An Afternoon with General Koshi

My husband and I visit Ernakulam Siva temple everyday and thus we meet a set of people on a daily basis. 

One such person we see everyday, is a man who walks with the aid of his walking stick dressed in slacks and collared t-shirt. A well dressed tall handsome old man with a slow gait. We would find him praying outside the temple walls and he left no doubt in my husband's mind or mine about his devotion. We thought he was probably more pious than most of the people who go in to see the idol. If he saw us driving by in our car, he would wave to us.

Later, he became known to us as the 'army man'. Then he became Kurian Uncle for some strange reason and it was only much later we got to know him by his real name Koshi. 

He is General Koshi of the Indian Army. AVSM.

Once I knew he was a Christian, I wondered about his every morning temple walk.

His walking route is from his home near Mullassery Canal Road to the temple and back. 

And on many occasions I have seen him pray at quite strange places like in front of SFS Thottekkat apartments, the junction in front of Ruchi Bhavan and in front of a CA office.

Around a year ago while going through the morning papers, I saw his photo with an interview. Through this I came to know that he was the designer of the Cochin International Airport (CIAL) Golf club.

On September 11, 2018; I saw General Koshi at the temple and I told him I wanted to visit him at his home and know more about his life. He asked me why? I told him that I just knew he was from the army and he had designed the Golf course and I was pretty sure there were more interesting stories which I would love to hear. He then surprised me by asking me to accompany him on his weekly Thursday trip to the Golf course. 

But that Thursday was Vinayaka Chaturthy and when I expressed my inability, he postponed the trip to Saturday. 

On Saturday (September 15, 2018) morning I got a reminder call asking me to be ready for pick up at 2 pm. Even though I am punctual, this time I was ready by 1.30 pm!

The car came with him sitting in the front with the driver. He instructed me to sit behind the driver as he was smoking his cigarette. 

There was silence in the car. That is when I realised that like my husband, he is a man of few words. If I do not ask a question, the whole drive would be spend in silence. 

So, my first question was how he got to designing the Cochin golf course?

He answered that he was the President of the Mini Golf course in Bolgatty Palace and once while he was playing Golf there, the Press Trust of India (PTI) family meet was happening at the adjoining Palace hall. The Indian Express did a report on him and the Managing Director of Cochin International Airport, Mr.V J Kurian read this and called him up. 

The IAS officer wanted to construct a golf course on the land adjacent to the airport where the DVOR was placed. DVOR is a radar or a ground based radio navigational aid that provides information to air crafts to approach/depart from the airport.

There are strict rules enforced on the Land near the Airport, especially where the Radar is put up. No high rise buildings are permitted. And Mr.Kurian thought the perfect solution was a golf course. It would put the land to good use while complying with the DGCA rules.

Mr. Kurian sought General Koshi's help for converting the 138 acre land into the pride of Kochi. General agreed on the condition that he would accept no pay. He designed the course without taking a single penny. 

He was assisted by KITCO in designing the course as he "really couldn't draw the whole thing by hand"! And they too promised him a small fee, which was again turned down by him.

The only thing he expected was a car and driver to be given for his transport.

While the work on the Cochin golf course was in progress, the Minister of Oil and Gas, Sultanate of Oman, Mr. Mohamed bin Hamad Al Rumhy, approached General Koshi to redesign the forty-year-old 133 acre Ghala Golf Course in Muscat. This was redone and it was the first ever golf course in the Middle East to be set-up by an Asian consultancy (KITCO).

By this time our car had reached Edapally and we were stuck in a traffic jam. Everyone seemed to be heading to Lulu Mall. 

I asked how he got introduced to the Golf..

In 1958, he joined the Indian Military Academy in Dehradun. And in those years it was 1 year of rigorous training to become an army man. One Sunday, while cadet Koshi was sitting outside the barrack, his Corporal came back after golfing and asked him to clean the Golf clubs. Young Koshi knew he had to do a good job and spend a lot of time cleaning and polishing the clubs. His work was thoroughly inspected and approved and Corporal Chawla said,"Jacob, you are good at cleaning clubs. Next Sunday you will join me and I will teach you golf."

It seems, the Corporal was more interesting in drumming into young Koshi's head that it was a Gentleman's game which had strong ethics than really teaching him the nuances!

After Mr. Koshi passed out and joined the army as an officer he was first placed in Hyderabad. And next he wound up in Durbuk camp - a camp reached after passing Changla Pass. The sun rises at 12 noon and sets at 3 in the afternoon here; but the Brigade Commander wanted to set up a small golf course. So they used sand and engine oil to make a green!

So, this was how he started developing or re-establishing golf courses at all points he was stationed.

When he was transferred to Nagpur, the Golf course there was completely revamped and to inaugurate it, his 'big boss' came in from Delhi. 

General Koshi had named the last hole - Shyam, after his wife Shyamala; but when the boss asked him why it was named Shyam, he came up with an answer suitable for a boss,"It would be evening or Shyam by the time you reach this last hole."

When I asked if all holes have names, he said that it was a common practise, but not a necessity.

So I asked if he had named any hole in CIAL golf course, our destination.

He answered in the negative. But added that there is a creek on the course at the 18th hole which the authorities wanted to name after General Koshi. Like Rae's creek in Augusta National Golf Club, named after former property owner John Rae. But the General would not hear of it and the water body got named "General's creek".

He added with pride that Cochin Golf course is the best PPP Golf course in the country and it has been approved by both US and UK PGA.

General Koshi turns 81 on January 2nd. And while we were in the car, I noticed him praying each time we passed by a church, temple or anything remotely religious. I asked him why he does this. And he said, he hates religion, but believes in God. 

So next I asked him about him stopping to pray in in front of Ruchi Bhavan hotel and SFS Thottekkat.

His said he did his schooling in SRV and he used to walk there with his Hindu mates. And they used to pray at the many small temples on the way and he too picked up that habit of stopping and offering a moment of silent contemplation from them. And he continues to pray where his old friends used to.... even if a building stands in place of the old structure. 

Next I enquired about his family.

They were 5 siblings - 2 girls and 3 boys. He is the youngest and none other than him are alive. His eldest sister's husband was a high court judge - Justice M U Issac. The second was a brother who was a brilliant not only in sports (Hockey and Cricket) but also in studies (engineering from BHU). He died of cancer. Next was his brother in the Navy who passed away last year. The sister just above him died young, even before she got married.

General Koshi, the last child of Justice Koshi, served in the army till 1994. He got married in 1965 to his wife Shyamala, who is from Bangalore and they have one daughter - Sneha, who is an interior designer based in Bangalore. Her husband, Ajith, is 'a computer fellow' who is into 'sales promotion' and is passionate about driving cars. His only grandchild is Tia - "a very pretty girl, not because she is my grand daughter"- is pursuing Law at National Law School, Hyderabad.

His mother, Mrs. Atchamma Koshi, belonged to Cochin and the house General Koshi lived in (now it is becoming an apartment - Skyline Signature) was her ancestral home. She was the President of YWCA for many years.

His father - Justice K T Koshi was from Kottayam. He was the first Chief Justice of Travancore, first Chief Justice of the joint state of Cochin and Travancore and the first Chief Justice of Kerala.

There is a road named after him.

I had to know how he joined the Army.

He exclaimed,"It was accidental!"

His second brother studied to become a Doctor from Madras Medical College and had just returned home after studies. During those days, the protocol for visiting dignitaries was to call upon the house of the Governor and then the Chief Justice. The residence of the Chief Justice was the present day Revenue Towers in Marine drive. When Admiral Percy from the Navy called on Chief Justice Koshi's house, the children were also introduced. On knowing that the second son was a doctor, the Admiral invite him to join the Navy and immediately tied a knot on his handkerchief saying, "Lest I forget".Thus the second brother joined the Navy. The Naval doctor used to tease his younger brother saying he was not smart enough for the Navy. So, the youngest - our hero, retorted,"OK then, I will join the Army."

Conversation veered back to the Golf course and we got talking about the membership. Initially, it was ₹2 lakhs, now it is up to ₹5 lakhs. The annual subscription is the lowest at ₹10,000. The number of members is now 1600. And he added that the aim of the golf course was not to make money but popularise Golf. He seemed particularly happy that there was no union activity and strikes affecting his golf course as it was under CIAL. Members are just allowed usage of the facility. 

By now we had turned into the road leading to the airport - very different from the potholed highway we had taken. He explained that if there is no corruption, the contractors do a good job. It is only when payment to the contractor is withheld expecting a cut, everything goes haywire. At the Golf course, payment was done as soon as the work was executed.

We entered the Golf course and we were granted entry. Uncle had a pass, not that he couldn't be recognised; but he is an army man and he follows rules.

We were greeted by the staff and walking through the main building past the Eagle holding the Golf ball, through a huge waiting area filled with photos and trophies to the seating area looking over the rolling greens. It was surreal.

The floods in Kerala had just receded and the damage to the property was huge - nearly 30+ crores. Almost fully covered by insurance. Other than the chairs pushed to one side and the restaurant not working and probably some  equipment drying every thing looked beautiful.

If you looked carefully you could see the mark left by receding water...

We were offered water and plastic chairs to sit on, as all the cushions were destroyed. 

Koshi Uncle got Mr. Sabu Thomas, the administrative officer to show me the view from the terrace, the restaurant, the card room, the huge board room and the offices. All the places were air-conditioned and the windows could not be opened. So the air was stuffy and musty as the water could not evaporate properly.

Mr. Sabu had been working in a Dubai based company where he had additional charge of their golf course. He was very friendly and said that this Golf course is Koshi Uncle's baby.

It seems the Golf course was functional on the day the dams were opened and Mr. Sabu had asked his people to move all the electronic equipment to a higher level. But he was informed that there were too many snakes swimming around. So, he advised his staff to just shut shop and go home as personal safety was of primary importance. 

There is 'Sarpa-kavu' on the golf course which has been left untouched. No one has ever entered this area even during the construction of the course. Uncle exclaimed,"Why should we? It is their area."

Mr. Sabu showed me the Lawn bowling area and the Croquet area. 

There is a 5 acre man made water body and 5 other lakes inside the course. These were made to raise the height of the land by 1.3 metres. While utmost care has been taken to not cut trees while the course was made, at least 200-300 trees are planted every year here. Near extinct trees are given special preference. 

My husband does not consider golf a sport which can be called an exercise as he is a runner. "But to complete 9 holes, one needs to walk 6 kms", exclaimed Mr. Sabu.

After a bathroom break, Koshi Uncle revved up the Golf cart and we were off to see the course. This vehicle is a electric two-seater. It had just brakes and accelerator. And it makes absolutely no sound. And Uncle loves to speed!

I particularly loved the card holder and pencil on the steering wheel. 

And stuck to the cart was an instruction manual on how to not take the cart on to the golf course and to follow the 90 degree rule. 

And the tour began.

He first explained to me the significance of the symbol of the Eagle delivering the golf ball. Eagle is symbolic of air-force. The ball being delivered by the bird is CIAL golf course.

Then he showed me an anchor placed near the practice green. It belonged to INS Vikrant, the first aircraft carrier of the Indian Navy.

We went to see the Gym and the driving range, where one can practise ones shots.

The wooden floor of the gym had completely swollen up and looked quite pregnant.:D

Mr. Madesh from Dindigul, Tamil Nadu, is the coach here and he asked me to try my hand at golfing. I really did not think I could touch the small golf club head to the even smaller ball. But I could. I managed to hit 7 times out of 10.

In Golf, distance is measured in Yards.

While my shots steered more to the left and covered hardly 50 yards, the coach hit a straight 300 yard shot.

If the ball is hit to the left, it is called slice.

If it goes right, it is called hook.

And this is the only golf course where you can practise a 300 yard shot.

Uncle joined us and he gave me tips like not taking my eyes of the ball, relaxing and NOT talking! 

Then he explained to me the different kinds of golf clubs. There are 2 varieties - Iron and wood. The higher the number of the club, the more the spin and loft, but lesser the distance travelled.

And there is the 'Putter" which must be used on the green, near the hole to prevent the grass from getting damaged.

When entering the course for a tournament, one can carry only 14 clubs including the 'putter'.

It seems now there are lesser wooden clubs available than before. These clubs used to be made from the knots naturally formed on tree branches. Since trees are now scarce; they are now being replaced by stainless steel clubs.

After I took a selfie with my first golf instructor; Uncle and I left to tour the course.

This covered area where we practised had 7 tee areas on either side where people could practise without the help of the coach. Uncle said they plan on covering this area too later.

There is an area called the 'Green' which is where the 'putting hole' is. Behind the practise tee area and near the Club house is this fragile area where one could practise putting. This is the "Practise Green".

While going to the Practise Green, there are some trees planted, which were given by Sri Sri Ravi Shankarji.

Planted near the club house is this tree. It was brought by Uncle from Vietnam. When it grows, the branches will be parallel to the ground. He has been bringing in plants like these for the golf course.

Now we were to enter the Golf Course.

The starting point from where one tees off to the end putting hole is called a 'hole'.

And this is the CIAL Golf card.

On the very top is marked a pictorial of each hole.

'Par' means the number of shots required to put the ball into the hole if you play it perfectly.

The place from where you must 'tee off' / start is different based on your capability. If you are a champion, you must tee off from the mount marked with black.
If I were to play, I would start from the mount marked with 'yellow'.

While Mr. Madesh started off from the black tee....

Mr. Srinivas was teeing off from Blue.

This is a White tee area.

Each hole would have - a tee off area, rough, well cut area, may be bunkers and water bodies and a green.

The black and white 'milestone' marks 100 yards to hole, and blue marks 50 yards to hole.

You can see the manicured green in the distance on the right of the photo.

At the beginning of the second hole is an Ayurvedic garden presented by Kottakkal Arya Vaidyashala.

All the water bodies on the course are interconnected. 4 Lakh Litres of water from the airport is treated to drinkable quality and pumped into the artificial 5 acre lake. Rain water is also connected by the many canals and flows into these lakes. Excess water goes into Periyar river through the small opening, which Uncle has fondly named 'KITCO Dam'!

While teeing off, a pin is used. Everyone starts a game with one of this and 2-3 balls. You must try to finish the whole golf course with 1 ball. 

If a ball is lost, there is penalty of 1 stroke.

The balls are never to be touched from the place they land. They can be removed to be cleaned only after the position is correctly marked. 

For that they use this....

This comes paired with a small fork, which can be used to repair the divots, made when the iron chops the grass and removes chunks of the turf. A gentleman golfer, must retrieve the divot and place it back in it's position.

In between the golf course are work stations; which have toilets, showers and a kitchen for the workers to relax.

The golf clubs can be carried around the course either by assistants called Caddies, or on small carts with wheels or on ones back. Caddies are available with prior notice for additional pay.

There is a strict dress code to be followed by golfers - both men and women. Only full pants or shorts above the knee can be worn. The t-shirt must have a collar. Cap is recommended. Golf shoes with spikes must be worn.

Just beyond green 2 is the railway tracks. And beyond that is the boundary wall of the airport.

Uncle knew that Cochin Metro would extend to the airport and he did not want his golf course to be affected in anyway. So he has left ample space for the future project.

Remember, the designing of the golf course happened 10+ years ago. What foresight!

As mentioned earlier, each hole may have a bunker. This is a sandy area. Each bunker has it's own rake to clean and remove foot prints .. and depending on the size of the bunker, the number of rakes change.

"If the ball lands in a bunker, it is not easy to move it from here", said Uncle.

At hole 3, Uncle showed me the 'Sri Lankan Green'; narrow at the top and wide at the bottom.

Green 4 escaped the Instrumental Landing system lights (ILS) narrowly! These are used for aircraft landings.

We reached the Halfway hut situated on the banks of the 5-acre man made lake. This hut is usually manned and has a kitchen and rest room. It is a place to relax before the players go to the next set of the game.There are so many more ILS (Instrumental Landing system) placed across the lake.

This green did not escape the ILS and had to be redesigned.

The last hole on this first part of the course is a 5 par hole. At 620 yards it is the longest hole in India.

And at the very end you can see 2 coconut trees. They were the original inhabitants of the land. They have not been removed. They were retained. 2 artificial mounts were added to provide some difficulty over the very straight hole.

These retained trees seem to be on their last leg, so 2 successors have been planted along side!

Look at that 620 yards!

Flights were flying over head and what noise they made!

We finished half the course or 9 holes and reached back the club house. After a quick bathroom break, we were off again to see holes 10-18.

Holes 10-18 were the initial 9 holes as these were designed first. The soil at the present holes 1-9 is acidic.

At the beginning of the 'now-second' set of holes is a air-pressure pump, which is used to remove the dirt from the players shoes.

Uncle explained to me that if a hole is par 4 - meaning, the ball can land in the hole if you make 4 perfect shots...and you land the ball in the hole in the said 4 shots...it is called 'par'.

If the ball lands in 3 shots - it is called Birdie.

If the ball lands in 2 shots - it is called Eagle.

But if it lands in 5 shots - it is called Boogie.

While designing the Golf course, there are different philosophies followed by the designers. Uncle's philosophy was "risk and reward". This way the players never get tired of playing the same course again and again.

Somewhere around Hole 12 is a tree brought in Canada by Uncle; a red tree.

DGCA has a gate for entry into the course; manned by a security guard here.

The sides of this hole are planted by coffee and cocoa plants.

Spices of Kerala.

Mosanda.

And Screw Pine....Called Kaitharam in Malayalam.
Kaitharathil is the house name of General Koshi.

Hole 14 is Par 3 and is a natural hole. And it looked good enough to play cricket. Since this was not a cricket ground, I asked if Cricketers make good Golf players. A very stupid question, but it is also a bat and ball game. Uncle patiently explained that the strokes in both games are very different and a different skill set is required to play both games.

Even when a putter is used to push the ball into the hall, the hole gets damaged with frequent use. So, each green has 14-15 pin positions to prevent the grass from getting stressed. Green supervisor, Mr. Premkumar sets new pin positions. Green revival around a pin hole usually takes upto 2 weeks.

Hole 15 and Hole 2 are linked.

You can see Hole 2 from here. And Uncle described this hole as 'matter of illusion' as there is a 'double dip' and very difficult.

Hole 16 has a special tree growing on - Kaattu Chembakam / Magnolia.

There were so many varieties of birds I saw all through the golf course. But sadly, I could not photograph any.

Hole 17 is Par 3 and water is on both sides of the hole! Different varieties of Hibiscus / Chembaruthy are grown here.

While the irrigation used to be manual before, now it is all computer controlled.

And since there is a radar nearby....

The whole golf course looked serene and beautiful. I openly wondered why it was not open to public as a picnic spot. The general said a curt,"No". It is true. The whole area with it's manicured greens, beautiful flowers and pleasant setting would become dirty in the hands of the general public. The charm and serenity would be completely lost.

Hole 18 was near General's creek.  And with this we were back to where we started....

Then Uncle showed me where the Gardening equipment and Computers were kept.

Inside the club I met Ms.Beena. Her home used to be on the land where the Golf course now stands. And now she lives in walking distance from the course. 

She told me about the General's Sword.

Every Cadet when he becomes a Officer is given a sword. General Koshi has given this sword to the Club. 

Every month, the golf course organises a club tournament on the second Saturday. There are 12 such tournaments every year. And the best performer in the 12 months is given the sword as an award. It is a rolling trophy.

Uncle was seated facing his golf course smoking his cigarette. I told him he seemed to be a chain smoker. He simply shrugged and said,"I love my cigarette...".

As part of the Corporate Social Responsibility, the Golf course offers free lessons to school children and to anyone below 20. This also fulfils Uncle's dream of promotion of the game.

It was time to head back.

Uncle Koshi had deferred talking about 'Handicap' to me for so long. He explained it is a numerical measure of a golfer's potential ability. It is measured over a whole golf course and the total number of strokes needed to finish the course. It is compared to others and calculated. There is a national Handicapping System which helps calculate a person's handicap and each golfer can thus compete with others on a fair and equitable basis.

Uncle's handicap is 16. 

Koshi Uncle stopped playing golf 4-5 years ago when his speed of walking reduced."I did not want to hold up my fellow players."

His favourite players are Tiger Woods and Anirban Lahiri.

The place where Uncle had always wanted to play Golf was at the place where Golf started - The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews, the oldest and most prestigious golf club in the world. But to play there, one must write in with the handicap certificate and desired date of play. Then a lot is taken of the chosen candidates. Thankfully, a tea planter from Scotland, with tea estate in India, was Uncle's friend and happened to be a club member. Thus, Uncle got to play at the Home of Golf.

The rest of the journey was spent talking about old Ernakulam and reminiscing the past. 

Uncle was awarded AVSM - for services rendered during peace time operation for contribution in cost and effective measures in armed forces.

He talked about how the present Kaloor bus stand was the outskirts of town where all the 'night soil' used to be dumped. 

During his younger days the family used to go for fishing near the present North Railway station. 

He used to study in St.Teresa's school somewhere near Banerji road and when the road got tarred after 'the war', he took a handful of the black material (tar) and went home to show his mom only to get a thorough scolding! 

He remembered the times when there were not many phones in Ernakulam and his home phone number then was 11. And one of the 2 cars in town, was his family car.

He dropped me off at home and thus ended my beautiful afternoon with General Koshi. What a trip I had!

I got my first taste of Golf and I would definitely love to return to the course designed by General Koshi. I think I am blessed to have gotten his acquaintance and it was truly an honour and privilege to be taken around the golf course by the designer himself.

It was an experience I will never forget.