COST TO COMPANY. WHY I DECIDED NOT TO PAINT THE TOWN RED THIS HOLI

The Sixth Pay Commission recommendations are to be submitted to Government very soon. Lots of buzz in the air, as to who will get what?

The news article said
“Central government staff and officers, along with their counterparts in defence and paramilitary forces, have a reason to paint the town red on Holi — the Sixth Central Pay Commission is set to hand them a hike of up to 52%, if read along with their house rent allowance (HRA). “

I was reading comments on the recommendations by various readers. While reading those comments the phrase "COST TO COMPANY" came back alive once again from those dormant corners of my mind.

In my subconscious I never forget COST TO COMPANY for Defence Services, which came up while I was talking to one of my friends who is an HR trainer. Everyone who is not much aware of the life in general and Dedication, Integrity etc etc about Defence Services may talk of CTC.

For readers on fropper , I must explain what is Cost to Company.
Cost to Company (CTC) is a term used to describe an investment without return. Travel expenditures, interviewing, spending time with potential customers can all be interpreted as CTC's.

Cost to Company can also be used to refer to the total cost that an organization is spending towards their employee including the Salary, Perks, Cost related to benefits, Cost related to hiring, Training, Retirals, Statutory Contributions etc.

On fifth page of the same newspaper another news article appeared.

No father to wish Happy B'day

The first thing little Siddhant would have done on 18th March, would have been calling his father's cellphone in Kashmir to wish him a very happy birthday. Three-Year-Old Siddhant does not understand the reason why his toys have been shifted out of the living room to make way for white sheets and incense sticks, or why his mother's tears have been flowing all night. 
Siddhant will never make that call, an ironic twist of fate has severed forever that connection between the father and son. Instead, Siddhant will now be lighting his father's pyre at their native village in Maharashtra on 18th march. Tomorrow his father, Lt Col M S Kadam, would have turned 38. Instead, today evening, his body reached home. The officer laid down his life on Sunday personally leading an assault to bring down the most wanted militant in Jammu and Kashmir.

As the officiating commanding officer of 22 Rashtriya Rifles, Kadam was not even supposed to lead an assault such as this. But, when he received information that Hafiz Nisar, the Lashkar-e-Toiba's commander in Kashmir, was hiding in Rafiabad's Chatloora village, Kadam could not sit back and watch.

He was leading from the front even when he was not required to. The officer's wife Captain Smita Kadam, an ex-Army dental officer, is still in a state of shock. She had talked to him on Sunday morning, just hours before he went on the operation to hunt down Nisar.

In the ensuing gunbattle at close quarters, Kadam shot down the Lashkar commander but received grievous bullet injuries. "He managed to shoot down the commander but got critically injured in the gunfight. The officer succumbed to his injures while he was being evacuated to a medical facility,"

The mortal remains of Kadam, who belongs to Sindhudurg district of Maharashtra, were flown in to Delhi on Monday evening on a civilian flight. His family members will accompany the remains to his native village of Padve on Tuesday, where the cremation will be held with full military honours.

Even in her moment of grief, 36-year-old Smita epitomises the strength of a soldier's wife. "He is gone; but the sense of pride he has left us with will live and grow in our hearts forever. When Siddhant grows up, I will tell him about his father's achievements." 

The ring tone of Smita's cell phone, the hit track from the film Lage Raho Munnabhai- Pal pal pal pal har pal har pal, kaise katega pal har pal,' might give off a sense of loneliness and isolation in her life, but she is determined to be strong for her son. Siddhant will never wish his father again but he will definitely wish to become like him - a man of honour. Kadam was commissioned in the Indian army (24 Punjab) in June 1991 and this was his second tenure with the Rashtriya Rifles.

Whatever the pay commission recommendations are, would hardly matter to family of the brave soldier. There are many things that can not be compensated with money.

Most of all, words and phrases like "Cost to Company", "Cost", "Price", "Compensation" are totally irrelevant to Defence Services.

While everyone would be playing Holi, more than 3000km away from my town, 3 year old Siddhant, who would have been waiting  to play Holi with kids in neighbourhood, would be still wondering why no one is playing Holi in his family and village. I can not even dream of painting the town red this Holi.

Tags: dedicated to lt col ms kadam, capt smita kadam and siddhant

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