INITIATIVE: OFFICERS AND LADIES !

That was early seventies. A pleasant winter morning. Place: A city branch office of life insurance corporation of india in Ahmedabad, Gujarat.

A direct recruit class one officer had just joined. A smart stout gentleman. Well dressed.

He was one Kapoor from Delhi. He was a student of actuarial science. He would very often talk about the 'debit' and 'credit' classes he attended at the Officers Training College. He had happy memories about those days.

I also thought he was an efficient officer. But I always used to wonder that he did not learn any lesson from the human relations management classes he must have attended in the same very training college. At least some of his behavior patterns made me think so.

Scene One.

That day he was on leave. But he had forgotten something on his table. Suddenly he appeared at the branch office and swiftly moved towards his seat.

An employee working in the branch was searching for some papers. While he searched for papers, he happened to sit in Mr. Kapoor's seat for a while. He didn't see Mr. Kapoor coming.

Mr. Kapoor suddenly appeared on the scene. He didn't like his subordinate sitting in his seat. That he was on leave didn't make any difference for him. Apparently annoyed by this, he asked his subordinate what was he searching for.

Even before he finished his words, Mr. Kapoor said: "Let it go to dogs".

Scene two.

Branch office had two toilet rooms. One could be used for gents. The other could be used for ladies. Then what about officers? They were entitled to a toilet room.

Kapoor could not think of sharing a toilet room with his subordinate male staff

members. He found a way out.

Next day he fixed a board : "officers and ladies" !

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