REPOST : JOURNEY THAT CHANGED MY LIFE - 815

    A JOURNEY THAT WENT ON TO                                           CHANGE MY LIFE 

I must at the very outset post a disclaimer here .  The events which I am about to describe here are events  that took place some half a century back . My memory is not all that good , come to think of it , it never was . I shall however try and relate to things that happened in the 70 s to the present times based on my not so very good memory and  my  passable English .

I never imagined that my decision to visit RAVANASAMUDRAM in early 1974 will bring about such far reaching changes in my life. I had passed out from SASMIRA , Worli , Mumbai with a Diploma in TEXTILE TECHNOLOGY . I had a job even before passing out and had  at WAYON GLASSTEX , A FIBERGLASSG weaving unit at Saki Naka in Mumbai for almost year and got a better job at THE HINDUSTAN MILLS at Jacob Circle - SAAT RAASATA in Mumbai . I decided to take a break between the  change of jobs and visit my parents who were then settled at RAVANASAMUDRAM my Native Place in the Tirunelveli District of Tamilnadu.This is a place almost at the Southern Most Tip of India. The fact that I was lucky enough to get confirmed sleeper class reservation for the entire journey without having to spend the night at VT Railway Station seemed too good to be true and  confirmed my decision to go ahead with my plan to visit South  .

Staying at RAVANASAMUDRAM had a charm of its own. Green paddy fields all around and the Western Ghats not  far away with Ram Nadhi close at hand made it an ideal retreat during any part of the year . Almost everyone in the village consisting of just Three Streets in the Agraharam were related to each other in some way or other.

One such person was PS Sitaraman Sir who was also my Brother in law in a Way. He worked as a School Teacher at Chatram Bharathy High School at Kadayam. He was also a member of the Rotary Club of Ambasamudram which had its weekly meetings at Urkaadu in Ambasamudram. He distinguished himself by wearing the Gandhi Cap at all times. My proficiency in both English and Hindi somehow seemed to be to his liking.

He invited me for a Weekly Rotary Club Meet and we were off to Ambasamudram on his Lambretta Scooter which was a Novelty during those times.

During the meet there was a session where jokes were exchanged and a hearty laugh went all around . I for my part let out a few jokes which had a little 'A' content in them if might  want to call it that way  .

Lalitha is Mallika's Teacher and both have something which is TWO in number but Lalitha s is larger than Mallika's, what is it ?

You got it all wrong, the answer is not what obviously comes to your mind first, it is the LETTER ' L ' , both Lalitha and Mallika have two L but Lalitha starts starts with the bigger capital L .

A couple of more such jokes and a few Managers from Madura Coats who were also in attendance there started enquiring about me and my background. On learning that I was a Textile Diploma Holder from Bombay on leave and at home between change of jobs, they informed that they were recruiting Textile Qualified Technical Staff in big numbers and that I should apply for the same immediately as the salary on offer was amongst the best in the Industry.

Interview was at Madurai and 30 of us from various Colleges and Institutes from Chennai Bangalore Mysore and Rajapalayam including me were asked to join on 1st July 1974 at Madurai in the Loom Shed there . Barely a month later and after drawing our first Salary 22 of us including me were transferred to the Ambasamudram Unit . The Night Shencottah Passenger Train on 3 rd August 1974 with an exclusive First Class Coach for us brought us to Ambasamudram.

The Dodge Kingsway Van with the Protruding front was there to receive us and take us to our place of stay which was inside the Mill Complex itself and very close to the water storage pond earmarked for Fire Fighting Operations if and when a need arose . We were asked to report to the Admin Section the next Morning .

The same evening all 22 of us headed straight to the Irumbu Palam or Iron Bridge and had  our first plunge in the Tambarabarani River .

ABOUT MADURA COATS PRIVATE LIMITED 

     MADURA COATS LIMITED MAIN GATE 

Over the years the Mill has had Different names attached with it . 

HARVEY MILLS 

MADURA MILLS 

MADURA COATS 

COATS VIYELLA 

AGAIN MADURA COATS 

AND FINALLY MADURA COATS PVT LTD 

Nearly 145 years back , Harvey Brothers from Scotland set up Ginning Factories in and around the Cotton Growing areas of Sattur and present day Virudhunagar .

On the  Hills of the Western  Ghats and above the present location of the Mills they  dug up a huge pond and filled it up with water by building a channel from the source . This came to be known as the Harvey Pool . To this day there is an exclusive room with a PUNKAH or hand operated fan which was used by the Englishmen of the time . No prizes for guessing as to who moved the Fan !!

Huge pipes brought down the water along the slope and the gravitational force operated huge turbines which in turn powered the Hank Winding Machines , Card Room , Ring Room and a Spinning Mill began to take shape and came to be called as the WATER MILL . It was the source of employment for generations across the whole of the original Tirunelveli District and beyond.

Over the years it expanded its operations to Sewing Threads and also had the largest Spinning Mill in South India . Early 1960 s it started to have Small Weaving operations and by 1967 it had 796 Picanol Looms and 403 CIMMCO Looms . This combined with the huge and modern Bleaching Dyeing and Finishing Department went on to make it one of the Largest Composite Textile Mills in India .

Back to August 4th 1974 : - 

We were in the Administrative Office Building and provided all the required information. We were informed that alternate arrangements in the Bachelor's Quarters are being made and we would soon be provided accommodations there .

My Native Place RAVANASAMUDRAM was just 14 KMS away from the Mill Complex and could be reached easily .

Barring a few , most of us were earmarked for the Loom Shed. Let me begin with the Size of the Loom Shed first , it was Larger than a full fledged Soccer or Football Ground . The sound of the 1200 Looms hit you like a thunder . The Humidification Plant only added to the decibel level .

I was posted in Section 1 under Mr M Chakravarthy ; a portly Bengali as my Manager . Mr  B Ganapathy of  C batch  was my Shift In Charge. The Section had 384 Looms in 44 and 48 Inches .

The first few months involved training in various Primary and Secondary Motions of a loom and the application of a New Shuttle in a Loom . Any slippage of the Spanner or Screw Driver would invite a stare from Shri Amboiram and if repeated again a painful whack on the Wrist was also a possibility.

The  ' FIRST NIGHT ' in the night shift had nothing Romantic or pleasant about it . The Shuttle moving 210 times in a minute from Box to Box with the accompanying Sound was sure to bring a Headache within minutes . Not knowing what to do to while away the time with the Coffee time still far away and each worker resembling the prototype of MN Nambiar at his Worst did give me the shivers. Thought of returning to Mumbai also came from time to time .  

You slowly got to know, what  it meant to take a Quality Round, interacting with the Weaver and knowing him better and getting the best out of him . Tackling  absenteeism , low production , quality issues became rather easy .

Voile 3704 , Drills 1023 , 1024 , Chambray HS419 , Poplin HP401 , Canvasses 4084 and HO 55 , Shirtings , Suitings , 9 to 5,  Filament Shirtings, Parachute Cloth , Denim and the list is almost endless.

We were the largest producers of Voile Blouse Material in India and a firm Favourite of the Ladies over the length and breadth of the Country . The shades to match the colour of the Sari would put one in a daze . There were infinite number of shades in Green Blue Red Yellow or Whatever color to match the Colour the Sari the Lady of the House had just bought !!

CENTENARY Celebrations: - 

The year 1980 saw us celebrating the Centenary Year in a grand manner. Gangai Amaran with his Music Troupe, All India Kabbadi Tournament, A Gift Hamper , A day when the family of the Workers could come inside the Mill made it a truly memorable and once in a lifetime event. 

Bachelor's Quarters :- We were soon provided accommodations in the Bachelor's Quarters. This had 2 floors with 7 rooms in each flank with the Dining Room for Vegetarians on the Ground Floor and NV on the floor above . Billing was on a dividing system and this suited everybody.One significant feature here was that almost everyone had a Motorbike. I too managed to get a Royal Enfield Crusader Motorbike in 1976  . This made going to RAVANASAMUDRAM even easier. I had RR from BDF  who also hailed from my place as also Kadayam Mani for company .

The period also saw M/S Amboiram , Karunakaran , Chakravarthy leaving us and seeking greener Pastures.

A Babu Prakash and E S Shankar were now the Weaving Manager and Shuttle Less Shed Manager . I was made in charge of Section 1.

Shuttle Less Shed began to take shape in a big way first with SULZER PROJECTILE LOOMS AND THEN WITH PICANOL AIRJET WEAVING MACHINES .

Staff were sent for training on Sulzer Projectile Looms to Switzerland and to Belgium for Picanol Airjet Looms . I myself was sent to Belgium for Picanol Airjet Looms and to France for STAUBLI ELECTRONIC DOBBY .

MARRIAGE AND COLONY LIFE : -

I got married in the year 1978 at Tuticorin. More interestingly this was at a time when the Mill was on strike . The reason for the Strike was that the Workers Subsidized Price for a Cup of Coffee had been increased from 6 Paise to 8 Paise . As I was to learn later my C Shift was as was usually the case behind the  prime instigators of the strike . More about STRIKES later .

Thanks to Weaving Manager MLN  Sir , I was provided accommodations at Ewart House which is right opposite the Ambasamudram Railway Station . This is a huge Colonial Building where top ranking Englishmen employed by the Mill Stayed . In fact I was neighbor to Mr CL Miller who was the Mill Manager of the Mill then . 

( Don't get it wrong , I got the place not because of anything else ; it was the  only free place available then ) 

My Wedding Reception for the all at Ambas and later the Baby Shower or Seemantham for my Better Half were also held here . The Bungalow was too big for Comfort as was the fear of Snakes which we sighted quite often. The very length and size  of these sent the shivers down one's spine .

Fortunately a decision by the Mill Management to convert the same into a School which now goes by the name of Vikasaa was taken . My Son went on to later study in this school . We were given quarters at various places over a period of time . Majority of our stay of our close to 30 year stay in the colony was at K2 Old Colony which was always in demand as it was opposite the Colony Club where a lot of activity took place including the screening of Movies every alternate week.We could watch the Movie on the huge Cinema scope Screen from the Comfort of our House. This suited my parents who were staying with me very well .

My better half to whom I Owe so much by virtue of being a Tamil Pandit and a Rank Holder at that was appointed as a Tamil Teacher at Chatram Bharathy Girls High School after going through all the Government Stipulated Selection Process. She also Completed her MA and BEd while being employed from the MK University. This was in the year 1979 when my daughter Anoo was still an infant. My parents staying with me was a very big boon .

MORE THAN A WORD OR TWO NEEDS TO BE MENTIONED ABOUT THE COLONY LIFE .

People loosely use the term HEAVEN ON EARTH to refer to a place, these words would be most befitting for the Madura Coats Mill Colony at PAPANASAM. Literally on the foothills of the Western Ghats with neatly laid Houses and Pathways and approach roads and a thick canopy of Greenery all around brought about an old World Charm to it .

The Hundred odd houses and its residents had  everything going for them . The residents of the Colony though at loggerheads inside the Mill officially led a happy life inside partnering in all the Team Games . The Colony Club and the Famous Tambarabarani Club had everything that one could wish for . Children and Adults could play BADMINTON TENNIS TABLE TENNIS BILLIARDS SNOOKER CARDS WITH OR WITHOUT STAKES OR SPLASH IN THE WELL LAID AND MAINTAINED SWIMMING POOL . There were coaches for Swimming and Tennis for the Kids .

My Son born in 1984 grew up with all these facilities at his disposal which not many were fortunate enough to have.

The bimonthly Screening of the Latest Blockbuster Movies on the huge screen in front of the colony club was always a big attraction as the Cholay Bhaturay during the Interval was a great savior and saved the ladies from cooking Dinner for the night .

I too have performed many times on the stage. Broken Mirror Skit  with MA Perumal Raja Comes to mind  immediately as also the dance for the Karagattakaaran Song Undhi Undhi Vinayakanay with Ayyappan . Music show by Japan Balu where I played the percussion instrument using an oil drum . Hindi Song Antakshari with Mrs V Gopalaswamy is unforgettable even now after so many years .

There was some cultural event almost every month. Diwali Pongal Onam Christmas annual sports competition for the residents , Ladies day etc . The most looked forward to event was the New Year Eve Celebration. Which started around 6 PM and extended well past midnight with dance , drama , music and games . The fun and frolic is unforgettable.

Stage Shows by Crazy Mohan Troupe, Ramadas Troupe and V Gopalakrishnan were a huge draw .

Last but definitely not the least was the Vikasaa School which was by far one of the best Schools in South then . My Son did his entire Schooling here and was in fact it's School Captain during the Final Year . He owes much of his current position to the Schooling at Vikasaa.

Gas Connection in all houses and TV Dish Antenna Connection were a feature here .

Safety was never an issue here as entry into the colony was totally restricted.  Barring the Monkey Menace the Colony was the most peaceful place . Black Faced Langur Monkeys never touched anything that you offered , probably they had more advanced taste buds. The Rhesus Monkeys did make occasional visits to check what the Lady of the House  had cooked for Lunch or Dinner .

All these were measures which the Management took to attract and or retain the Technical Hands in the Company .

NOW BACK INSIDE THE MILL FOR ONE LAST TIME : - The fall of an edifice.

Shuttle Less Shed began to take shape in a big way. Work Wear 5230 and 5231 had huge Export Markets. Design Shirtings from the Shirting Project and Picanol Rapier Looms ruled the market for a while . Your's truly had the Singular Distinction of Achieving the Highest Efficiency in both the Sulzer Shed and Picanol Section 1 .

Training on the Quickest way to put out a fire in the unlikely event of a Fire was a regular feature and was conducted by the Security Officer. The efficient way to connect the HOSE NOSE AND HYDRANT AND THE CORRECT WAY TO HOLD THE NOSE were imparted in all sincerity. The session went by the name of FIRE PRACTICE but was jokingly referred to as Vada Practice as there was a session of Vada and Coffee in the Canteen after the training was over !!

Madura Coats believed in Scientific Management .

  MANAGEMENT BY OBJECTIVE , ISO 9001 , KAIZEN WERE ALL PET PROJECTS OF THE TOP ECHELONS.

DIWALI BONUS AND STRIKES : - As I had mentioned earlier there was a strike for close to 20 Days around the time that I got married. There was also a strike over unseemly words spoken by a Technical Staff to a worker .

The strikes preceding the announcement of the Diwali Bonus and the Percentage agreed upon more often than not ended in a Strike of varying durations . Most if not all of the Strikes for the entire Mill Complex started from the Loom Shed in the ' C ' batch and almost always during the night shift where the workers chose not to return to work after the interval break. Negotiation between the Management and Unions took place and after several rounds a settlement was arrived at.

This had the Management start thinking about doing away with the Weaving Operations. 1995/96 Saw a Mass Retrenchment of Staff where the Pink Cover was Handed over. This was just the beginning of the massive fall.

The final nail in the coffin was the Strike that originated in the Water Mill and spread to all other departments. The Modus operandi was different. A trolley went around the shed selling coffee to the workers two hours after the start of the shift  .The workers would simply walk off from the Work Spot and take rest . The next Shift workers would enter at the correct time and walk off exactly the same way . It took a while to get to know the persons behind this movement and their demands.

A settlement was reached but by then the Voluntary Retirement for the workers was announced and started.  The motion was all set for the closing of all operations barring the Water Mill and Spinning Mill.

WHAT EXACTLY LED TO THE FALL OF THIS ONCE TALL EDIFICE.

I am no Expert in Management and hold no Fancy Degrees in Management after my name but can point out a few things which could have been better Managed to avoid this scenario.

A ) A Firmer Action by the Industrial Relations Department to weed out the known heads who were Prone to Create trouble. The information system of IRD was obviously very poor . They were soft pedalling on issues to be in the good books of the Union Leaders . Even if a few battles were  Lost in the Court , we would have won the War by getting rid of the miscreants. Money lost in a Court Battle is a small price to pay against the massive loss of Production .

B ) The Mill was Overstaffed and was way beyond what a Bombay or AHMEDABAD Mill with a similar capacity would employ . The Admin Office, SPD . IRD , OR PCD resembled a Govt office or an LIC BRANCH.

Even imagining the figure of One Lakh Meter of cloth Production per day from Loom Shed to be true as the HEADS WHO DESCENDED from Madurai always liked to Project  ( Being from the place of action , I can say that it was never more than 90000 Meters ) . 8000 Direct plus 1000 indirect workers were producing 90000 Mt of Cloth . Ten meter per person !!! How can you ever be profitable? 

C ) We have our Manufacturing Facility at Madurai Tuticorin and Ambasamudram. All the three are within 200 KMS each other.  What is the necessity of having the Corporate Head Office at Bangalore which is 600 KMS AWAY. It simply defies logic. Except for Salubrious Climate for the  top Honchos of the Company , better schools for their Wards and a Cosmopolitan Lifestyle for their wives, I see no reason as to why BANGALORE should find a place in the Scheme of things . RENTAL PRICES ARE TOUCHING THE ROOF IN BANGALORE , RENTALS FOR OUR HUGE OFFICE IN MARATHAHALLI CAN ONLY BE IMAGINED . TRAVEL BY AIR OR TRAIN BY THE STAFF FOR WHATEVER REASON ONLY ADDS TO THE COST OF YOUR PRODUCT . 

D ) The FANCY , MANAGEMENT BY OBJECTIVE, ISO 9001 or  KAIZEN  : -  I doubt if they brought any benefit to anyone . Not when you have 95 % of the Workforce who have never opened a door beyond middle School .  Trying to compensate that with the Blue Eyed Boys with Fancy Degrees from YALE , HARVARD OR IIM was never going to work . We were not into  Rocket Science or Space Exploration. Interlacement of Warp and Weft has been there since a very long time. It started after Adam and Eve bit the forbidden Apple and decided that it was time they covered themselves . Initially plain big leaves and later interlacing  them in the best way to cover them .  It would have been in order if ways and means were introduced to reduce wasteful expenses and reduce the cost of production . Every One Extra  Rupee spent added a wee bit of Cost to  Every Meter of cloth that you produced .

THANKS EVERYONE FOR GOING THROUGH THIS LONG PASSAGE  AND MY SINCERE APOLOGIES IF I HAVE HURT SOMEONE'S FEELINGS . PLEASE DO SHARE YOUR COMMENTS GOOD OR BAD .