"From Soviet Blueprints to Modern India: Personal Reflections on Russian Expertise, Friendship, and Unseen Ties

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I always considered Russians as better partners for us compared to Americans. In the initial stages, all our heavy industries like refining, steel, mining, fertilizer, and heavy machinery PSUs like BHEL and Hindustan Antibiotics,discovering oil in Anklewar and Kallol of ONGC in Gujarat were done with Russian collaboration and financial support. Even IIT Bombay was funded by the Russians. My encounters with Russians began during my Barauni Refinery days. Both the Barauni and Baroda refineries were built with Russian collaboration. They freely shared their technology, complete with detailed calculations. Whenever we faced a technical issue at Barauni, I would head to the technical service library and pull out the original calculations and blueprints. This access to Russian technical documentation allowed me to learn a great deal that wasn't covered during my time at IIT Kharagpur, which was built under the Colombo Plan.

My next significant contact with the Russians was at Vizag Steel in 1989. The blast furnace and raw material handling systems there were based on Russian technology. Russia was still unified then, but I left Vizag for my next posting at Farakka Super Thermal Power Station in December 1991, just as the Soviet Union was disintegrating into multiple smaller countries.

During my Bhopal days starting in 2000, I once again engaged with Russia and Ukraine. We collaborated with the hydro lab Kharkhob in Ukraine to design a runner, enabling us to compete against Alstom,Voith etc and win the contract of Kameng Hydro in Arunachal . I met Alexendrov during this time, a highly skilled technocrat with seven patents to his name. He played a crucial role in bringing mechanical designers for our transformers. When I visited Russia and Ukraine in 2003 for meetings with LMZ, Alexendrov acted as our interpreter and guide. Tragically, I recently learned that he is no more. We found that the world renowned Technological set up LMZ was owned by a Russian oligarch,an arrogant character like Putin.

Why am I writing this? Because in the last two years, I've read two books focused on Russia that paint a dismal picture of the condition of Russian intellectuals: "Second Hand Time" by Nobel-winning author Svetlana Alexievich and "A Gentleman in Moscow" by Amor Towles. Reading these books made me feel sad. I witnessed a man like Alexendrov, with his high caliber having 7/8 patents acting as our guide and interpreter. In India, he would have been revered. We used to pay him $100 a day, covering his fare, boarding, and lodging. In contrast, an American or German expert in 2003 would have cost us at least $500 a day. Today, an Indian expert costs a minimum of Rs 50,000 a day.

Indian business fraternity has taken advantage of the collapse of Russia by engaging Russian technicians and engineers in new steel plants established by companies like Mittals, Jindals and Ruias. I've seen numerous skilled Russian engineers contributing to these projects at a fraction of the cost we would have paid for Western experts. This access to affordable expertise has significantly aided India's industrial growth, proving yet again the long-standing value of our partnership with Russia.

This trend is not limited to industrial sectors alone. Private airlines in India have also employed many Russian pilots. These pilots, often with extensive experience and high levels of training, were available at a cost significantly lower than their Western counterparts. Their presence has helped maintain high standards of aviation safety and service while keeping operational costs manageable.

Additionally, I have seen groups of Russians coming to India to purchase ready-made garments in bulk, while we were staying in Karol Bagh ,Delhi I have seen hoards of Russians staying in seedy cheap hotels in Pahargaunj.They would purchase cheap readymade garments to be sold in Russia. These groups often include former doctors, engineers, and other professionals who now engage in trade to support their families. They buy garments in India and sell them back in Moscow, leveraging the cost advantages and quality of Indian textiles. During my visit to Russia I was about to buy some garments then our guide warned laughingly that those were all from India.

These examples illustrate the broad spectrum of Russian expertise that India has harnessed over the years, contributing to various sectors of our economy. While it is beneficial for us, it is equally a poignant reminder of the challenging circumstances faced by many skilled Russians who have had to adapt to new roles far from their original professions.

In "Second Hand Time" by Svetlana Alexievich, the Nobel-winning author presents a haunting portrayal of post-Soviet Russia through the voices of ordinary people. The book is a collection of interviews that reveal the disillusionment, nostalgia, and hardships experienced by those who lived through the transition from communism to capitalism. Alexievich captures the emotional and psychological toll on Russian society, painting a picture of a nation struggling to redefine its identity amidst economic and social upheaval.

"A Gentleman in Moscow" by Amor Towles offers a fictional yet equally compelling view of Russian history. The novel follows Count Alexander Rostov, an aristocrat sentenced to house arrest in a grand hotel across the street from the Kremlin in the wake of the Bolshevik Revolution. Through his eyes, we witness the dramatic changes in Russia over several decades. Despite the constraints of his confinement, Rostov maintains his dignity and wit, forging deep connections with the hotel's staff and guests. Towles' narrative beautifully captures the resilience and adaptability of the human spirit in the face of monumental societal changes.

Reading these books made me reflect on the fate of Russian intellectuals and professionals like Alexendrov, who, despite their immense talent and knowledge, found themselves in diminished roles due to the socio-economic turmoil in their country. These personal stories and historical narratives underscore the profound impact of geopolitical shifts on individual lives and the enduring connections between our nations.

During my IIT days, I was an avid reader of spy thrillers where Soviet Russia was often depicted as the villain. I was particularly fond of James Bond novels; in "From Russia with Love," SMERSH, the anti-espionage wing of the USSR, was the villain group. Those days, the Cold War between the US and USSR had divided the world into two blocs—those aligned with the US, those aligned with the USSR, and those who remained neutral, known as the third world. However, I wasn't personally influenced by these books as I didn't analyze them deeply. My project guide was Prof Zerikhin ,a Russian but our discussions never ventured beyond the subject matter. This personal connection, however brief, reinforced my belief in the value of Russian expertise and the enduring professional ties we have built over the years.

Pagli

Pagli

I finished my morning walk around the lake, came out of the gate near CRC, Gopal was fetching the car, I walked towards the lone beggar. Every day I pay some money to that beggar plus a beggar woman. The woman was missing. I asked that beggar about her. He informed, “Both of us got 500 bucks from a gentleman yesterday, she must be boozed out.”

Those words “boozed out’ took me back by about 20 years.

Those days I was posted at Kolkata and would on some evenings stop at the lake for evening walk on the way home. It was one such evening when I was walking around the lake opposite Menoka cinema. Suddenly I felt that a few urchins were following me, those days the lake was not enclosed like what it is now. I sensed that those were snatchers, I was trying to figure out a way to get out of the predicament but suddenly a woman in trousers with a bidi dangling from her mouth, the hair tightly bound in a bun appeared from nowhere. She hissed at those urchins, “Back off

! Leave him alone!”

I stopped, wide eyed I was watching that tableaux. I was mesmerized by that scene unfolding in the semidarkness. The diffused light from the street lamps created an aerie atmosphere! She was poised like a fighter with her weight supported on her left leg and slightly bent forward, she had pulled out her long hair pin and held that in her fist, a desi Modesty Blaise I thought. Her this unexpected appearance stunned those ruffians, I started looking around for police. I don’t remember whether I shouted for police or not but I heard footsteps and whistle. Those rascals fled after cursing her in Bengali, they were calling her Mukhpuri ( in Bengali, it means burnt face). She gave a mock salute to me and vanished in the thin air.

After that day I stopped my evening walk around the lake. I encountered that woman in trousers again when I went for an English movie in Menoka. I found her selling tickets in black, I could make out that she was the ring leader of all those boys selling tickets around that cinema hall. She did not recognize me but I could, the event of that fateful evening was permanently etched in my mind.

I went near her at the teashop by the side of road, she came forward thinking that I was looking for ticket.

-No,no I don’t want any ticket as I have purchased ticket in advance but I want to thank you for saving me on that evening.

She looked closer at me and then carelessly told, “Oh! That’s nothing! Because of those rascals’ people are scared to come even for evening show in this cinema hall and if people don’t come then how do we earn? So me and my gang keep a close watch!”

-That day I could not thank you but I want to reward you for your that act.

I gave her 50 bucks and she accepted that nonchalantly.

I don’t remember the name of the Hindi movie for which one evening on a later date me and my wife thought of going to Menoka, purchase ticket from the counter. The “Houseful "board was hanging in front of the hall. At the tea shop I inquired about her. One of the serving boys said, ‘You are looking for Mukhpuri, she earned some big money yesterday because this movie has become hit, she must be boozed out!”

We could not purchase tickets in black even.

In the meanwhile, I got transferred and then retired, I had no occasion to go to Menoka cinema hall, did not see her again until I started my morning walk around the lake 3 years back.

But when I first saw that beggar woman who has white patches on her face and hands I was taken aback for a moment as I have seen that face somewhere. I asked Gopal, my driver to find out about her.

Later on Gopal informed me that she is the same girl Mukhpuri who is now known as Pagli, twenty years back she was like a don of Menoka cinema hall, controlling the black market of cinema tickets of the theatre.

I of course did not remind her of that day but started giving money to her every day. She is still sharp, she knows my car and when she sees me coming out of the gate of the lake she calls out for Gopal in commanding voice to bring the car. I found her to be in friendly terms with the guards and policeman at the gate. Even in tatters she is always in smiles and keeps commenting on those hawkers, drivers, guards.
In the meanwhile Gopal brought the car and i got in,from the window i looked at the vacant space of Pagli and tried to superimpose that with the vibrant young face of Mukhpuri which i saw 20 years back.

Disclaimer: Partly true and rest a spin.