha Bandhan, Sunday and Independence Day Anniversary this time. About 8 pm, I got a call from my friend (Gobind) to confirm that we were finally going and I had to reach ISBT as soon as possible. The plan was to go to Katra and offer our prayers to Goddess “VAISHNO DEVI”. All excited, I packed my bag and left for the holy journey. Without much trouble, I reached Sector 15 Metro station to board a metro going towards Rajiv Chowk. An already overloaded metro reached the station; very few people including me opted to wait for the next one while majority of people boarded the train to meet their respective schedules. After 4 minutes when a new 6 coach metro arrived, I took a sigh of relief being among lesser number of passengers to board the train. I managed to find a place to stand comfortably near the door and occupy an envelope of around 1 ft radius around me. “Thank God, I didn’t board earlier one”, were the lines which everybody was chanting. As soon as the next station arrived & metro gates were opened, a flood of people headed towards my coach and I also got carried away with the flow. Within seconds, I ft radius area got converted into a small rectangle of ½ ft by ½ ft where I could place only one of my feet and helplessly second foot above it, I was squeezed like a soft toy to infinity. Even “to quit” option was not available. As slowly and steadily I recovered from the situation and adjusted myself to make a space for my second foot to rest on the floor , I got to see the same persons who were waiting with me at 15 sector metro station and boarded that overloaded metro. Upon talking with them, it was clear that I was still in better situation because they had to bear the same circumstances three times within last 7 minutes; One while boarding at 15 sector, second while deboarding at next station and thirdly while boarding the next metro.
25 minutes passed, Rajiv Chowk arrived and without maintaining gap (which is always announced in metro) we got off the train. I was not alone anymore, a bunch of people were always with me. I was a part of a crowd in which everybody was heading towards the yellow line. Unfortunately, Railway Station and ISBT put up on the same metro line (a known fact) and hence the row of people hoping to get into the coming metro looked like endless. As metro arrived, the crowd went uncontrolled and everyone was trying to get into the coach by hook or by crook. I wonder how ladies and children had managed to keep breathing while even some of the men were also struggling. The cue was so long that I got a chance in the third attempt. 4 stations from Rajiv Chowk, about 10 minutes ride seemed unending. I doubt if all the people were standing on their own feet including me. After my co passenger gave me a rough look then only I removed my feet and placed on some other person. While almost everyone was frustrated, even then some of the people were enjoying the scene. 10 minutes passed and Kashmiri Gate Station came. While getting down, the situation was worse. I was constantly cursing Delhi metro for its inefficiency until I reached ISBT. The sight was horrible. Fully crowded, filled with mud all around, most of the area under construction, it was a pity on our national capital to own such a low graded bus stop.
Gobind already booked a taxi till Jalandhar from where onwards we planned to drive his own car. Around midnight we started from Delhi and reached Jalandhar around 11am next day. The journey time got doubled, thanks to traffic jam, heavy rains and water logged roads. As we were already lagging in schedule and tired like hell, we decided to take rest for some time and departed for KATRA near about 5pm. We were accompanied by his cousin (Jolly). So we three and his Ford Figo, all in high spirits and excited, left for the holy journey. Around 1 am we reached KATRA and despite of being tired of driving (off course not me, but the other two; credit goes to my non-driving skills), we though to start YATRA but then we got to know about the non-issuance of registration slip between timings 10 pm to 6 am. We were left with no option but to take rest hence booked a hotel room and took a short nap.
In morning around 5.15 am, I and Jolly went to have the registration slip. A long queue had already been made by other pilgrims. Jolly opted to lengthen the queue while I went to checkout some shortcuts. After trying for about 2 hours, helplessly I went to see Jolly again but the queue was bigger and area was fully crowded. After searching for about half an hour I went to room and told Gobind about whole scenario. We both left to see Jolly hoping that he should have got the ticket by now. As we arrived at the venue what we saw was a bigger queue and we were unable to find him. It was already more than 3 hours since he joined the queue. We were worried and could not contact him because only I had postpaid connection which was working. After about an hour, all of a sudden Jolly came to me and asked did I get the slip. “Wholly sh** ” I muttered. It meant still he could not get the slip. He explained that queue was much bigger than we thought in the morning and since morning he has been able to cover only half the way. Gobind joined us and we all decided that now Gobind will stand in the queue with my mobile feeded with hotel room contact number. Frustrated and tired, rest both of us went to room to wait. Still we were relaxing that he called us to come there. Now it was my turn. Fully geared up, I took Gobind’s place. It was 10’o clock. Chit-chatting with fellow patrons and chanting the name of Goddess, I was able to get the slip by 12 noon. Finally, after 7 hours of hardships and dedication, we were happy to register ourselves for “Darshan”.
Around 2.30pm we started our journey and without much trouble we were able to reach the top by 6’0 clock. Most of the people who were standing along with me in queue, met on the way. And we were happy to cross them but were unaware about the strength of people who already managed to reach the top. After settling for some time, we got to know that from 6.30pm to 9.00pm, the temple remains closed due to evening AARTI. Hence we had about 2 hours with us to get ready for the DARSHAN. We hired a locker, had something to eat and took bath under iced cold water. In the mean time, queue got longer and again we tried some shortcut but in vain. Finally we settled in the queue and managed to meet the GODDESS personally by 11pm. As they both need to take some rest and save their energy for tomorrow driving hence they decided to take the way down to KATRA while I alone went for BHAIRON NATH temple. Within one hour I reached at the top and was lucky to get the blessings. Then I spent some time there outside the temple to thank GODDESS to give me opportunity to pay a visit to her. After some time I started getting down. As I was coming down with speed as almost running, I managed to meet both of them near BAN GANGA. It was 4.00 am when we reached our room.
We started from KATRA near about 8.00am and reached JALANDHAR by 2.00pm and they dropped at bus stand. Thereafter I took a bus to Delhi reached Delhi by 2.00am. Then as they say, is history……
Parul Goyal
25 minutes passed, Rajiv Chowk arrived and without maintaining gap (which is always announced in metro) we got off the train. I was not alone anymore, a bunch of people were always with me. I was a part of a crowd in which everybody was heading towards the yellow line. Unfortunately, Railway Station and ISBT put up on the same metro line (a known fact) and hence the row of people hoping to get into the coming metro looked like endless. As metro arrived, the crowd went uncontrolled and everyone was trying to get into the coach by hook or by crook. I wonder how ladies and children had managed to keep breathing while even some of the men were also struggling. The cue was so long that I got a chance in the third attempt. 4 stations from Rajiv Chowk, about 10 minutes ride seemed unending. I doubt if all the people were standing on their own feet including me. After my co passenger gave me a rough look then only I removed my feet and placed on some other person. While almost everyone was frustrated, even then some of the people were enjoying the scene. 10 minutes passed and Kashmiri Gate Station came. While getting down, the situation was worse. I was constantly cursing Delhi metro for its inefficiency until I reached ISBT. The sight was horrible. Fully crowded, filled with mud all around, most of the area under construction, it was a pity on our national capital to own such a low graded bus stop.
Gobind already booked a taxi till Jalandhar from where onwards we planned to drive his own car. Around midnight we started from Delhi and reached Jalandhar around 11am next day. The journey time got doubled, thanks to traffic jam, heavy rains and water logged roads. As we were already lagging in schedule and tired like hell, we decided to take rest for some time and departed for KATRA near about 5pm. We were accompanied by his cousin (Jolly). So we three and his Ford Figo, all in high spirits and excited, left for the holy journey. Around 1 am we reached KATRA and despite of being tired of driving (off course not me, but the other two; credit goes to my non-driving skills), we though to start YATRA but then we got to know about the non-issuance of registration slip between timings 10 pm to 6 am. We were left with no option but to take rest hence booked a hotel room and took a short nap.
In morning around 5.15 am, I and Jolly went to have the registration slip. A long queue had already been made by other pilgrims. Jolly opted to lengthen the queue while I went to checkout some shortcuts. After trying for about 2 hours, helplessly I went to see Jolly again but the queue was bigger and area was fully crowded. After searching for about half an hour I went to room and told Gobind about whole scenario. We both left to see Jolly hoping that he should have got the ticket by now. As we arrived at the venue what we saw was a bigger queue and we were unable to find him. It was already more than 3 hours since he joined the queue. We were worried and could not contact him because only I had postpaid connection which was working. After about an hour, all of a sudden Jolly came to me and asked did I get the slip. “Wholly sh** ” I muttered. It meant still he could not get the slip. He explained that queue was much bigger than we thought in the morning and since morning he has been able to cover only half the way. Gobind joined us and we all decided that now Gobind will stand in the queue with my mobile feeded with hotel room contact number. Frustrated and tired, rest both of us went to room to wait. Still we were relaxing that he called us to come there. Now it was my turn. Fully geared up, I took Gobind’s place. It was 10’o clock. Chit-chatting with fellow patrons and chanting the name of Goddess, I was able to get the slip by 12 noon. Finally, after 7 hours of hardships and dedication, we were happy to register ourselves for “Darshan”.
Around 2.30pm we started our journey and without much trouble we were able to reach the top by 6’0 clock. Most of the people who were standing along with me in queue, met on the way. And we were happy to cross them but were unaware about the strength of people who already managed to reach the top. After settling for some time, we got to know that from 6.30pm to 9.00pm, the temple remains closed due to evening AARTI. Hence we had about 2 hours with us to get ready for the DARSHAN. We hired a locker, had something to eat and took bath under iced cold water. In the mean time, queue got longer and again we tried some shortcut but in vain. Finally we settled in the queue and managed to meet the GODDESS personally by 11pm. As they both need to take some rest and save their energy for tomorrow driving hence they decided to take the way down to KATRA while I alone went for BHAIRON NATH temple. Within one hour I reached at the top and was lucky to get the blessings. Then I spent some time there outside the temple to thank GODDESS to give me opportunity to pay a visit to her. After some time I started getting down. As I was coming down with speed as almost running, I managed to meet both of them near BAN GANGA. It was 4.00 am when we reached our room.
We started from KATRA near about 8.00am and reached JALANDHAR by 2.00pm and they dropped at bus stand. Thereafter I took a bus to Delhi reached Delhi by 2.00am. Then as they say, is history……
Parul Goyal
Saturday, July 23, 2011
STATEMENT OF PUROPSE
Having seen my father working hard for his small business through days and nights, has invigorated two traits in me: Hard work and Dedication. The third trait which I inherited from my mother is Regularity. In my childhood days, I was always amazed at her regular daily routine from waking up early in morning to sleeping till late in the night. Combining all these personality features with my interest in studies landed me in taking Engineering as my career path deviating from the legacy business line of my forefathers.
Choosing Civil Engineering as my career did not happen overnight. From my adolescent age only, I was keen in pursuing Civil engineering based on the fact that it could only pave a path for me to personally interact with buildings and their construction which had been fascinating me all over the years. Marvelous infrastructure, their applications and the complexity involved in constructing them were the factors which always used to amuse me. Looking at the construction of my own house gave me a big boost in learning civil engineering. This was one of the reasons that I had decided at an early stage of my cognitive development that I would like to devote my life to civil engineering. Everything from playing with sand sculptures in a muddy earth to the games of building blocks in a limited space reinforced a young mind’s aptitude towards Civil Stream. With an added advantage of growing up in a developing country where one could really have an idea about the importance and complexity of civil engineering involved in the progress of that country, I was fortunate enough to convert my fascination into reality by pursuing my graduation in Civil Engineering. Transformation from a Civil Engineer to a Structure Engineer occurred through four years of my graduation. Slowly and steadily, I was heading towards the goal and on the day of graduation when I tried to foresee my future, only Structures were present as far as I could see. The fascination of a child of knowing about structures, now, has got converted into passion of a young boy to know more about structures. About a decade later, Structural Engineer by profession now, revolution from a child’s aspirations to a civil engineer’s reality to a structural engineer’s interests, again those three strengths of mine are ready to prove as a helping hand in furthering myself in Structural Engineering Research area. Giving due regard to my research interests and future ambition of being a structural researcher, I am interested to pursue my graduate Studies in the field of Structural Engineering.
I have been performing excellently throughout my education and work career. At high school, I was always in the top 2 positions in a class of about 100 students. Also, I participated and succeeded in many national-level exams like National Science Olympiad, National Talent Search Examination, and Junior Math Olympiad etc. In recognition of my outstanding academic performance, the federal state government also awarded me with Merit Scholarship. Excellent academics, interest in studies & determination were the factors which helped me rank among the top 5% (among about 0.4 million competitors) in the prestigious AIEEE (All India Engineering Entrance Examination) and choose my alma mater from among the best universities in India i.e. THAPAR UNIVERSITY. To make my dream come true and live it in reality, I decided to undergo my undergraduate degree in civil engineering. During the course of my undergraduate study, I tried to delve into each and every subject in general and was successful in my attempts. This is visible in my grades and soon I was in a position of strength, the 2nd position of the departmental class of 45 with an overall grade of 9.61/10. I faired well in the design courses, be it steel, concrete or earthquake resistant design and this is reflected in my grades not only in the theoretical aspect but as well as in practical aspect.
During my undergraduate studies, with my career interests in view, I soon realized that certain value addition to curricular knowledge is necessary to carve a niche for myself and have an edge over the others in this competitive world. I volunteered for Institute for Steel Development and Growth (INSDAG) membership to be updated with latest advancements in the field of Steel. I tried to put my knowledge and creativity to use. In my sophomore Year, I lead a 3- member Thapar University team under guidance of professor Dr. Naveen Kwatra that got selected for the Earthquake Resistant Design competition held by Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) –Bombay. This was my first experience of exposure with Earthquake Engineering. This provided me, for the first time, with an opportunity of brushing with the most amazing and incomprehensible natural force. Though I had earlier heard about a devastating earthquake in year 2001 in BHUJ, Gujarat, India but at that time I was totally unaware and curious to know about its origin, effects and its remedies. After almost 5 years, then I got a chance to answer all plethoras of questions which an inquisitive mind asked unconsciously. Continuing the enthusiasm, I participated in a national level Urban Area Planning event called NIRMAAN organized by Thapar University and won it. It gave me an in-depth understanding of various loadings and design factors involved in engineering of different infrastructures. Looking at my interest and passion with structural engineering, Dr. Maneek Kumar, Head-Civil Department, Thapar University gave me an opportunity to work under his guidance in designing a new 8 storied Boys Hostel which enlightened me about practical aspects of designing a structure and its construction. As a part of my senior year project at college, under the guidance of Professor Dr. Prempal Bansal, I completed my 6 months industrial internship at M/s. Consulting Engineering Services (India) Pvt Ltd, New Delhi, India whereby I designed Industrial multistoried buildings for automation and testing centers for automobiles using STAAD Pro and while sharing my experience and knowledge, I was commended for Best thesis paper presented. Apart from that I was also elected as a faculty assistant to teach a fresher course Structural Analysis. This involved engaging weekly tutorial classes, evaluating term papers, programming assignments etc. After completing graduation, I was on my way to enter industry as a Structural Design Engineer and to get myself acquainted with professionalism.
Based on my project work, in-depth knowledge, strong academics (2nd Rank out of 45) and keenness to learn, I got placed with M/s. Fluor Daniel India Pvt. Ltd, a company that delivers engineering, procurement, construction, maintenance services in diverse industries around the world. Embarking on my career, I was involved in design aspects of various steel & concrete structures and foundations in oil & gas energy sector. The company gave me good exposure to the burning issues in research of steel, earthquake engineering through various seminars and conferences. Also, I was given additional responsibility of giving presentations on steel design based on AISC to the new hires. This fruitful and enriching experience at the company gave me a better idea in terms of the scope of steel structures & its diversity which persuaded me taking my career further in Steel Structures specialty. After Fluor stint, I joined M/s. Reliance Infrastructure Ltd, India's largest infrastructure company which introduced me to the field of Power Sector. There also, according to my interest and knowledge I was handed over the sole responsibility of designing a steel Power house building of a 4000MW power project. Since the site was in earthquake prone zone hence I needed to apply my fundamentals of earthquake engineering in a more concrete way which ultimately helped me in excelling earthquake resistant design of steel structure. Moreover, I was nominated on behalf of my civil team for attending a lecture series on revised Indian Standard for steel design and construction (IS 800 – 2007) by professors Dr Satish Kumar( IIT-MADRAS), Dr. Arul Jyachandran (IIT-MADRAS) and Dr. R Senthil (Anna University). Thus I got exposure in both national and international codes and design standards for steel structures and earthquake resistant design. Taking on my research interests further once again I was in search for better opportunity and I was appointed as a Structural design Engineer by M/s. Technip KT India Ltd, Noida, India. It gave me a chance to practice all of my knowledge in my own way and I completed a project starting from developing the basic layout to finalizing the seismic force resisting braced frames to successfully optimized design of a composite concrete- steel framed technological structure. It remarkably raised my level of confidence and prompted me to learn more in the field of steel and earthquake engineering. I also organized a workshop on Structural steel Design using Indian Standard IS: 800-2007 edition and Comparison with AISC LRFD so that everyone in the department should get benefited. Recently I have been made a member of Technip R & D department for latest developments in Steel in onshore and offshore applications and took an initiative in encouraging 50 people to sign up for AISC membership. After spending enriching more than 3 yrs as a professional structural engineer with renowned organizations, time has now come that I should be in my study shoes once again. I feel a need to continue my formal education in the subject where I can integrate my work-experience and academics with research.
With the same motivating force, I wish to nurture the young researcher in me, who can contribute substantially to technological advancement that benefits mankind. Gaining the bird’s eye view of the industry, I would like to pursue cutting-edge research in Structural Engineering & Earthquake Engineering with renewed passion. I am confident, the graduate studies at the -------- University would provide me with the knowledge and tools to develop a deeper understanding of the subject. I would like to take with me, in addition to the knowledge of structural engineering, a network of strong and lasting relationships with my teachers and fellow-students. I wish for an opportunity to strengthen my ability for research, develop original ideas and to be a part of the creative process. My long term goal is to obtain a PhD and take up profession as a faculty to pursue research in Steel Structures associated with earthquake resistant Design. I have conducted a thorough search to find a match for my research interests, and I feel that _______ University for its Structural engineering research area stands to be the undebatable choice to pursue my Doctoral Studies. The research works being carried out by Prof. _______ interest me immensely. I hope this statement would be the first step in my pursuit of an inspiring and fruitful association with the ________ University.
Choosing Civil Engineering as my career did not happen overnight. From my adolescent age only, I was keen in pursuing Civil engineering based on the fact that it could only pave a path for me to personally interact with buildings and their construction which had been fascinating me all over the years. Marvelous infrastructure, their applications and the complexity involved in constructing them were the factors which always used to amuse me. Looking at the construction of my own house gave me a big boost in learning civil engineering. This was one of the reasons that I had decided at an early stage of my cognitive development that I would like to devote my life to civil engineering. Everything from playing with sand sculptures in a muddy earth to the games of building blocks in a limited space reinforced a young mind’s aptitude towards Civil Stream. With an added advantage of growing up in a developing country where one could really have an idea about the importance and complexity of civil engineering involved in the progress of that country, I was fortunate enough to convert my fascination into reality by pursuing my graduation in Civil Engineering. Transformation from a Civil Engineer to a Structure Engineer occurred through four years of my graduation. Slowly and steadily, I was heading towards the goal and on the day of graduation when I tried to foresee my future, only Structures were present as far as I could see. The fascination of a child of knowing about structures, now, has got converted into passion of a young boy to know more about structures. About a decade later, Structural Engineer by profession now, revolution from a child’s aspirations to a civil engineer’s reality to a structural engineer’s interests, again those three strengths of mine are ready to prove as a helping hand in furthering myself in Structural Engineering Research area. Giving due regard to my research interests and future ambition of being a structural researcher, I am interested to pursue my graduate Studies in the field of Structural Engineering.
I have been performing excellently throughout my education and work career. At high school, I was always in the top 2 positions in a class of about 100 students. Also, I participated and succeeded in many national-level exams like National Science Olympiad, National Talent Search Examination, and Junior Math Olympiad etc. In recognition of my outstanding academic performance, the federal state government also awarded me with Merit Scholarship. Excellent academics, interest in studies & determination were the factors which helped me rank among the top 5% (among about 0.4 million competitors) in the prestigious AIEEE (All India Engineering Entrance Examination) and choose my alma mater from among the best universities in India i.e. THAPAR UNIVERSITY. To make my dream come true and live it in reality, I decided to undergo my undergraduate degree in civil engineering. During the course of my undergraduate study, I tried to delve into each and every subject in general and was successful in my attempts. This is visible in my grades and soon I was in a position of strength, the 2nd position of the departmental class of 45 with an overall grade of 9.61/10. I faired well in the design courses, be it steel, concrete or earthquake resistant design and this is reflected in my grades not only in the theoretical aspect but as well as in practical aspect.
During my undergraduate studies, with my career interests in view, I soon realized that certain value addition to curricular knowledge is necessary to carve a niche for myself and have an edge over the others in this competitive world. I volunteered for Institute for Steel Development and Growth (INSDAG) membership to be updated with latest advancements in the field of Steel. I tried to put my knowledge and creativity to use. In my sophomore Year, I lead a 3- member Thapar University team under guidance of professor Dr. Naveen Kwatra that got selected for the Earthquake Resistant Design competition held by Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) –Bombay. This was my first experience of exposure with Earthquake Engineering. This provided me, for the first time, with an opportunity of brushing with the most amazing and incomprehensible natural force. Though I had earlier heard about a devastating earthquake in year 2001 in BHUJ, Gujarat, India but at that time I was totally unaware and curious to know about its origin, effects and its remedies. After almost 5 years, then I got a chance to answer all plethoras of questions which an inquisitive mind asked unconsciously. Continuing the enthusiasm, I participated in a national level Urban Area Planning event called NIRMAAN organized by Thapar University and won it. It gave me an in-depth understanding of various loadings and design factors involved in engineering of different infrastructures. Looking at my interest and passion with structural engineering, Dr. Maneek Kumar, Head-Civil Department, Thapar University gave me an opportunity to work under his guidance in designing a new 8 storied Boys Hostel which enlightened me about practical aspects of designing a structure and its construction. As a part of my senior year project at college, under the guidance of Professor Dr. Prempal Bansal, I completed my 6 months industrial internship at M/s. Consulting Engineering Services (India) Pvt Ltd, New Delhi, India whereby I designed Industrial multistoried buildings for automation and testing centers for automobiles using STAAD Pro and while sharing my experience and knowledge, I was commended for Best thesis paper presented. Apart from that I was also elected as a faculty assistant to teach a fresher course Structural Analysis. This involved engaging weekly tutorial classes, evaluating term papers, programming assignments etc. After completing graduation, I was on my way to enter industry as a Structural Design Engineer and to get myself acquainted with professionalism.
Based on my project work, in-depth knowledge, strong academics (2nd Rank out of 45) and keenness to learn, I got placed with M/s. Fluor Daniel India Pvt. Ltd, a company that delivers engineering, procurement, construction, maintenance services in diverse industries around the world. Embarking on my career, I was involved in design aspects of various steel & concrete structures and foundations in oil & gas energy sector. The company gave me good exposure to the burning issues in research of steel, earthquake engineering through various seminars and conferences. Also, I was given additional responsibility of giving presentations on steel design based on AISC to the new hires. This fruitful and enriching experience at the company gave me a better idea in terms of the scope of steel structures & its diversity which persuaded me taking my career further in Steel Structures specialty. After Fluor stint, I joined M/s. Reliance Infrastructure Ltd, India's largest infrastructure company which introduced me to the field of Power Sector. There also, according to my interest and knowledge I was handed over the sole responsibility of designing a steel Power house building of a 4000MW power project. Since the site was in earthquake prone zone hence I needed to apply my fundamentals of earthquake engineering in a more concrete way which ultimately helped me in excelling earthquake resistant design of steel structure. Moreover, I was nominated on behalf of my civil team for attending a lecture series on revised Indian Standard for steel design and construction (IS 800 – 2007) by professors Dr Satish Kumar( IIT-MADRAS), Dr. Arul Jyachandran (IIT-MADRAS) and Dr. R Senthil (Anna University). Thus I got exposure in both national and international codes and design standards for steel structures and earthquake resistant design. Taking on my research interests further once again I was in search for better opportunity and I was appointed as a Structural design Engineer by M/s. Technip KT India Ltd, Noida, India. It gave me a chance to practice all of my knowledge in my own way and I completed a project starting from developing the basic layout to finalizing the seismic force resisting braced frames to successfully optimized design of a composite concrete- steel framed technological structure. It remarkably raised my level of confidence and prompted me to learn more in the field of steel and earthquake engineering. I also organized a workshop on Structural steel Design using Indian Standard IS: 800-2007 edition and Comparison with AISC LRFD so that everyone in the department should get benefited. Recently I have been made a member of Technip R & D department for latest developments in Steel in onshore and offshore applications and took an initiative in encouraging 50 people to sign up for AISC membership. After spending enriching more than 3 yrs as a professional structural engineer with renowned organizations, time has now come that I should be in my study shoes once again. I feel a need to continue my formal education in the subject where I can integrate my work-experience and academics with research.
With the same motivating force, I wish to nurture the young researcher in me, who can contribute substantially to technological advancement that benefits mankind. Gaining the bird’s eye view of the industry, I would like to pursue cutting-edge research in Structural Engineering & Earthquake Engineering with renewed passion. I am confident, the graduate studies at the -------- University would provide me with the knowledge and tools to develop a deeper understanding of the subject. I would like to take with me, in addition to the knowledge of structural engineering, a network of strong and lasting relationships with my teachers and fellow-students. I wish for an opportunity to strengthen my ability for research, develop original ideas and to be a part of the creative process. My long term goal is to obtain a PhD and take up profession as a faculty to pursue research in Steel Structures associated with earthquake resistant Design. I have conducted a thorough search to find a match for my research interests, and I feel that _______ University for its Structural engineering research area stands to be the undebatable choice to pursue my Doctoral Studies. The research works being carried out by Prof. _______ interest me immensely. I hope this statement would be the first step in my pursuit of an inspiring and fruitful association with the ________ University.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Dedicated to my Father…
29th June, 2011 at 3.30 pm in office, thinking about performing my KARMA on time, I realized that only 1 day is left, before deadline for this month will expire and I will be lacking in meeting the target set by me. My inner writer was again in his frame of mind. He was fully determined to hit the iron though it was not red hot yet.
I had to surrender and started brainstorming about the content to be written. First and the most recent thing which came to my mind and which I wanted to share with all of you is about the TOEFL exam I took last week. In May I appeared for GRE and to advance in my dream of getting graduate from a world class university, I had to take TOEFL. It is all about English language traits like speaking, listening, writing and reading. I was well prepared for it except the speaking part as it was a kind of phobia for me. But after a decent preparation I managed to handle it pretty well. Result is yet to be announced. Let us rewind the time a bit.
25th june,2011 at 12.00 noon in test centre, Gurgaon, break time appeared on my test screen indicating that I have successfully completed my reading and listening section. After ten minutes of time, when the test resumed, speaking test instructions appeared on screen and I was on the edge on my seat due to nervousness and excitement. As soon as the instructions ended, I readjusted my headphone and microphone just to be sure and topic of the extempore blinked on screen.” Discuss the recent news you liked hearing about.” Then a beep and a time clock started indicating that 15 seconds was the duration after which I needed to speak in microphone. Where 15 seconds went, I did not even realize and was about to begin speaking but what!!!
The Delhi Times is the only news paper I generally read for news apart from the editorial page of HINDU which I read only for vocabulary purpose. So the recent news section never made a space for itself in my memory area. But this time “Delhi Times” proved its worth. “The recent news which I liked hearing about is that Aishwarya Rai Bachchan got pregnant.” That was my response, OMG!!!!! I still get Goosebumps whenever I think of it. It is one of the weirdest answers to a question I have ever given in my life. However I was able to speak for almost a minute, the time allotted for the task. Rest every thing went fine. Hoping for the good result!!!
June month has been full of celebrations like Father’s day celebration, Welcoming Monsoon etc. 19th june,2011 the Father’s day, took me to a different era of my childhood. I was deeply touched by an article in the paper about a father’s qualities like generosity, patience and responsible nature. I could relate to that article very easily. There was a time when my father used to pamper all three of us. “Three includes me along with my two younger brothers.” He used to take us a ride on his scooter, though a very small one, but it used to give us the immense pleasure. Sometimes he used to bring ice cream for whole family and my mother used to distribute her portion also among three of us. As ours is a very small town so there are not many options for hanging out with family or friends but occasionally he used to take us to a market to have some junk food etc. On those days we would feel like dancing on cloud nine. As I grew up, he has always stood by me in every important decision of my life. There is a kind of faith in between two us. I need not to ask him before taking any decision though I ask him regularly but he has kind of trust in me that I would not be doing any thing wrong and I trust that he would not deny my decision.
That day I remembered all those days and cherished all the moments of my childhood. These days I visit my home after many months due to other commitments but till today he calls me up every single day. Even I also keep waiting for his call till I get the one. This Father’s Day, I wanted to express my feelings to him. I wanted to tell him that I love him and respect him a lot. So I called him up as soon as I finished the article. He was very surprised that I had called him in early morning which usually is not the practice. After few seconds of general talk I wished him. Although he did not know what exactly a Father’s Day meant but soon he realized that I was addressing him as most important person in my life. Soon he got emotional as he usually does and also made me full of proud. The post-call feeling was very unique and great, full of satisfaction.
I wrote this blog to have this experience with me throughout my life. I would strongly recommend you all to keep expressing your feelings to your parents. It will make you a proud child to your parents and vice versa. Now I am eagerly waiting for The Mother’s Day to come.
Regards
PARUL GOYAL
I had to surrender and started brainstorming about the content to be written. First and the most recent thing which came to my mind and which I wanted to share with all of you is about the TOEFL exam I took last week. In May I appeared for GRE and to advance in my dream of getting graduate from a world class university, I had to take TOEFL. It is all about English language traits like speaking, listening, writing and reading. I was well prepared for it except the speaking part as it was a kind of phobia for me. But after a decent preparation I managed to handle it pretty well. Result is yet to be announced. Let us rewind the time a bit.
25th june,2011 at 12.00 noon in test centre, Gurgaon, break time appeared on my test screen indicating that I have successfully completed my reading and listening section. After ten minutes of time, when the test resumed, speaking test instructions appeared on screen and I was on the edge on my seat due to nervousness and excitement. As soon as the instructions ended, I readjusted my headphone and microphone just to be sure and topic of the extempore blinked on screen.” Discuss the recent news you liked hearing about.” Then a beep and a time clock started indicating that 15 seconds was the duration after which I needed to speak in microphone. Where 15 seconds went, I did not even realize and was about to begin speaking but what!!!
The Delhi Times is the only news paper I generally read for news apart from the editorial page of HINDU which I read only for vocabulary purpose. So the recent news section never made a space for itself in my memory area. But this time “Delhi Times” proved its worth. “The recent news which I liked hearing about is that Aishwarya Rai Bachchan got pregnant.” That was my response, OMG!!!!! I still get Goosebumps whenever I think of it. It is one of the weirdest answers to a question I have ever given in my life. However I was able to speak for almost a minute, the time allotted for the task. Rest every thing went fine. Hoping for the good result!!!
June month has been full of celebrations like Father’s day celebration, Welcoming Monsoon etc. 19th june,2011 the Father’s day, took me to a different era of my childhood. I was deeply touched by an article in the paper about a father’s qualities like generosity, patience and responsible nature. I could relate to that article very easily. There was a time when my father used to pamper all three of us. “Three includes me along with my two younger brothers.” He used to take us a ride on his scooter, though a very small one, but it used to give us the immense pleasure. Sometimes he used to bring ice cream for whole family and my mother used to distribute her portion also among three of us. As ours is a very small town so there are not many options for hanging out with family or friends but occasionally he used to take us to a market to have some junk food etc. On those days we would feel like dancing on cloud nine. As I grew up, he has always stood by me in every important decision of my life. There is a kind of faith in between two us. I need not to ask him before taking any decision though I ask him regularly but he has kind of trust in me that I would not be doing any thing wrong and I trust that he would not deny my decision.
That day I remembered all those days and cherished all the moments of my childhood. These days I visit my home after many months due to other commitments but till today he calls me up every single day. Even I also keep waiting for his call till I get the one. This Father’s Day, I wanted to express my feelings to him. I wanted to tell him that I love him and respect him a lot. So I called him up as soon as I finished the article. He was very surprised that I had called him in early morning which usually is not the practice. After few seconds of general talk I wished him. Although he did not know what exactly a Father’s Day meant but soon he realized that I was addressing him as most important person in my life. Soon he got emotional as he usually does and also made me full of proud. The post-call feeling was very unique and great, full of satisfaction.
I wrote this blog to have this experience with me throughout my life. I would strongly recommend you all to keep expressing your feelings to your parents. It will make you a proud child to your parents and vice versa. Now I am eagerly waiting for The Mother’s Day to come.
Regards
PARUL GOYAL
Sunday, May 8, 2011
An Increment Letter - A Tale of PRIDE, LUCK & DISAPPOINTMENT
After reaching office, as soon as I settled down on my work station, the phone started ringing. The caller ID was indicating the extension number of our HOD. Date and time on the phone was 4th May, 2011 and 9.50am respectively. With in seconds, several thoughts ran through my mind. If he wants to know where I have been for so many days or Is he curious to know about our project progress? Does he want any kind of assistance from me in some department activity? Amidst all the queries and confused I picked up the phone haphazardly, answering the call,” Good Morning, Sir.” He greeted the same in return but without the subject “SIR”. “Come to my office and collect your letter”, were the words he uttered. Oh shit! That was the reaction in my curious mind. How I could forget about this? I have been informed while I was on leave by my Lead through a phone call that along with all other eligible employees, my INCREMENT letter has also been prepared based on my performance of last financial year though I have not served the year fully in the company.
For ten days I had taken leave from the office to prepare for my GRE exam which was scheduled on 3rd May. During that period, one day when I was having my self cooked lunch, my Lead called me to inform that they all have got increment letters which they were expecting from last one month. He was quite happy the way his performance was appreciated this time or for that matter of all the employees ‘coz this time company had shown generosity towards everybody by giving many promotions and good hikes in the salaries. He continued and told me that HOD was also searching of me reason being, my letter had also been prepared. At first I told him not to joke at this time as I was involved in study mode diligently but then confirmed the news and congratulated me. I was quite happy and was feeling PROUD of myself that observing my performance in the last 4 months only, management has decided to take this step.
As soon as I put down the phone, I gathered myself for the big moment of my life. After all it was the first time in my 3 years of career that I would be getting an INCREMENT letter. The reason is, instead of increment letters I have many resignation and appointment letters. I was in dilemma of PRIDE or SHEER LUCK. It was already 10.10am. It’s been 20 minutes since he called me and I was still at my workstation. For these 20 minutes I was guessing my increased salary. “Whether it would me a meager increase or a decent one” was the debate. Without wasting much time, I went upstairs to his cabin. He was busy on the phone. After having a glance at me standing at his door, he nodded his head to grant me permission to enter his cabin. Without disconnecting his call, he pulled his drawer handle and his hand went in to come out with a white envelope bearing my name. He shook hand with me and without saying a single word, he handed over the letter. A bit surprised, I also made a quiet exit.
I was studying, in evening when my roomy returned from office. He also confirmed the news about my increment letter. Once again adrenaline was running through my body parts. I asked him about his status as we both joined almost in the same period except the fact that I had joined 10 days earlier. He replied with little reluctance giving the notions of not getting it. Upon asking the reason, he explained the fact that increment letters has been given to all the old eligible employees and the new ones, who joined before 1st Jan, 2011. Since I joined on 20th Dec, 2010 and he joined on 1st Jan, 2011 and thus, just because of 10 days, I was feeling lucky. But the feeling of PRIDE got converted into SHEER LUCK as I was not only the chosen one based on my performance. Nevertheless, I was happy with the fact that I some days I would be getting my first increment letter of my life.
Upon reaching my workstation, I opened the letter in excitement to find out the net increase in my salary. Reading, through the contents of an A4 sheet, had never been so amusing, thrilling and shocking. First some lines had the distribution of my revised salary in tabular form. Apart from a new component called “Productivity Incentive” all other categories seemed familiar. The figures corresponding to Basic, HRA, Flexi Pay were also same as that of my joining letter. That meant ZERO increase in my base salary keeping in mind all the similar distribution of various components as it was in my previous salary distribution. All hopes shattered except a few pertaining to the new component which was a decent amount. But how it would impact my earnings was explained in following lines. “Based on your performance in 2010 financial year, your salary has been revised as above and a productivity bonus is being allocated which will be the part of your monthly salary”, were the lines that I could read. But the main surprise was still to come.
After a 4 month preparation, it was the time for me to perform. Finally 3rd May came and I went to take my GRE test which would be deciding my fate from now onwards. I was pretty confident about my preparation and was ready to strike the hot iron. The test center was in GURGAON. I reached center on time and was bit nervous before entering the examination center. From 9.00am to 1.00pm, I was busy in writing my own destiny. As soon as I finished with all sections of the test, computer screen blinked with the most difficult question of the entire test that,” Whether I want to report my score or not?” After analyzing my performance for 5 minutes and quite confidently I clicked on YES option. Annoyingly, it again asked me,” Whether I am sure or not?” This time I just ignored it and clicked on YES option once again keeping the confidence intact. Within less than a blink of an eye, my score was displayed on the screen. It read as “510- Vocabulary and 790- Quantative Section” which made a total of 1300 out of 1600. “Yuppie” I made it, was the feeling that overpowered my emotions. Now, at least, I could think of becoming a graduate from World’s top ranking colleges.
Ahh!!! I took a sigh of relief. I was quite relaxed and happy that, at least, there is some increment in my in-hand salary. As I read further, I was shocked to an extent that I was numb for sometime. It was only few moments later that I realized I had been gullied by management. “Thus the bonus which was promised at your joining, stands covered”, were the lines which took me into gloominess of DISAPPOINTMENT. Same dish was offered to me but in a new wrap. The bonus which I was entitled to get after completion of one year of service will now be given in my monthly salary only. I was the cursing my HOD, Management, HR people and all others related to this act of treachery. For almost ten days they played with my emotions and in end they handed over an A4 sheet bearing my reason for sadness.
We all must have seen and enjoyed the mails with zero increment or less increments but it happened to me in reality and Trust me! it was not funny at all. In the end I had to console myself with the fact that now I need not to stay in this company even for full one year. Company itself gave me the reason to continue with my faith in Resignation and Appointment letters rather than in INCREMENT letters. But this time hopefully, the appointment letter will change to an I-20 letter. I have no liability pending now and moreover increase in my take to home salary would certainly be helping in my applications to the universities. If everything goes as per plan, I would soon be flying to get admission in some good reputed university.
Regards
PARUL GOYAL
For ten days I had taken leave from the office to prepare for my GRE exam which was scheduled on 3rd May. During that period, one day when I was having my self cooked lunch, my Lead called me to inform that they all have got increment letters which they were expecting from last one month. He was quite happy the way his performance was appreciated this time or for that matter of all the employees ‘coz this time company had shown generosity towards everybody by giving many promotions and good hikes in the salaries. He continued and told me that HOD was also searching of me reason being, my letter had also been prepared. At first I told him not to joke at this time as I was involved in study mode diligently but then confirmed the news and congratulated me. I was quite happy and was feeling PROUD of myself that observing my performance in the last 4 months only, management has decided to take this step.
As soon as I put down the phone, I gathered myself for the big moment of my life. After all it was the first time in my 3 years of career that I would be getting an INCREMENT letter. The reason is, instead of increment letters I have many resignation and appointment letters. I was in dilemma of PRIDE or SHEER LUCK. It was already 10.10am. It’s been 20 minutes since he called me and I was still at my workstation. For these 20 minutes I was guessing my increased salary. “Whether it would me a meager increase or a decent one” was the debate. Without wasting much time, I went upstairs to his cabin. He was busy on the phone. After having a glance at me standing at his door, he nodded his head to grant me permission to enter his cabin. Without disconnecting his call, he pulled his drawer handle and his hand went in to come out with a white envelope bearing my name. He shook hand with me and without saying a single word, he handed over the letter. A bit surprised, I also made a quiet exit.
I was studying, in evening when my roomy returned from office. He also confirmed the news about my increment letter. Once again adrenaline was running through my body parts. I asked him about his status as we both joined almost in the same period except the fact that I had joined 10 days earlier. He replied with little reluctance giving the notions of not getting it. Upon asking the reason, he explained the fact that increment letters has been given to all the old eligible employees and the new ones, who joined before 1st Jan, 2011. Since I joined on 20th Dec, 2010 and he joined on 1st Jan, 2011 and thus, just because of 10 days, I was feeling lucky. But the feeling of PRIDE got converted into SHEER LUCK as I was not only the chosen one based on my performance. Nevertheless, I was happy with the fact that I some days I would be getting my first increment letter of my life.
Upon reaching my workstation, I opened the letter in excitement to find out the net increase in my salary. Reading, through the contents of an A4 sheet, had never been so amusing, thrilling and shocking. First some lines had the distribution of my revised salary in tabular form. Apart from a new component called “Productivity Incentive” all other categories seemed familiar. The figures corresponding to Basic, HRA, Flexi Pay were also same as that of my joining letter. That meant ZERO increase in my base salary keeping in mind all the similar distribution of various components as it was in my previous salary distribution. All hopes shattered except a few pertaining to the new component which was a decent amount. But how it would impact my earnings was explained in following lines. “Based on your performance in 2010 financial year, your salary has been revised as above and a productivity bonus is being allocated which will be the part of your monthly salary”, were the lines that I could read. But the main surprise was still to come.
After a 4 month preparation, it was the time for me to perform. Finally 3rd May came and I went to take my GRE test which would be deciding my fate from now onwards. I was pretty confident about my preparation and was ready to strike the hot iron. The test center was in GURGAON. I reached center on time and was bit nervous before entering the examination center. From 9.00am to 1.00pm, I was busy in writing my own destiny. As soon as I finished with all sections of the test, computer screen blinked with the most difficult question of the entire test that,” Whether I want to report my score or not?” After analyzing my performance for 5 minutes and quite confidently I clicked on YES option. Annoyingly, it again asked me,” Whether I am sure or not?” This time I just ignored it and clicked on YES option once again keeping the confidence intact. Within less than a blink of an eye, my score was displayed on the screen. It read as “510- Vocabulary and 790- Quantative Section” which made a total of 1300 out of 1600. “Yuppie” I made it, was the feeling that overpowered my emotions. Now, at least, I could think of becoming a graduate from World’s top ranking colleges.
Ahh!!! I took a sigh of relief. I was quite relaxed and happy that, at least, there is some increment in my in-hand salary. As I read further, I was shocked to an extent that I was numb for sometime. It was only few moments later that I realized I had been gullied by management. “Thus the bonus which was promised at your joining, stands covered”, were the lines which took me into gloominess of DISAPPOINTMENT. Same dish was offered to me but in a new wrap. The bonus which I was entitled to get after completion of one year of service will now be given in my monthly salary only. I was the cursing my HOD, Management, HR people and all others related to this act of treachery. For almost ten days they played with my emotions and in end they handed over an A4 sheet bearing my reason for sadness.
We all must have seen and enjoyed the mails with zero increment or less increments but it happened to me in reality and Trust me! it was not funny at all. In the end I had to console myself with the fact that now I need not to stay in this company even for full one year. Company itself gave me the reason to continue with my faith in Resignation and Appointment letters rather than in INCREMENT letters. But this time hopefully, the appointment letter will change to an I-20 letter. I have no liability pending now and moreover increase in my take to home salary would certainly be helping in my applications to the universities. If everything goes as per plan, I would soon be flying to get admission in some good reputed university.
Regards
PARUL GOYAL
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