The 3 Second Fall

Circa 1988, 250 odd Cadets of my course woke up to a bright morning at Pune. We had all joined the National Defence Academy (NDA) Wing at Ghorpuri, Pune amidst monsoons dipping the temperature. The NDA Wing was lush green and so were its surroundings. We were put through the acclimatisation of the Military rigor which would be our companion for life hereinafter. Coming from different backgrounds, our capabilities were at different levels and the Training Staff put us through the grind in right earnest.?

Aged between 17-20, these were the boys of all kinds and sizes. They were huddled together and the process of NDA- The Maker of Men let go its push to bring them to the requisite standards merited by the Indian Armed Forces for its Officers. These young lads would one day be the bearer of the extraordinary legacy set by their predecessors.

A month or so down the grill and the grind, the Cadet Captain announced about a 7.5/10 Metre jump into the Army School of Physical Training's Swimming Pool. This pool was Olympic Size and the freshly minted Cadets of the 80th NDA Course were to take a holy dip in its vast expanse. The distance to be travelled was close to 2 kilometres and everyone was directed to be ready for the next day.

This announcement created the huddle amongst the going to be best Brothers-in-Arms. A lanky, tall Sikh Cadet (most were lanky only in those days!) and a short, lanky cadet were the most sought after that evening. Both these gentlemen were gymnasts and had the past experience of swimming pool gymnastics to their resume. Both had passed out from the Army Public School, Delhi and were considered the Holy Masters.?

Mortals like me were dime and dozen. One of us who had not been able to wear his vest outside in even prayed that he will never repeat the same mistake if this 7.5/10 Metre monster is off his back! The deep dive had begun in the young minds. Many from the Armed Forces parentage background lamented that they should have tasted the jump when they were still in the school. The lankys - Sikh Cadet and his Pal were smirking their cheeks out. They were busy giving tips to the eager ears and each word was lapped with great interest by those who surrounded them.?

A Sherwoodian filled up his big tea mug and said this would be his last till he does not come down from the slated height. Bubbles in my stomach were refusing to die as I was a Navy Cadet but with nil experience of water albeit for bath under the hand pump in my home. That was the only stream of water that I had seen till that day apart from a visit to Haridwar as a 10 Year old to immerse the holy ashes of my late Grandmother. A tall Lucknowi in my barrack room commented to be prepared for a hard water landing and lamented that why he was 6" taller than me. The gravity calculation were done and it emerged that the body would be in the atmosphere without ground for about 2-3 seconds!! These 3 seconds seemed to be the longest time of my existence on that day.

Many of us got up with bubbles still working inside the stomach. There were many suggestions to eat light and jump right that day. The mere entry for the breakfast and lunch that day, the suggestion was thrown out of the first window. Everyone ate as stomach needs to be full first in the NDA. The lesson was driven home- Army marches on its stomach.

Prompt at 2 pm, the longest 2 kilometres March began towards the pool. The Physical Training Ustads were riding their bicycles and all sorts of stories about the previous batches were being spoken. Cadet Singh did not jump on the first whistle and then he took the PT Instructor also with him as he cajoled him!! Cadet Ranga held on to the jump board and remained hung there till his fingers ached and he fell into the pool only to be failed!!!The stories came and came but the pool did not come.

Finally, we arrived at the coveted pool, changed, took a cold bath and lined up. The wait was eternal as Divisional Officers and the PT Officer arrived. The wet body had completely dried and the?entire food inside the intestines was consumed by the warring cells.?

The lanky Surd and the lanky shorty went up the ladder and emerged at 10 Metre board. Many down below were not raising their eyes to witness their antiques. A brave few muttered softly and cursed their own luck! The lanky Surd knew where to rub it in. He did a prefect handstand at 10 Metre, stood with his legs aching to catch the stars and did a perfect back flip. My last of the spirit just disappeared at this sight. 2 flips in the rare atmosphere and the Surdy entered the water with his head first. He had a smirk on his face as he emerged and his Tiger Eyes were smiling. He knew that he had set the cat amongst the pigeons. The short lanky Cadet followed him, did a handstand, stood in the position for eternity right at the edge of the jumping board and then just flipped into the rare atmosphere. His 3 flips remain green even now. We were now awaiting our turns to be mauled.

The PT Instructor started taking names and the long queue started snaking upwards.?The fight of the future giants had begun. And finally the time came when there was no one ahead of me and the rare atmosphere was awaiting to surround my mortal skin. I focussed hard on the posture that I needed to take to avoid any undue injuries. The best position for novices like me was to hold the Swimming Trunk on sides, and just walk out of the diving board. But walking was not allowed! One had to come to the edge, shout out his NDA Number and then jump. The coming to the edge and then a look down, the jump side pool appeared smaller than the smallest square I had ever seen on paper during geometry classes!! Oh Lord! is this the longest 3 seconds of my life! I did what I could do the best, just shut my World between my ears, stepped out with my left leg and joined my right leg. I was airborne and my hands were firmly by my sides. The blink did seem to last but soon my toes sent a wet feeling up the neural network. The water lapped me all around and my first ever high board jump had been completed. I remained inside water as gravity lost the fight and buoyancy pushed me up.?The PT Instructor smiled and noted my academy number. The debates, confusions, calculations, guidance etc et al were all now history. I knew how it felt to make this jump and this was only the first of the many that the course would undertake before graduating from the sanctum portals of the National Defence Academy.

These days, I meet many who want to taste the thrill of bungee jumps from heights. They want to experience the thrill of?life. The jump comes at a price. In those 10 metres jumps, I gained the ability to shut my mind and focus on my aim. The injury free entry into the pool was a testimony to the art of silent strategy at work. The huddle a day before the jump was the harbinger of seamless brotherhood which only strengthens with each ticking day. The two pioneers performed exactly as they were supposed to per their legendary reputation. They would go on to marvel the NDA's Swimming Pool with much more in the rest years of training. The jump built a swimmer out of my dead sinker entry into the National Defence Academy. Thereafter, I jumped with ease as I knew that these 3 seconds will be the longest but the only 3 seconds that my World will be shut between my ears!!

These days, I get my adventures thrill by climbing high up in the mountains where the atmosphere is thin and I need to gasp for breath. I need to be prepared well before I begin these rapid ascents and descents. I look for those smallest squares when I stand on these commanding heights as these squares can shelter the humans as they seek the balance between gravity and buoyancy.