8th October 2005

Well, the subject of this post might sound a little peculiar, but as you read on the subject would be justified.

Lots has happened since my last post on ragging. Firstly my second sessional exams. BORING exams again and again. It seems that engineering means giving exams again and again till you drop dead. Short one and a half papers for 20 marks and syllabus are topics written out of 20 kg ink. How to study for that?? For me there is only one way. Go to the library reading room. There is no way I can study in the hostel. Someone or the other knocks at the doors after every 15 mins, either HE(oh! why not SHE) wants something or just to talk/chat/gossip, listen to music etc etc etc. So if you want to study peacefully, go to the library just before dinner time, have your meal at STU-CEE (short for Student’s Centre) which is right next to the library and then enter the reading room. One thing you must ensure is that you should satisfy all your requirements before entering the library (eg emptying your bladder) because if you leave your chair even for a micro-second, it’s gone. Uptill midnight there is
a huge rush and thus you have to take over a seat and not let it go till midnight. Obviously you must have figured out that the reading room is open 24 hours. I always need some music while studying and so do some of the others. So generally I carry my iPod and connect it to iTrip. Serves two purpose!! All of my friends can listen to it as most of us have mobiles with radio. Secondly I can protect my iPod from seniors. The iPod is kept inside my bag and everyone thinks that I am listening to the radio. The best thing is that all radio-stations shut down at 11pm. A few times the seniors have had doubts- “Radio is time chal raha hai??” And I simply say yes and show them the frequency- 96.1 Mhz (Which I can change at my will!). Now none of them have a radio enabled phone, they just accept the fact. No one can think of a portable radio station!! Now after studying till 2:00 AM, one has to feel sleepy and hungry. What to do at that time? Three options- Drink Expresso Coffee/Tea, the Nescafe outlet is open till 3:00 AM. Next option:- Go to PGI canteen (Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences and Research). There is a hospital inside the PGI campus(right opp to PU campus) and the canteen is open 24 hrs. Last option- Go to the taxi stand right outside the gates of PGI and PU. You will get wonderful Paranthas, Butter, Bread or Eggs. Paranthas of this taxi stand is famous. 3 aloo paranthas for Rs 10. A very satisfying meal at that time. So after the break go back to study. Slog it out till 4:00AM and then go back to the hostel (if you are sleepy). Some of the students there lie down flat out on the reading room tables/line up 4-5 chairs which acts as a bed.

Enough of studying. Now some sports. Well we have a group that has a passion for playing football. So do what? Buy a good Quality ball. So we went searching for a good football. On foot we crossed sector 14(PU campus), sec 15, sec 16 and then finally got a good football at sector 17 market. Checked out lots of brands- Puma, Nivea, Umbro, Nike and then finally selected an Adidas football- 10ppl contributed 119 each to buy an excellent football. Now we are having a good match everyday morning and evening. After buying the ball we straightaway headed to Fun Republic to watch a late night show. Why go at night?? The same eerie feeling- ragging!! The exams are over and the seniors are out- searching for a prey.

The SSSSSSSSSSSSSS factor- What does SSSSSSSS remind you of? SNAKES. For the first time we faced a snake in our campus- just outside my hostel entrance. Crawling on the road leading to my hostel. Quite a long one (atleast 2 metres). Creamish in colour with greenish tinge. Don’t know which breed, but in any case every breed looks
dangerous. It was killed using a wooden stick :-( . We are living in a very natural environment, isnt it? We have always had Dogs, Monkeys, Eagles and now a new addition- Snakes!! What the monkeys do is a long story and will be covered in my coming posts.

The SHM factor. A fresh experience(latest one infact). Three of us were in one room(the one adjoining my room-that shares a common balcony with me.) I was sitting on the chair listening to music. Varun, lying on the bed. Saurabh, standing next to us. Suddenly Varun said “Abbe palang kyun hila raha hai?” Saurabh:” Main nahi hila raha”
Varun sits upright looks at both of us and shouts aloud:” Bhnchd earthquake aa raha hai” We all felt it. The water in the bottle started oscillating- as high as a mini tsunami. The table fan started vibrating too with an amplitude of nearly an inch. We all got up and said” Bhaago Bhukamp aaya hai” Quickly ran for my key, and the shocks I felt during locking the door was unbearable. And then I ran- faster
than a mouse. Down three floors, along the long corridor, and then out of the hostel. All the hostellers were out trying to control their anxiety. Now this was the strongest and longest tremor I have ever felt in my whole life. Those of you who has never felt an earth quake before, has missed something. After that, the odd feeling continued in my stomach and feet for a long time. Hopefully next time we will be warned before it comes. The epicentre was at Muzzaffrabad in Pakistan measuring 7.6 in richter scale.

Lots has been clubbed in this post and I already have more to write. Will post again soon!