L P Yadav version 2.0
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By Rashmi Bansal What is even more interesting that the turnaround of the railways is the turnaround of Laloo Prasad himself. The Laloo brand of politics rested on the belief that good governance had no role to play in winning elections. His image was that of a shrewd and populist leader - and he did not care a damn what urban India thought of him. How and when did that change? Laloo’s initial annoucements when he took over as railway minister were typical. He promised not to raise passenger fares, and also announced a ban on plastic cups and glasses. “Earthen pot ‘kulhar’ would be used to generate employment for the potters in the country and to protect environment,'’ he stated on the day he took over as minister. So, in these two short years, what magic happened? I have not seen the case study prepared by Professor G Raghuram but I hope it takes us into the mind of the minister. Did he make a conscious decision to operate differently? Or was a lot of it simply being in the right place at the right time? As Subir Roy points out in Business Standard “It doesn’t matter who leads the railways; when the economy booms the railways boom”. He adds: “To be fair to Lalu Prasad, he has made a contribution. He has been particularly good in leading the current turnaround by putting capable officials in place and letting them run the show. With results that are there for all to see. His master stroke has been to bring in an outsider, IAS officer Sudhir Kumar. He has been able to use the ministerial authority seen to be behind him to ram down throats reforms which have been long discussed within the railways but never initiated because of inter-departmental non-cooperation, the bane of the railways.” I think it was a combination of good luck and the desire - at some level - to show that “I too can make things happen.” On the day he became Railway Minister Laloo had declared - only half in jest - that he would lead the country as Prime Minister one day. A dream which could never be realised unless he changed his image from that of a caste-conscious, fodder-scam tainted politician to something more statesmanlike. And something/ someone has influenced his thinking. IAS officer Sudhir Kumar, definitely. But I think Laloo’s upwardly mobile children may have had a role as well. The fact that he married his eldest daughter Misa to an engineer from Infosys - not an upcoming politician’s son - is proof enough that even five years ago, Laloo had an inkling of changing aspirations. His defeat in Bihar would have provided further evidence of the fact that promises won’t keep people happy forever. Even the poorest of the poor are now unhappy about the lack of roads, electricity and schools - and perhaps the time has come to stand up and deliver. Besides, when you’ve already lost everything, you may as well take a gamble and try something ‘new’. So Laloo lets the bureaucrats do their jobs instead of transferring them around on the basis of whim and caste fancy. And in fact, raises the overall morale. The Railways makes a stunning profit and for the first time, Lalooji finds himself being praised for his department’s performance. There is new respect from intellectuals and the upper class - And approval - is addictive. Will the Laloo story result in a new competitive spirit among politicians to perform better in office? If the man who coined slogans about samosas and aloos can change his outlook, anyone can. We, the people, at least have that slender ray of hope. Lagey raho, Laloobhai. Milk your success for all it’s worth in the media. May other politicians feel peeved enough to say they’ll outdo you - and not just in the jokes department. If and when that happens it would make for an even more delightful case study! |
(38 votes, average: 3.82 out of 5)
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All the content posted in the 'Business Standard Blogs' section, unless specified otherwise, are made by Business Standard employees. The content posted in 'Business Standard Blogs' does not follow routine internal Business Standard reviews and editorial processes and should be considered only as the views and opinions of the employees and not of Business Standard.
September 21st, 2006 at 3:38 pm
Well, i think the fact that Laloo has managed to turn around this organization is testament to his leadership skills….as for his integrity,thats going to take a little more time.
September 21st, 2006 at 5:20 pm
Copied from Vinay Upponi’s personal blog.
Lalu Yadav, The “Turn-around Guru” Examined
The media has found a new poster boy! Meet Lalu Yadav, the new age management guru, whose single-handed turn-around of the loss making Indian Railways has propelled him to corporate stardom.
A little scratching beneath the surface reveals a different picture of the new “role-model” for management graduates.
Lalu Yadav is the prime accused in over 36 cases of the Rs. 950 Crore fodder scam#; is accused in a whole range of cases ranging from owning assets disproportionate to income and embezzlement to criminal conspiracy and misuse of official position; is widely known to orchestrate socially divisive policies based on caste and blatant minority appeasement in his home state; protects notorious, supreme court-convicted criminals like Shahabuddin, who is a member of his political party.
Despite a near uninterrupted, 15-year stint as the Chief Minister of Bihar, a rare feat in the history of Indian politics, his home state, to this day, continues to be one of the most poverty-ridden, lawless, corrupt, and undeveloped states in India. With 43%* of its population living below the poverty line, Bihar is the second poorest state in India and continues to be one of the worst performing states in India on almost all HDI (Human Development Index) counts over the last decade.
The commendable turn-around in Indian Railways, widely attributed to Lalu by sections of the media, was actually engineered by Sudhir Kumar, Officer on Special Duty for the Bihar State Government, who is an IAS and MBA. While Lalu deserves credit for hiring the right talent, it is Sudhir Kumar, who did the planning and ground-work for the dramatic turn-around of the loss making PSU.
Despite his dismal report-card as the Chief Minister of Bihar, his involvement and conviction in one of the biggest scams in the country’s history, his politics of blatant minority appeasement, and the multitude of criminal cases pending against him, large sections of the media are projecting this man as a “New age management guru” and a “Role model”. With role-models like Lalu, who aren’t exactly class topers in the Ethics and Morals department, one can only hope that the new crop of management graduates from IIMs don’t end up emulating an Enron. God forbid! Perhaps, Lalu would be a better role-model to fellow corrupt politicians trying desperately hard to improve their public image through effective media campaigns.
Sources
# - BBC World
• - National Human Development Reports, 2001
September 22nd, 2006 at 7:49 pm
Being a bihari , who has seen the demise of Bihar from close quarters, I find it astonishing and laughable that laloo yadav gets all the credit for turnaround. I would like readers of this article to go through this article too http://www.asiantribune.com/index.php?q=node/1989. Its really shameful on the part of Professor to eulogise a fellow who has been responsible for turning the bihar to a mess.
September 26th, 2006 at 9:33 am
I think, we should not look that who did , but rather how he did, and the most important the strong will supported by initiatives in the right direction. It is not that a person should be wisest of all, but should be able to chose wise people who can throw the desired light.
If Laloo is able to turnaround the jinxed Railway Ministry, then why not the other ministers should take cue, its not that they are failures, but Laloo’s success is certainaly an inspiration and motivation.
Hopefully, not only the IIM students but the real people down the line find cues to improve themselves and not just consider it a matter of luck. After all, when there is a Will there is Way!!
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