The Cold within...

By Atiya Abbas

A shudder runs down my spine every time I enter that place. It may be the hottest day outside, but inside the soulless place, even though it is run by men, it is cold. Cold, because of the banality and mediocrity of the tasks that goes on there. And yet, it is the large factory that keeps the machinations of Karachi University running.


If there is something cold about sleek offices, with white lights and computers then there is also something chilling about bulky desks, piled up with paper so high, the person sitting at it is obscured. I look at these men and think; they are gears in a machine, cogs in a giant wheel that keep our identity cards in place and make sure we give our exams.

In the summer the stale air freezes the odour of the sweat inside the halls, the sweat of many men doing their part in the big picture. The higher up the levels you go, the tighter and more cramped the spaces get and one wonders, these have been constructed for human occupation? The contrast is so great, that while some have large offices to themselves, others are cramped in claustrophobic conditions given as much room as a filing cabinet.

Not much has changed in the way things are done in the Admin Block. Those papers have to be stamped; the next order from the higher power has to be carried out. And so, matters continue in the block, these faceless men fulfilling their empty duties.