Siligoodie Days!!!

As always I am very proud of my punctuality…in fact I am thinking of competing with “Aaj-Tak” in speed…and as usual this was supposed to have been written at least a week ago.

We always talk about diversity and thousands of Kms of territory of our country but seldom do we realize that it’s a reality………and to realize it we have to travel and travel very very far (honestly reminds me of “3 idiots” scene of Simla/Ladakh). It was through a wonderful opportunity provided by our ICAI-which is not very often adored by its own students-to visit a beautiful city called “Siliguri”…..When you write a piece of paper and it gets selected at a National Event its indeed a proud moment but to present it at a beautiful location among amazing people, is all together a different experience!!!

I missed in my journey cutting across 5-6 states as a traveled by flight both times, so may be next time leisure will be a pillion rider.

“Siliguri” which is regarded as a “Gateway to North East” India is indeed at a strategic location-geographically and commercially- tea, tourism and timber (3 Ts) dominate. So when you are adoring beautiful tea gardens on your way to Siliguri from Bagdogra Airport, don’t get surprised by Military presence. In fact Bagdogra Airport is an Air Force base.

But never in our lives me and Nachiket (coincidentally from same city, whom I met directly at Airport-2200 Kms away!!) had seen a sun set at 4.30…..yeah I know about the time difference. But the reality struck us when we reached Siliguri-which had a quaint feel to it despite its on going rapid modernization-never in Mumbai-Thane we experience essentiality of winter “chilling cold”!!!

Our counterparts started pouring in slowly and then we had a “mini-Bharat” in our Swastik Residency. To come to Siliguri and not visit a tea factory is a sin and none of us were sinners!! Thanks to the EIRC of Siliguri we spent our Christmas Day sightseeing, tea factory and famous Bagh Pool were among them. And the road to Sikkim gave me a glimpse of what I missed by not visiting Sikkim, having traveled so close to it.

And it was a SHOWTIME!!! The next two days-26^th and 27^th were when all of us were under “microscope”!! And it was indeed a “semi-celebrity” experience too. All of us put up very good presentations –with our limited presentation skills we exceeded our potential, I am not boasting….

But those two days gave all of us some serious “professional tonic” …..it surely reminded us of the heights which we are yet to conceive albeit achieve…those days inculcated some of the best possible lessons in all of us…Well due to professional secrecy I cannot reveal further!

The very next day all of us started journey back to our usual interesting lives…some lucky rascals (!) had chance to go to Gangtok, thankfully I am not a rascal!!

Four well spent days…when you visit cities like Siliguri you realize that the “India Growth” story is actually true…And believe me when you hear the National Anthem almost 2200 Km away from your house and when borders of 4 countries are at less than 75 Km…you realize that there is something called “India” and there is something called “unity” and there is something called “We- the Indians”!!

Thanks to Manish Sir, Pankaj Sir and entire team of EIRC, Siliguri, all the volunteers-Vineet, Amit and others, our BOS and my fellow presenters-it was more than worth traveling all that distance!!

N.D.K.Nikhil