Ishq-e-Watan

Chapter 26- Khayal

CHAPTER 26

KHAYAL

Karan opened the drawer, bringing out a small hourglass. The cadets glanced up, keeping their pens down when they finished writing. "Notebooks band", he said.

The cadets followed obediently, keeping them aside. He leaned against the table.

"Revision karte hain", he said. "Main question puchhunga aur phir iss hourglass ko flip karunga. Yeh 30 second ka hai. You are not allowed to speak or raise your hand in these 30 seconds. Sirf apne answers socho. As soon as 30 seconds poore hote hain, I want hands up. Clear?"

"Yes sir."

He glanced around at the Foxtrot cadets. He let the sand drain down, mentally organizing the questions. "First question", he said. "What are the three levels of war or levels of military strategy, according to modern warfare?" He turned the hourglass.

He glanced at the cadets. Most of their attention was on the sand in the hourglass, a couple- Bala, Sid- bouncing impatiently in their seats. All of them knew the answer.

"Haath upar", he allowed, when the sand stopped trickling. Six hands flew up immediately. Karan's gaze flickered to Monami. She was fidgeting with her pen, gaze down. He suppressed a sigh. "Chitra."

"Strategic, operational and tactical", she answered.

"Koi iske alaawa koi answer dena chahta hai?" He asked. Everyone shook their heads. Karan nodded. "Correct. And good job on not using hashtag in an answer, Chitra."

She smiled. "#Thank you, Sir." Her smile dimmed. "I mean..."

He sighed. "Hashtags informal talks ke liye reserved rakho." He shook his head. "Next question. What are the three basic types of operations?"

He turned the hourglass over, looking up. He suppressed a smirk. Furrowed eyebrows, glances thrown around, mouths pulled down in a frowns. He had expected the confusion.

"Haath upar", he allowed when the 30 seconds were up. There was a beat. His eyes flickered to Monami when she straightened a little, lifting her hand slightly. She glanced around before sliding down a little in her seat.

Koel raised her hand shakily, followed by Siddharth. He glanced around at the others, pausing to let them raise their hands too. No one did.

"Koel", he called out.

"Sir... four types of operations nahi hote hain?" She asked.

He raised an eyebrow. "Tum puchh rahi ho yaa bataa rahi ho?"

She glanced around. "Confirm kar rahi hoon."

"Mujhe answer chahiye. Questions yaa confirmations nahi. Siddharth?"

"Four types ke operations hote hain, three nahi. Question galat hai", he answered. "Offensive, defensive, stability and support."

"Correct", Karan said. "Koel, apne answers par sure raho. Confidence hona chahiye."

"Sir."

"Next question..."

The second half of the class was spent on the revision, and Karan was pleasantly surprised. Every answer came from one of them, as opposed to him having to tell them answers, as he did in the other subgroups.

"Last question", Karan said. "Elimination operations mein four principal operational level tasks kaunse hote hain?" He flipped the hourglass. He was met with blank stares, just as he had expected. He hadn't taught this yet. "Haath upar", he said.