My visit to MMEC

To all my friends of MMEC, Mullana.

I wanted to share my experience while I visited the college few days back. I heard from others that college is changed a lot, so sharing my own experience with you.

When I reached Mullana then I could see some guys waiting on the bridge asking for lift despite auto-rickshaws and cycle-rickshaws being available. I looked at them and slowed down my car at the turn. However, to their disappointment, I smiled at them and drove ahead. I was enjoying the natural beauty while driving. The scene was so refreshing. Some farmers were ploughing while some were taking care of their lush green fields. After driving some 2.5 KM, I reached to the entrance of the college. There I could see a tea stall before entrance. It was a kind of hut with some sitting space. When I peeped into the tea stall, there were many boys and girls who were getting late for their lecture but still were in no rush to finish off their tea. However, I could not see Sachin Suri, Vikram Yadav(s), Juneja, Bhatia, Prateek or Sucheta there. I proceeded further.


I entered the college campus. There was a lawn in the front. Students were coming out of the building after their sessional exam and gathering in that lawn. They were making different faces while discussing their question paper - sometimes disappointment and sometimes as if something big has been achieved. Any new student coming out of the building was joining the gang. I waited there for 5 min and looked closely at them but I could not locate Shobhna, Anuradha or Baweja among those students.

I entered the building. Straight ahead were those computer labs where we all learnt computer and shaped our future. I went to the lab, I did not enter the lab but peeped into the lab by sticking my nose on a glass wall. My hands were curved forming 2 semi-circles and were placed on my face avoiding reflection of glass so that I could have a better inside view. Some students were quite glued to their monitors and a few were sitting in the lab as if they were there without their schedule. I tried my best to search Gambhir, Sapna, Jyoti or Rajiv Gupta but none of these faces were there.

I proceeded towards admin office. Pratap was sitting there talking to students. As usual he was soft in in voice but students were still getting irritated. They had very little hope of getting answer of their queries.

I started walking back and reached to the big corridor just between labs and classrooms. A bunch of students we discussing something with a lecturer. I went close to them. They did not pay any attention to me as if I was invisible. They were discussing about some trip. The lecturer was helping them arranging it. But neither the lecturer was among Katyar and Manpreet sir nor the students were among Prashar, Aditya or Jt.

I went near class rooms. I could see a bunch of jovial folks pulling each other's leg. There was a guy having calm face. He was not participating in leg pulling yet enjoying each moment. But neither the gang involved Chhokar, Sandy, Jagtej and Ranjan, nor the calm faced person was PD. No one was pulling plaits of girls either.

Then I opened the back door of a classroom slightly. A lecturer was taking lecture. Some students were attentive but not like Chautani, Kinra, Nandu (Mukesh), Geeta or Verma brothers (Vishal and Manoj). Some students were playing pranks but none of those faces resembled Harjai, Avinash, Mamta or Reena.

There were some posters stuck outside the walls of classrooms. These posters were about some events being conducted. I stood over there and read 1 of the poster. The event description was given in short. The names of organizers were mentioned at the bottom. I read the names. My brain was picking up the alphabets randomly trying to form some desirable names but none of the names sounded like Mohit, Swapan or Manisha.

Then I headed towards workshops. Students were involved in multiple jobs. They were dressed up in khakhi uniform. Sweat was dripping from their faces yet their eyes were stuck on their jobs and they were moving their hands slowly and carefully. In between they were asking each other to verify their work. Though none of them was skilled in his/her job but still they were giving expert advise to others very confidently. Pooja Saini didn't faint; Chandesh and Satwant were attentive towards their jobs, Megha and Nidhi Monga were not taking help from boys and instructor was happy with the jobs being performed.

I heard some noise of students from outside. The result of previous semester was out and it was displayed on the wall outside workshops. I decided to go there and read the notice board. There was a flock in front of the notice board. Some guys were returning happy, few were glum. Girls were not trying to enter the crowd. I noticed a well-built fat boy standing in front of the result-sheet. He was shouting the results to his friends and those girls standing aside while dodging the push from other students. My eyes twinkled. I could not resist myself and started making my way towards that boy by pushing other with my elbow. After good 10 min of struggle, finally I was there. I tapped at the shoulder of that boy with excitement. When the boy turned towards me, his face didn't resemble Daddu. I moved a step ahead and scanned the result sheet twice right from top to bottom while struggling the push from others. To my disappointment Nidhi, Preeti or Tanwar were not listed among toppers.

After such a long walk inside the college building, I went to canteen to sit for a while and to have some refreshments. The canteen was full of students. There was a separate section in the canteen for college staff. I bought badam milk and tried to find a chair.

While doing this, I was looking at each table and students sitting around it. I could not find any familiar face even after long search - not even Vivek Suri, Bakshi, Abhishek, Suneet or Manu. I saw some students sitting around 1 table but they were not eating anything. They were studying from a common book. When I looked carefully then it was GRE book but the students were not Dandona or Mudita.
I found a vacant chair and eased myself over it. I started chit-chat with students casually while drinking my badam milk. They told me that Mullana is now a deemed university. I asked them if they were aware of affiliation of the college to GJU which was rolled back to KUK after a historic strike. They were not aware of any such incident, any struggle, any sacrifices, any media coverage or exemplary student-teacher collaboration.

When I came out of canteen, there was a play ground. Some matches were in progress. I went near the volleyball court and started watching the match. But the bodies which were jumping and falling to hit the ball didn't belong to Narshi, Raju or Vivek; the scorer was not Dahiya. The girl winning the sprint was not Gunjan either.

I moved towards parking as I wanted to leave now. I started my car and moved outside the campus swiftly. As soon as I crossed the grand entrance/exit gate, I could see a small hut like book shop towards my right. I was still in my own world when a sudden loud voice reached to my ears. Someone was shouting POPU!! POPU!! I looked around but there was no Hans; there was no one except me. I believe that those voices were from my past; the voices associated with all of us; the voices were still chasing me.

Others were probably right. The college was changed. Buildings, classrooms, playground, hostel, canteen, office etc. were all same however, the college was changed. Despite being so many students around, the college was lifeless. I kept thinking. Within few moments, I was clear ... I was clear on my belonging to this college. I realized that it was not "my college" but "our college". There was no sense of looking at college from just 1 pair of eyes. It was my college only when my classmates were there. Without them, it was a dead building standing. I am sure that if all or even few of us gather at any place in the world, we would create the college environment there. While thinking this my eyes became little moist. I controlled myself and drove away.


Disclaimers:
1. The incidents mentioned above are purely imaginary. If it resembles to some incident then it is purely incidental
2. The pun mentioned in the incident is intended