MB#10: 𝙁𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙉𝘾𝘾 𝘾𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝘼𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙈𝙖𝙣𝙖𝙜𝙚𝙧: 𝙈𝙮 𝙁𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧'𝙨 𝙄𝙣𝙙𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙤𝙪𝙨 𝙔𝙤𝙪𝙩𝙝.

[MemoirBlogthon #10] Before he became an accomplished engineer, my father's career journey began in the Indian Canteen Corps and as an assistant manager for a merchant firm in Kakinada. Despite his early success and rapid rise from a typist to management, he made the deliberate choice to leave a promising salary and pursue an engineering degree. This memory documents his formative years (1945–1947), showcasing the simplicity and sincerity that guided him to always prioritize learning and self-improvement over immediate professional comfort.

MB#10: A Testament to Excellent Conduct and Hard Work.

The Blueprint of Diligence (1945–1947)

This story explains why my father studied, worked, started a career from scratch, and progressed gradually through learning, regardless of his position or pay. This characteristic of simplicity and sincerity protected and guided him throughout his entire life.

The Military Discipline: NCC and Canteen Corps

My father's interest in military discipline began in his school days in Ramachandrapuram and was formalized during his Intermediate (12th standard) studies at Pithapuram Raja College in Kakinada, where he joined the National Cadet Corps (NCC).

At the young age of 20, he took his first formal employment because he wanted to support his Jambo family. He got selected to join the military in the Naik rank in January 1945. His first job was with the Indian Canteen Corps Unit as an assistant salesman, where he handled sales, accountancy, and warehouse management for a salary of one hundred rupees per month. His service certificate recognized his exemplary service and granted him three crucial lifelong privileges as an ex-serviceman:

1. The Certificate of Discharge recommended him for further education or civil employment.

2. He was granted enrollment in the Andhra Pradesh Government Employment Exchange.

3. He received a Military Canteen Smart Card that is valid for life.

Rising Through the Ranks

After returning to his hometown, my father joined the Madras-based Goodluck and Company firm, merchants and agents for export and import, in their Kakinada branch. For about a year (July 1946 to June 1947), he quickly rose from a typist to assistant manager.

His Certificate of Service from the firm states: "S. Subrahmanya Sastry proved to be industrious during his service tenure and managed all our branches... Though he started as a typist, he could rise to assistant manager in a short period due to the promising work he turned out. We have relieved him since he has taken up further studies in engineering. His conduct is excellent."

The crucial contrast here is his willingness to step away from a successful, fast-track managerial position to return to studies. He was a self-made engineer—his father was a schoolteacher, and his family was middle-class—and he was guided by an internal compass to learn and progress, regardless of his current pay or position. These early career milestones—military discipline and managerial rise—are worth remembering for generations as evidence of his foundational commitment to hard work and learning.

MB#10: Quiz

MB#10: Question: The father's deliberate choice to leave a promising salary was made to pursue what higher goal?

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• A. A political career.
• B. A career as a freelance writer.
• C. An engineering degree.
• D. Starting his own business.

MB#10: Quote

"The best investment is in the tools of one's own trade." – Benjamin Franklin