<p>Toeing the government line, the month of September was observed as Hindi Maah (Hindi month) and September 14 as Hindi Diwas (Hindi Day) in the public sector bank (PSB) from which I have since retired. The purpose of commemorating the Hindi month and day was to promote and encourage the use of Hindi in official work, particularly in Hindi-speaking regions. Various competitions were held to test employees’ proficiency in the language.</p>.<p>This episode dates to a Hindi Maah approximately 20 years ago. Our zonal office had announced an essay competition in Hindi for employees working under its jurisdiction, which happened to be an entirely Hindi-speaking region.</p>.<p class="bodytext">I was the head of one of the branches in the zone. Always keen on writing, I composed an essay in Hindi on the given topic, adhering to the prescribed word limit, and submitted my entry to the Rajbhasha Vibhag (official language department), which was the nodal office for Hindi at the zonal office. Given that our zone had around 200 branches, I did not fancy my chances of making it to the podium.</p>.<p class="bodytext">A few weeks later, I received a call from the Rajbhasha Vibhag informing me that my essay had been adjudged second—a pleasant surprise, belying my expectations. I was told that the winners would be felicitated at the forthcoming performance review meeting. I was delighted that my essay had won second place at the zonal level. </p>.<p class="bodytext">On the big day, I reached the zonal office fifteen minutes before the meeting was scheduled to begin. Since I had some time, I first dropped by the Rajbhasha Vibhag to thank the officials for honouring my entry with a <br />second prize. After greeting me <br />warmly, they made an interesting revelation. Stunned, I hurried for the conference room, where the prizes for the Hindi Maah competitions were to be distributed.</p>.<p class="bodytext">At the venue, I took a seat among the participants as the performance review deliberations began. When the meeting finally drew to a close, everyone looked weary and eager to leave. But the Rajbhasha officials, who were waiting in the wings patiently with trophies, requested our general manager to give away the prizes to the winners.</p>.<p class="bodytext">When my name was announced, I walked up to the general manager to receive my award amid the customary applause. On an impulse I requested permission to say a few words. With the GM’s nod, I shared with the audience what the Rajbhasha officials had told me earlier that morning.</p>.<p class="bodytext">To everyone’s amusement—and amid roaring laughter—I revealed that there had been only two entries in the competition in which I had won the second prize!</p>
<p>Toeing the government line, the month of September was observed as Hindi Maah (Hindi month) and September 14 as Hindi Diwas (Hindi Day) in the public sector bank (PSB) from which I have since retired. The purpose of commemorating the Hindi month and day was to promote and encourage the use of Hindi in official work, particularly in Hindi-speaking regions. Various competitions were held to test employees’ proficiency in the language.</p>.<p>This episode dates to a Hindi Maah approximately 20 years ago. Our zonal office had announced an essay competition in Hindi for employees working under its jurisdiction, which happened to be an entirely Hindi-speaking region.</p>.<p class="bodytext">I was the head of one of the branches in the zone. Always keen on writing, I composed an essay in Hindi on the given topic, adhering to the prescribed word limit, and submitted my entry to the Rajbhasha Vibhag (official language department), which was the nodal office for Hindi at the zonal office. Given that our zone had around 200 branches, I did not fancy my chances of making it to the podium.</p>.<p class="bodytext">A few weeks later, I received a call from the Rajbhasha Vibhag informing me that my essay had been adjudged second—a pleasant surprise, belying my expectations. I was told that the winners would be felicitated at the forthcoming performance review meeting. I was delighted that my essay had won second place at the zonal level. </p>.<p class="bodytext">On the big day, I reached the zonal office fifteen minutes before the meeting was scheduled to begin. Since I had some time, I first dropped by the Rajbhasha Vibhag to thank the officials for honouring my entry with a <br />second prize. After greeting me <br />warmly, they made an interesting revelation. Stunned, I hurried for the conference room, where the prizes for the Hindi Maah competitions were to be distributed.</p>.<p class="bodytext">At the venue, I took a seat among the participants as the performance review deliberations began. When the meeting finally drew to a close, everyone looked weary and eager to leave. But the Rajbhasha officials, who were waiting in the wings patiently with trophies, requested our general manager to give away the prizes to the winners.</p>.<p class="bodytext">When my name was announced, I walked up to the general manager to receive my award amid the customary applause. On an impulse I requested permission to say a few words. With the GM’s nod, I shared with the audience what the Rajbhasha officials had told me earlier that morning.</p>.<p class="bodytext">To everyone’s amusement—and amid roaring laughter—I revealed that there had been only two entries in the competition in which I had won the second prize!</p>
