Time was when government functionaries used to call it a day at the age of 55. It was Ayub Khan ‘s time when one of his blue eyed CSP officer Fida Hasan reached retirement age. Ayub wanted to retain him in service for some more time so retirement age was upped to 58. History repeated itself during Zia’ s era when he too in order to utilise the services of a senior officer who was very close to him and who had reached superannuation age increased it to 60 . It is another matter that many civil servants who were ripe for retirement also benefitted from these steps. Needless to say many medics are of the view that five senses of human beings start decaying when they are on the wrong side of 50.
Postscript: Since 1948 every year Iqbal Day is commemorated with great pomp and show on November 9. A great lip service is paid to the poet of the East. It would have been better had instead of it, the powers that be imbibed the message which Iqbal conveyed through his poetry and acted upon it in letter and spirit. There is a need to convey in simple language the sayings of that great poet so that they sink in the minds of the younger generation of the country for their guidance how to spend their life in this world of few days.
