Chennai: A massive tree honoring 11,300 employees of the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) has been carved at its administrative building, and a heritage gallery highlighting photos of its 65-year-old colorful history has been inaugurated for public.
Irrespective of job levels or officer position, under the tree, photos of all 11,300 ICF employees has been pasted. Carved using a metal base, the huge banyan tree is spread across a 10x15sqft room, and is being thronged by public and employees and their families.
“This is for the first time I have seen such a tribute to employees from an organization. There has been no display of seniority or job level,” said a worker at the factory. “No Central government office has shown such respect towards its staff.”
“I brought my wife and children to see the tree. They were very proud to see my photo on the wall under the giant tree with photos of senior officers, and with no disparity reflected,” said another worker.
The tree and the heritage gallery are new additions to the latest changes at the coach factory premises, which is abuzz with art and renovation activity.
A heritage gallery showcasing visits of the likes of Jawaharlal Nehru, the Dalai Lama, Queen Elizabeth, and the milestones of ICF in the last 65 years has been inaugurated which is open to the public.
A collection of over 500 rare photos of the coach factory, including that of rolling out its 100thand 1000th coach, has spread awe among and brought pride to visitors to the gallery.
The foyer and the gallery were inaugurated by a deputy chief engineer, C. Ramayan, who is about to retire. On the instructions of the general manager, K Mani, all new inaugurations at ICF are being done by ICF employees.
Officials recalled that each VIP who visited ICF for important functions were taken in and around the entire ICF premises, including the lake area and the railway colony.
