It must have been the middle of March last year, or maybe February. I don’t remember. But what I remember clearly is that I had shot an email to our moderator, to relieve me of my admin privileges, and relieve of my membership. I had been unhappy with the way site was being managed, and the way things were going. Race blogs, trolls running amok, fighting among members, even admins. I still am. But then, I’m no one to complain. Adapt, or die, says Darwin. Furthermore, increasing academic pressures prevented my active and regular participation. Therefore, I decided to take an out. I ceased contact with the entire rail fanning community, because I wanted to leave it all behind.
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couldn’t keep my distance for long though. I couldn’t let go of PNRs, my first love here. I would still come back, to find anything rail related, for an abundant reserve of rail knowledge is IRI. I joined again, with a different identity, around June. I kept a low profile, since conspiracy theories about old members returning with fake profile spread like wild fire here. I would log in once in a fortnight, or a month. Predict a few PNRs, have a look at the forum. That was it.
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Then why am I writing this? What’s the reason of this emotional epiphany? Many of you would think who am I. I see many new faces. I see many new admins.
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I believe a little thank you is in order. To the moderator, to the admins, and the members here. And the entire rail fanning community, inside and outside IRI for catalyzing, nurturing and developing my interest in railways, and especially locomotives. Owing to my expanded and an in-depth knowledge of the finer technicalities of railways, I landed a job at a big engineering multinational a week ago. I don’t think it would have been possible if it weren’t for my experiences here. I cannot assure anyone of my regular participation once again, for I have bigger responsibilities, and challenges coming up. But nevertheless, I wanted you all to be a part of this small achievement of mine. I owe this to IRI.
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And the guy who deserves a special mention here is Zahaib, my partner in crime, who introduced me to this place. Grand party coming up dude…..