Assam days

Assam Days Tea Experience 23/6/01

Aged 20, a trainee buyer in Harrods garden furniture dept, the world
was going by.
Yes, Lady Whateveryernameis, this teak seat will last for years - it
was made from the deck timbers of ss Otranto as you will see from the
plate on the back ( having just taken it from box of many others and
nailed it on ).
My people divorced ages previously and the old man remarried a party I
disliked. "She goes or I go" was my cunning ploy; when he said goodbye,
I had to think fast. Off to the bureau, select from Borneo, Burma,
India or Malaya - uncle in Indian army pre-war so that's it.
Tropical kit, P&;O from Southampton, drop off 2nd officer in
Falmouth for dts and away. A revelation on its own that journey - no
dinner jackets first night out, a convention new people have to be
advised on otherwise they all shout " waiter " he he. Suez, Aden,
Crater Village, Bombay.
India at last - I knew the place already from the photos, or thought I
did. Train to Calcutta, DC3 upcountry, the estate, bungalow, routine
starts.
Admin.
2,500 acres of cultivated tea in 2 divisions, 1 factory, 4 europeans,
office block, hospital, fencing, cattle traps, all roads unmade up.
Seasons dictate activity; so in winter we prune back the bushes, in
summer we pluck the crop. The Brahaputra river once ran over this land
making it incredibly fertile. If I plant my stick here today, there'll
be 2 tomorrow, said the manager. Prehistoric earthquakes shifted the
river course vast distances. The company employs the labour force -
over 2,000 regulars with accommodation provided; some more are
recruited as needed in the busy season, then laid off. Leaf enters the
factory, dried out in multi floored buildings, collected and put
through the manufacturing process finishing as fired and graded tea in
mountains on the floor prior to boxing up. Then shipped to auction in
Calcutta and London.
The bungalow
Here is home shared with 10 or so servants; 1 bearer who alone touches
your possessions, 2 paniwallahs general cleaners and carriers, 2
jaroowallahs sweeper class who do work beneath the dignity ( or caste
limitation ) of the paniwallahs, 2 malis gardeners, 1 day chowkidar
gatekeeper, 1 night chowkidar ditto, 1 cook. Fellows who rode had a
syce who kept the horse in shape. A lot for 1 person you might think ?
- wrong; this is India. There were 500 million people and the last
thing needed was labour saving devices. So the malis mowed the lawn,
one pushing and one pulling. The dhobiwallah came to wash your kit,
durzeewallah made clothes, John chinaman made shoes - foot on paper and
trace round in pencil, nappitwallah cut your hair.
The office
Here sit 6 or so clerks round the walls, my desk in the middle. Records
of all types, names, grades, work details, pay records, deductions,
estate management records, re-planting schedules, uprooting register,
shade tree records, nursery details, fertiliser stocks etc etc. The
days work is given out at 7.00 each morning based on cycling round the
division area the day before to assess what state of readiness the tea
is in. It grows so quickly the risk is the pluckers take a longer shoot
which is stalky - it should be 2 leaves and a bud. The weeders, drain
diggers, and spray men have to be sorted out also. On Friday each
fortnight is pay parade where the labour squat under umbrellas to
reduce suns rays, get called up, the clerk says the wage and I hand it
over. The worker gives the lti ( left thumb impression ) in the pay
record then on to the next one.
The club
Wednesday afternoons is tennis and swimming and golf. The evening a
gentle booze up, billiards, snooker, table tennis. Managers drink
whisky pani, ie with water, we lot (assistants ) stick to local beer.
Since 1947 Indians are club members and their women have long saris,
more colourful than the memsahibs kit. Only one tricky incident I can
recall. Republic day is a big event, club decorated with flags - 2
national anthems played on wind- up gramaphone.. In the middle of the
Indian anthem once, an older member arrived slightly under the weather
and made for the bar. Bearer ! turn off this bloody racket - eh whats
up ? anthem ? oh shit sorry folks. A moment to savour.
Strange lagacy
Estates existed for 150 years or so and under the imperial government,
the practice grew up where businesses were allowed to offer a form of
justice to petitioners who sought redress for any wrongdoing except
murder, normally handled by the courts. This worked well as follows:
the civil authorities didn't have to spend time on minor matters, and
the people got a hearing by a european at nil cost. They could always
take the matter up with outside solicitors &; the civil process, but
that seldom happened. So each morning at 9.00 after passing
intermediate hindusthani in 6 months, I heard the cases. This can only
have worked because of trust in previous decisions and the
incorruptibility of the Oxbridge civil servants over the years who
encouraged the practice. The matters involved theft, threatening
behaviour, assault, diverting water supply, property damage, forcible
conversion to another tribe by kidnap ( usually a girl ), division of
property after death, religious issues. The upshot of one case was
embarrassing- hugely. Cycling along I was salaamed by an old pensioner,
jumped off and said words to the effect how are you and family ? He
went on his knees, held my ankles and with head on my shoes, thanked me
for some decision of a week previously. It must have mattered a lot and
I could hardly remember the issue. If the case was really tricky and
involved tribal custom I would ask for it to be heard by panchayet ( 5
elders ) who would advise their decision which no european would ever
think of altering.
Other
Sport ie cricket in winter and football/rugby in summer - we must have
been barmy in that heat. Assam is the most humid in the world and also
the wettest. Monsoon arrives in May and if at night you get
thunderstorms, expect daylight for really long periods as the lightning
is solid for minutes at a time. You sleep under a mosquito net and keep
a flit gun under the bed to finish off any crafty buggers that
penetrate, the punkah goes flat out through the night (electric fan).
On special occasions its time for a visit to the local township and a
special haircut. Mr Singh digs out his high power perfume and we smell
like a tart's boudoir. On to the taxi rank, switch off and await ali, a
man of 7 or 8 years only who jumps in and gives directions. Financial
transactions take place. I always drove because one chum worked
enormous hours in the factory and needed strength for later, while the
other didn't have a licence.
Trouble
Assamese are an idle lot therefore Bengali immigrants take the better
jobs requiring effort and brains. This upsets the layabout types every
so often and a sons of the soil campaign gets going with attacks on
bengalis and their families. Cycling back from the club, racquet in
hand I got surrounded by an army of clerical types, witnesses and those
who appear in India when something adrift has happened. One of my
clerks had been murdered on his doorstep, clearly a police matter. The
immigrant families moved into the steel gated factory, disrupting
production. Hill men ( jungli wallahs ) were hired as security, and the
place was thick with the ordinary police, then the lathi police, then
the armed police, then biggest bull merchants of all the Indian army.
Any guilty parties caught ? - not one I know of. Civil unrest was
declared by government - martial law, our vehicles got commandeered,
and I got seconded to guide troops to the villages where we recruited
the part time labour - the non estate residents. We'll have the
buggers, wait till they see a touch of the green said the local
commander, giving me a uniform beret and ancient weapon just for show
purposes. I explained these are not the men to do this, I work with
them they are not Assamese but hillmen from Orissaa and Bihar, but he
seemed vague and preferred chattering of past successes. Later I
advised my day chowkidhar my duties for tomorrow and suggested he be
somewhere else and the smart man sized up the situation. Next day with
the squad armed to the teeth and itching to let fly, we arrived at the
few huts to find no occupants; mightily relieved I took them on to the
others with same result. Never has the bush telegraph worked so well.
Just another incident east of Suez where there ain't no 10
commandments.

End