This Industrial setup of National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) is the largest power station in India; but that’s not its only claim to fame. Pawan Chabra in his 70-hour long stay lives what Nehru had dreamt of!
After an overnight journey of 14 hours from the capital, I arrived at a place called Mirzapur. Another five hours by a “safe” state-owned transport bus and the last one hour by a three-wheeler, and the final destination was finally here – Vindhyanagar in Madhya Pradesh, where the National Thermal Power Corporation has its prosperous and well-maintained Vindyachal township. Of course, for lack of choice of a guest house in the township, my retreat for two nights and three days was called Yamuna Bhawan (one of the only two guest houses at the township; the other one was meant solely for VIPs), which stood about 500 metre from the main entrance gate of the township. After a brief rest of a few hours, I decided to walk around the colony, which covered about 50 square-km of ground.
On my initial interactions with a few residents, I learnt that just the previous two days (December 5-6, 2009), the Vindyachal Township had celebrated its annual fair called ‘Sharad Mela’ in The Lake Park for the 1600-odd families of the employees of NTPC who are currently residing in the township. Talking about his experience at the fair, U. P. Pani, who joined the company way back in 1978 and is today working as an Executive Director at the NTPC plant, explains, “There are popular rides like the Columbus and My Fair Lady. Then there are cultural programmes and eating joints that are organised. This fair provides the desired change and fun in the lives of families living in the NTPC Township and nearby areas...”
When it comes to infrastructure, NTPC’s Vindyachal hamlet earns some points too. Besides the aforementioned two guest houses, it has four schools, three recreational clubs and a flower nursery. Located in Madhya Pradesh’s Shakti Nagar district, the Vindyachal facility is one of the oldest plants of NTPC. Unlike many residents of PSU-townships across the country, those living in these parts seem to have little grudge for the manner in which this settlement has been maintained so far. “I have seen the township grow since I ever saw this place. It has only prospered since then... In fact, the condition of roads here is much better then those compared to the area around this township,” says a smiling Naresh Pandey, an auto-rickshaw driver who has been in the business for the past 15 years, driving in and around the township. Naresh helps me get around during the latter part of my journey.
After an overnight journey of 14 hours from the capital, I arrived at a place called Mirzapur. Another five hours by a “safe” state-owned transport bus and the last one hour by a three-wheeler, and the final destination was finally here – Vindhyanagar in Madhya Pradesh, where the National Thermal Power Corporation has its prosperous and well-maintained Vindyachal township. Of course, for lack of choice of a guest house in the township, my retreat for two nights and three days was called Yamuna Bhawan (one of the only two guest houses at the township; the other one was meant solely for VIPs), which stood about 500 metre from the main entrance gate of the township. After a brief rest of a few hours, I decided to walk around the colony, which covered about 50 square-km of ground.
On my initial interactions with a few residents, I learnt that just the previous two days (December 5-6, 2009), the Vindyachal Township had celebrated its annual fair called ‘Sharad Mela’ in The Lake Park for the 1600-odd families of the employees of NTPC who are currently residing in the township. Talking about his experience at the fair, U. P. Pani, who joined the company way back in 1978 and is today working as an Executive Director at the NTPC plant, explains, “There are popular rides like the Columbus and My Fair Lady. Then there are cultural programmes and eating joints that are organised. This fair provides the desired change and fun in the lives of families living in the NTPC Township and nearby areas...”
When it comes to infrastructure, NTPC’s Vindyachal hamlet earns some points too. Besides the aforementioned two guest houses, it has four schools, three recreational clubs and a flower nursery. Located in Madhya Pradesh’s Shakti Nagar district, the Vindyachal facility is one of the oldest plants of NTPC. Unlike many residents of PSU-townships across the country, those living in these parts seem to have little grudge for the manner in which this settlement has been maintained so far. “I have seen the township grow since I ever saw this place. It has only prospered since then... In fact, the condition of roads here is much better then those compared to the area around this township,” says a smiling Naresh Pandey, an auto-rickshaw driver who has been in the business for the past 15 years, driving in and around the township. Naresh helps me get around during the latter part of my journey.
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