CHANGE and transformation are part of life. After 52 years, as we entered the portals of our alma mater, the Indian Military Academy (IMA), for the belated golden jubilee celebrations of our commissioning (June 1971), the metamorphosis in us and the academy was unbelievable. The Chetwode building stood as majestically as ever to welcome us; through its hallowed corridors, we had marched out, stepping on the ‘Antim Pag’ (Last Step) to graduate from gentleman cadets to young officers bursting with enthusiasm at the prospect of going to war.
Our course-mates had flown in from all over the world. Years had taken their toll. We had greyed, balding heads; some of us were pot-bellied, but our spirits were undaunted. As we exchanged expletives and retold old jokes, our exuberance grew and we were soulmates again. Health constraints didn’t keep anyone away. Jaggi and Jawahar braved many hours of air travel from North America; Gursey struggled his way with a stick everywhere; Mariyanna, despite a recent road accident, flew in to celebrate his 78th birthday amid his course-mates.
The infrastructural transformation at the IMA was amazing. The living barracks of the 1940s were replaced by triple-storeyed buildings having individual rooms with attached toilets! We were housed in these rooms, which reminded us of the alarm clocks of yore — ‘Every morning… when rips through the air the most terrible beeping….’Instead, a surprise awaited us as we woke up to strains of soothing bagpipes! Modern buildings were everywhere, some named after Param Vir Chakra recipients — Arun Khetarpal Auditorium, Hoshiar Singh Gymnasium, Vikram Batra Mess — besides an all-weather swimming pool, glass-fronted squash courts and much more.
Early morning, we paid obeisance at the war memorial. Emotions ran high as we escorted nine Veer Naris to pay floral tributes at this monument to the brave. We proudly remembered the comrades who were posthumously honoured with the highest wartime and peacetime gallantry awards: 2/Lt Arun Khetarpal and Col NJ Nair, the latter being an Ashoka Chakra awardee. Both were valiant soldiers with ‘a golden heart (that) stopped beating early….God broke our hearts to prove to us, He only takes the best first!’
In the evening, the mood changed as the Madeira flowed. The crooner belted out numbers of yore: ‘Strawberries Cherries’, ‘Lemon Tree’ and ‘Knock Three Times’, mixed with catchy Hindi and Punjabi songs. We got our dancing shoes on, the magic of a reunion worked and hearts turned young. The two-and-a-half days flew by as we, of the ‘Born to Battle’ course, stepped homewards. The saxophonist sounded the haunting Auld Lang Syne, ‘And there’s a hand, my trusty fere! We’ll take a cup o’ kindness yet, for auld lang syne.’ Yes, for old times’ sake, we left with a spring in our feet, a desire in our hearts and a determined mind to return to our alma mater for the diamond jubilee.