Santa is about to take his afternoon nap when his grandson, Pappu, marches into the room holding a drawing from his school.
He stands before the large, old wooden almirah that holds all the family’s prized possessions.
“Dadaji!” Pappu declares with the seriousness only an 8-year-old can muster.
“Our new teacher, Banta Chacha, became our class teacher today!”
“He said this almirah is a Khatarnak Dushman!”
Santa sits up, laughing.
“A Dushman?”
“Pappu, this almirah is older than your father!”
“It’s the strongest thing in this house!”
“What silly things are they teaching you in school these days?”
“It’s not silly, Dadaji!” Pappu insists, referring to his drawing which shows a house shaking and a cupboard falling over.
“Banta Chacha said that during an earthquake, heavy furniture that is not anchored to the wall can fall and hurt us or block our escape.”
“He said we must secure it!”
“He called it non-structural mitigation!” Pappu pronounces the big words with great difficulty and immense pride.
Banta, who was passing by and had overheard, peeks in with a smile.
“It seems you have a little Professor Sahib in the house, Santa!”
“Hmph!”
“Professor of nonsense!” Santa grumbles, though he looks a bit intrigued.
“Teaching children to be scared of their own furniture!”
“Not scared, Santa,” Banta corrects gently.
“Prepared and wise.”
“Think about it.”
“We are old trees.”
“It’s hard for us to learn new things or change our ways.”
“We often think, this is how it has always been, so it is fine.”
“But these children, they are like fresh, moist soil.”
“The seeds of knowledge and safety we plant in them today will grow into a forest of strong, resilient homes tomorrow.”
He adds, “When Pappu learns this in school, he doesn’t just learn for himself.”
“He brings that knowledge home.”
“He questions you.”
“He makes you think.”
“He thus becomes a little Suraksha Doot for his own family.”
“A lesson taught to a child is a lesson taught to a whole household, and eventually, to the entire community.”
“It is the most powerful way to build a true culture of safety from the ground up.”
Pappu, encouraged by Banta, points to other things.
“And that trunk on top of the cupboard should be kept down!”
“And we should make a Survival Kit with a torch and biscuits!”
Santa looks from his earnest grandson to Banta’s smiling face. A slow grin spreads across his own.
“Alright, alright, Professor Pappu!”
“You win!”
“We will look into this non-structural mitigation of yours.”
“It seems my grandson‘s school bag contains more wisdom than my old head sometimes!”
“Banta, you are creating an army of tiny, smart troublemakers!”
Banta laughs. “An army of lifesavers, Santa.”
#piyoosh #piyooshrautela #riskavoider #riskavoideracademy #nonstructuralmitigation #inari #mitigation
संता – बंता की यह जुगलबन्दी आपको कैसी लगी, कृपया हमें जरुर बताये
व
इस जुगलबन्दी को बेहतर बनाने के लिये अपने सुझाव अवश्य दें।
हमें हमेशा की तरह आपके सुझावों, प्रतिक्रियाओं व कटाक्षो का बेसब्री से इंतजार रहता हैं और सच मानिये इसी के आधार पर हम अपने आप में, अपनी सोच व रचनात्मकता में सुधार करने को प्रेरित होते हैं।
सो अच्छा – बुरा जैसा आपको महसूस हुवा हो, कमेंट जरुर करते रहें।
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