decided to explore the surroundings. The PHC was situated on the
edge of agricultural land and spread over a large area. The
compound had many large trees. There were a number of three
bedroom quarters meant for the doctors on one edge. He checked
the first and found it dirty and unkempt. There was a lawn behind
the house but it was ill maintained and run over with weeds. A few
ornamental flowers had survived and added a bright touch of color
to the surroundings. As he was about to turn back, he spotted a
large well at one end. He walked up to it and peered in. The water
seemed cool and refreshing.
“I'll have to get the quarters repaired and get a gardener as
well,” he thought. He again noticed the absence of insects and
birds. “These idiots have been spraying all the insecticides meant
for this area in the PHC itself,” he grumbled to no one in particular. He found the subordinate staff quarters on the other side of the
PHC in a similar state of neglect. The setting sun cast an orange
hue on the surroundings and Rajiv felt a kind of peace descend on
the surroundings. He felt slightly tired with the long walk around
the domain. As he had nothing else to do, he went back to his
office, took out a book from his bag and was soon immersed in it.
His concentration was broken when Ramu, the Chowkidarcame in
with his dinner.
“Why have you brought it so early? It is not even dark yet!” But Ramu just stood there staring down without answering
back. Rajiv remembered that Ramu suffered from night blindness
and said, “Theek hai, leave it on the table and leave.”
The night descended almost in the blink of an eyelid and brought with itself a calm loneliness which Rajiv was not accustomed to. He wondered if he had been foolhardy in deciding to stay there all alone. Then he remembered that the Pharmacist and the Chowkidar were also around. In fact, he could see the lights in the last two quarters.
'I'll have to get a few halogen bulbs requisitioned for the PHC,' he made a mental note. After some time the moon came up and he realised that it was a full moon night. He pulled out a chair, positioned it in the lawn, switched on some ghazals on his music player and lit a cigarette. The PHC and its surrounding shone in the silver moonlight, while he heard Jagjeet Singh and dragged on his cigarette. The smell of tobacco gelled agreeably with the sweet smell of night queen blossoms while a pleasant breeze cooled things down. Just as he took the last drag, the lights went out with a pop.
“Argh, power cut,” Rajiv said loudly, “But the moon is at its shining best and the wind seems friendly, so it does not matter.” He had a brand new torch with fresh batteries and there was enough light anyway, so he sat there for a long time, enjoying the night's atmosphere and the music.
“This is life, far from the maddening crowd. The only thing missing is the company of a beautiful woman,” Rajiv sighed.
“I really love Jagjeet Singh's ghazals!” a feminine voice crooned from behind, making Rajiv tumble off his chair. He looked up and was startled to see a young woman standing behind. Dressed in a light colored churidar kameez, she appeared to be in her early twenties. Her face and clothes shone under the luminary and Rajiv observed she had a city accent, something he would not have expected in a girl from these parts. She was quite slim and beautiful with the right curves at the right places.
“Who are you?” Rajiv asked, trying to sound harsh. Her laugh ran out loud and clear, “I am Poonam, the Village school master's daughter and I work at ICICI Bank in Ghaziabad. I was home for a couple of days. I was feeling very bored and sneaked out after dinner. My mother keeps telling me that it is not safe for a girl to be out after dark but I grew up in this village before I left for studies and nothing here scares me. By the way, who are you and why are you sitting all alone?”
Rajiv relaxed visibly, “Hi Poonam, I am Dr. Rajiv Gupta and I joined this PHC today. I intend to live here and work.”
“Ah, so you are a Gupta too. You know the boy I love and want to marry is a Gupta… Prem Gupta. We both are colleagues at work. In fact I came home to talk to my parents about Prem. But my parents are very conservative and they are not going to agree,” Poonam said, paling visibly.
“Aha, a love story! Perhaps you need to be more firm with your parents.” Rajiv advised.
“I have told them a thousand times that I love only him and will not be happy with anyone else but they just don't seem to understand,” Poonam said in a low voice.
“Are your parents very conservative?” Rajiv asked, throwing away the cigarette.
“Yes. I told them that I am carrying Prem's child and they created a scene. My mother is even willing to take me to Muzaffarnagar for an abortion but they will not let me marry him,” Poonam said, almost on the verge of breaking down.