The mission was to select question papers for examination choosing them from a question bank provided to us at an official venue somewhere at New Delhi. However, we had an option to set our own questions as well. I was supposed to select questions related to electromagnetic theory and microwave engineering. There I was fortunate on the same mission to come across Professor S.C. Dutta Roy (SCDR) in the same venue which was a big hall. We were given time to complete the task in four days working each day during office hours. I used to stay in a guesthouse close to the venue, and SCDR as you all know lives in New Delhi. I could complete my job every day before lunch while the rest of us spent most of the office hours for the same purpose. SCDR asked me to know the ‘secret’ and at the same time, he was afraid that I was not serious and that I was not probably doing my job correctly. I was however quite sure that I have selected the best questions without a single mistake. I told him the secret of my claim. SCDR challenged my work and out of brotherly affection took home the question papers I selected. The next day he came back and saluted my decision and told me that he was jealous of me that I had a classmate whom I regarded with such esteem! The secret is that I selected most of the questions from a lot of handwritten questions set by none other than Pradip whose handwriting as well as English was well known to me! A teacher par excellence, Pradip was not only the ‘guru’ of his students at the Institute of Radiophysics and Electronics but also his classmates like me! Pradip helped me immensely in writing my books and I do not hesitate to ask him my questions related to electromagnetic theory and topics based thereupon, which he always fondly answers, thereby helping me to learn.
