W’end Reading: Nandan Nilekani, Narendra Modi & History

Start this weekend by finding out why Nandan Nilekani feels obliged to use his position and ideas “to make a difference to a country on verge of transformation”.

Continue with Why India needs Narendra Modi….

and end with the “usefulness” of History, courtesy Varnam.

Brief excerpts from all the articles below.

 

*** Excerpts from Walk the Talk ***

Nandan Nilekani: …We thought we had the whole globalisation argument, the Flat World, Bangalore and all that. And I did spend a lot of time in the last 3 years trying to build India’s brand globally, whether it was Davos or India at 60. But after some time I realized the challenge is not building the brand globally, the challenge is within.

…when you come back to India you realize that it’s a lot more complex, because there are so many forces at play. So while on the one hand, theres this fantastic opportunity for India, there are also so many things happening that are holding it back. And getting that right I think is the critical thing…

…I think the aspirations have been unleashed. I think in every nook and corner, thanks to the television, the media, aspirations have been unleashed. It’s our capacity to cope with meeting those aspirations is where the challenge is and I think that’s what really bothers us. That there is this mismatch and the flipside of not meeting those aspirations is that you’ll have resentment, and you’ll have a backlash . And therefore the speed with which you respond to aspirations is the critical challenge, from Bangalore’s viewpoint

•Do the politics of India frustrate you, worry you?

Nandan Nilekani: Yeah I think it is because if you have a political gridlock, especially in terms of the ideas that take us forward, then I think we run the risk that the opportunity that we’ll have will run us by. I think one of the reasons why the Brand India campaign worked globally was the strategic argument for India was very clear. The population dynamic, the entrepreneurial depth, the technological capability, the fact that we have democracy, the fact that global factors are in our favour, English is a big thing. So if you tell this to a foreigner, he’ll think “Wow, you guys have really got it made”.

But when you come back and start examining on the ground, the you realize it’s one thing to have those strategic opportunities and another thing to have them converted into reality. And that’s where there are two problems. One is the problem of execution, where we don’t do what we are supposed to do and the second is problem of the fights we have on ideas. The recent nuclear debate is an example of that.

ɉۢWhich were the speeches that impressed you?

Nandan Nilekani: I think Mr Chidambaram’s speech, then of course Omar Abdullah’s speech.

Nandan Nilekani: …I think you’re right in saying that we should be more vocal. In fact the reason I am doing a lot of my writing is to put a point of view on the public domain.

.Because your book is called “Imagining India”. So you are not talking about just a great dream, that we’ve not just dreamed but a dream that we are about to now realize.

Oh absolutely. My book is about something that is within our reach. But my point is that unless you have a framework of ideas to look at the future and that framework is bought in by a lot of people, you won’t get there. So it’s not an automatic done deal, it’s not a spread sheet where some investment banker put 7 percent growth rate and we come out with the third largest GDP in the world. There’s a lot of things to be done. So I’m trying to capture that in a framework.

ɉۢDoes the quality of our politics worry you?

Obviously, I think we all would yearn for more politicians and those good old days of early Independence and so forth. But now I think India is sufficiently in churn, sufficiently in boil, where different people from different walks of life who have things to offer to society will be given a chance to contribute. And that open society will help us deal with some of these challenges.

•When you deal with young people today, are they more conscious of politics or less conscious of politics?

They are not very political, in a sense they are committed to looking at careers. But they have a very high level of social consciousness and the number of young people I know who are giving up high-paying corporate jobs to go into the social sector, join NGOs is amazing. So I think that sense of consciousness, whether that translates into political action I’m not so sure of, but certainly social consciousness is far more than we think.

…you deal with both the bureaucracy in Delhi and the political class. Tell me how they differ, tell me your experiences.

Well, first of all I have a lot of respect for Indian politicians. And it’s easy for the middle class to rubbish them. But I think they have to work 24/7, they have to be constantly on their toes (Shekhar Gupta: They are the hardest working Indians) People in government have to run the Ministry and do political work. They have to be nice all the time to the constituency.

•And even if they make the money, they cant live the good life. They have to crumple their pajamas every morning

Well, I don’t know about that. But what happens is the urgent always takes precedence over the important. Its always today’s issues. The time span is always next week.

•Or the unavoidable becomes more important than the desirable.

Time management takes over strategic direction. And also becaue of the nature of our politics, patronage takes precedence over public policy. So there are some challenges that they face. But I have a tremendous respect for them.

•And the civil service?

I think there are some very good people. But at the end of the day, I think the change will have to come from the political leadership because they are answerable to the people. And by the way, I find this even more in state governments. State governments are really under the gun in terms of delivering results so they are even more open to ideas.

•Nandan tell me, a CEO job under your belt, a Padma Bhushan under your belt, a landmark book in a few months, age is still just about 53, what do we see you doing in the next few years? Do we see you joining the political class in some way? Or taking a direct role in governance?

Well, india’s diversity and churn gives you roles to make a difference without taking formal, political roles. So I believe I’ll do that. Because of the unique circumstances I am in, I can actually make a difference in a number of things. So I definitely want to make an impact, except that I don’t think it has to be in the form a formal “politican”.

***

*** Excerpts from “Why India needs Narendra Modi?” ***

…I have perhaps written more articles against Modi and his handling of the post-Godhra scenario than most people have; I have called him a modern-day Hitler and have always said that Godhra shall remain an enduring blemish not just on him but on India’s political class. I still believe that what happened in Gujarat during the Godhra riots is something we as a nation will pay a heavy price for. But the fact is that time has moved on. As has Narendra Modi.

He is not the only politician in India who has been accused of communalism. It is strange that the whole country venerates the Congress Party as the secular messiah but it was that party that presided over the riots in 1984 in which over 3,500 Sikhs died: thrice the number killed in Gujarat.

The fact of the matter is that there is no better performer than Narendra Modi in India’s political structure.

…this is something that the Gandhis and Mayawatis need to learn from Modi. There were no fawning staff members; no secretaries running around; no hangers on…just the two of us with one servant who was there serving tea. And what was most impressive was the passion which Modi exuded. The passion for development; the passion for an invigorated Gujarat; the passion for the uplifting the living standards of the people in his state and the joy with which he recounted simple yet memorable data-points. For instance, almost all of the milk consumed in Singapore is supplied by Gujarat; or for that matter all the tomatoes that are eaten in Afghanistan are produced in Gujarat or the potatoes that Canadians gorge on are all farmed in Gujarat.

…Narendra Modi is clearly a man in a hurry and he has every reason to be. There is no question in any one’s mind that he is the trump card for the BJP after Advani and Modi realises that. People like Rajnath Singh are simply weak irritants I would imagine. He also believes that the country has no apolitical strategy to counter terrorism and in fact he told me how he had alerted the Prime Minister, the Home Minister and the NSA about the impending bomb blasts in Delhi and they did not take him seriously. And then the September 13 blasts happened! It was this resolve of Modi’s that I found very admirable. There is a clear intolerance of terrorism and terrorists which is evident in the way the man functions; now there are many cynics who call it minority-bashing but the truth of the matter is that Modi genuinely means business as far as law and order is concerned.

***

*** Excerpt from Varnam’s Quote of the Day:

History is grabbed by the roots when it is used to remind a new generation of the accomplishments of the past, when it is used to inspire a people to accomplish what they can and prevent what they must.

The invocation of history is particularly powerful when it is used to remind a nation of aspirations long cherished but not fully achieved.

Source: Best of the ’08 Campaign: The effective use of history