The Mumbai Nightmare

The recent incidence of a major fire at Sachivalaya at Mumbai shocked the nation. That an uncontrolled fire could take place literally at the seat of power that too in broad daylight is a shining example of unacceptable scenarios that we have over time learnt to expect as well as accept. The aftermath of the incident saw the media losing little time in questioning the fire prevention and fire redressal systems that apparently led to the catastrophe. The prompt initiation of the blame game and an enquiry, both failed to inspire confidence.

The simultaneous incident of Mahi, a child aged five falling into an uncovered borewell in Haryana is also a mirror of the state of affairs in the nation. Despite the full might of the state being activated for recovering the child from the sixty five feet deep pit, timely recovery of Mahi appears a bleak preposition. And once again there is a clamor at the root of which is our purported failure to learn a lesson from the similar case of Prince that happened around six years ago.

What catastrophe are we facing next? This question is always on the minds of the common citizen, for India is not the United States of America where one shattering episode is enough and never repeated. The 9/11 incident to be precise, howsoever horrific it may have been, had been enough to stir a nation into action and say “So far and no further”. A resolve so strong and so successfully implemented, that the country has since then not witnessed even a single act of terrorism.

But India is different. We have a brand new disaster almost every month. It may be a major fire, an act of terror, an accident or even children falling into uncovered borewells, incidents that shock and lead to widespread outrage and anguish, yet to no avail. The incident that is more of a symptom than a disease in itself is conveniently forgotten in a few days and remembered only when something similar happens somewhere else. 

When shall we learn to differentiate between a symptom and the disease it causes? Yet, it is sad that platitudes not resolves continue to be mouthed by the men who matter. The blame game remains on, only the subject matter keeps on shifting and what the nation gets are mere assurances of taking necessary action to ensure that such incidents do not recur. All till the next incident surfaces.

And then the whole story gets repeated again ad-infinitum.

The cause of such incidents that happen with amazing regularity has perhaps much more to do with the way things are made to happen in the realm of the governments. Expecting an isolated sector to perform well in isolation shall always remain a futile expectation. The fact however remains that in this country of over a twelve hundred million, we have miserably failed in even providing the basic necessities of sanitation, housing, education and food after almost sixty seven years of existence as a free nation. Does this not raise eyebrows, or have we started accepting this stark reality as fait accompli? I bet we have! Moreover how does one expect a nation that has been only a limited success in certain areas, be expected to do exceedingly well in all sectors. Yes we have entered the select club of atomic powers and space, but to what avail. We still have widespread poverty and beggers can be seen thronging the roads almost everywhere. 

 

The delivery orientation of the various organs of the state needs to be looked at in depth. The decision making and implementation mechanisms need overhaul. The delivery mechanisms in vogue in governments cutting across sectors and states, exceptions apart, have since independence remained archaic and over complex, thereby enabling only a cosmetic treatment of even minor issues plaguing the nation. The fault lies in the system that was designed to rule over a foreign populace, but being continued in a democratic setup in almost its original form with mistrust being at the core of it, and that hampers delivery. The complexity of the tantra leads to low productivity and massive corruption that touches the lives of the ordinary citizen almost always. 

How does a nation that accepts rampant corruption as a way of life, expect its organs to be efficient in delivery orientation and prevent the occurance of incidences that we inspired by the regularity are even forgetting to abhor. Yes, corruption exists even in the developed world but there it has neither emerged as a way of life, nor affects the common citizen in the manner it does here. It is perhaps only in India where a common citizen is unable to get anything done from the sarkari system, be it getting an FIR registered, a ration card, an electricity connection, a contract or the house registered without the customary greasing of palms. Here any act that requires interaction with the Governmental machinery is invariably sticky with exceptions that are a rarity. 

If we as a nation are really concerned that the nightmare like the one in Mumbai or in Haryana are not repeated, a determined effort to bring probity in public life will be needed. Integrity will then have to take a front seat, but that would also need a churning of the entire system of governance, decision making and implementation. Easier said than done, but nation building, peace and prosperity do not come easy or cheap. A hefty price would have to be paid either way. Are we ready?

Dancing Symptoms

Dancing to symptoms. A malaise common to almost all bureaucrats, indian of course. Unfortunately the railway bureaucrats are more smitten by the dancing symptoms disease than their colleagues in other parts of the sarkari tantra.

Easy it is, to react to symptoms and therefore the dance emerges as a natural corollary. Difficult it is to identify the disease behind the symptom and almost impossible it is to put in place the treatment required to eliminate the disease, and the bureaucrats are known to take the easy path.

And so the disease remains intact and the symptoms keep on resurfacing one after the other, with variations ofcourse as the diseases that are many in number and still growing are never treated and therefore likely to manifest in many different ways.

And so today the dance may be inspired by symptom A, tomorrow it may be because of symptom B and so on and so forth. The bureaucrats are busy dancing to symptoms and their superiors expect that this dance shall rid the organization of the disease. Well they remain busy of course.

Foolish appears to be a mild word for this bureaucratic behavior. The situation is ridiculous to the extent of being hilarious!

The learned man on the street!

Ask the man on the street, what ails the country, and he would know. Having been wedded to the tourism sector for a long time, almost everyone, I knew or met had a word of advice for me. How tourism can be made to prosper in the beautiful state of Madhya Pradesh, or in "Incredible India", everyone knew the answers. And now on the hot seat of DRM/Delhi, I am again swamped with intelligent people, people who know what is wrong and how to set it right, except that they do not have even the foggiest idea of what putting your backside on the hot seat entails.

The tragedy is that the credibility of the sarkari tantra in our motherland is abysmally low. And therefore the entire populace, who also have contributed to the chaos in no small measure, chose to bash the tantra at the slightest provocation.

What however really hurts is the feigned ignorance, not of the man on the street, but of the men who matter, with exceptions of course. It is really sad that we often confuse symptom with the disease, and the attempts therefore of trying to cure the symptom, not the disease are bound to fail resulting in repeated cycles of inventing the wheel ad infinitum.

There is no doubt that the sarkari tantra, across the country is a classic example of how tantra's should not be. Procedure orientation, knee jerk responses to symptoms, rampant corruption and sycophancy are its hallmarks. But for a change it was a nice feeling to witness the Government support to the chief executive of Air India in recent moments of crisis and when the gentleman who is trying to do his best needed the support. But such occasions are rare. Rather than supporting the chief executives, they are often made a scapegoat for pleasing the man on the street, who is amused no doubt, but rarely pleased.

Touch the softer side

The routine keeps all of us busy, or we expand the routine so as to keep us perfectly occupied most of the time, I am not sure. Still I am of the opinion and opinions may be wrong that the latter is true. After all indulging in the routine is the easiest thing to do. The routine happens on its own, has its own set mechanisms and consumes a lot of time. These are its USP's, though not exactly its strong points.

We all have to get out of the routine, though not totally. On the other hand, the routine also has to be disposed off, as otherwise it has a tendency to pile up. The solution lies in enhancing the efficiency of operations.

And what does one do after getting out of the routine. Touch the softer side, touch the human side, sides that have not been touched ever. It is strange that though all of us desire that the system, organization and the boss should care for us, we do not ever reciprocate this sentiment when it comes to our juniors.

Rank injustice, rampant corruption, filthy environment, sexual harassment at its peak and cases of drinking in official territory is what one finds on touching the softer side. Rather than diseases, these are symptoms of a management that does not manage, that is more concerned with the routine rather than going deeper into the system. And one would find this situation everywhere, cutting across ministries, state boundaries, sectors and hierarchies. The only commonality is that this all happens in the sarkari sector profusely.

Can it be set right? Yes only if one is prepared to walk the extra mile and also ask for it.

Do we bureaucrats have the desire, will, capability or the inclination to do it? Capability yes, but all others No.

It makes me sad. Yet I have decided not to lose hope.

Disease or symptom

The rot is total. Be it the bureaucrats or the politicians, almost all at the helm of affairs are contributing their wee bit in concretizing the rot, by putting one more nail in the coffin.

A few months back, I remember I was invited to attend a meeting on building world class infrastructure. I experienced a sense of revulsion on hearing the subject. When we are a total and proven failure in even literal sweeping of the muck and dirt, we do not have a right to even debate such issues. When we are aware of the rampant corruption in "State" bodies and often are a party to it, actively or passively, we do not have a right to indulge in sheer rhetoric. But rhetoric helps, in creating a momentary euphoria, euphoria created without an iota of deliverance and that is the beauty of it.

It was only a week back when the Bhopal Management Association invited me to deliver a talk on building India of our dreams.Yes it is true that we shall forever remain dreaming about building India, for we lack the basic competence required to deliver. We as a system and also as individuals lack the guts to decide. Deliberate - Yes, Procastrinate - Yes, Decide - No is our motto.

Some may argue that even developed countries have corruption and corruption is not the IPR/USP of India. Well justifying corruption even if it is justifiable, is an act of dishonesty towards oneself and the nation. Anyway it is only our motherland where every single interaction of its inhabitants with the governmental system, except for the super wealthy and the powerful kind is laced with greasing of palms. And the system of corruption is so strong, that the corrupt does not even spare persons of his own ilk, persons who are part of the sarkari tantra like him. Well this is what I call the pinnacle of corruption and that is what I witnessed after reaching Delhi.

Yet I am convinced that corruption is only a symptom, of a deep rooted malaise called "Lack of Leadership" displayed in abundance by all those who matter in the matter of running the governmental machinery in the nation.

And we talk about building an India of our dreams. What bullshit.

Why this universal unhappiness?

The universal unhappiness in India worries me. Almost everyone one comes across in this nation of well over a billion people is unhappy with the system, with the people around him and with his own state of affairs. Is it not symptomatic of a deep rooted malaise?
Rajesh Agarwal today defined organization as the co-ordinated working of organs. How true he is. But it leads me to ponder whether we have any organization in the nation except those in the corporate sector and a few in the public? Unorganized organization is a dichotomy that convinces me of the absence of organized systems in sectors that really matter and and are responsible for propelling the nation forward.
There is definitely something wrong with organizations that reduces brilliant individuals to nincompoops in just a few years. Brilliant individuals who excelled in academics perpetuate the established tradition and culture of honoring time-established (for failures) systems and procedures even though these very systems and procedures are at the root of unhapiness of those very individuals.
Mistaking a symptom for disease has become highly common with the results that almost all bodies (I will not call them organizations) remain perpetually sick. And this sickness is not confined to only the financial aspects, it is primarily related to the human ,index of that body leading to universal unhappiness or discontentment.
Is the situation redeemable?. I am convinced that it is. Belief in the tremendous potential and also the inherent goodness of mankind convinces me that the situation in the country is not yet beyond redemption. The challenge however lies in making the people aware of their untapped reservoir of strength and humanity.