With his engaging autobiographical book, Brig (Retd) Vivek Sapatnekar touches upon many watershed events in the nation's history and his role in them

I sure was in a fix. I'd just been asked to do a review of a book by Brig (Retd) Vivek Sapatnekar intriguingly-named Address c/o 56 APO: Location Unknown (Reminiscences of an Army Life). It's one thing to have an opinion about every famous novel and quite another to critically read and comment on one.

Brig Sapatnekar, who was also a prosecution witness (witness No. 186) in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination trial, grew up in a middle-class Maharashtrian household in Pune. A second generation officer, Sapatnekar's younger brother, father and paternal uncle all donned the olive green uniform. Born in the year of the historic Quit India movement, Sapatnekar went to school in a 'Poona' where, as he describes it, "There were more tongas than cars and more trees than people."

Soon, this bright student of the Bishop's School joined the NDA. At NDA, the Drill Saab (Drill Instructor), by mispronouncing his surname, made him Cadet Safed-nicker, a funny surname which stuck for quite a while. After three eventful years at Khadakvasla, it was destination Dehradun, and the Indian Military Academy (IMA) for him.

Here too, there was no dearth of memorable incidents which were a staple of Sapatnekar's life. One such incident which stands out is that of a ceremonial parade, during which the warm, muggy day took its toll on many a cadet, tired of standing in the sun for long hours. Yet, as Sapatnekar puts it, "In the Army, there are strict procedures for doing everything in the approved soldierly manner, from tying shoelaces to fainting on parade. If a GC (Gentleman Cadet) wants to faint, he must not. If he still wants to faint, he must do it like a soldier and that means falling to the ground ramrod straight, like a log, balli ke jaise."

... contd.