These collective writings are from a sample of ex-cadets of the first six batches of this unique cadet college, who experienced its foundation years (1966-1970), at a historic juncture between the end of East Pakistan time and the rise of Bangalee nationalism. While many people have written (and still writing) of their experiences of liberation war, these bunch of ex-cadets have written intimate personal memoirs of passing through their entire teenage (13-18 years), being completely cut off from the real world, at a residential boarding school, similar to those of English boarding schools. In some ways it was difficult time for them going through a completely alien culture from the rest of the peer groups in the then East Pakistan, and by the time first batch graduated during 1970; suddenly faced the harsh realities of the oppressive regime in the country, caught completely unprepared. It is therefore not surprising that a few of them joined the Armed forces as that is what was being preached at the college, as the best career option while many opted for different services starting from teaching to joining bureaucracy, finding creativity in architecture to career in tea plantation. This is a collection of intimate memoirs of 13 cadets who studied and had their grounding during the foundation years of Rajshahi Cadet College. This is an inescapable reading for readers irrespective of their orientation, cadet or non-cadet, in uniform or in civils.
Before amnesia crops up, cadets of RCC hurriedly jotted down memorable issues of the founding years of their alma mater, a no-women land on the sandy beach of the mighty Padma (except for the wife of the Principal, a motherly lady Mrs. Suleiman Kyani, and not to mention of their lovely and lively daughter Humaira, an occasional visitor from Lahore, made the teachers smarter and was a little too senior for the cadets to approach). A new entrant found himself an alien in a strange planet and got surprised to be told of milk break. How do they break milk anyway? A confession indeed! `We stole bananas growing in the principal’s backyard and even went to movies in the nearby town of Rajshahi, slipping away on our hiking trips.’ One cadet admits that he continued to remain an un-smart cadet in his poor dress-up, and ended up as a three-star General of Bangladesh Army and those who know him now find in him an excellent performer and analyst in the academia. One cadet at the unfortunate demise of his dearest wife takes a tour to RCC to find solace and get his shocks absorbed. What a surprise! All on a suddenly from behind a junior cadet Talebul Mowla (Rumi cadet 58) started yelling ‘Tasleem Bhai, Rokto Gorom Koren’. What a revolt to boil blood in the highly regimented military dominated campus! What actually had happened? Did it lead to war of independence? All thirteen have similar stories to tell, all are patriots and all of them are serving Bangladesh to the best of their abilities.
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