Ever since I got the offer letter from SIBM Pune, I had been hearing lots of positive reviews about its campus. Everyone I was talking to, be it the alumni or current students, all started their conversations by saying that you’ll be amazed by it. However, since I did my engineering from Manipal, which has a breath-taking campus itself, I took each of their statements with a pinch of salt, thinking ‘How much better can it be?’.
It was the 3rd of June, sometime in the late afternoon. The sky was overcast after a round of heavy showers, as I landed in Pune. I collected my 25 Kgs of luggage, booked an Uber and was off on my MBA journey. The weather was great, so I told the uber partner-driver to switch off the AC and lower the windows. After an early morning flight, I invariably fell asleep in the car.
I was finally woken up by a knock on the window. I slowly opened my eyes and was taken aback by the view to the right. There was an expanse of white! My first thought was- Am I dreaming? It took me a while and another knock on the window to come back to my senses and figure out that we were at the campus amidst clouds. It was truly love at first sight, and the atmosphere was straight out of a Bollywood movie- birds were chirping, there was a cool breeze blowing and everything appeared to be happening in slow motion! No wonder so many movies have been shot out here.
Over due course of time, I learnt more about our campus that makes it quite unique. Since our institute lies outside the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) boundary, it is not supplied by the water pipeline system. Hence, we had to devise our own ways to procure water and cater to the needs of the students. This is being done by sourcing water from the Mula-Mutha river, treating it in the water treatment plant and employing the gravity system for water distribution.
Pune receives a lot of rain in the monsoons. Hence to supplement the existing water sources, there are two water reservoirs which are used to store rainwater for contingencies. These water reservoirs also attract migratory birds and helps to improve the ecosystem in the area.
The hill top campus has adopted all kinds of eco-friendly practices. For example, plastic bags are banned – none of the shops use them, there are dustbins with distinct markings for wet and dry waste and a substantial portion of the energy requirement is met by the solar panels installed on top of the academic buildings. The flora and fauna have also been preserved as much as possible. So the next time you’re at the campus, you might just chance upon a gorgeous peacock or a monkey quickly crossing the road.
The beauty doesn’t stop there. One of the primary strengths of the hill top is its demographic diversity. Let me illustrate with an example. A few days back, I was ditched for breakfast by my friends, who decided that sleep was much more important than food. Hence, I went to the mess alone. It was quite early and the mess was relatively empty. As soon as I took the idli and was about to pour the sambar on it, I saw a face looking at the proceedings very curiously. He was an African from Nigeria, who had no clue how to eat those white, round, fluffy things with the red gravy. I explained him all about it and we eventually had a wonderful chat. This is what makes our campus so beautiful. It’s the confluence of nationalities, cultures, traditions and faiths. Here you learn to see, feel and understand issues from different perspectives.
All things said and done, I can now relate to why people love this campus so much. It’s not just the natural beauty that’s on show here- the people, experiences and acceptance are an integral part of it. We all live here as one family.
So the next time an aspirant asks me about SIBM, I too will start off by glorifying my campus!
Which ABG company would you want to work for and why?
Since childhood, I always enjoyed travelling to my aunt’s place in Jamshedpur by train. Just before the Tatanagar station, there was this huge Ultratech Cement plant which I’d gaze at with awe. It was massive! I always thought if I’d ever be allowed inside- it must be such an important place!
I hardly visit Jamshedpur now, but the images are still crystal-clear in my mind. Over the years, ofcourse I’ve become more rational, but the child in me still wants to be associated with that brand. Given an opportunity, I’d definitely want to join Grasim Industries, under which UltraTech operates.
Budhaditya Roy
Operations,SIBM Pune
