An Ordinary Man, a Small Change: How Palackel Joseph George impacted his community in his own way

He didn't spend thousands of rupees on social change, yet still made a difference, however

small.

Palackel Joseph George was born in 1948 in Kerala. He is, in his words, “an ordinary man” who retired in 2003. Currently, an injury has his movement limited, and he is not as active as he was before. He lives in Koonammavu, Ernakulam with his wife, Lisamma George. He has two children who are married.

Palackel Joseph studied Mechanical Engineering. “I am not an engineer, I am simply a workman in the factory,” he says. He began his career in Mumbai. “I spent 8 years in Mumbai, in different workshops, not big companies. I went there to study and gain experience.” He worked there in four different factories.

“It was luck that brought me here,” he continues. ‘Here’ is Kalamassery, Kerala where he worked at Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT), and where he continued working until retirement in 2003. “When I retired from the company, three years of service was remaining. I voluntarily retired.” He explains to me the shifts in the company. “There are 3 shifts,” he begins. Each one is eight hours long, beginning at 8 in the morning back to the same time.

“I took some public matters roles, not political ones,” he says, talking about organisations he has joined. When he settled in Koonammavu twenty years ago, he started a Resident's

Association (Olanad North-West Residents’ Association or ONWR) with other people, one whose symbol is forever immortalised in the board leading to Star Lane, one of the many

lanes that lead off the road. He joined several other organisations as well, though not large ones.

“We have not done any big things,” he says, when I ask him about what he has achieved through these organisations. He tells me that when he first came here, there were several cases of thieves breaking into houses and stealing jewellery and gold. The method they employed was entering houses when only children were home and then manipulating them into giving away valuables. “When small children were playing outside, they'd steal their bangles,” he adds.

“These thieves were a great disturbance,” Palackel George is still placid as he narrates this tale. “When others weren't there at home, because we formed the ONWR, people would go to those places and address it. Now, those people aren't alive, or even if they are, we have to proactively do something to prevent things,” he says. However, theft cases like these have significantly gone down in recent years.

All these cases are after retirement. He managed to change the lives of a few. Obviously, these changes are hardly noticeable in the grand scheme of things, but it matters so much to those people involved. A series of small changes like these alter the lives of many.

Palackel Joseph may not have achieved great fame, but has still had an impact, however small, on the world around him. It's not necessary to pursue a path of fame and wealth, more so if you are helping only yourself. Try to take him as an example, and make some change in your world.

Written by Ridhi Anish

Ridhi wrote this article as a participant of the Media-Makers Fellowship's May'25 cohort.