Smooth operator

Dial 197 and ask for the number of a well-known restaurant. Before you can even hold your pen right, the lady blurts it out. You're stump...

Dial 197 and ask for the number of a well-known restaurant. Before you can even hold your pen right, the lady blurts it out. You’re stumped. How many such numbers does she know by heart? Well, if you’re an operator with the directory inquiry, then “about 200” is the norm.

Sushma Chaphekar, who has been working in the enquiry (197) department of the Pune Telecom for the past six years, handles approximately 90 calls an hour. Says the lady, “Most of the time, people need to have numbers of hospitals, hotels and theatres. So one often knows these numbers by heart.”

Every morning, at 10 a.m., Chaphekar dons the headgear to get set for the job. The computer has made the job infinitely easier. “We have a menu with 13 choices – which includes getting the address or names of people, companies from the telephone number, getting the changed numbers and so on.”

Sometime back, Chaphekar had a request from a gentleman for the address of his friend, a retired major from the army. “The man only knew the name, which, thankfully, was correct. He had come from out of town and wanted to meet this old friend.

“I knew that many retired armed forces’ personnel live in Salunkhe Vihar, so I looked for the name in that area, and luckily, found it. That man was so thrilled, he couldn’t stop thanking me”.

For seven hours and 20 minutes, Chaphekar is on the job. But sometimes, this seemingly simple job becomes difficult. “Many a time, people give a name and expect that we provide the number. There are times when even the initials are not available! Of course, even when the initials are given, it is difficult. Take, for example, S.S. Joshi. Without the address or the area in which he lives, I would have at least 10 S.S. Joshis. And then people get upset with us for not giving the correct number”.

Another problem area is when people ask for the numbers of well-known shops. Says Chaphekar, “A caller may want to know the number of Das Electricals or Shagun. But many a time, the telephone number is listed in the owner’s name, not the shop’s. So we have to ask the caller if he/she has the old number or the address”.

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Whenever the Pune Telecom changes the telephone numbers of a particular exchange, it is individuals like Chaphekar who bear the brunt of it. “That is the time our phones just don’t stop ringing. Like the 44 exchange. It changed from 44 to 51 and then to 421. If someone gives us the old 44 number, we can give the new one, but if a number has changed more than twice, it is not possible to get the new number from the original one”.

One may hate to hear the monotonous “you are in queue, please wait” recording when one dials 197, but as Chaphekar puts it, “People are too lazy to check the directory.” And that’s when Chaphekar and co. provide invaluable service.