About Myself

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My name is Digambar Raut.

I was born in the year, 1942, in a small village,called ,Bordi, in Maharashtra, India. Life in the village, Bordi, was simple. The vast paddy fields, chikoo orchards, palm trees on the east and roaring Arabian sea, on the west side, bore witness to our curiosity, as kids!

Lucky to be a student of Acharya Bhise and Chitre guruji, in the S.P.H. High School, Bordi.

We were not only gifted with the good formal education here, but these towering personalities infused some basic moral values in the students,by their exemplary behaviour!

Two years of higher education, up to intermediate, at the Chhatrapati Shivaji college, Satara, was an another land mark in my life. Founded by late, karmaveer Bhaurao Patil, the motto of the college was, earn and learn. As a student, you have to earn your own bread by manual labour and  attend the classes.

I came out from there as a man with better understanding of empathy and connectivity with the people around you. The two years tenure, also taught me that, “hard work and thrift are the only two things, person can afford!”

Having obtained my bachelor’s degree in science (B.Sc), from the Ismail Yusuf college, university of Mumbai, in the first class, I was eligible to get entrance for B.Sc (Tech), post-grad course, in the UDCT, which is now called, ICT.

ICT (formerly UDCT), is one of the top ranking, research based institution, in India and overseas.

Having completed my post grad ,with a specialization in technology of oils and fats, i proceeded for Masters in Technology, M.Sc (Tech), by a research project on  studies on surfactants, under the able guidance of Dr. J G Kane, a pioneer in the field of vegetable oils and fats, in india. It was a great opportunity to be a research fellow under Dr Kane, those days, in UDCT!

Those six years of fruitful work, provided me, the excellent foundation necessary for any technocrat, to excel in his future career, in any field he enters in to.

While preparing my thesis work for M.Sc. (Tech), I was selected by Godrej Chemicals company, Mumbai, for the post of “QC Labs in-charge”, at Vikhroli complex, Mumbai.

My 3 months internship, at Tata Oil Mills, during, B.Sc (Tech), helped me to get this coveted job,before i had my degree in hand.

Disillusioned by the routine type work and the internal corporate policies, I decided not to work in the industry any more. Being a son of an ideal teacher, thinking about joining the teaching profession.

An opportunity came for a lecturer’s job in VJTI, another prestigious and renowned engineering college in Mumbai. After 2 years of sincere work there, I realised, that the educational institutions are also no less polluted by internal politics than corporates!

At least industries pay you handsomely! and an opportunity knocked at the doors!

Esso Standard Eastern Inc., an American company, with no.1 standing in the fortune’s list, was searching for a few brilliant youngsters, for their India operations. Amongst the thousands of interested candidates, I was lucky enough to get one of the five finalist for the final interview with the then general manager, Mr A G Neff, an American.

My selection for the job in Esso, opened up a golden window to look through, at the challenging opportunities, globally available, with a handsome remunerations too!

With this social and financial stability, I could purchase my own house in Mumbai and updated the marital status from unmarried to married. Looking at the nature of my duties, my wife preferred to be a housewife, though she also could have worked.

Esso, after my 5 years of service, became Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd., the no 2,company of India. I totally worked for 32 years, in Esso/HPCL together, with a hands on experience, in the vital departments like, QC, R&D, logistics, manufacturing of lubes and greases, technical services, training etc. and finally retired in the year 2002,as Dy. General Manager, International Operations.

As a part of this work, I had to travel extensively, within and outside India, to expand the company’s marketing network, after assessing the business potential in those territories.

After the retirement from the regular service, I have continued my job as a consultant to a few companies in India, including HPCL, helping them to optimise the formulation costs, trouble-shooting in operations, application issues at the customer end and training the shop-floor and technical staff.

Always keeping in mind my social commitments, from my student days, till date, i have been associated with many social organizations and financial institutions, in the capacity of founder, chairman or trustee.

It has always been a source of a great pleasure for me, to be of a little help, to those especially the students folk, who are struggling to find their way, to get the higher education.