PM Modi’s Debut Performance: Extempore from the Red Fort

Sunil Garodia, TIR, 16 August 2014: If those who watched Narendra Modi address the nation from the ramparts of the Red Fort on Independence Day still say that NDA is just UPA II in disguise, they are either not seeing the big picture or are deliberately choosing to ignore it. Let us first consider the two big changes in the manner the speech was delivered. There was no bullet proof screen separating the PM from the audience. Then, Modi spoke extempore, with some help from assorted notes kept on the lectern.

By themselves, these are not very big issues. But taken in the context of a Prime Minister addressing his countrymen on Independence Day, they assume great importance. The threat perception to Modi is much greater than it ever was to Manmohan Singh. Yet, the bullet proof screen was done away with. What does this signify? It signifies that if you remain behind screens, you cannot be the “pradhan sevak” of the people, which is what Narendra Modi wants to be. You remain the Prime Minister, an elite species protected by the guards and the screen and not available to the countrymen. They can gawk at you, but they cannot aspire to meet you. They can hear you, but they cannot aspire to engage you in a dialogue. Also, if you read out prepared speeches, you look like a robot given to inform the people about decisions that have been taken by others. There is no connect with the people because almost all your time is spent looking down. You are not speaking to the people, you are just telling them. When you speak extempore, you involve the people. You give them an indication that you are there for them.

Then, there was the content. To his critics, the speech might seem as a rehash of all the promises the BJP made in its election manifesto. But if they move beyond that, they will discover that there is more to it.  Narendra Modi called himself the “pradhan sevak.” To some, it will seem as a gimmick. But there seems to be a calculated reason for this. Our ministers and bureaucrats are so full of themselves and are so drunk on power that they need to be reminded that they are just public servants. Who better to do so than the PM, who is often considered the ‘first among equals?’ The message is plain: if I am the pradhan sevak, you are the subsidiary sevaks and should work accordingly. He also reminded and challenged all those who work in government by saying that he will put in an hour more than what they put in for work. This immediately raises the bar for the atrocious work culture in ministries and departments of the government.

The Prime Minister has announced that the Planning Commission (PC) will be wound up as it has outlived its utility. He said that when it was started, the government had a huge role to play in the economy, as well as in giving direction to the economy. But now, he said, more than the government it was the private sector that was the major player in the economy and its role will increase in the coming days. Hence, he said, the time had come to look for an institution in place of the PC that would be better placed to play a role in developing the economy in the changed scenario.

This puts to rest the speculation in the media about the PC being split into two or more organizations. It is good that the institution that traces its roots to the Soviet type regulation of the economy is being bid good bye. With the dismantling of the licence-quota raj and the NDA pledge of minimum government, there is no need for an omnipresent big brother to oversee the economy. That work will now be done by individual ministries. The new institution that comes up will of course be the overall monitor, but its work will be more for removing hurdles to industry or services rather than granting of permission or approvals.

Over the years, the PC had become an institution that did less of planning and more of number crunching. Its role as an advisor to the government was also getting diminished, with newer bodies like the PMO, the GoM’s and the EGoM’s. But for number crunching, we have many other bodies. Its role as a thinktank has been drastically reduced since the economic liberalization. Hence, as the PC is serving no practical purpose, there is no need for it to keep working.

The PM rued the fact that instead of working for the people, various ministries fought among themselves and delayed projects and schemes meant for the welfare of the people. There is now a need for a body that can handle the work of resolving differences between various ministries and between the ministries and other arms of the government. This was sought to be achieved by the GoM’s and the EGoM’s, but that experience left a lot to be desired. Hence, the brief for any such body should be to resolve these tangles and some members of this body should be appointed for their legal expertise, as many inter ministerial differences are mostly about wrong interpretations of legal provisions or are turf wars. Such a body will go a long way in assuring smooth functioning of the government.

He promised to bring about guidelines on what he called the Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana whereby each MP is expected to adopt a village in his or her constituency and turn it into a model village in two years. Thereafter, it should be one village per year, according to parameters to be announced in the guidelines. He widened the scope of the scheme by asking state governments to exhort MLA’s to do likewise, promising a new and better India on the back of this scheme.

He identified cleanliness as a major evil in India and exhorted people to keep the country clean. He reminded people that despite huge potential, India’s tourism sector suffers as the country is considered filthy and unsuitable for travel. He stressed that tourism had the scope of uplifting everyone as even a ‘chaiwala’ earns from it, drawing loud applause. He urged MP’s to spend one year of their LAD funds in constructing toilets. He also urged the corporate sector to spend their CSR quantum on building toilets in schools, with separate toilets for girls. He referred to the skewed sex ratio and urged doctors and parents to stop female foeticide. He deplored the rising crimes against women.

But the two most valuable parts of his speech were related to the economy. He asked investors and manufacturers worldwide to come to India and make in India. He laid emphasis on this by pointing out several items. This was an attempt to offer India as an alternative venue for manufacturing with rising costs in China. At the same time, he exhorted the youth to make items that are imported so that India becomes self sufficient and can even become an exporter.

Recognizing the IT sector as the engine of change in both joining the nation and changing India’s image abroad, Modi said that e-governance is the best way for good governance. He pointedly said that India was long considered a nation of snake charmers. These young girls and boys in the IT sector has changed the perception by making world class software and processes that are driving growth all over the world. Here, too, he pointed out that since most of our electronics were imported, there was a need for building manufacturing facilities for the same in the country. He wants to create a Digital India. His comments will give a huge fillip to the sector and fire our IT youth to achieve greater heights.

The Prime Minister once again exhorted the neighbouring countries to come together and fight poverty and ignorance instead of fighting each other. He pointed out that the fruits of peace will be much bigger than those of war. He narrated a story about two brothers where one hits a bird with an arrow and the other takes out the arrow and dresses the wound of the bird. They fight about who gets the bird. Finally, when they approach their mother for a resolution, she tell them that the savior is bigger than the killer and hence the bird will belong to the savior. Modi wants SAARC nations to forget their differences and work for peace, emerging as a Statesman who focusses on development and shared cooperation.

Narendra Modi has informed the country that the government is doing what it takes to bring about acche din. He now needs the support of his countrymen. They need to train themselves in skills and managerial capacity and get involved in nation building. It is for us to respond positively.