Our 'All Electric' Home

Pic courtesy: http://boster-kobayashi.com/

It was July 1974. We were supposed to vacate our home in Veera Bhavan Ballalbagh. My father had shifted some of our belongings to a house in Alake where flood waters entered and spoiled many books and photos, if not wooden furniture! So, my father frantically searched for a new place to dwell. Then came AG Nayak the ARTO to our rescue, who had many contacts.

I was in Mangalore Nursing Home for a week, to recover from an attack of Para-Typhoid. So, my involvement in shifting our home was zero. Rather I too became a piece of luggage for my family and they moved me along with a few other belongings to a 1000Sq Ft home in Shediguri.

There were three identical houses in one compound belonging to the Yenepoyas which they let out at Rs.400/- per month, rather steep those days. Yet, the compulsion of going for a house for at least 3 months before our own under construction could be complete, made my father agree for that rent and move in.

Our home was in the middle of the three, slightly modern compared to where we had lived for 16 long years. It was a compact tile roofed one with wooden false ceiling, not surprising, as the owners were Timber Traders. Flooring was Red oxide but both the attached bathrooms had glazed tiles, flush tanks and chrome plated fittings. Best part was, the house was all electric. All electric homes were rare those days and we felt privileged to be in one!

All electric alright, but we didn't have many electrical appliances to utilise the load. Water was heated in the conventional way in a copper pot with wood fire. Cooking was done on LPG or kerosene stove and we never had a fridge. I even boasted with my Ballalbagh friends that we're in the luxury of an All Electric Home!

Whatever, we felt very comfortable initially and we also made friendship with the family of a Tamilian Santhan Kumar, working for MCF living in the house to our right and the noted Kannada writer Aa Na Kra's daughter's family to the left. I was taking rest after recovery from Para-Typhoid and was mostly at home.

After a few days, one fine morning, our domestic helper Mechu was mopping the floor in my brother's bed room. I was tuning in our National Ecko radio to listen to Radio Ceylon. Suddenly she jumped two feet off the floor, yelling "Ayyamma!". I was surprised and went in to see what happened. I saw her trembling and she pointed at the corner of the room saying "I got a solid shock when I tried to mop the floor. Lucky that I am still alive!"

I went slowly near the area and touched the floor with my knuckle. I had learned a few tricks then to check electrical leakage those days out of my own instinct, and I knew that knuckle has the least contact surface which can be retracted faster than directly touching with fingers.

Of course, I too got a shock!

I then observed that there was a patch of moisture on the wall where the main switch was installed. Water had seeped through the pipe mounted on the tile roof for passing the electrical wire from main pole. Maybe that leak had seeped into the flooring and caused electrical shock in the area.

I called my mother and sister in law and announced aloud, that nobody should go near the area below the main switch in that corner of the room till something is done about it. I also told Mechu not to mop the area. They all nodded but were worried that in case they forgot, what would be their fate!

In the afternoon, my father came home for lunch and I showed him the area and told him the story. He said, he will have a word with 'Pipe Fitter Pandu', our family plumber cum electrician.

Late in the afternoon, Sampath Kumar, our Tamilian neighbour came home from college and we went outside and started playing cricket along with my brothers Kamalakanth, Radhakanth and couple of other boys in the neighbourhood. After a while we stopped playing and Sampath Kumar went on talking something, while resting his right foot on the water pipeline that ran over the skirting of our house and he too yelled "Ayyo!" and jumped off! That pipe also had electrical current! The sleuth in me became alive. I slowly tip toed and touched the pipe and felt the current. Then I slowly went into our bath room and touched the tap and got a shock there as well!

So now our home is indeed 'All Electric", I announced and laughed aloud! My mother shouted at me and said it's not funny and we must do something fast. I went to the nearest telephone and called my father to tell him that the entire house has electrical leakage. My father said, he has informed Pandu about it and Pandu may come the next day. Father also adviced me not to touch any plumbing fixture that may have leakage of current.

Much later in the evening my brother Srikanth came from Manipal, went into the bathroom, tried to open the tap to wash his face, and got a shock! We all wore Hawaii slippers and protected ourselves that evening. Needless to mention that we didn't sleep well!

Next morning, Pandu arrived, inspected the electrical and  plumbing line for leakage and said, the earthing has not been properly fixed.

He set right the earthing connection, and the house came back to normal.