“EVERYTHING I LEARNT AT IIM-A HELPED ME FIND SOLUTIONS AS A CIVIL SERVANT”
LESSONS IN INNOVATION, OUT-OF-THE-BOX THINKING AND RATIONAL STRATEGISING ENABLE STUDENTS TO EXCEL IN DIVERSE FIELDS
It was the summer of 1979 when I walked down the distinctive red brick arched corridors of IIM-Ahmedabad (IIM-A). A little dazzled, a little intimidated but definitely determined to do my best to get the most out of this elite institution. There were students from all kinds of disciplines—from the IITs, humanities, law schools, veterinary sciences to a few from the corporate world. But one thing was common—they were all brilliant and hungry young minds. The pressure was intense and required us to give our very best and more. A friend wanted to quit. We convinced him to stay and today he is a leading consultant in the infrastructure sector.
The professors were absolutely world-class. They were generous with their knowledge but also exacting in their expectations. A professor told me to weigh the social relevance of what I would do in my career after IIM. This got me to apply for the UPSC exams and I got into the IAS in 1982. Over the next 38 years, there were dozens of occasions where I believe I took decisions that squarely emerged from what I had been taught at IIM.
As IAS officers, we have the mandate of administering large swathes of this vast and wonderful country full of conundrums and complexities. And everything I learnt at IIM-A—innovation, systematic thinking and rational stategising—helped me shape my response in every department as I strove to find inventive solutions to old problems. As Collector, Indore, I overhauled the public health delivery system and created the Rogi Kalyan Samiti (RKS), a public participation model that revolutionised hospital management and has since been adopted across the country. I received the Global Development award for the most innovative project for the RKS concept.
At IIM-A, we were taught to always look at the availability of funds and the profitability of a project before venturing into it. This was a great lesson that rationalised my decision-making process, and helped me design and build 1,980 kms of highways across Madhya Pradesh under the country’s first BondBOT scheme. Today, as I look back, I know for a fact that I would not have achieved a fraction of what I did, had it not been for the rational, systematic and brave decision-making style that was drilled into us at the IIM-A. ■