It’s a party that will be remembered for a long time to come — a party where the residents of Eldeco Utopia, Noida, Sector 93 A, heartily served and entertained their retiring maintenance staff.
Since early morning today, the society’s clubhouse has been abuzz with activity. And it was an unusual sight. The residents were busy serving tea and biscuits to the staff that had served them loyally for eight to ten years. Gifts were handed out and a resident of the society, Dr Divya Kaul, sang some of Bapu’s popular bhajans, such as Vaishnav Jan To Teni Kahiye and Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram, to lend the ay a special touch. She was joined by electrician Shiv Shankar Misra on the stage. He, too, sang a bhajan accompanied by Mr Mintoo on the flute. Another resident, Dr Renuka Khosla, chanted the famous prayer, Sarve Bhavantu Sukhinah Sarve Santu Niramaya, from Brihadaranyaka Upanishad. She was joined by Usha Raheja and Dr Divya.
As the new management agency takes over, the old staff will be shifted to a new site. Colonel Bakshi (Retired) spoke to City Spidey on why the day was important for residents. “Eighty-nine maintenance staff, including housekeeping and technicians, will be finishing their tenure today. They have been working with us for the past 10 years, and many of us are quite emotionally attached to them.”
The idea was initially floated by a senior member of the Utopia Citizens Initiative, SS Khosla, who spoke to the RWA and requested the residents to come forward and contribute. He said, “The outgoing staff served us well. From cleaning our sewage manually to scraping up dog poop, they made our life as comfortable as possible. The least we can do is make this last day memorable for them. So we arranged breakfast for them and gave away gifts.”
Manju Bhatia, who is usually very involved in the society’s cultural events, said, “It’s good that Utopia Citizens Initiative came up with something like this. Today, we don’t have time to think about anybody, let alone those who serve us. So this was like a breath of fresh air.”
Deepak Thakur, manager of the clubhouse, appeared visibly moved by this heart-warming gesture. He said, “Working with the residents of Eldeco was a good experience for all of us. They have been supportive and have always had valuable suggestions for us, which made our job a lot easier. I have, indeed, learnt a lot from them. Yeh log achche hai [These are good people].”
