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INTERVIEW
Map Makers by Generations The journey of Roter company intertwined with different wars of the 20th century. It conceived and flourished during different wars, with each generation adding and resorting to new technologies to their businesses, helping the country update its surveying technology. Mukhtar Ahmad Ansari, 85, a second-generation entrepreneur, discussed its indispensable role in modernizing India's survey and mapping sector with Geospatial Artha. By Jitendra Choubey Voyage and wars Our journey started at the fag-end of World War-I, and business boomed during World War II. My father, Bashir Ahmad Ansari, mastered the art of nickel-chrome plating technique at an early age. The British brought a batch of Italian prisoners of World War-I and jailed them near Roorkee. They use to come out of the camps on weekends and get their cigar, lighters, chains & watches chrome plated. This polished his plating skills, and made some good money by providing services to the POWs. Shortly after, my father was invited to work at an irrigation workshop known as "Iron Foundry and Canal work-
shop-I", Roorkee. At the workshop, old equipment used for maintenance of the Ganga Canal – one of the costliest man-made structures – were repaired. He learnt how to repair and service Drawing, Surveying and Mathematical instruments. That piqued his interest in Mapping & Drawing equipment such Divider, Pencil compass and Drawing pen. After sometimes he left the foundry unit and opened his workshop at home. Later, he started supplying equipment to various stationery shops of different parts of the country. In 1936, we registered a partnership company named as B.A. A. & Sons.
Credit: Roter
Mukhtar Ahmad Ansari tries his hand at his first manufacturing unit. GEOSPATIAL ARTHA Volume 01 » ISSUE 01
Embargo on imports & exports During World War II, there was a ban on exports and imports, and it became tedious for the Survey of India to continue its mapping work. In search of precise equipment, a few British engineers landed at our home workshop, located on the outskirts of Roorkee town. They examined all the equipment and were impressed with its level of precision. Thereafter, we entered into a formal deal with the Survey of India. Post Partition, we explored new business avenues in Mumbai and Delhi. First factory and heights it scaled In 1957, we set up our first factory to meet the rising demand. As a second-generation, I formally joined this enterprise. We hired qualified engineers and started manufacturing Drafting Machines; Mini-Drafters for drawing different lines such as horizontal, verticle, inclined, parallels, perpendiculars; Planimeters to measure irregular shapes; Sextant for determining angles. Besides, I came up with an instrument box product, branded as BASLER that created a storm in the market and made us market leader in the mapping and surveying instruments market. We made a range of instrument boxes. A box offered a complete choice of products related to surveying and mapping. It was made up of a mixture of wood and plastic. At that time, Kolkata-based British company, Kilburn, was entrusted with marketing and sales of our products nationally. Since then, demand of products shot up and I could finally buy a car in the 1960s. Recognition from PM The Prime Minister's office sent a Letter of Appreciation to my father recognizing his contribu-
