This is a true Story which happened in 1987. We were 10 Aviation Cadets who were destined to become Pilots out of the 500 plus cadets in the academy. We were there to get the Naval Orientation for a few months unlike the rest who will spend years in the academy.

There was a 10 kilometer Marathon which used to happen every Sunday and we used to look forward to it, because that was the only time we could see the outside world that existed beyond the Academy walls which was built like a jail. We had to pass the Drill test and the Swimming test, to become eligible to skip the Marathon once a month and go to the town on liberty.

Those who passed the swimming test, the drill test, and had no punishments pending for the evening, were allowed to go out into the towns skipping the Marathon on Sunday at 10 am onwards and return back by 10 pm.

This was luxury as far as we were concerned. But, two out of the 10 Cadets kept failing the swimming test as they did not know swimming. So, we were not allowed to go out. Often the Academy gave collective punishments to the entire course to ensure that we motivate each other to do well.

Punishments were given to individual cadets who fail to do something a senior cadet or an Officer tasks any cadet at any time of the day or night. Once punishment is awarded any time of the day to an individual Cadet, it is reported to the duty officer also. And in the evening the cadets who had punishments awarded during the day, would assemble at the guard room at 5:30 pm and the duty officer executes the punishments.

There are normally 10 to 15 guys on various punishments daily. The punishments is basically running a few rounds of the parade ground. The parade ground is 500 meters x 500 meters. If you got 1 round of the parade ground, it is 2 kilometers along the perimeter of the parade ground. Some guys with 10 rounds or more, end up running past dinner time.

And the ruthless duty Officer ensures the cadets run to the last round awarded standing in the center of the parade ground. And when these Cadets go to the mess, it is closed. Outside the mess some bread and butter or jam would be available. Sometimes no one who comes late gets anything, because others Cadets would polish off that too after having dinner. It was survival of the fittest in the Academy.

Two cadets out of the 10 of us, did not know swimming. They were struggling in the swimming pool. The swimming instructor had long pole which he would extend in case a cadet starts drowning. The swimming instructor was ruthless and showed any mercy to anyone.

The swimming instructor would say, "Cadets just don't worry. In case I find you are drowning, I will extend you the pole. You can hold the pole and rest for a while."

But, when these guys start sinking down under water drowning, he would extend the pole towards them, but will keep it slightly high so that the drowning Cadet cannot reach the pole. The swimming instructor just keeps the Cadet from drowning in hope and motivated to learn swimming, by trying to catch the safety pole.

These two Cadets, our course mates used to drink quite some swimming pool water daily. But neither could they reach the swimming standards the swimming instructor expected from them, nor could they reach the pole the swimming instructor would extend.

After the morning swimming classes the merciless swimming instructor would make these two run around the swimming pool some 20 times, make the front roll around the swimming pool on the hard concrete surface many times till they are nicely bruised and at times fall into the pool doing front rolls. By the time the cadets left the swimming pool, they would be exhausted thoroughly.

In the night, we went through some torture. Either it would be in the hands of a duty Officer who come at odd hours at night and find someone studying or doing something with the lights on. The whole barrack full of 16 Cadets would be doing drill like front roll, back roll etc. Some Cadets at times end up doing front and back rolls up and down the stairs which was painful.

Sometimes a few seniors would catch us and have fun the same way the duty officer does. Finally, we sleep at around 2 am. And at 5:30 am was wake up call for 6:00 am physical exercise classes.

During the morning one hour was drill classes, where almost all the Cadets fall asleep standing in parade during the one hour drill practice with a Sword or a Rifle, and get caught when the Sword or the Rifle would fall off from our hand. Whoever gets caught goes around the drill parade ground 7 times. Some cadets were just running during the entire one hour drill class.

There after was the swimming classes for an hour, which was the next in our torture list. Afternoons were supposed to be academic classes. During the class most Cadets were dead tired from the grilling morning session, would fall asleep. Those who are caught are made to stand on their hands for the entire period, with their legs up on the windowsill. Some even sleep in this position and fall on their face injuring themself.

After two months of swimming training these two cadets did not make the mark. One morning the swimming instructor got so frustrated by these two guys not learning to swim, that he made the junior course of 30 cadets, who had joined a few days back, line up in the swimming pool.

When the two cadets came into the pool that morning, they did not know what was in store for them. The swimming instructor told these two cadets to go and stand in front of each of them. Then he told each of the new cadets to slap on both cheeks of these two of our course mates.

The two cadets took one slap on each of their cheeks, from 30 junior cadets. In all each of them went through 60 hard slaps because, the younger course were taking revenge for the ragging we gave them over the last few nights.

The instructor called them back in the afternoon for a swimming test. When they went there, they saw the junior course lined up again. Amazingly, both of them passed the Swimming Test in under 15 minutes the same day.

The slaps were really very painful. But it was their dignity that hurt them more.

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The Swimming Test A True Story