IT IS ALWAYS FOR THE BEST

It was a fine day. Anubhav reached office well in time. For the past three years he had never been late even once. His colleagues often teased him for his punctuality but his boss was very happy. He often praised Anubhav for his diligence, dedication, sincerity, zeal and resourcefulness to take up any kind of assignments and projects and complete them innovatively and dynamically. He had won the heart of his boss here also like in Mumbai. He still remembered that day when he had started believing whatever happens in one’s life is always for the best.

As soon as he entered the main entrance, the security guard smiled at him and said,

“Good morning Sir.”

“Good morning Veer Singh. How are you?”

“Fine, Sir. I am very happy for you.”

“Why, what happened?”

“You will get a surprise inside.”

He wondered why Veer Singh had said these words.

When he entered the main hall, everyone stood up and applauded. He looked surprisingly at them. The boss came out of his cabin and congratulated him.

“Congrats Anubhav. You have been promoted as Senior Administrative Officer. We have arranged a small see-off party for you tomorrow. Wind up your present assignment and Mahi will take care of rest of your work.”

“Does this mean that I have to leave this office?”

“Yes,” said Rohan, his boss. “You have to join our Leh branch in Ladakh on Thursday.”

“But, Sir, why Leh? Are you not satisfied with my work here?”

“Don’t take it otherwise. Your name has been especially recommended. You are industrious and ingenious enough to achieve the best from limited resources. The techniques you employ to accomplish an assignment and achieve success influenced the Director Sir. The Defence Ministry needs officers like you for their never-ending innovative projects. The head office has promoted and posted you. Feel proud that they think you are the best choice.”

“O.K Sir. What about my boarding and lodging?”

“Don’t worry about anything. All arrangements will be made. There will be an increase in your salary and allowances according to the rules. You will not be disappointed. That’s a promise.”

“Thank you, Sir. I trust you. I promise I will do my best and make you proud.”

 Leh is the joint capital and the largest town of the union territory of Ladakh in India. It is a beautiful high-desert Himalayan town that’s home to 17^th century Leh Palace and Buddhist monasteries.  He had visited most of the tourist spots. Leh Palace is situated on the mountain top. Shanti Stupa is a beautiful domed Buddhist temple on a hillside. Spituk Gompa, Namgyal Tsemo, Sankar Gompa are some of the Buddhist monasteries worth visiting. Zorawar Fort is a beautiful piece of architecture.

Anubhav was posted in the administrative office of Central Asian Museum. It was a historical museum based on Asian trade and also a tourist attraction. His office was on the second floor. He was the second highest rank officer in that office. Most of the time his boss was out of town and he was the officiating head. He was dependable and reliable. The museum had several secret and precious documents and articles which were his responsibility as the official head. Wangdu Sir, the Director and his boss had handed him a huge bunch of keys to be kept in tight security.

The Central Asian Museum is a four-storey building. Only two floors of the building are being used for museum and administrative purposes. Entry is prohibited on the third and fourth floor. Even the employees felt it is scary and avoided going there. There were stories that all those who tried to explore and investigate never came back. Hence it was best to forget those two floors.

That day, it was bright and sunny. January is the coldest month in Leh. People felt elated and relaxed on sunny days in this month. Ten employees were on leave to make maximum use of sunny day. So Anubhav had to attend to several urgent mails and work himself. He checked the mails and began replying them. Several times he had to visit the record room to collect relevant data. He even rang up the people in charge to complete his mails. He was so busy that he did not notice the weather changing outside.

“Sir, the weather is getting bad. May I go home. My children are alone. They will get scared.” came a voice.

“Yes, Yes. Please.” He replied without looking up from his work. After five minutes another voice came.

“Sir, please may I go. I live far away and need to hurry to reach home safe.” This was Punchok, one of the sincere workers of the office.

“Oh! Yes. Please go. Don’t worry about the work. It is not urgent. You can complete it tomorrow.”

One by one his subordinates came to take leave. He opened the window. The weather was getting bad to worse.  He called the supervisor.

“Yes Sir.”

“Tsewang, please tell everyone to leave immediately. The weather is getting bad. They should reach home before it starts snowing.”

“Right Sir. You will also leave. Shall I call the guard to start locking the rooms.”

“Yes. Do so. I will lock the record room and the office. I have some urgent work to complete. He can lock rest of the rooms and go to his quarters.”

“In Leh if it starts snowing, it snows really heavy. You may get stuck here if you also don’t hurry. Please leave all work and go back,” warned Tsewang.

“Okay. I’ll try to complete the work as early as possible. I promise.”

He returned back to his work. His mind was busy planning how he could do multi-tasking. There was no one in the office. He was alone. He remembered that the upper two floors of the building were not in use. This thought scared him a little. A jittery wave passed through his body so he tried to concentrate on his work.

It had started to snow. Anubhav started winding up the work and preparing to leave. Suddenly strong winds began to blow. It was not safe to go out. He waited for the winds to slow down so that he could hurry back home. But the winds became stronger. For the first time in his life, he saw the snow blowing with the wind. Visibility became poor. He also noticed that the loose snow on the ground was lifted and blown by strong winds.

Anubhav could not understand what was happening. He remembered a geography lesson video. He had seen all this in a video. What was this snowstorm called? Something which started with B. It is……… it is, oh yes, blizzard. Was this a blizzard then? He remembered that in a blizzard, the winds blew at a speed of 56kph and visibility could be less than 40m. This condition would continue for three or more hours. Blizzards are dangerous as people can lose their way. If one is caught in a blizzard, one is likely to suffer from hypothermia, frostbite or even freezing death. Once memorized answer flashed clearly in his mind.

He could not move out, that was certain. He shut the windows and doors and went back to work. The internet had stopped working so there was not much to do. If there is nothing to do, one starts feeling hungry. Frozen food was always available in the cold storage as such situations were common for the people of Leh. He took out some chicken nuggets, burger and French fries, microwaved them and enjoyed his dinner. Green tea bags were also kept in the cupboard so he enjoyed hot green tea after his dinner.

Now what to do? He opened the library of the museum and started searching for something interesting to read. He found a book on his own office, the Central Asian Museum. It is a tapered four -storey stone tower modern construction based on a historic Lhasa mansion. It was opened in 2011 and features exhibits on the history of Central Asian Trade. He wondered why only two floors were used and nobody was permitted to enter the top two floors. Why? What could be the reason? This is a modern constructed building and should be optimally utilized.

Anubhav remembered that his boss had given him a huge bunch of keys. He could not go out. He had nothing to do. So, he decided to explore the top two floors. He searched for the keys and unlocked the shutter leading to the third floor. He used his flashlight and ascended the stairs. On the third storey there were several rooms but they were all locked. There was light in two windows with heavy curtains. He peeped inside. There was a thin gap between the curtain and window frame. He could see everything clearly. He could not believe what he saw.

The place seemed to be used as a laboratory. There was different equipment kept on the tables. On the sides there were ten computers. Several men moved about in blue uniform.  They were working on the equipment and computers. Who were these people? Was the work done illegal or legal? Why had people who tried to explore never come back? There were so many questions in his mind. He decided to investigate without making any noise. He wanted to go back safely. He peeped into other rooms and tried to understand what was happening there. The whole place seemed to be a hideout of scientific experiments performed with latest technology.

Very silently he unlocked the top floor staircase and went up. There were only five rooms. He remembered that the building became narrow at the top. There were no windows. The tapering of the building only seemed to be an innovative piece of architecture. No one could ever imagine there were rooms on the top floor.

 But a surprise was yet in store for Anubhav. There was light in these rooms. Quietly he peeped through the keyhole. He was amazed to see his Mumbai boss, Rohan Sir and his Leh boss, Wangdu Sir working there. It seemed they were doing something very important. Rohan Sir never told him that he was in Leh. Only two days back they had talked for a long time on phone. And Wangdu Sir....He said he was going out of town and would be returning after fifteen days. Only one probability was there. Both of them were working on some secret mission. Then he overheard them talking. Since they didn’t expect anyone around, they talked normally.

Rohan: Wangdu, have you completed the report of the assignment? You know we have to submit it in three days.

Wangdu: Yes, it is almost complete. I have to read it once again to recheck it.

Rohan: By the way, it is almost three years since Anubhav is working with you. What do you think about him?

Wangdu: You were right. Anubhav is the man we need. I have assigned him challenging projects and he resolved them judiciously. I really appreciate his brilliance. I must say his innovative techniques have amazed me every time. I have prepared a report of his achievements. I will go and personally meet the Defence Minister and request him to post Anubhav with us in this secret mission.

Rohan: Oh! That’s a good idea. I’d love to work with him once again.

Wangdu: You know, sometimes I think no one would ever come to know that there was a secret defence workshop in this building. No one has ever seen us exit or enter. No one even knows that both of us are in Leh.

Rohan: You are right. It was a good idea to make the entry through a tunnel near Pangong lake. I really love to skate through the tunnel till we reach he basement of this building. Then the secret lift that opens directly into the rooms.

Wangdu: Let us complete this work. Due to the blizzard, we can’t go out tonight.

Both of them became busy in their work. Anubhav decided to return back to his office without making any sound. He went to the third floor and locked entry quietly. Then he descended from the third floor and reached the second floor. He locked the shutter and returned back to his office. He made himself comfortable on the couch and switched on the heater. It was not easy for him to assimilate what he had heard. Were Rohan Sir and Wangdu Sir working on some secret mission? Had he proved himself capable of being an important member of this mission? Will the Minister consider him trustworthy enough to actually share the secrets of Armed Forces? He fell asleep with all these thoughts in mind. In his dream he was working in the laboratory. He felt cold and woke up. There was no electricity so the heater had stopped working. It was nine in the morning. Weather was warm outside though the entire place was covered with soft white snow. Last night thoughts again came to his mind. He jerked them thinking whatever will happen will be for his best.

Two weeks later Wangdu Sir called him in the office. He informed Anubhav that he was being posted on a secret project as he had showcased commendable and unprecedented work.

At this Anubhav smiled. Wangdu Sir thought he was happy at this selection but only Anubhav knew the secret of his smile.

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