AN UNEXPECTED MEETING.

There was a breaking news in T.V. and newspapers in 1996 that the great BHU professor had been appointed as, vice-chancellor of Kerala university.

It did not matter for me anything more than that it was a deserving position for him. But there was one thing special for our Institute that the Kerala university V.C. was one of the 21 members of the Governing body of our research Institute under the Government of India. This also did not matter for me because, comparatively, a simple section head like me in such a large research institute has no much of give and take with the governing body. Above all, my interaction with this genius professor was for a few minutes only in Benaras Hindu university fifteen years ago, there was no chance for any space for me in his mind. There used to be news about VC's attending functions and his grand orations every day. I was crazy to listen to his orations, with ideas of profundity and literary value, that of an eloquent public speaker. Thus passed one year, within which he attended one or two board meetings of our Institute. I paid no attention to all these because I had nothing to do with the major subjects of administration of the Institute. But I wished I could get a chance to meet him and recall my meeting with him in BHU.

One day, at tea break, I could not believe my eyes, seeing the vice-chancellor, sitting with our institute registrar professor, alone in the staff canteen. I gathered courage, took one coffee and snacks, and sat beside them like an uninvited guest. The VC did not mind me at all, as usual, and that was expected. The Registrar, although, was not happy with my impolite trespassing of their boundary of privacy, concealed his displeasure and introduced me to VC. " This is Mr. Vincent, head of the department of Physiotherapy ". V C showed etiquette by a handshake. I intruded gathering little more courage, I said, "Sir, It is not surprising if you don't remember, I called on you in BHU in 1981along with my professor of Gorakhpur university." He raised his head, looked at me through his thick spectacle and asked, "You visited me in BHU, in connection with what? I said, "I was a student of English literature in Gorakhpur university". There was a silence for some time as if somewhere some thing had gone out of track. VC, again in confusion, said," I am told that you are a physiotherapist and what relation with English literature ?"'. Its answer could not be complete with a word or two. The answer would be long, the time and the context being not suitable, I did not answer his question. His question was relevant and logical for that age towards the existing Indian national educational policy. Our education is formulated in such a way that the subjects are grouped in water-tight compartments. There is no chance for inter-compartmental permeation. It was a wonder for him, a physiotherapist learning English literature. Information in all subjects are complimentary to each other and are correlated in some way or other. That remote relation can be meticulously substantiated in rank and file by one who studied both. Therefore I answered V C only this much, "If ever, I get an opportunity to call on you and you have some time to spare for me, I will let you know the mysterious occult relation between physiotherapy and English literature, which appears to be poles apart". As an experienced educationist, the honourable V C had enough cognition on the difference between the conservative Indian education system and that of a pragmatic western education system. A scholar of anything can be a scholar of any other thing in U S A. There is no demarcation line between knowledge.

We bid farewell from the canteen, before that I came to understand that the VC came to the Institute to admit his wife for some neurological complaints. At that time it was provisionally diagnosed as a tumour in the head, not serious, operable, and expected a safe return to home after a fortnight. God's ways are not our ways. I will come with a next episode, full of pathos, where you and I may judge God is cruel, but the fact is HE is considerate to all his creatures.

Thank you.