Desh Drohi - Kept on shouting one news channel. White collar Terrorist screamed
one news paper. Blackmailers said many more.
It is like Pak holding India responsible for Terrorism on Indian soil. We have
decided to do a bit of Ghandhigiri and we all will observe fast on Monday
(12.01.2009).We dedicate this fast to our True Patriotic spirit as an
expression of grief on being alleged Desh drohi, blackmailer and what not. We
do it so that all those will see this day as a day of Introspection for
maliciously tarnishing the image of Responsible and Disciplined of Oilmen who
have contributed heavily to the economic growth of this Great Nation.
All those who maligned us may read through and do the introspection.
Unfortunately we are in a country where everything is priced. We can't express
our opinion. We cannot tell the public our side of the story. If we have to do
that we will have to pay the Media. They are more obsessed with making a
sensational story out of some one else's grievance. They do not want to project
the correct picture. They will make an innocent look like a criminal. They will
make a habitual offender look like a saint. These people are worse than the
most corrupt and horrible black coats and politicians.
May be what we did was wrong, but did we have another choice. Did anyone try
to find out if we resorted to strike without exhausting other means of problem
resolution? Strike call was withdrawn several times in the last two and half
years. The people who mattered made several assurances and cheated us every
time. Even in this last attempt, notice was given several days in advance and
less than a week before the D-day the government appointed a committee and said
they need one more month and we all are sure that the babus of this country
will not allow them to deliver a favorable decision to us.
Coming to what the media was talking the other day - We get more than what the
armed forces, that protect the country, get. We are all very well educated and
we too are working for this country. Most of us are graduates, post graduates,
doctorates from the best institutes of this country. We may not be in the
frontline but many of our friends sacrificed their lives for this country and
we do not have weapons to protect ourselves. I hope media heard about the
officers killed by extremists as we work for the government and for this
country. I hope they heard about the officer who was killed by the corrupt
mafia. We have among us people who were held captive by Pakistan, though for a
short time. We too are fighting and working in unfavorable conditions to make
this country inch towards self reliance. We have officers working in Hot
Deserts, biting colds and dense forests surveying and exploring for oil. We do
not have the perqs and facilities that armed forces get. Our brothers who work
offshore work in very testing conditions. At odd hours we have to sail by boats
- even if a storm is there - to revive shutdowns, jump on to platforms holding
a rope risking our lives. But then we are blamed terrorists. We Stay and work
at refineries in remote areas and work in non conducive environments. Media
should understand that Oil cannot be produced in Air conditioned rooms just
like news stories can be made sitting in air conditioned rooms. Maybe a small
percentage of people sit in offices but majority struggle in testing conditions.
We are blamed that we held the nation to Ransom. In fact our fight was to save
this nation. Many may not know how they get fuel so cheap even when the crude
price was so high in the recent past. It is these Oil companies which took the
burden of subsidy. People fail to understand that the babus and netas are
trying to kill these very companies that are working for the nation. With the
paltry increase which we are going to get, not many of us will remain loyal to
these companies and the nation for ever. Many have switched their loyality and
many will follow suit. If this happens it will not be long before these
companies lose thier talent and find it difficult to pull along. Netas and
babus just want this to happen. Now they will start selling these companies.
Once private players take over, will they take the subsidy burden? Just take
the case of Reliance who closed all their fuel pumps when crude price increased
and fuel prices are not increased. Why did not the government force them to
open their bunks by using ESMA or NSA. This is what that will happen very soon.
Buy fuel at high price or the pumps will close. They are not simple living PSU
employees who can be threatened with ESMA, NSA etc. The Ambanis and Essars will
not budge and public will be happy buying at higher prices. This will be
reality very soon. And the media will be very happy to praise them for
supplying fuel to the public at higher prices and get high priced gifts to
themselves. We are called Deshdrohis because we are fighting to stop the
benevolent PSU's death from happening.
Then there was media screaming that we are paid 2 lacs to 4 lacs a month. Most
of us even after working for 20 years take home a salary of not more than
50000/- a month. A person with a private company with similar experience gets a
salary of atleast 3 lacs a month. We are not fighting for this salary but only
for a decent salary to have a decent living. Only for a salary that will stop
us from looking for something more lucrative. Only for a salary that will help
us help this country. Now we are working for PSUs which were started with
socialist objectives but now we started feeling that we are working for
Capitalists who suppress their work force with brute force. We a terribly
demoralised lot but we still want to work for these PSUs and stay loyal to this
great Nation.
Hope better sense will prevail on the media and they present a true picture to
the Nation.
Sanjeeb Hazarika
ONGC
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