In the year 1971, Engineers did not get a job as there was recession in the entire country. Civil Engineers were absorbed in PWD. It was a hard time for Electrical and Mechanical Engineers. I had worked on Daily wages of Six rupee a day in the Soil Testing Sub Division of PWD at Ananda Rao Circle, Bangalore.

I applied for a Box Advertisement in Deccan Herald from a Nationalized Bank calling for Clerks and wrote the written test. I was selected by Dena Bank and got an appointment letter asking me to report at Sarjapura Branch in the first week of December 1971. Doddamma was unhappy at my joining the Bank job. She expressed her unhappiness and said, “Annaiah was an Engineer and was an officer and you being an Engineer, I am unhappy at your joining the Bank as a clerk.” Again Kitty came to my rescue in convincing Doddamma and I reported at Sarjapura Branch of the Bank and joined Dena Bank as a clerk on 15.12.1971

Annaiah’s concern about me was evident from the following conversation in the year 1969. I was doing my fourth year Engineering and on a particular Thursday (Thursdays we did not have classes after 10.00 AM – I used to be back home by 11.30 AM), we were conversing. Suddenly he asked me, ‘Gopala – have you taken drinks’. I was taken aback at this and asked why you are asking me the question. He told me that you are going to a college which is far away. If there is no class, you are spending time in the room of a friend/class mate who is in the hostel. Now a days drinking has become a habit among the students in the hostel. If you are into it, please tell me, as a father, I ought to know your habits. I told him, that I am not into it, and promised him that I will never take it. As long as he was alive, I never touched it and after his demise also I never touched it. I was offered drinks by G.R. Viswanath on his birth day, Kapil Dev, Mohinder Amarnath and K. Srikkanth offered the drinks on the tour of Sri Lanka at Kandy and many clients had offered me the drinks while in service with the bank. I have said a firm “no” to all these offers and remained a “teetotaler” through the 49 years that have gone by.

In the year 1972-73, MCC toured India and played a match at Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore. It appears that MCC did not have a scorer on the tour and requested Shri M. Chinnaswamy to arrange a Scorer for them. M. Chinnaswamy was looking out for me in the Stadium. I was in the stadium premises. I had gone to the stadium to collect the entry badge for scoring the match next day. He sent words for me. When I appeared before him, he handed over the MCC Score Book and asked me to score the match for MCC.  My joy knew no bounds and the first thing I did was to inform my Guru Cavale regarding the assignment. He felt happy for me and gave me some useful tips as the score cards differed in style.  I brought the score book home in the evening. I was introduced to Mr. Donald Carr, who was the former England Captain and the Manager of the touring MCC team by Shri M. Chinnaswamy on the morning of the match as ‘Your Scorer’. I warmly shook his hands. It was a three day match and at the end of the first day, Shri Chinnaswamy asked me to show him the score book and expressed happiness at the way the work was carried out. On the last day of the match, I handed over the score book to Mr. Donald Carr after the match was over and he patted on my back saying “Well Done, My boy”. His words of appreciation came in presence of Shri M. Chinnaswamy, Shri Nagaraj and Shri B. Visweswara Rao. It was great honour for me. I cherish those encouraging words by a renowned England captain even today.