Abu Dhabi: On his first day in Abu Dhabi, a hot summer morning in July 1968, he woke up in his one-room residence and looked outside the window to see a donkey carrying water containers. A man was loudly announcing the arrival of the animal carting the drinking water. His roommate told him not to buy the water, as they would get tap water — although intermittently for a limited time — in their room.
The next day, it was his turn to wake up at four in the morning to wait by the tap for slow-running water to fill the containers. “I used to sit half-asleep by the water tap until the containers were filled in an hour,” V.P. George, 68, recalled his initial days in the capital.
He had arrived on a visa to Abu Dhabi issued by the then Trucial States under the British. The British Consulate in Chennai (then Madras) in South India issued the one-year visa on July 1, 1968.
Due to financial difficulties at home, he had requested his cousin. T.V. Simon, who was working with Abu Dhabi Customs to help him secure a job. “I am grateful that he arranged a visa and everything for me!”
The 20-year-old graduate from Pathanamthitta district of Kerala embarked on a passenger ship named Sirdana from Mumbai in India on July 29 for Dubai. The sea was often rough and he had frequent bouts of seasickness during the seven-day journey.
“Upon arriving in Dubai, I still remember the first car ride from Dubai to Abu Dhabi on unpaved roads.”
Most of the buildings then were small asbestos-roofed houses lining the streets. Electricity supply lasted just three to four hours every day. “Without electricity, our noisy air conditioner was mostly useless,” George said.
On August 27, 1968, he joined as a clerk with Eastern Bank that was later renamed Standard Chartered Bank. George worked his way up the rungs, becoming a cashier, a chief cashier and then a sales officer in various departments of the bank’s two branches in Abu Dhabi.
In all, he worked for 40 years continuously with the same bank at the same place, retiring on in April 27, 2009 at the age of 60.
He still remembers the joy of Emiratis when the UAE was formed on December 2, 1971. “Everyone was happy and excited. My Emirati colleagues were praising the late Shaikh Zayed [Bin Sultan Al Nahyan] and the late Shaikh Rashid [Bin Saeed Al Maktoum] for establishing the federation.”
Since then, he has been a witness to this nation’s 45-year-old journey. “As I have travelled extensively in the Far East, the US, Canada and Europe, I can categorically say that no other country in the world has progressed this much in such a short span of time.” The advancements in all sectors, especially in education and health care, are remarkable, he said.
George observed several transformations in the banking sector during his 40-year career. The introduction of calculators in 1970s and computers in 1980s were welcomed with awe those days.
His wife, Daisy, joined him in Abu Dhabi soon after his marriage in 1974.
Despite the passage of time, George and his wife have managed to let the years sit lightly on them. “We have always been happy. That was our priority,” said George.
He never troubled himself over the prospect of being able to save more money than he could, an urgency that drives many expatriates, he said. “We are happy with what we have.”
He has three children, two sons and a daughter. All three are married with children and are doing well in the UAE. “We feel fortunate about that,” said George.
The oldest son, Dr Sanoop George, 40, is a teacher of dentistry; the second son, Sandeep George, is a banker, and daughter, Sangeetha George, 30, is a gemologist. Since he retired, George has been working as a finance manager with a private firm. But now he and his wife are preparing to return to India in November. “Although we are happy to be here with our children and grandchildren, it is time to go back. Old age problems will not permit me to work any longer. So, it is time to settle down back home,” he said.
