[37 -The challenge at Koulge]

The Chairman and the Board of Directors had a meeting in which I was invited to participate after I joined the mills.
The Chairman introduced me to the Vice Chairman & Directors and told them that if they have no objection I may be appointed as " Managing Director " of the mills as I was selected by the Technical Director of MSCSMF.
There were two qualified professors of a local college where our Chairman was also a professor,they wanted me to tell them how I would start my work and when I would start the mill.
I was prepared for this but did not expect that I would have to make a speech.Any how I told them my dream of this mill and they were happy.I thought I would gauge them later as to how they would co operate in my work.
The Govt through a co operative bank had sanctioned a huge amount to the mill as per a project report submitted by the Technical Director of MSCSMF on behalf of the mills.
I had joined the mill without aletter of appointment issued by the Technical Director but he told me it is a mills appointment and I would get it from mills.
On joining duty I asked the Chairman that I needed a letter of appointment,since he was not knowing the terms of appointment he said that we both will have to go to MSCSMF and get it there,I phoned my friend Mr.Khatkhate regarding the procedure and he told me that my appointment must be approved by the Register of Co Operative Societies and as he is at Nagpur I must tell the Chairman to write to him enclosing a copy of the minutes of the meeting and the approval of the Board of Directors at a meeting called for this purpose.
The Chairman was not giving me any satisfactory reply when I asked him a few times about my letter of appointment.
I myself made the documents required and sent it to the Registrar of co operative Societies and got his sanction and kept quite.
I went through the project report for several days and was wondering as to how to make this a synthetic cotton blend & synthetic silk blended yarn spinning mill as the machinery was suitable only for cotton spinning.
There was no machine for pre opening of synthetic fiber bales or space provided for tinting opened synthetic fibers for color coding.
There was a heap of machinery lying unopened and machines erected by erection engineers who had erected and left with out a trial run as there was no power supply connection for sanctioned power and the power house constructed with out a distribution control board and the Electrical System Adviser staying away 70 KM from the mills.There was only a 750 KVA transformer lying near the power house.The power house itself was constructed with out any thought on expenses on cables and power transfer losses and other civil works.
There was no arrangement for water supply nor a blue print of pipe lines inside the mill to be taken up but a water pipe from the river which was several kilo meters away was drawn at mills expense and water pumped to a dry well belonging to the Chairman's big cultivated land and round the clock men were working pumping water illegally from the river unseen by the river supervisor to his land for cultivation.
I completed a half built huge water tank and arranged to get the water pumped in to that tank and there was considerable delay due to objections from a farmer in whose land the pipe had to be laid the problem was solved by the Chairman.
The whole area to be built was doubled by a independent decision of the Chairman with out any approval from competent authorities.This had eroded the finances of the mill with out a working capitol.The point I wish to make is the Civil contractor was doing the work and there was no provision for a single toilet in the whole complex.When I asked the contractor he said the Chairman had told him not to construct them as workers would use the open area behind the mill building.About a furlong away from the mill complex there were two guest houses to the left and right one for the contractor and the other for the Chairman and his team.Even to pee I had to walk a mile from my work spot to this guest house,I was told there was a free meals section also in this guest house but was closed as it went out of control due to the misuse by his brother.There was a water tap here connected and water pumped through the well from a near by friendly farmer.
The drawing for electrical connections and plumbing was never made and was never given in spite of my several requests to the civil contractor who had quit the place taking away all the fixtures and furniture from his guest house and rendering it impossible for any one to stay.
The Chairman never bothered about my repeated complaints and I had to give instructions to the civil supervisor and electrical engineer on all the works.
The mill had a Secretary who only maintained the Cheque book and another for the meetings.I had to open files and maintain all correspondence myself as few staff who were employees were all only knowing only Marati and could not write english.
There was no typist and I had to get all letters typed at a vendor in the place where I was staying 9 KM away.
The travel to mill was from a mill SVU for me and this would drop me at the mills and then would be used by the Chairman for all his personal work till 5.00 PM and would return after 5.00 PM with the Chairman and later on it would never come on many days and I had to travel bach by Bus.
The Chairman was more interested in his political career than setting up the project and would come to mills on his own time table and everything was left to me expect finance.The money sanctioned for the project was withdrawn at his will and pleasure for purposes other than mill use also.The guide lines for money to be drawn as directed by the Registrar of co operative society was never followed,since the money was deposited in a local co operative bank in which he had good influence he could draw the money any time
A sizing project,a weaving project and mulberry cultivation and silk worm rearing and silk filature production was all started using mill funds which ran in to losses and were closed.
Funds sanctioned for mills were deposited in bogus co operative credit societies and there the amount was sanctioned to persons of his political affiliations or farmers and never recovered.
The Audit that was done showing all the irregularities was negotiated with the Registrar of co operative society's who never bothered to look in to the report.
The workers were not paid full wages and their PF & ESI amount was never credited to these establishments.
The Factory Licence was never taken.
No records were kept for sundry expences.
My salary was never paid for months and they are still due.
Store expences were kept pending running up to over Rs.1,00,000.00.
Under these circumstances with workers co operation I started the mills with in 18 months.The mill was producing 900 to 1000 kg of 100% High Tenacity super long 64 mm 1.2 denier 2/30's Sewing thread and was the only mill in Maharashtra on 100% synthetic fiber and Industrial Sewing thread production when I was called back for the second time I have no Idea if it is working now since I never went after I came back from the place I did take a part of the salary due to me from the contractor who was running the mill and giving him a stamped receipt to collect the amount from the mills.