With the Nathu-la pass hitting the headlines recently, pressure was mounting on me to re-open another, not so famous pass, which people started referring to as Natu’s pass. This Natu’s pass is no silk route. Not even a cotton route. Natu’s pass is a narrow passage from my building to my neighbouring building.

As I was the secretary of my building, and people fondly I like to believe it is out of their fondness call me Natu, they started calling this passage Natu’s pass after I had it closed down. This passage facilitated access to people from both buildings to each other’s streets without having to take a detour. Members of my building can access the bus stops and taxi stands situated on the main road whereas the members of the neighbouring building can access the provision shops, the barber’s, flour mills, schools, etc situated on my street. For many years this passage was used by us without hindrance. In my school days hitting the cricket ball to the neighbouring building meant scoring four runs. Now children in my building have changed the rules, and hitting the ball there would mean that the batsman is out, as retrieving the ball had become difficult.

I, though reluctant, was instrumental in getting this passage blocked some three years ago, by fitting an iron gate and keeping it locked. I, in my capacity as the secretary, had to abide by the requests of a majority of the members who complained of trespassers causing a nuisance and also posing a security risk. After discussing the issue with my counterpart in the neighbouring building, I got the passage closed.

Therefore, when Nathu-la got into the news, people started demanding that I must do a rethink on Natu’s pass, and get it re-opened. It was decided to re-open the Natu’s pass on the same day to coincide with the re-opening of Nathu-la, and also to appoint an additional watchman to keep trespassers away. And thus, a silky route got re-opened to everyone’s joy.