First impressions of the bhel bhopal township are anything but encouraging. but as Manish K. Pandey delves into the details, he finds that bhel could well be on its way to bringing back the good old days
It was a cold winter morning in the capital, foggy like any other. Though I somehow managed to reach the New Delhi Railway Station on time, it took me a while to board my train to Bhopal, as I had to cross several platforms on the way. And by the time I could settle down in the train, it was the onset of dawn. The sun was rising and so was a brisk wind that every now and then blew its way through the still dark station. However, I was quite warm inside the train, as it grudgingly commenced its journey towards the city of mosques and lakes … and of course, home to one of the most well known Navratna PSUs – the mother plant of Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL), the largest engineering and manufacturing enterprise in India in the energy-related and infrastructure sector.
The train was still in the outskirts of Delhi and the middle-aged, smartly dressed gentleman sitting beside me had already introduced himself. His name was Shyam Bora. Call it my sheer luck or a plain coincidence, he turned out to be a supplier of raw materials (for the last 30 odd years) to BHEL!
“The condition of the township has deteriorated over the last few years. Roads, streetlights, houses, et al, happen to be in bad shape. However, the BHEL management seems to be doing nothing about it,” he told me. This really surprised me, as according to several observers, the township (that spreads over an area of around 20 sq km) was well known for its greenery and for providing facilities like parks, community halls, library, shopping centres, schools and banks to its residents. “While old employees are retiring at a fast pace, new recruitments still take a backseat...” added Bora. But that was where the bad news ended, in Bora’s opinion. On the professional front, he was more than happy supplying to BHEL. Apart from BHEL, he had been supplying raw materials to other corporate houses as well. But the bond that he shares with BHEL Bhopal is perhaps special. “Despite the fact that they have a credit period of 90 days, which is far greater than other companies, it has always been a growing relationship with them,” said Bora.
It was a cold winter morning in the capital, foggy like any other. Though I somehow managed to reach the New Delhi Railway Station on time, it took me a while to board my train to Bhopal, as I had to cross several platforms on the way. And by the time I could settle down in the train, it was the onset of dawn. The sun was rising and so was a brisk wind that every now and then blew its way through the still dark station. However, I was quite warm inside the train, as it grudgingly commenced its journey towards the city of mosques and lakes … and of course, home to one of the most well known Navratna PSUs – the mother plant of Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL), the largest engineering and manufacturing enterprise in India in the energy-related and infrastructure sector.
The train was still in the outskirts of Delhi and the middle-aged, smartly dressed gentleman sitting beside me had already introduced himself. His name was Shyam Bora. Call it my sheer luck or a plain coincidence, he turned out to be a supplier of raw materials (for the last 30 odd years) to BHEL!
“The condition of the township has deteriorated over the last few years. Roads, streetlights, houses, et al, happen to be in bad shape. However, the BHEL management seems to be doing nothing about it,” he told me. This really surprised me, as according to several observers, the township (that spreads over an area of around 20 sq km) was well known for its greenery and for providing facilities like parks, community halls, library, shopping centres, schools and banks to its residents. “While old employees are retiring at a fast pace, new recruitments still take a backseat...” added Bora. But that was where the bad news ended, in Bora’s opinion. On the professional front, he was more than happy supplying to BHEL. Apart from BHEL, he had been supplying raw materials to other corporate houses as well. But the bond that he shares with BHEL Bhopal is perhaps special. “Despite the fact that they have a credit period of 90 days, which is far greater than other companies, it has always been a growing relationship with them,” said Bora.
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