Jalu days We never know what we can become in our life . Life always throws a dice for us.

But when we look back and cast our eyes on the innings we have left behind ,we can jolly well find out that everything was so right and justified as if that's what only it was meant for In the hostel days I was a meek boy and never carved for uncertainty - always well planned and well prepared. But some of my friends were living on the edge. They were fearless and some never bothered for examinations. I knew from my core of heart that they were different from my type. Poltu, Bibhuti, Soudeep, Sirshendu were those type of people who were restless and always after some kind of adventures. Before every examination we used to have a study leave. While we the chicken hearted fellows burnt midnight's oil and studied , they spend it differently. They made quick rounds to Jalpaiguri town , returned hostel quite late and then if time permits they did little study else they simply went to sleep like a log. Some dare devil even planned to have booze party at night. Not that they always managed well in the exams, sometimes one two papers they failed but that really did not matter much. In time they all cleared those papers but the time they enjoyed more than anything else. CSR Corporate Social Responsibility , was not a common word that time but each one of them was a champion CSR on their own. Soudeep, Modi, Sital, Nathan, Gouti, Bishe all were good students but they were more good at CSR. When there was a flood, Dengue fever, or Malaria epidemic these guys run among the interior of Jalpaiguri without a single bit of fear. Once there was a severe flood in the entire North Bengal , classes were closed and the national highway was under 6 feet deep water . The River Karola was running like a mad bull. All the low lying areas were under deep water. That night after distributing food packets with Red cross , Sital did not return at night. Next day an ambulance came and dropped him at our hostel. He was running high fever. Examination was very near and the Doctor advised him complete rest . That semester few papers he had to give on sick bed. His result was not upto the mark but he never repent for that nor did he stop volunteering next time. He was always at the fore front. I don't know where he is now but sure wherever he is, he is doing justice to any humanitarian call like he did always. Saodeep was the champion sportsman, Once we all went to join Airforce but only two guys got selected Soudeep & Nathan. Both were champion in their fields of sports. Abdul & Ratan were very good football players. Very often the local clubs used to hire them for their prestigious matches.

In the name of football match and good food one could always lure them to play any match anywhere. For entertainment we had the nothing but the view of Mount Kanchenjungha on the north sky was always a welcoming sight. Sometimes on the afternoon of holidays ,Bishe would drag us to the deep of tea gardens adjacent to our college to have a look at the cock-fight of the locales. The aromas of tea while coming by the side of tea factory was fresh and enthralling - as if sipping tea through nose. Fashion means becoming crazy. In the name of fashion once we all shaved our heads. The bald headed league were very popular on the roads of Jalpaiguri town then. Sirshendu always used to have a creep bandage on his right hand wrist. Later he revealed it was for fashion. Once we all started wearing hats. Hat headed guy on the roads of Jalpaiguri surely means someone of us. My room mate Kripal had an affair with a girl and he always used to get long letters but he was a womanizer. On holidays and Sundays one can always spot him on the roads of Jalpaiguri town around the girls colleges. Faces are blurred today but the images of those days are very bright in our heads. There was no dearth of administrative problems in our college. There was no principal for several months which often caused problems in having regular examinations. Therefore, once we decided to block the national highway for demand of a permanent principal. Lines of cars and trucks stopped on the road and we were sitting in the middle with various colorful festoons and banners. A group was distributing drinking waters for the thirsty passengers and drivers. Finally after 5 hours of blockade the district administration intervened and the blockade was removed. Of course later we got a principal posted. Once my room mate had to be hospitalized - reason being smoking too much cannabis. The doctor wanted to call his father & the principal to the hospital but after tons of promises and social service for the hospital we could avoid a sure disaster that day. Kripal promised not to do it again and sure he stopped smoking since then. In final year for mechanical boys the tough subject was heat and mass transfer HMT. Days before final examination the HOD told us that there would be only one question of 6 marks from HMT. We heaved a sigh of relief and decided to sacrifice 6 marks straight out of total 50. After final year examination, time came for grand viva, that was the time for the teachers to rag the students one last time. Seniors taught us to give answers in such way that the trail of an answer always lands us in known set of questions and always get prepared for professor specific subjects. So seeing Prof. PKB my roommate got prepared for thermo dynamics but when he entered the hall Prof. PKB left to attend a call and in his place Prof. DKI took charge whose favorite subject was Material

Science and Mat. Science was a terror subject of 2nd year. When Kripal came out of the hall he was half dead. -------------------

When we entered the college we were counting days how to pass the long 4 years but when the day actually arrived for leaving finally, we never knew how it turned out to be so beautiful and so quickly passed way. That was the magic of hostel life. When I look back I find that was the most beautiful 4 years of our life. We had difficulties, we had problems but we learned to overcome them. We developed a strong sense of organizational team works and that's why students from our college have become good leaders in their fields. Gauti, Poltu, Bibhuti, Asutosh all are fine engineers and good leaders in their respective fields today. Those who were most dare devil & most adventurous in those days are most successful today. It's very right thing to happen. Studying does not mean only to learn a few chapters and get some numbers. It also includes to learn the society , care for it's people and be a good human being before everything else. A few faces appear who were distinct for being miser and selfish that day. Nobody knows where they are today but if they keep being that even today then they certainly have shortfalls in their life now. It still looks like yesterday our hostel life started our home away home. Slowly 27 years have gone since that day. Today my daughter has entered her first year hostel life. That day and today is certainly different but something is very common still today and that is - a student life never gets over until one has had the hostel life. Nothing is more sweeter and better than a hostel life in a fur flung Engineering college. S. Bera Vindhyanagar