India in search of leadership

Walk across to the management section of any bookstore and you'll find shelves jammed with books on leadership — how to be a leader, various kinds of leaders, 'secrets' of successful leaders, leadership in times of change. It's endless. Given the sheer volume of writing on the subject, you'd think our streets would be teeming with leaders.
And yet, the country faces a crisis of leadership.Governance has all but collapsed. In critical areas such as public administration and state-funded education and healthcare, there's little or no confidence in government's ability to deliver a modicum of service. Corruption is eating into the innnards of our system, the bureaucracy's a shadow of what it once was, and the political class, for the most part, doesn't appear terribly interested in stemming the rot.
In the series of in-depth reports and analyses we published in the first phase of our India Poised initiative, the collapse of governance consistently came through as the most serious deterrent to a better quality of life. The malaise pervades both city and village.
Roads built at great cost resemble the moon's surface within months, yet the same contractors are hired to repair them, for a price. Our municipal schools are struggling to impart even basic education. Open spaces meant for the citizenry are being quietly hawked to builders in complete disregard of land use laws.
Large swathes of India live in darkness, literally. Drinking water, sanitation and basic hygiene remain a privilege — it's hardly surprising that diarrhoea kills 4,50,000 every year, more than in any other country.
Three-fourths of the population grind by on Rs 20 a day. A large chunk of the money marked for floods and other calamities sinks without a ripple. News of farmer suicides is now met with a helpless shrug. The justice system creaks.
And for all the tax we pay, little or nothing comes back in the form of social security. Sadly, even our armed forces — once a source of great national pride — have been breached by charges of corruption and indiscipline.
India fares abysmally on the global corruption meter. According to Transparency International, 20% believe government does not fight corruption at all; 39% think its fight against corruption is ineffective; and 15% say that far from fighting corruption, government actually encourages it.
This is a difficult place for businessmen to function. A global survey ranks India among the worst countries for doing business. Whether it's starting or closing a business, enforcing contracts, paying taxes, or registering property — every procedure takes an inordinately long time. Believe it or not, it takes an average of 10 years to close a business!
Red tape is a big reason, but an equally vexing reason is that palms have to be greased for anything to move. And yet, the economy is growing at a scorching pace, people are making money hand over fist, confidence is brimming over.
Surely, there must be something our leaders are doing right? The invariable response to that is, India's booming in spite of its netas and babus, not because of them. And that it is India Inc that's driving much of the change. Indian businessmen are competing aggressively in global markets, snapping up large multinationals, hiring thousands of young people every month at hitherto-unheard-of salaries, and turning investors into millionaires overnight.
Our entrepreneurs are gaining respect in boardrooms and markets across the world for their ability to combine vision and ambition with execution. Some started from scratch, others inherited businesses and expanded them dramatically. It may be a sign of our times that they're becoming role models for a new generation.
If India Inc can produce so many strong, transformational leaders, why can't politics? Is it because the best and the brightest are just not interested in getting into politics —— either because it's considered 'too dirty' or because it's difficult for a person from a middle-class, professional background to financially support himself and his family without compromising his integrity? Or, is it because few believe they can make a difference to an entrenched system. If that's the reason, it's a chicken-and-egg bind.
Imagine a situation where our political establishment is able to attract honest, dedicated people. What a powerful combination it would make: Leaders who inspire confidence and trust at the helm of a nation bursting with energy and creativity — where the political leadership works through enlightened policy-making and an efficient, clean administration to unleash the power of millions of skilled, industrious citizens.
Indians abroad have been acknowledged for their intelligence and hard work. It's the same gene pool here. What we need are conditions conducive for extraordinary achievement.
It would be naïve to believe that anyone, however unimpeachable, can survive in the political jungle without a few compromises, without some amount of give-and-take — politics, after all, is about the art of the possible. But don't forget that's partially true of business as well. If big firms, which for decades thrived by bending the system, could have substantially cleaned up their act — and lived to tell a profitable tale — why can't we, as the voting public, demand better governance from our elected representatives?
In the past 15 years, business has increasingly discovered the virtues of good governance, not necessarily because of a sudden stab of conscience, but because of the premium foreign investors place on transparency. The resultant rise in valuations has far outstripped the money that could have been made through any financial sleight.
It's not as if the political establishment has no leaders who can inspire trust and confidence — just that there aren't enough to go around. The bureaucracy too has exceptionally fine officers, but the conditions in which they work breed frustration and disillusionment.
We need to attract new people into the political arena, people who can act as change agents. They don't necessarily have to be the type that can lead a charge into the valley of death. But they should be willing to dig in for the long fight, defy decades of conventional wisdom, ignore the cynic and take the skeptic along — and most importantly, have the conviction and passion to do the right thing.
The India Poised series profiled a number of unsung heroes who have radically changed the world around them, often against seemingly insurmountable odds. None of it happened overnight.
The Times of India has, since the beginning of the year, celebrated achievements of which we, as a nation, can be proud. There is a great deal to celebrate, most notably that we have kept the democratic faith, unlike many nations which slid into anarchy and dictatorship after they won Independence. India's priorities, such as its emphasis on education, have also been largely in the right direction.
This is a nation poised for greater glory, provided we can realise our full potential. TOI believes the multiplier effect of good governance will be explosive. It's the traditionally disenfranchised sections who stand to benefit the most — people who waste away on the margins of society without access to housing, healthcare, education or justice.
The elite can insulate themselves from poor governance — they can send their children to expensive schools and colleges and get the best medical treatment. They are not as battered by the deep injustices of the system as the child on the street, or the woman in the slum. As a nation, meaningful progress will elude us until we can construct a matrix where the margin is integrated with the mainstream.
It requires strong leadership. There's a Welsh proverb that says, "He that would be leader must be a bridge."
This is a nation crying out for leadership in public life, at every level. TOI's Lead India initiative is a small step in that direction. Some may greet it with skepticism, even cynicism. But a beginning needs to be made somewhere, in some fashion. We hope a few potential leaders will emerge out of it. Even if our initiative helps focus the attention of our 10 million readers on the issue of leadership, we'll have done our job.
We're here to start the fire, be the catalyst. There must be at least a few out there who are ready to stand up and be counted.