As mentioned earlier, we were allowed a 45 minutes tiffin break after the 4th period. Students of class 5 to 7 used to utilised the tiffin time as - 10 minutes for eating and remaining time for playing and talkings.
Sometimes, we used to play cricket in our class keeping light bulbs and fans under switch off mode. A handkerchief was converted in to a cricket ball and a ruler (scale) was used like a cricket bat. I Can't explain, it was a great time. However, just after 45 minutes, Prefects, Captain of the houses started to enter in to classes and they were always mean especially with the boys of class 5 to 8.
Some of the Prefects were nervous from the students who used to be their classmates i.e. such classmates ( Students who failed previously) got equal weight and fighting skills. Hence prefects could manage them through their voices only or in extreme cases ..those prefects could use the intervention of Captain or Vice Head Boy.
Some of the Prefects were nervous from the students who used to be their classmates i.e. such classmates ( Students who failed previously) got equal weight and fighting skills. Hence prefects could manage them through their voices only or in extreme cases ..those prefects could use the intervention of Captain or Vice Head Boy.
Headboys used to be the boss of our schools. Headboys got enormous respect in our school. I remember our head boy Ram Gopal Bajaj.... the perfect head boy ...after that no headboy could ever matched his personality. There were loopholes in selection of headboys... will tell story in some other boy.. lets concentrate on our lunch break.
So those prefects could use their striking skills on babies like me... who could neither fight with them nor could go to I D Singh Sir.... never mind....
I remember an instance that one of our prefects "Pradeep Singh" of class IX- C in 1988, came to our class during tiffin hours after receiving some allegations from one of my class mates. Some boys created super sonic voice in the class and prefects came to our class. He beaten up 7 to 8 boys ... Pradeep was my Prayer mate on the stage ...so I dared to ask.. "Bhai mera kya kasoor hai...... badmashi kisi aur ne kee aur pit gaya mai.... " then I listened a proverb for the first time from his mouth ..."Hamare U.P. me ek kahawat hai... Gehu ke sath Dhoon bhi Pisa Jata hai .... " I could not understand that meaning.. so he told that there is a bacteria inside the Wheat Grain and that bacteria is also crushed during processing of flour from wheat..... Asshole.... I could not understand it on that day.
So ... Tiffin....
we were not allowed to eat in our class or on the floors... we were allowed to eat in the Assembly Hall, or in the corridors or in the ground floor. However, when we attained seniority ..i.e. Class X ... we never went downstairs to eat except when there was a need of some Kachoris or Singharas or Moodi... otherwise Class X students of all the 3 sections used to eat in the class after closing the door.
There was one Moodiwala, One Falwala , One Idli Wala and One Kachoriwala. Kachoriwala hailed from Bikaner...he used to sell a kachori by mixing curd and masala.... I think we never got that taste back at any other places. However, never to forget .. there was an icecream seller outside the school and we could purchase those ice creams from the corner of the school mate... it was a smuggling. But that ice cream got taste.
The students of nearby localities could make an ID card and they could go to their homes to eat and comeback before closure of tiffin hour. If somebody comes late..his house marks would be deducted and he would be presented before the house master. Those things I have already mentioned in earlier blogs.
Hence, there was a process of review of attendance in the beginning of the fifth period i.e. just after the lunch. Teachers used to take attendance in their own way... specially by S N Pathak who was a Sanskrit and Hindi Teacher but always used to take attendance in English. Our life science teacher had a unique style ..... he always said... Apne Daayen aur Baayen dekh lo ..koi missing hai kya ..? (check your classmate in the right or left ..if anybody is missing, please let me know) . In my class nobody were ever dared to be absent... that means we never heard an incidence that somebody went out of the school during tiffin hours. Fifth Period attendance was strictly followed.
When we used to go down during tiffin hours ... it was Mr. S S Ram (Ram Babu) who always stood at the end of the stairs on the corridor ... we used to salute him like Army men and he was happy to see boys. It was the discipline of Tantia that we could not break lines not even on a single day. When Ram Babu Retired.... Mr. K N Singh Second ( P T Teacher) took over the responsibility from Ram Babu and he used to present when students came to take their lunch on the ground floor.
The tiffin time was 12:45 AM to 1:30 PM during 1986 to 1992... and it was same for next 10 to 12 years... so far as i know and tiffin time of Primary Section (Day) used to break at 1:15 PM ... so secondary section students and Primary Day section students used to take lunch at the same time. So why I am telling this.... ? Primary Students were taught by Ladies teachers.... Some of em were very young ..in their twenties and some were in their thirties.... some of our school teachers used to be present during Tiffin hours to watch those ladies teachers or to talk with them. I am not blaming anybody ...all were young and there was nothing wrong :) :) in it. Some teachers were quite habituated and they always tried to impress our ladies teachers of Primary Section. ..I will tell the name of those teachers... but one of them was quite smart to impress ladies.
Those students who were privileged to go home to take lunch ... students used to pay some paise or Rupees to buy some SUPARI, PAN PARAG, OR CHOCOLATES from outside... obviously with a mandatory cut.
There are some more interesting individual stories.... will tell ... enjoy .. and god bless u ..
See this Instagram photo by @ https://www.instagram.com/p/CYwibMsMARi/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet
So those prefects could use their striking skills on babies like me... who could neither fight with them nor could go to I D Singh Sir.... never mind....
I remember an instance that one of our prefects "Pradeep Singh" of class IX- C in 1988, came to our class during tiffin hours after receiving some allegations from one of my class mates. Some boys created super sonic voice in the class and prefects came to our class. He beaten up 7 to 8 boys ... Pradeep was my Prayer mate on the stage ...so I dared to ask.. "Bhai mera kya kasoor hai...... badmashi kisi aur ne kee aur pit gaya mai.... " then I listened a proverb for the first time from his mouth ..."Hamare U.P. me ek kahawat hai... Gehu ke sath Dhoon bhi Pisa Jata hai .... " I could not understand that meaning.. so he told that there is a bacteria inside the Wheat Grain and that bacteria is also crushed during processing of flour from wheat..... Asshole.... I could not understand it on that day.
So ... Tiffin....
we were not allowed to eat in our class or on the floors... we were allowed to eat in the Assembly Hall, or in the corridors or in the ground floor. However, when we attained seniority ..i.e. Class X ... we never went downstairs to eat except when there was a need of some Kachoris or Singharas or Moodi... otherwise Class X students of all the 3 sections used to eat in the class after closing the door.
There was one Moodiwala, One Falwala , One Idli Wala and One Kachoriwala. Kachoriwala hailed from Bikaner...he used to sell a kachori by mixing curd and masala.... I think we never got that taste back at any other places. However, never to forget .. there was an icecream seller outside the school and we could purchase those ice creams from the corner of the school mate... it was a smuggling. But that ice cream got taste.
The students of nearby localities could make an ID card and they could go to their homes to eat and comeback before closure of tiffin hour. If somebody comes late..his house marks would be deducted and he would be presented before the house master. Those things I have already mentioned in earlier blogs.
Hence, there was a process of review of attendance in the beginning of the fifth period i.e. just after the lunch. Teachers used to take attendance in their own way... specially by S N Pathak who was a Sanskrit and Hindi Teacher but always used to take attendance in English. Our life science teacher had a unique style ..... he always said... Apne Daayen aur Baayen dekh lo ..koi missing hai kya ..? (check your classmate in the right or left ..if anybody is missing, please let me know) . In my class nobody were ever dared to be absent... that means we never heard an incidence that somebody went out of the school during tiffin hours. Fifth Period attendance was strictly followed.
When we used to go down during tiffin hours ... it was Mr. S S Ram (Ram Babu) who always stood at the end of the stairs on the corridor ... we used to salute him like Army men and he was happy to see boys. It was the discipline of Tantia that we could not break lines not even on a single day. When Ram Babu Retired.... Mr. K N Singh Second ( P T Teacher) took over the responsibility from Ram Babu and he used to present when students came to take their lunch on the ground floor.
The tiffin time was 12:45 AM to 1:30 PM during 1986 to 1992... and it was same for next 10 to 12 years... so far as i know and tiffin time of Primary Section (Day) used to break at 1:15 PM ... so secondary section students and Primary Day section students used to take lunch at the same time. So why I am telling this.... ? Primary Students were taught by Ladies teachers.... Some of em were very young ..in their twenties and some were in their thirties.... some of our school teachers used to be present during Tiffin hours to watch those ladies teachers or to talk with them. I am not blaming anybody ...all were young and there was nothing wrong :) :) in it. Some teachers were quite habituated and they always tried to impress our ladies teachers of Primary Section. ..I will tell the name of those teachers... but one of them was quite smart to impress ladies.
Those students who were privileged to go home to take lunch ... students used to pay some paise or Rupees to buy some SUPARI, PAN PARAG, OR CHOCOLATES from outside... obviously with a mandatory cut.
There are some more interesting individual stories.... will tell ... enjoy .. and god bless u ..
See this Instagram photo by @ https://www.instagram.com/p/CYwibMsMARi/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet
