Masti ki Paathshaala - school days

It was a new initiative by the Times of India group, called the 'Newspaper in Education' and our school had subscribed the services to inculcate the reading habits in students. Good thought; but the students in our class had different plans. Class XI - C, was known for all wrong reasons and there was another in the reackoning...

Myself and Umesh, were entrusted with the task of getting the newspapers from the staff room on a daily basis and distribute it among the classmates. For a few initial days, everything went smoothly and the guys were more interested in the sexologists Q & A section. Soon something more interesting struck them and Gopa Kumar led the movement. Students would get into the staff room stealthily or on the pretext of taking papers for the class for distribution and take huge stock of papers and on the way back home, sell it at the Kabaadiwala (where old newspapers and other rags were bought and sent for recycling) for Rs 5/- per Kilogram. It was a good deal for a student from middle class background and for any student who had strong shoulders and enough space in his schoolbag to carry around 6-7 kgs. With around Rs.30/- being generated each day, we felt content and rich. Yes, by now i had also joined the league. My brother, 1 year younger to me was also my classmate and was among the top earners in the newsprint business, so much so that he opted to keep his books in my bag and used his for transporting the much sought after newspapers to the Kabaadiwala. Once he was caught by the vice principle carrying a copy of the newspaper in his hand, to which he said that since the books were so much that he could not accomodate his subscription of the paper in the bag.

But then the golden era was to come to an end. One day Satish stayed back from going to the morning assembly by giving some lame excuse to get his share of the newspapers and when he got into the staff room, juniors were stacking the papers as per the number of subscribers in each section (class). Satish just picked some newspapers from the old papers stack and walked off. When the juniors questioned him, he started to curse them. Soon the Vice principal came to know of the incident and about the newspaper trade. She came to our class and asked all the boys to stand up. She started asking each one of us whether if involved in the scam. She started with the back benchers. The first three including Umesh accepted their involvement and kept standing. The fourth was Anurag, who was actually not involved in any wrong doing and was a true saint. He sat down. The next was the highest grosser - Gopa Kumar, and for the surprise of many he denied his involvement and sat down. Infront of us was the most scandalous person sitting down in the most dignified manner. Soon all started following Gopa and pleaded innocense. Vice principal left the room asking the three culprits for their parents the coming friday.

The three felt decieved by the rest of us but like true gentlemen kept the truth to themselves and decided to go for the gallows without coming out with the names of the fellow wrong doers. At this we, the so called rest, felt ashamed and like true friends decided to approach the Vice principal and accept our involvement and that we repented for our actions. The Vice Principal was wise enough to decide in our favour because else she would have spent the whole friday meeting parents of each one of us.

Even today, when we classmates meet, we have a good and hearty laugh remembering those good old days... Good old school days.