AFVOA Newletter August 2020

Section 2 – News / Updates from the Association CV 2 No. 02 / 2020 Page 21 of 237 not anymore the Bali of 1973 I had visited almost five decades ago. At the same time, despite the island’s loss of its pristine purity through commercialization and vehicular traffic, I am glad that the artistic rendering of Ramayana has survived still. Mrs. Lalita Mohandas brings out the quintessential truth that life in the three services is no less an adventure to the families too. She is truly a Veer Nari to have thrived in the company of panthers, snakes and frogs, and not to forget, her husband! Maj Gen Karthikeyan has indirectly demonstrated that however much the Chief Scientific Advisor to the Govt is technologically savvy, the bureaucracy can keep India backward at least by two decades. Manikavasagam’s pep-talk on routine isolation in the forward areas easily quells any grumbling on current lockdown. ‘Our Journey Within’ by Maj Gen Gopalakrishnan is a subtle reminder that it is equally hard to perceive ‘Ishvara’ in our hearts as seeking Him in the lofty Kailash after an awe-inspiring climb. Brig Subramanyam unravels the mystery of the invisible Sushil Dushyant Singh who is the booming voice with a dedicated message of social distancing (SD). Maj Gen Manavalan’s recounting of Bangladesh liberation in 1971 makes us spell bound. The warmth and adoration showered on his team during its visit to Bangladesh is beyond one’s imagination. The major lesson is that however much the civilian relationship may sour over time, the real heroes from the military are never forgotten by the liberated people. From RAdm Mann, we get an uneasy feeling that Corona virus impact on Indian industry is far more vicious than on individual lives. Not a few shots in the arms, but India is in dire need of an Industrial Revolution. That evolution of life and material is caused by constant improvement is a theme succinctly brought out by Capt Narayanan. Lt Gen Raghavan and his former brothers-in-arms are proof enough that veterans are not likely to be victims of Alzheimer’s as they remember and cherish every minute detail of their decades of service. True to my own advice, I have stayed safe at home for four long months without stepping out even once. More importantly, I have managed to remain sane. By all accounts set forth by Col Krishnaswami, the saga of AFVOA, right from its inception is never-ending history/ (his) story.