History is Not a Bucket of Ashes
- Pallavi Priya
- Published on 11 Jan 2021, 5:09 pm IST
- 4 minutes read
Highlights
A heroic police officer, a history enthusiast, photography lover and an engineer, Mr. Vikas Vaibhav is not an unknown name specially in Bihar. In fact, he has earned a celebrity like status among people of the state. His fearless attitude and actions speak so much about him.
- Mr. Vaibhav is an IPS officer of 2003 batch
The 2003 batch IPS officer of Bihar cadre, Mr Vaibhav has served as the chief police officer of many districts including Patna, has made many high-profile arrests and solved many complex cases. Currently posted as the Special Secretary (Home Department), Mr. Vaibhav was also posted in National Investigation Agency for some time. His policing career is full of milestones. He was also the DIG of Anti-Terrorist Squad, Bihar Unit and has many such feathers in his cap.
But while on one side, Mr Vaibhav carries the image of a ‘dabangg’ (fearless) police officer, on other side he is person of many creative interests. Passionate about photography, he likes to explore the rich history and heritage of India with an equal fervor.
When Indian Masterminds reached him, Mr. Vaibhav excitedly talked about how he developed interest in the old architecture & history of our country. He also talked about his famous blog ‘Silent Pages’ and many other interests. Related Stories
History Transformed Me
Mr. Vaibhav is in policing from the last two decades. It’s not an easy job and comes with lot of stress. He loves his job but also agrees that there is a tendency to get frustrated or distressed due to regular exposure to negativity. It is for this reason, he feels, that his personal interest in heritage brings in positivity and inspiration. However busy or stressed he may be, he always manage to take out time for his passions.
During the school days, Mr Vaibhav had developed keen interest in history. After completing the school, he was selected in IIT Kanpur for Mechanical Engineering and then he cracked UPSC at a young age of 23. 
Describing his motivations and interests, Mr. Vaibhav said, “As my Journey continued, I soon started making efforts to visit as many historical sites as I could. I also made efforts to collect whatever information was available about them. In the process, my interest deepened further and I started deriving inspiration from Heritage to contribute in the present towards building a better future. I also felt there was a disconnect between our heritage and the present generation. That is when I decided to enter public service, in order to contribute towards society at large, rather than serving the interests of some corporate firm”.
“I felt that if History could transform me, being a student from IIT Kanpur to wear the uniform instead of dreaming of becoming a billionaire and settling abroad, it surely did have the potential to inspire others as well”, he added.
The ‘Silent Pages’
With the entry in policing and posting in district like Bagaha and Rohtas, his interests grew up. During these postings, he witnessed the positive impact of connecting with Heritage in creating social change. Therefor he decided to document all the observations on Heritage for posterity. He started writing blogs in 2013, about forgotten aspects of famous sites and gave the name “Silent Pages”. Mr. Vaibhav believes that today’s youth should make efforts to read as much as possible from the works left behind by our ancestors.
“The exposure to the knowledge left behind by them is sure to ignite a process which would result in a marvelous future. One should also make efforts to visit historical sites and try to understand the causes behind important events in history, and how they shape our present. The most important lesson from history is not to repeat the same mistakes that were committed earlier”, he said
Foray Into Photography
Mr Vaibhav further states: “After I joined the police service, I started undertaking regular tours in remote areas, hitherto unknown to the outside world. At the most unexpected of places, I started having interesting encounters with Heritage which inspired me to act as a brand ambassador for them to make the present generation aware about their past importance. As almost nothing was available on many such sites online, photography for sharing information about them with others started first as a requirement. I soon started loving photography and my journey with the camera, heritage sites and historical records and books in general continues’’.
Indeed, it’s a fabulous journey that Mr Vaibhav has undertaken. And like the poet said, there are miles to go.
END OF THE ARTICLE
