Tracing the Journey of 25years

I joined Thermax on 12th September 1994 in the Process Heat Projects Division of the Engineering department, which was newly formed for bi-drum boilers. My journey in Thermax spans from the era of using a drafting board with rotring pens/stencils/procircles to cloud sharing of the Tekla model, 3D PDF generation of Tekla model of boilers as required in today’s digital world.

There are many memories of Thermax that have been built over the years. One of the happy times was in 2004 when I visited our Ooty holiday home with my family of 7-8 members. Here, we happened to pay extra to the rickshaw driver but couldn’t understand the local language that he spoke. One of the caretakers at the hotel room helped us understand the issue, and we could get the extra amount back. It was indeed an experience of goodwill.

One of the key learnings on projects happened in 2005 when I got trained on the Tekla Structures – software for 3D modelling and generating 2D drawings of industrial structural buildings for boilers / pipe racks or any other equipment support. This was a second hand bicycle and living in a rented chawl-type house before joining Thermax to today owning a car and a flat, I believe Thermax has helped me to come a long way.

Another aspect I appreciate most about the organisation is its culture. Throughout my career, I have also pursued my hobbies of playing cricket, table tennis, carrom board and even photography. I believe in upgrading my skillsets and learning new things consistently to become a better version of myself. I have also encouraged my children – son, Nachiket (22) and daughter, Noopur (15) to pursue their interests in arts.

On 12th September 2019, I completed 25 years of service in Thermax. For this memorable day, very useful tool, and we implemented the software for various projects. In 2010, I was nominated as the Tekla software beta tester (a Thermax representative) by Tekla.

I have had the privilege to design the boiler structure for various prestigious projects such as P. T. Cabbot (Indonesia), Foster Wheeler (modularised flue gas cooler assembled at Mundra shop, transported on SPMT to Mundra port, and shipped to Samref Saudi Arabia), Daelim (Ma’aden Saudi Arabian mining co.), Reliance (HRSG), to name a few. I am proud to have been a part of one of the largest projects in Thermax’s history – the delivery of the largest shipment of plug and play modules to Dangote, Nigeria in 2019. The modularised flue gas cooler assembly project of Foster Wheeler and the Dangote project were selected as the winning projects for the N.D. Joshi award in the respective years.

I had asked Nachiket, who was then pursuing his degree from the National Institute of Design (NID), Andhra Pradesh, to create a design/ icon to mark the occasion. He designed a logo within half an hour!

Nachiket explains, “While ideating the logo, I had to break down the number 25 into basic shapes. While doing that, I realised the number already had the Thermax logo hidden in it. I just had to make it more evident.”

The logo was displayed, and much appreciated during the online interaction held in December 2021 for employees who have completed 25 years of service. It was a proud moment for me!

In 2020-21, I got to work on a similar project to Dangote, called PEMEX – two modules were modularised and assembled at Mundra, and transported on SPMT to Mundra port, and shipped to Mexico. This was a challenging year for all of us as we were forced to work from home due to COVID-19. Using today’s technology (Wi-Fi and cloud sharing ), and with the help of the Tekla software, we could continue working uninterrupted.

I owe a lot to the company. It has helped me grow in life. From riding Before I conclude, I want to thank all my senior managers – the list is extensive, but I would like to mention a few names – K. Vishvanathan, P. K. Chakraborthy, V. K. Unnikrishnan, Kavitha-Ratnam, Anil Patki, Ajay Hantodkar, B. V. Kamlekar, Basant Kumar Mohapatra, Mayuresh Joshi, Parag Atre and Sanjeevan Joshi. My tenure at Thermax has been rewarding due to them and my colleagues with whom I have worked for the past 25 years. A big thank you to all!

Dinkar Kamtekar
TBWES

Career Lift kara de

The human mind has the power to analyse, explore and decode many hidden secrets/treasures of nature. Historically, mathematicians have been amused by geometric shapes like circles, ellipses, cylinders, spheres, cones, etc. and the scientific community learned to use them in industrial products. Engineering equipment like vessels, tankers, tubes, reactors, piping etc. – all follow particular geometric shapes.

Mathematician Max Munk discovered a shape that opened infinite possibilities to lift the machines heavier than air and forever changed the way people travel.

This shape called ‘airfoil’ can generate more lift with significantly less drag. The major forces acting on airfoil are thrust, gravity (weight), drag and lift. For an aircraft, thrust is provided by the engine, and the airfoil shape provides the required lift to reach the sky by balancing the drag and gravity acting on the aircraft.

Modifying the airfoil shape resulted in a boon for the aircraft industry in the 20th century. During an air journey, the most magical moment is the first lift achieved by thrusting the aircraft on the runway and pushing against the gravity pulling it down. Here, the role of the airfoil is to provide the required first lift. The thrusting aircraft without an airfoil shape, probably will just remain as a massive vehicle on the wheels. To transform it into an aircraft, the shape of the airfoil has a significant role.

Similarly, the theory of the ‘aircraft lift’ can be applied in our life to achieve our career aspirations. If we observe the professional trajectory of some successful individuals who have been able to reach the top of their organisations in a short time frame, we can see their drive to excel. The same holds true for today’s startups that strive hard to convert the proof of concept into a ‘unicorn’.

How are some able to make that mark by lifting their professional career trajectory? Let us again examine the forces acting on the airfoil.

We will use an analogy like ‘thrust’ and ‘lift’ to represent positive forces necessary for professional growth, and ‘drag’ and ‘gravity’ would represent negative forces opposing growth.

Thrust in an aircraft is provided by the engine. As for professional growth, the person is the engine, while the fuel is his/her passion and attitude. To achieve higher professional goals, you should have great passion, vision and a positive attitude (high calorific value).

As explained by Sadhguru, an eminent yoga guru and spiritual leader, the human mind is a combination of four major parts – buddhi (intellect), manas (memory), ahamkara and chitta (mind without memory – pure intelligence). Ahamkara is not ego but the identity of a person’s personality.

Buddhi is the intellect that helps ahamkara to take a proper shape by supporting it. Hence, one should use this ahamkara very positively and constructively. In Indian philosophy, this ahamkara is developed by saying aham brahmasmi which means I am the cosmos. When you train your mind in this way, you break the boundaries and become limitless or infinite just like the cosmos. Buddhi and manas (fuel) help you to achieve that path of infinity.

‘Drag’ is the negative force which actually drags you backwards from your professional career path. It is created by the external environment and sometimes by forces that are beyond your scope. We should be aware of it and should make efforts to reduce its impact.

The weight/gravity concept is psychological in this reference. During the course of a person’s professional journey, a lot of ‘weight’ of arrogance, biases, judgements, and beliefs accumulate, which can lead to stagnation. These added weights try to pull you down, and it becomes very difficult to achieve the desired lift.

The airfoil’s smart shape helps to generate lift. Let’s try to connect this with our professional life. Fundamentally, it is the core quality of a professional to get that required lift. It is an outcome of a person’s effort to shape his/her career. This is reflected in the way the person approaches problems. Hence, the airfoil approach becomes the core quality of a person.

In Thermax, this attribute is defined under the CLOCC behaviours — Customer centricity, Lead, Own, Create and Collaborate. Along with an excellent performance spirit, the person should be able to exhibit the above valuable behaviours as well.

Michelangelo was a famous sculptor and painter in the 15th and 16th centuries who got the opportunity to work as a sculptor in St. Peter’s Basilica, Vatican City. He started his work when Leonardo da Vinci had immense influence, but he could make his mark in history by creating masterpieces like Pieta and the painting of the Sistine Chapel ceiling. After creating Pieta (Virgin Mary holding her dead son) at a very young age, people asked him how he could create such a beautiful sculpture. He replied, “I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.” He only removed the unwanted parts from it. It’s indeed a great inspiring thought. Similarly, the ‘smart shape of the airfoil’ resides within each one of us, and we just need to remove that extra unwanted part.

When the engine (you) is fired by fuel (passion), you have got the smart airfoil shape (attitude), and if the engine remains fit (positive attitude), then even if the weather is turbulent (obstacles), what is guaranteed is the ‘lift’ (growth path). Grab the opportunity by keeping your wings firm to propel with that lift and keep thrusting to new heights.

In the end, when you realise that you are about to exhaust your fuel (retirement), thank the people who supported you, the organisation for the rewarding opportunity, appreciate yourself for the value you created in this journey and finally take a nose dive (‘natmastak’) in gratitude to land safely.

Be proud of the wonderful journey called ‘flight’.

Dr. Devkumar Gupta
RTIC

Music – Food for the soul

I am writing this piece to share some musical encounters and knowledge that I have gained in my journey as a musician. I will share these experiences with you as episodes that will help you all to use music to focus on your daily work, improve concentration and calm your mind under all situations.

Before we start our musical sojourn together, let me tell you that you do not need any prior musical knowledge to understand or implement this. I hope this serves as an interactive read for you with some relaxation during your break.

It is hard to believe that music does not have an exact definition to date. I am also sure that Google will give you many versions of the same definition. However, music, to me, is a way of expression. Sometimes, where words cannot express, music does. Music lets you feel and understand what the words mean.

Music is a subject that can be studied, experienced and shared. To make it simple, we can say that music is a set of varied frequencies arranged in a particular fashion to create an emotion. This being the first episode, I would like you to put on a pair of headphones and listen to the music encoded in the QR code (Raag Basant) below. The music you would be listening to is by Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, played on the flute.

Raag Basant is commonly used to celebrate an event or an occasion. There are many compositions on the same. It deeply denotes the change in season, and if you find yourself in a phase of changing emotions, you will be able to relate and see what you are feeling now. Sometimes, it becomes difficult to focus on our goals and ambitions; this raag will help your subconscious mind to move from confusion to clarity.

I hope you have a sense of upliftment in yourself after listening to this melody. Our interactions will not only be on classical music or just only one kind of music – we will discuss, learn and understand how music can change our lives in the smallest of ways.

Do let me know your feedback.

Till the next edition of Fireside, I bid you goodbye. Enjoy your reading.

Signing off,
Mijar Aditya Shenoy,
Export Sales, Cooling division

Great exposure and business insights

My first mile has been special because I started my career with Thermax as an Associate Process Engineer, and I am very obliged for this opportunity. During my tenure here, I have had great exposure and insights on how to handle challenging situations. This experience has not only enhanced my technical knowledge but honed my interpersonal skills as well.

The best thing about the organisation is that people around me have been very considerate and helpful. I hope to make great contributions towards the success and growth of the company.

– Ayushi Mishra,
Associate – Process Engineer,
Water and Waste Solutions

Upgrading my technical knowledge and skillset

Joining Thermax was like a dream come true! I joined the organisation in August 2021 as an R&D Associate in the Technology and Innovations Department of Thermax’s Water & Waste Solutions. Getting a clear insight into my roles and responsibilities, I have realised the application of knowledge gained during my academic career.

An R&D Associate’s role at Thermax’s WWS involves not only executing technological applications, but also serving as a technical resource to other departments. This time has been full of challenges and growth opportunities for me. It allowed me to garner the technical expertise and skills required for the water and wastewater industry. Collaborating with other PUs like Services, Industrial Projects Group and Standard Product Group has been significant to my learning.

The work culture and ethics at Thermax make it an employee friendly organisation, which has given me a sense of confidence to lead and grow.

– Anupam Pathak,
Associate – R&D,
Water & Waste Solutions

Hands-on experience has been a great learning

I vividly remember my college days when I used to see the Thermax building in awe, completely unaware of the fact that one day I’ll be a Thermaxian!

On 9th August 2021, I joined Thermax as an R&D Associate. This gave me an opportunity to ameliorate my technical skills and work in the research and development field to design ingenious solutions for a diverse set of real-life challenges. Very soon in my career, I had the chance to travel on-site, perform pilot-scale studies and enhance my understanding about the process and working of plants.

The best part of my job is working on new projects and interacting with people from different domains, which has helped me to accelerate my learning curve considerably!

I would like to thank Thermax for providing me with this incredible experience.

– Sayali Jadhav,
Associate R&D,
Water & Waste Solutions

Mental health: Let’s pay heed

We celebrated World Mental Health Day on 10th October. First observed in 1992 as an annual activity of World Federation for Mental Health, the day was aimed at raising awareness and spreading education about mental health issues across the globe. In recent years, there has been increasing acknowledgement of the important role mental health plays in achieving global development goals. The same is evident by the inclusion of mental health in the Sustainable Development Goals. We all know about the pandemic-induced stress viz. coping with the new normal, work from home situation, healthcare anxiety, pressure to perform and seeking work-life balance. Inevitably, all this has taken a toll on our mental and emotional well-being.

A new Lancet study confirms major depressive and anxiety disorders have increased substantially due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In India, psychological disorders saw an increase of 35%, the study noted.

World Mental Heath Day is a reminder to take a pause from our busy routines and pay heed to mental health – one of the most neglected health aspects. It is also a reminder for us to empathise, hear and help those in need around, and importantly, remove the stigma around mental health and normalise conversations on such issues.

While there is a gargantuan canvas of social media to express our joys and show the bright colours of life, sadly there isn’t much room to show our lows – which in fact, is more important! The irony of today’s age is despite being connected to everyone, we are unable to reach out to anyone. Why can’t we, humans, talk about our weaknesses, express our lows or seek help? It’s time to ponder!

Author and life coach Jay Shetty says, "Empathy is not saying I know how you feel. Empathy is saying I want to know how you feel”. Mental peace is crucial to every human, and so, it is important to behave responsibly with ourselves as well as in our social circles. We should be aware of the impact our actions and words make on others. This further underlines the need to have genuine well- wishers, friends, family – to have someone to share your most inner rooted insecurities, threats and feelings.

While there has been much preaching on what life should be like and each one pursues it in his/ her own way, no one really teaches us how to live it. We need to believe in ourselves, especially when the odds are aplenty. It is important to break the bubble of negative thoughts and find hope and a reason to live because no matter how bad a phase is, it is going to pass – we all have experienced it and have come out of it.

Further, we must always remember and reiterate to ourselves that "I am my companion first and foremost". Only you have known yourself from ever – all your struggles, pains, sufferings – you have experienced it firsthand. There are so many battles that only you know you have fought and won. While we talk about commitments in all kinds of relationships, we often forget about the commitment to ourselves. Sometimes, it’s only you who can help yourself. We need to be our own saviours, own counsellors – test what works for you and what doesn't, breathe deeply, be patient with yourself. Invest in yourself, prioritise, accept and love yourself, realise your self-worth.

At times, it’s extremely crucial to pull yourself out of the drudgery of thoughts, obsession with irrational ideas or those beyond your control. I know it’s easy said than done. Today’s testing times call for resilience. We need to train our minds and self to react to adversities in a positive and sustained way. You will only emerge stronger!

Remember this- ‘The story of your life has many chapters. One bad chapter doesn’t mean it’s the end of the book.

– Priyanka Sarode
(Corporate Communications)

Moving on from the worst

I wish nobody ever contracts this disease, given that is so painful, and the experience emotionally draining.

My father was the one who first contracted coronavirus on 18 th April 2021, despite all the safety measures. At that time, I was with my wife and son in Chennai while my parents were living in Pune. I had just bought my new car, and we were happily planning for a family vacation when we received my father’s COVID report. It took the wind out of my sails as I began to fear the worst that could happen. Though it was not serious, the doctor advised him to be admitted to the hospital as he had many other health issues which could complicate his condition. The second wave of COVID was at its peak at the time, and it would take weeks to get admitted to a hospital. Using all the influence and connections I could muster, he was admitted within a couple of days, but I could not reach Pune as the operating airlines had stringent norms of RT-PCR test reports, which would take several days to get processed.

It was a challenging time for all of us. I had just moved to Chennai with my family, and we hadn’t settled yet. I could not leave them in Chennai, nor could I take them to Pune due to the surging COVID cases in the city. So, I drove down to Hyderabad to drop them and headed straight to the hospital in Pune, where my father was admitted. Within two weeks, my father’s condition started deteriorating, and he was transferred to the ICU, where he was put on ventilator support. It was a big challenge for us to arrange the Remdesvir injection for my father’s treatment, and we had to order its special consignment from Mumbai by car.

However, the worst was not over yet. Soon after, I too got infected with COVID. To everyone’s surprise, my condition was deteriorating much faster than that of my father. I had difficulty in breathing even with a regular oxygen mask. My wife and son were still in Hyderabad, but my mother decided to call them to Pune after I got infected. I had to be moved to the ICU. There was no stock of Remdesvir in the hospital, and my wife had to call my friend, who through his sources, arranged four doses of Remdesvir for me. The doctors had explained to me that COVID spreads in our body faster under stress. I was under tremendous stress due to my father’s condition, and hence the virus spread rapidly in my body. Those days now seem blurred – I was not fully conscious all the time. My family and cousins, along with some colleagues from Thermax, helped me through my worst phase. They kept on telling me only positive things throughout my stay at the hospital to alleviate my stress.

The bigger battle to fight was the mental struggle. Sometimes, I used to glance out of the open window from my bed and think to myself that it might be the last time I would see it.

There were a lot of complications with my father’s kidney failures, blood transfusion, but I was never informed about this until I was discharged. When I finally got discharged on 15 th May 2021, they sent me home directly from the ICU as there were no general beds available at the hospital.

The key motivation during my hospitalisation was that I had to get better to take care of my father, who was hospitalised for a month. Unfortunately, he succumbed to the disease despite giving it a tough fight at his age. Just three days after I got discharged, he passed away. It came as a shock to lose him so suddenly. I would describe it as the worst time of my life. He had his angioplasty done two years ago, and due to his age and various health factors like diabetes, it had been a very difficult time for him. But we never came to know how he contracted COVID. My mother was always with him, but miraculously, she did not contract the infection.

When I was in the ICU, some of my known customers of Thermax from all around the globe sent me ‘get well’ messages. I cannot express the happiness and mental support their messages gave me. I have been a part of the Thermax family for more than 15 years and many people, even ex-colleagues, enquired about my health. They were a support system to me that helped me move away from negativity and focus on the positive things in life. In COVID, you are all alone – isolated from even your loved ones. Hence, I believe the emotional support someone gets at this time plays a big part in recovery.

My father’s loss was the worst thing to happen to me and my family. My seniors, Suresh Kumar (Function Head-Global Technical Services, Cooling), B. Venkatesh (SBU Head, Absorption Cooling) and my colleagues at Thermax supported me at a time when I needed it the most. They ensured that I got the time to heal physically as well as mentally. After all my father’s last rites were completed, I decided to join the office, to move on even if it was very difficult.

COVID should not be taken lightly. I contracted COVID even though I took every possible precaution to avoid it. I have seen families being devastated by the virus where the child survives while the parents don’t. COVID is unforgiving, and it takes just a minor slip in precautions for the virus to enter your body. I still feel that my body is not the same as before having COVID. I am fully vaccinated, but I always wear a mask whenever I go outside. COVID is not over yet in India, and it is still deadly. It is up to us to protect ourselves from this virus.

Precaution is the only cure!

– Amol Garbhe
Head – International Services, Absorption Cooling – Cooling & Heating Division

Discovery of mankind and resilience

It was May 2021 – the second wave of COVID was at its peak in Maharashtra and so in the city of Pune. I, like everyone else, would read the newspaper, watch news that informed about the shortage of beds in hospitals, insufficient oxygen cylinders, Remdesivir injections, etc., and would often ponder about the plight of these people struggling to support their near and dear ones. But as life would have it, I suddenly found myself in a similar situation!

I believe in God, and COVID showed how helpless we are against nature. How we got the deadly virus remains a mystery to all of us. We hardly stepped out of the house, and it was only me and my wife, Smita, who were going out. My mother had a mild fever when I took her for the routine checkup, and the doctors suggested doing an RT-PCR test for COVID, which turned out to be positive. It was when her oxygen level started falling that I took her to the Government COVID centre at Shivajinagar, as there were no beds available in the hospital where we first visited. My mother's oxygen level was around 60, so they immediately admitted her. Thereafter, other members of my family also started showing symptoms of COVID. So, I got all of them tested, and everyone was reported positive. The infection in the case of my father and wife was very mild, and home quarantine was advised.

I and my elder daughter, Divya, had high levels of COVID infection and were advised urgent hospitalisation by our family doctor. But finding a bed then was a big challenge. Fortunately, my colleague Sachin Ghadge (Logistics & Shipping Officer, O&M) knew a small hospital and was kind enough to arrange a bed for us. He drove us to the hospital, and we got admitted on 1st May 2021. I and Divya were both admitted to the same ICU ward and in the same room. We spent 8-10 days there, and we knew that we were to be given Remdesvir due to the high level of infection. All my seniors, including Prashant Nagraj (Head- Operations, O&M), Kirtiraj Jilkar (Vice President – Power O&M), and other colleagues, tried hard to arrange a Remdesvir injection for us. This was at a time when there was an acute shortage of the injection across the country. The first dose of Remdesvir was arranged by Chairperson Meher Pudumjee, while the other doses were arranged by my colleagues.

Adversities, indeed, help reveal our hidden potential. Throughout this course of time, my wife was a planner in action – she took care of managing all consultations with doctors, coordinating with lab technicians while learning to handle online appointments and transactions, as was the norm of the day. She has played a very dynamic role and was one of the key reasons for my recovery. She came out of the disease stronger than me.

It was very taxing emotionally to not be able to see or meet my family members – I could not see my mother through her stay at the hospital. We didn't know what was happening, and it was traumatic for all of us. The hospital was kind enough to provide daily updates of my mother's health to my father. We couldn't ask anyone to help us carry food to my mother, lest that person gets infected. Yet, in such a situation, some of our family friends and the hospital security guards helped us to deliver the essentials, for which I am very grateful. This has made us realise that God was supreme and there were things that even money couldn't buy.

My elder daughter lay in pain beside me, but all I could do was offer words of encouragement that everything would be all right. I felt helpless and scared of our situation. She couldn't give her online exams and for the first time in her life, had a backlog. Each one of us had gone through a lot of suffering. However, my father was very strong – even at 85 years, he did regular yoga and morning walks and defeated the virus in four days, while I, being 49 years old, suffered from a severe COVID.

After about 10 days, our infection levels went down, and we were discharged home. Unfortunately, my mother’s health deteriorated even after receiving Remdesvir and couldn’t make it back home. I couldn’t even see her for the last time. The day we went home was the same day she breathed her last! Suddenly, a member of my family – with whom I had spent my life was gone. It left a deep emotional scar on me. After her demise, my colleagues at Thermax also helped with the funeral as the body was not handed over in COVID-related deaths.

Thermax did everything as a family for me. I feel very much obligated for the support extended in such tough times. Sunil Bhosale, Senior Executive, Healthcare and Dr. Suhas Kanetkar, Company Medical Officer (CMO) at Thermax, continually monitored my progress by being in touch with the doctor at the hospital. I would like to mention and thank Rajendra Namdeo, another colleague at Thermax, who had been immensely helpful during that time – he used to visit my house every day in the morning to collect my food and deliver it to the hospital, which was a good 20 km ride! He was like a younger brother who helped me tremendously during this period. Nutan Kallur (Group HR Head – Power) was in constant touch with my wife, who was also in home quarantine. My team members – Anurag Chincholkar (Head-Sales, O&M), Anand Singh (Team Leads / Technical Lead-Vendor Management, O&M), Vasudeva Kavuri (Lead Engineer-Electrical, O&M) supported me greatly.

From the nurses at the hospital to the ambulance drivers, everyone supported by motivating us regularly to defeat the disease. I salute the COVID warriors because of whom I could safely recover from COVID.

COVID is a game of patience and tolerance- the treatments work slowly. There are some side effects of Remdesvir, but I am doing yoga and pranayamas to recover my health as much as I can. With a proper diet, sleep and exercise, I believe one can recover from the after-effects of COVID.

Taking utmost safety measures and our vaccine doses are equally important in our fight against this unknown pathogen. No one knows when the virus will knock at someone's door!

– Rajeev Shrivastava
Head-Procurement, Operations and Maintenance

Lessons for life!

It was on 6th May 2021 that I received my COVID positive report. I was at Roha, Raigad, Maharashtra, where I work as a Station Manager, O&M at Sudarshan Chemicals plant. At that time, half of my team members were also suffering from COVID. Most of us were in home or company isolation, but since I started facing trouble in breathing, I had to get admitted to a hospital in Pune. I am immensely thankful to Gajendra Bisen, safety officer, and managers at the customer site for arranging an ambulance for me.

After admission to the hospital, I assumed that I would recover and be discharged very soon, but destiny had other plans. The stay continued for the next 42 days as 90% of my lungs were infected. My survival chance was only 1%! After three days in the hospital, following breathlessness, the doctors decided to shift me to the ICU.

My wife, Preeti, received a call from the hospital reception, informing her about my health condition. It was an extremely shocking and difficult situation for her to deal with. With no second thought in mind, she stepped out of the house with our 7-year old daughter to come to Pune. She reached the hospital at 7:00 pm. My daughter, Tanishi was forced to sit alone in the rain outside the hospital while my wife was arranging for my medicines. She was new to the city and didn’t know anyone here. In such a situation, it was my colleague, Ameet Nampalliwar, (Deputy Station Manager, O&M, Sudarshan Chemicals, Roha) also a COVID survivor, who supported her. Nutan Kallur (Group HR Head – Power), Maya Masulkar (HR Administrator – Power&TIL – O&M) had arranged for their stay in the Thermax guest house.

On one of the dreadful nights in the ICU, around 2:30 am, my oxygen level dropped suddenly, and I fell unconscious. The ICU staff struggled to change my ventilator to increase my oxygen level. I felt that it could be my last night, but after a lot of efforts by the staff and with the blessings of God, I started breathing again!

After a few days, when Preeti came to meet me in the ICU room, I was in a very critical condition. I cannot express the emotions I went through when I saw her at the hospital near me. Her presence gave me the much needed willpower to fight on and hold on to the hope to survive.

On the same weekend, all of a sudden, doctors asked my wife to arrange for the Remdesevir injection for me, but even that proved to be a failed attempt. As a final resort, Itolizumab was suggested. Preeti was informed of all the possible side effects of this drug and was asked to sign a declaration, taking responsibility for the same. She signed it with a heavy heart. The administration of this medicine took close to eight hours. Thereafter, for the next 10 days, my wife was not allowed to see or meet me. She could only watch me through video calls or photos shared by the nurses. I was on RT feeding (providing nutrition when unable to eat through the mouth or are not in a state to swallow the food safely), but I do not remember that time! The time frame felt like a few hours to me. Gradually, my condition bettered, and I was moved to a liquid diet. After almost 38 days, I was moved out of the ICU. Finally, the prayers were answered. It’s because of the blessings from my loved ones that I have survived. I have fought the battle of COVID in the hospital for a total of 42 days; out of which 22 days I was on the ventilator and then on oxygen support.

These testing times brought with them many challenges; some never anticipated situations. In one such instance, the doctor had suggested a high protein liquid meal (chicken and mutton soup) for me when I was on RT feeding. Coming from a Brahmin family and being a vegetarian, it was arduous for us to accept the demand. However, prioritising my health, my wife and brother in law, Pranava Saraswat, visited the meat shop daily and prepared the food for me. I will never forget their sacrifices and efforts.

Indeed, the pandemic has taught us many more life lessons than what we could learn over the course of a lifetime. It also led me to meet some very helpful and wonderful people, the saviours of my life – Dr. Abhishek Karmalkar, who treated me, his juniors- Dr. Kajal Mavani, Dr. Siddesh Randhe, Dr. Swapnil Pansare, brothers Akil and Amal Kalikar who had been very caring and supportive. A simple “Kaisa hai tu,” from Dr. Kajal, and the daily motivation from Dr. Siddhesh, gave me the vigour to tread through this agonising path every day while in the hospital.

Once during the recovery stage, my oxygen level again started dropping drastically. I started shivering and was crying and shouting – “Please help me, brother”. Therein, Amal consoled me, saying, “Nothing will happen; I am here with you”. The ventilator was immediately arranged that normalised my condition. Though the pandemic showed us the worst times, it also reinstated our faith in humanity, thanks to the selfless souls – all the frontline and healthcare workers who have toiled to save lives.

Finally, I was at peace after being discharged from the hospital and heard a lot about the support extended by my team. Sabirali Masu (Project Manager, O&M), Sachin Ghadge (Logistics & Shipping Officer, O&M) visited the hospital several times, Surya Dhar (Manager – Engineering, Operations and Maintenance) always enquired about my health, Nutan Kallur was continuously in touch with my wife to know my condition and arrange for any commercial help required. My site team members took responsibility of the plant in my absence and ensured that it functioned without interruption.

I would like to sincerely thank the Power HR team and O&M’s senior management for supporting me and my family in the most critical time. Thank you Thermax for staying beside me!

– Mayur Saraswat
Station Manager, O&M

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