Hyderabad diaries
Being a NCC cadet, we get lot of opportunities to explore our
inner self as well as the outer world and one such opportunity came to me when
I was selected for the Air Force Academy Attachment Camp 2010. I am an ex-cadet
of NCC air wing, NER directorate and it was a very proud moment for me when I
was selected as the only cadet to represent not only Assam but the entire North
East India.
The camp was scheduled to be held from 22nd
October 2010 to 4th Nov 2010. The excitement in me was bursting out
as days passed by and the time came for bidding good bye to Guwahati. Before
that I collected every pre requisite items such as new uniforms, mufti dress,
boots, flying boots etc. from the unit and received many advices and Do’s and Don’ts
from our instructors.
The journey to Secunderabad was quite long, it took three
days to reach there, and believe me when I say there was a time in the journey
when I just wanted to get out of the train anyhow. I and my instructor
V.P.Singh sir reached Secunderabad at around 6 pm in the evening on 21st
October. We went to the MCO office for the necessary to be done. An army
vehicle was already waiting to pick us and take to the camp site. Two more
cadets were waiting there. Later on after having conversation I came to know
that they were from West Bengal directorate. The three of us (cadets) were now
taken to the transit camp site where a huge army NCC camp was being conducted.
We were to spend our night there and the next day we would be taken to the Air
Force Academy.
On 22nd nov, after a briefing by the Deputy
Director General of NCC, Andhra Pradesh directorate, we were taken to our
destination, the one which we were longing to see since we joined NCC, the one
where the finest air warriors of the world are created, the temple of
discipline and knowledge – Air Force Academy, Hyderabad. We were allotted our
tents. I have to share my tent with four other cadets from Bhopal, Coimbatore,
Jaipur and Bangalore.
We had to follow a back breaking and super hectic routine for
the next 14 days. Our daily routine included getting up at 4 am to the sound of
air deafening alarm played on loud speakers by our camp instructors, which
followed up with a health run covering a stretch of about 9 kms, then we got
half an hour for nature’s call and getting ready for the drill, then breakfast
and off to classes. We were giving lectures on a diverse topics ranging from
Aero Engines to SSB interviews, History of IAF to the Latest weapons and
missiles inculcated in IAF. We were made to visit various departments of the
Academy such as Aero Medical Training Centre, Tettra School, Hangars where we
saw shining Kiran Mark-1 aircrafts used for training of Fighter pilots,
Helicopter unit at Hakimpet air force
station, transport air craft unit at Begumpet air force station etc etc….
One of the most enthralling day for us was when we were taken
for the tour of Hyderabad city. Our sight-seeing included the mystic Goloconda
Forts, The majestic Charminar, the charming and beautiful Lumbini Park and the
Magnificient Birla Temple.
“Good times fly away fast “so was the case with me. The days
at AFA went away so fast and time came for us to bid good bye. With heavy
hearts we bade bye to each other with the promise to be in contact always and
to organize a re-union where every one of us will come once again to relive those
golden days that we spent together. I entered AFA empty handed but returned
with pockets full of knowledge, love and amazing friends from each and every
part of India.
I am and always will be indebted to my CO sir and instructors
who believed in my capabilities and provided me such a chance to discover and
expand myself.
