Annual Report GS, OBA 2020

Good morning everybody. Honourable President of OBASSG and of today’s meeting, Anowar Hussain Saikia; other dignitaries on the dais; esteemed life members; respected members and guests. I extend a very warm welcome to you all to the 22nd AGM of OBASSG. I hope that all of you will have a very fulfilling day. The last AGM was held on 24 November 2019 and I am going to present a brief report of activities of our Association since that day. A total of four EC meetings were held during this period. Apart from them, two online meetings of the EC were also held during this period.

The year began with the celebrations of our 71st Republic Day on 26 January 2020. The Indian tricolor was hoisted at Catholic Cathedral, Rukminigaon, Guwahati by our honourable President in the presence of some members and church goers. It was immediately followed by the singing of the National Anthem by all present. A free medical and health check-up camp for the members and church goers above fifty years of age was organised at the venue.

Looking at the dwindling numbers in our signature Republic Day Car and Bike Rally, the EC had decided to organize an art competition for the children of OBA members. The same was held in the premises of Barman Diabetes Specialities. I must put on record that the response was very lukewarm. The following were the prize winners:

In the month of January 2020, the 86-93 batch donated 28 number of instant water heating geysers through OBASSG to the School. This was done to celebrate the silver jubilee of their pass out in 2018. The batch also donated a sum of Rs. 56,000/- (Fifty Six Thousand only) to the School towards expenses for installation of the geysers. We record our sincere appreciation of 86-93 batch.

Special times call for special initiatives. Last year was extraordinary because of the Covid pandemic. Though we couldn’t carry out some of our annual activities, we were presented with an opportunity to contribute to the society. On 9 April 2020, the General Secretary and the Treasurer handed over to the honourable Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma, a cheque of Rs. 2,27,386 (Two Lakh Twenty Seven Thousand Three Hundred and Eighty Six only). Altogether 118 members had contributed to the corpus, the highest numbers coming from 93-2000 batch (26) and 95-2002 batch (34).

Because of lockdown and various restrictions in place for the Covid pandemic, the EC was unable to organize many of our annual events. The eleventh edition of Manash Borah Memorial Debating Competition couldn’t be organized as scheduled on 31 May 2020. Initially, the Competition was postponed till September, but situation not permitting, it was finally cancelled for 2020. Members missed the opportunity to enjoy the company of fellow members during the Competition.

Our signature annual blood donation camp to celebrate our Independence Day was another casualty because of the Covid pandemic. The EC tried its best to organize the blood donation camp at GMCH, but the efforts did not fructify. Our members were greatly dismayed that the School Raising Day cum OBA Meet on 12 November 2020 couldn’t be organised by the School because of restrictions in place. This is an event that most of us look forward to as it gives us the chance to visit our Alma Mater with our families.

Since the last four years, we have been organising our AGM on the fourth Saturday of November. The EC, in an online meeting postponed it by ninety days hoping for an improvement in the overall situation. However, the EC decided to mark the day by organising some kind of socially relevant activity. Accordingly, it was decided that the front boundary wall of B. Borooah College, Guwahati would be painted with designs. In a short formal event, our project was kickstarted on 28 November 2020 by the Principal, B. Borooah College, our honourable President and Grp Cpt D Gohain (Retd.) in the presence of some of our members and teachers and students of B. Borooah College. The project was finally completed in December 2020. The designs are based on various themes like the Indian Armed Forces, Road Safety, Awareness on Drug Abuse, Education, Environment etc.

We celebrated the 72nd Republic Day of our country on 26 January 2021 at Catholic Cathedral, Guwahati. The EC decided to have only flag hoisting this year. Accordingly, the national tricolor was hoisted by our honourable President in the presence of some members and the Father of the Church. It was followed by the singing of the National Anthem by all present and brief speeches by our President and the Father.

Dear members, one of the strongest pillars of our Association is the Life Members. I am pleased to announce that in the concluding year, we inducted two new life members into our fold. They are: Raza Rafiqul Hoque, 1658/Chilarai, Life Member 127 and Asokananda Das, 189/Chilarai life member 128. The total strength of life members as of today is 128. We had expected to induct more life members, but the prevailing situation did not permit it. It is expected that more life members will be inducted in the coming years. We also need to devise ways in which life membership of our Association can be made more attractive.

Last year, twenty two cadets from the School qualified the UPSC NDA Entrance exam. As it was during the Covid restrictions, the OBASSG tried to arrange an online training programme for the successful cadets. Accordingly, a one-week online training free of cost for our cadets was organised from 22 October 2020 and the same was conducted by Flame Career Academy based in Delhi. In this regard I want to record our sincere gratitude to Maj. Gen. Ananta Bhuyan, Brig Ranjit Borthakur (Retd) and Girija Kanta Barman.

We have also initiated a process of building a database of our members. Nearly fifty percent of phone numbers of our members from the first to the fiftieth batch has been collected. We hope that the database will be in place before the next AGM. The database will greatly help in disseminating information to our members.

Over the years OBASSG has expanded and grown. There are chapters and units and there is regular formal or informal sittings and gatherings in many of them. However, last year had to be different, as you all know. The Meghalaya chapter had its annual meeting on 13 February 2021. On 18 February 2021, a team from EC, OBASSG comprising the honourable President, the General Secretary and Joint Secretary Masidur Islam visited the family of late Dr. Bikash Choudhury (Adm No 10) at Guwahati. The team spent some time with the family of our founder President and handed over a plaque in honour of the departed soul.

The object of our long cherished dream, a plot of land at a suitable location in Guwahati, has not yet materialized. We are slightly better placed this year than we were last year, but it’s taking time, mainly because of red tapism at various levels. Our former President Brig. Ranjit Borthakur (Retd.) is pressing the issue forward and I record our sincere thanks to him. God willing, we should be able to realise our long cherished and shared dream in a couple of years.

It has been more than two years since this EC was elected. While 2018-19 was full of activities and had given me many images that I will carry forever in my heart, last year has hardly anything to offer. The image that keeps coming back is that of myself and our Treasurer waiting anxiously for our turn to hand over the cheque to our honourable Minister while all around us there were visible marks of resistance against the pandemic – masks, gloves, sanitisers and social distancing. We only hope that this pandemic has taught us all a valuable lesson that will ultimately ensure a better world for our next generation.

On 24 November 2018, I was given the mandate by this august house to lead our Association. Given that all of us have our own professional commitments, I tried my best in these two years to do justice to the faith you had reposed in me. It is for you to judge. In these two years I have been guided and helped by many of our members, from within and outside, the EC. I wish to record my sincere gratitude and appreciation for all those esteemed members for the smooth conduct of events and programmes. I express gratitude to our Honourable President, Anowar Hussain Saikia, for his guidance. My special thanks are due to Girija Kanta Barman for constant support and for everything. I also deeply thank the office bearers and members of our EC who were always available with suggestions and assistance. Whatever we have achieved is team work. The shortcomings, if any, are entirely mine. We also express our sincere gratitude to and appreciation of our valued sponsors.

Dear friends and brothers, my long association with OBASSG has made me realise that as the alumni association of a very reputed school, we have miles to cover. While the bonding and camaraderie between batchmates is something to be envious of, the same spirit is not reflected at the level of the Association. The irony is that the strength of the parts does not get translated into the strength of the whole. We need to seriously look into this aspect of our Association.

Last year has taught us that advances in technology can actually overcome physical barriers of distance. I exhort all of you to stay connected with each other. It has become more imperative now because in three years’ time we would be celebrating the Diamond Jubilee of our alma Mater. Therefore, I exhort all of you to deepen the bond, to bring more and more members on board, to offer constructive criticism, and to stay connected.

Today’s house will elect a new Executive Committee for a two year term. I pledge my full and unstinted support to the next committee. I am sure that under a new dispensation we will grow and evolve as a socially relevant entity.

Cheers to the spirit; long live SSG; long live OBASSG.