Azim Premji by Sundeep Khanna and Varun Sood ; Published by Harper Business ; Pages 225; Price Rs.699/- ****************************** The day was 13 March 2019. An Indian business legend had chosen to warm the hearts of millions across the country by an act of munificence that was unparalleled and unequalled . Azim Premji announced that he would gift shares worth Rs.52,750 crore or $ 7.5 billion to his philanthropic foundation, whose corpus now totalled Rs 1,45,000 crore or about $ 21 billion and included the 67 per cent of shares held by the founding family. By this single act he had moved into the ranks of the world’s biggest donors. Forbes magazine ranked Premji’s donation as the world’s biggest for the year 2019. The book under review “Azim Premji: The Man Beyond the Billions”, is perhaps the first authoritative biography of the great man and brings out how Premji is a philanthropist at heart and a businessman by choice – a man who wanted to give away his billions but realised quite early that he would first have to earn them. The biography portrays Premji’s life while recounting his professional and charitable work . The volume is brought out by Sundeep Khanna and Varun Sood—two renowned contributors to financial journalism. They have conducted extensive interviews with several Wipro executives---both past and present-- who were close to Premji. They have roped in Premji’s competitors, analysts, family friends and other associates. They began in earnest to probe into the life of the man who fiercely guarded his privacy as also of his closely knit family, viz., his wife Yasmeen and sons Rishad and Tariq. The 75-year-old business magnate does not at all live up to our conception of the structure of a billionaire. He turns out far different from a stereotype---nibbling chocolates any time of night or day. He indulges in the luxury of street food be it Mumbai,Singapore and New York. He has acquired characteristics of a Charles Dickens character from Christmas Carol—the prince of parsimony-- Uncle Scrooge—of the business world. Totally unlike Scrooge he donated 75 per cent of his wealth to charity. This amounts to about $21 billion which he donated to the Azim Premji Foundation, which is a non-profit organisation focused on education. This catapulted him into one of the top philanthropists of the world. From battling to save his family’s debt-ridden fledging oil company in Amalner to establishing a bonafide conglomerate with more than $10 billion in revenue, the book reveals the half-a-century adventurous sojourn of Premji. Taking over his family business of vegetable oils at a young age after the passing of his father, he built one of India's most successful software companies and a multi-billion-dollar conglomerate. As of 2019, he was the tenth richest person in India with an estimated net worth of $7.2 billion. In the beginning, he had but little grasp of the IT industry, but over the years his company became part of the triumvirate of IT start-ups (Infosys, Wipro, TCS) that put India on the global software services map. It is a matter of pride that Wipro was the first Indian IT company to be listed on the NYSE. What makes Premji click was adumbrated towards the end of 1971 by him as he wrote down the principles — integrity, respect for people and customer centricity — which were his articles of faith by which he would do business. The company is a firm adherent to these values. Nandan Nilekani, non-executive chairman of Infosys, described Premji succinctly, “He is an unusual man.” Truly so. He doesn’t travel first class. He believes in buying “Made in India” products. Premji gets into the nitty-gritty of every tiny issue. He carries his famous yellow pad in which he takes meticulous notes. His respect for resources defines his frugality. When he goes around switching off the lights and fans after everyone has left or insists that both sides of a sheet of paper must be used for photocopying, or when he insists on paying from his pocket for the personal calls he made at work, he sets a precedent for all to follow. Major personal milestones, including his wedding as well as that of his son Rishad, have been low-key affairs with barely 100 guests invited on each occasion. The book also takes into account the many wrong steps the company took, and how it ran into rough weather after it took many wrong decisions. Yet, the one facet that has overshadowed even his business achievements is his altruism. His commitment to the Azim Premji Foundation, a non-profit focused on education, totals around $21 billion, making him one of the world's top philanthropists. Premji inherited his generosity from his mother Dr. Gulbanoo Premji, co-founder of the Society for Rehabilitation of Crippled Children, Mumbai. When Covid-19 knocked on the doors of the country, the Wipro conglomerate donated Rs1,125 crore, the largest amount by an Indian company, besides distributing millions of meals and hospital beds. The twin decisions in 2019 of giving a substantial portion of his wealth to philanthropy and stepping down as Chairman of Wipro were part of Azim’s manifest destiny. It was the ultimate act of kindness by a man who had once been labelled selfish for refusing to dilute his family’s stake in the business to below 80 per cent. To be able to give over $21 billion to philanthropy, one first needs to make that kind of money. His abnormally high stake in the company he had built allowed him to do just that. The book recounts the poignant story of the exit of two CEOs Shri.Paranjape and Shri.Vaswani. They were the heart and lungs of Wipro. Even as they were waiting outside the boardroom Premji announced the appointment of Kurien as the new CEO. At a lecture to Stanford business school students, Premji’s lecture in Stanford affords a clue to his celebrated successes and failures in his career: “It is impossible to generate a few good ideas without a lot of bad ideas. Failure should be forgiven and forgotten completely.” Anecdote---One The book is bursting with absorbing anecdotes such as the one in which his friend and business leader Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw narrates how he disguised himself with a hat and a fake moustache when he wanted to buy some artwork. His reasoning: “The moment they know I’m Azim Premji, they’ll charge me too much.” Anecdote Two "For a billionaire, Premji has a unique relationship with cars. He treats them as no more than a necessary tool whose brand is unimportant. But virtually everyone we spoke with had a story about Premji and his cars. They all boil down to the same thing - he hates spending on them. When he was buying a secondhand car from one of his colleagues he haggled till the last 10% of the price ultimately giving in only because it was for a loved one in the family." P.P.Ramachandran. 22/11/2020.

Portraits of Power by N.K.Singh ; Published by Rupa ; Pages 384 ; Price Rs 595/-- ***************************** As we read this book under review--- the fascinating autobiography of Shri.N,K.Singh (NKS hereafter) we are stunned to read the wealth of talent in the NKS family from the beginning. His father Shri.T.P.Singh was a member of the ICS. He had six children. NKS was the first son who passed both IAS and IPS. Two sisters also got into IAS. A veritable gathering of civil servants! .The patriarch Shri.T.P.Singh ,who was the first full time Secretary of the Planning Commission, served as Finance Secretary during the electrifying time of bank nationalisation. However, he left no record. His distinguished son more than makes up. The volume offers us an opportunity to comprehend the mysteries of the functioning of Government of India from the 1970s till the early 2000s. We have brief glimpses of the preceding years through the occasional writings of the elder Singh. The book starts with an eloquent recounting of his roots – the migration of his ancestors from Rajasthan to Banka in Bihar’s Bhagalpur district, where his paternal grandfather was a school headmaster. The difference with his maternal side was stark as his maternal grandfather was one of the richest zamindars in north Bihar. The book is bursting with interesting anecdotes. Three are given at the end of the review. NKS was a brilliant student. Immediately after he obtained his Master’s Degree at the Delhi School of Economics, he joined St Stephen’s College as a lecturer. However, his family compelled him to appear for the civil service examinations. He got selected for both Indian Foreign Service and Indian Administrative Service at 23 in 1964. He chose IFS, but the family once again ensured that he opted for IAS. His marriage in 1967 was simply stepping into wealth. He tied the wedding knot with the granddaughter of the Maharaja of Jodhpur, Umaid Singh, Prem Kumari. For the princess the change from vast riches of the Jodhpur palace to the rugged terrain of drought-prone Danapur in Bihar, where NKS was posted, was quite a tough transformation. More intensely shocking for the bride was to learn one day that her husband’s monthly salary was a measly sum of Rs 750/-. Her junior assistants in Jodhpur palace drew many times more than that measly amount !. Life altered quickly as NKS got appointed as undersecretary in the Ministry of Commerce and the young couple moved to Delhi. From there, NKS went pursued a phenomenally successful career in civil service, culminating in his appointments as Secretary in all three departments of the finance ministry in existence at the time: Economic Affairs , Expenditure and Revenue . The crowning glory was his final appointment as Secretary to Prime Minister Vajpayee. NKS had a glorious term as the Economics and Commerce Minister in the Indian embassy in Japan. He helped bring about successfully the Maruti-Suzuki NSE -1.15 % collaboration. The Japanese held him in total awe and conferred on him one of their highest honours, the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star. The critical years of economic reforms in India were from 1990s to early 2000s and during this crucial time NKS fully used his talents in diplomacy, knowledge of economics, and training as a bureaucrat . The most gripping chapter of the book is “Vajpayee, As I Knew Him”. NKS provides a succinct analysis of how, assisted by an able team, Vajpayee navigated the complex telecom sector reform, ensured his signature Golden Quadrilateral road project was cleared , and made a sea-change in India-US relations by undertaking the nuclear tests quite early in his term. NKS is famous for his infinite capacity for hard work , tenacity and drive. He laid down his Office as Secretary to the PM and promptly went on to serve as Member, Planning Commission; Member, Rajya Sabha; Chairman, Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Committee; and presently he is Chairman, 15th Finance Commission. For nearly two decades,he played a commanding role in the annual conference on Indian economic reforms at Stanford University and his was an undisputed position in Davos. Since all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy NKS turned into an accomplished photographer, cultivated an ear for classical Indian music and practises homoeopathy as a hobby. It is pertinent to quote a scintillating paragraph from the Epilogue to the book : “This will be a decisive decade both for India and the World. The ongoing pandemic triggered by COVID-19 has few parallels in history. Apart from inflicting incalculable human misery and death, it has significantly altered, perhaps forever, several important paradigms; the nature of social behaviour, the pattern of economic activity and the acceptance of technology more decisively in the future conduct of our lives. Nations that master these challenges are destined to both guarantee greater prosperity to their people and become important stakeholders in the global recovery process.” The autobiography brings out the multi-faceted personality that is NKS-- a successful bureaucrat, economist, politician and author. NKS has provided a remarkable account of India’s political-economic history during the last 75 years. This is one of the finest autobiographies to emerge from the Indian sub-continent. Anecdote One How rich the Singhs were becomes clear from one anecdote. NKS recounts the incident of how his maternal grandfather was taking Jawaharlal Nehru on a tour of Purnea and the adjoining districts in Bihar in his Pontiac. When the tour began, Nehru asked who the owner of the vast land around them was. Grandpa declared that he was the owner. As the tour progressed, Nehru dozed off and, waking up a couple of hours later, repeated the question. To his horror, he got the same answer. That led Nehru to resolve then and there that he would impose a ceiling on land holding when he came to power. Anecdote Two-- A classic one is the instruction to NKS by a superior to create grand confusion in the brief on commerce-related issues for the NAM summit in Zambia: “Till you create enough confusion, there will be little scope for me to sort out the mess!” Anecdote Three I was appointed additional finance commissioner on 1 January 1986 and was to take over from my younger sister Radha, who was moved up as divisional commissioner at Chotanagpur. She,in turn,took over the assignment from my brother-in-law,N.P.Singh who came back to the Education department, even while my other sister, Krishna,continued to stay as commissioner of the Patna division.The local newspaper headlines read “Cabinet Meet to Decide Singh Family Posting”. P.P.Ramachandran. 15/11/2020.

Venkat Forever; Edited by T.P.Sreenivasan and James.M.Peck ; Published by Konark Publishers; Pages 217 ; Price Rs 595/- ************************************************************* When the definitive history of the Indian Administrative Service comes to be written Shri.A.P.Venkateswaran (APV hereafter) will be accorded a place of pride. William Shakespeare –in “The Twelfth Night” wrote-- “Some are born great ; some achieve greatness; some have greatness thrust upon them”.Perhaps this applies to notoriety too! Notoriety was thrust on APV. Rajiv Gandhi had in his arrogant way belittled him—announcing in a Press Conference----in a seemingly casual way APV’s removal. “You will see a new Secretary next week.”,he said. APV resigned within hours before Rajiv got a chance to put his pronouncement in paper. The Indian Foreign Service Association in an unprecedented move criticised the Prime Minister’s action. APV declared with his bubbling sense of humour, “I was a distinguished diplomat once ; now I am an extinguished diplomat.” The book under review has two Editors. One is Shri.T.P.Sreenivasan,ex-Ambassador and a distinguished IFS Officer currently busy with a Think-Tank.The other Editor is APV’s son-in-law Mr. James Peck,an international oil explorationist. APV’s father Shri.A.S.Panchapakesa Ayyar was himself an ICS Officer who became Chief Justice of Madras and was noted for his sense of humour. Two examples. At his ICS board interview the British members wishing to rattle him asked, “If a lion chased you, what steps would you take to save yourself?”. Without batting an eyelid Ayyar said, “Long Steps!”. It appears that when he was watching the Travancore sisters—Lalitha,Padmini performing Bharat Natyam, before a foreign delegation, the wife of a dignitary asked Ayyar “why the ladies on the stage were lifting their left leg and then their right leg” during a dance. With a straight face Ayyar told “Madam,if they lifted both their legs together, they would surely fall on their bottoms’ . APV’s son-in-law James Peck described the ceremony in connection with Venkat’s ashes which were immersed in a strong current of three swollen rivers. True to his nature, the ashes initially travelled upstream against the current. After that brief act of mischief the ashes cajoled by the currents,sashayed along the water’s surface toward the sun”. The book ,under review,perpetuates APV’s memory by compiling the extensive folklore of his anecdotes ,witticisms and pithy statements which remain green in the minds of his colleagues . Books by retired civil servants—the IFS -- like K.P.S.Menon,B.K.Nehru--are well-documented records of India’s relationships with countries and regions, different social, political and cultural settings and are rich in limning commanding Indian and foreign personalities. A book of this type is unusual since it is dedicated to one individual , who served with distinction in the IFS and occupied its highest office. It could be the first of its kind. Some of the contributors are contemporaries of APV and they reveal the quintessential diplomat. Shri.K.S. Bajpai, APV’s batchmate contributes an illuminating Foreword. Bajpai was ambassador of India to China and the United States,High Commissioner to Pakistan and a secretary in the ministry of external affairs. He refers to Venkat’s unflagging sense of humour, “the ready aptness of his sallies being born of a sharp mind quickly focusing on what mattered” and informed by a wide range of knowledge. He adds, “We have had many clever people in our service, but few could match Venkat’s gifts”. The chapter titled "A life lived well by the family"--by Usha(wife),Kalpana(daughter) and Peck(son-in-law) recounts APV’s life from his youth. A graduate in chemistry from Madras Christian College, he took his master’s in economics from Presidency College, stood first in his class and got a Tata scholarship to pursue further studies at the London School of Economics. However, A.S.P. Ayyar compelled him to attempt the civil services examinations where he succeeded and joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1952. In those years, entrants to the service were sent to either Oxford or Cambridge for courses in foreign languages, international relations, economics, etc. APV learned Russian. After seven years in the service, he married Usha, an accomplished Bharatanatyam dancer and choreographer. Their first posting together was in Ethiopia. Here, Usha proved to be the genuine asset she was in showcasing the fine arts from India . Fully supported by her husband , Usha became well known and admired in various posts in Moscow, Fiji, Washington, Geneva, Beijing and Damascus. One could take the Indian Foreign Service out of Venkat after his voluntary retirement, but not his deep passion for India’s domestic and external policies.Towards the late ’90s, Usha and Venkat decided to move to Bengaluru from Delhi. Here he founded the Asia Centre along with like-minded people in 1996. It became, under his guidance, a respected institution with thought provoking debates on contemporary issues of national and international importance. APV’s inputs inspired the next generation of officers to be fearless, patriotic and widened their horizons to look into the future. Former foreign secretary Sujatha Singh points out that “through his participation in the IFS email group, he allowed many younger colleagues, who may have never had the opportunity to meet him in person, to benefit from his wisdom and experience.” The book is enriched by APV’s recorded oral history, where he frankly expands on the various stages of his career to his interviewer who is also a distinguished diplomat--Ambassador Kishan Rana. Students of politics, international relations and India’s external relations would find this section hugely rewarding. The book has good photographs of APV in the company of leaders from India and abroad, and some pleasant family portraits. The book is highly recommended to all interested in diplomacy. It has a detailed account of a major contretemps by a former Prime Minister by well-known journalists. There is a section of ‘Venkatisms’ like the reference to Rajiv Gandhi, under whom he served, that one can inherit good looks, also intelligence, but not experience. The tributes occupy well over half the book, ranging from a two liner which describes him as caring and hospitable, to much longer ones which recount in some detail what it was like to work with him with greater or lesser closeness, to know him socially, to enjoy his hospitality and, in more than one case, to encounter him in other circumstances. Some of the contributors knew him well, others hardly at all.The keenness of his intellect and the sharpness of his wit are the qualities that come in for most attention; one after another, the tributes refer to his humour, his capacity for quick repartee. An enjoyable read,indeed. P.P.Ramachandran 8/11/2020.

'Tharoorosaurus' by Shashi Tharoor ;Published

by Penguin / Viking ; Pages 319;Price Rs.399/-

                    ****************************

In a celebrated literary anecdote Oliver Goldsmith admonished Samuel Johnson-- “If you make Fishes talk they will talk like Whales”.This applies in equal measure to that Enfant Terrible Shashi Tharoor whose latest concoction is an unabashedly “Wordy” book and deals with interesting words from every letter of the alphabet.

 Tharoor has acquired some notoriety for employing obscure words .He has debouched the book under review to to share words, both long and short, with those fascinated by language. 

Tharoor begins the book by acknowledging his debt to his father.His fascination for words had to rub off on his eldest child .The words include everything from an oft-used Apostrophe to a bit archaic Panglossian. I’ve never had any sort of systematic approach to trying to learn new words; the best way to expand one’s vocabulary is through reading, and I would say that that has held true for me all through my life. In this book, there was no particular reason for the choice of words — they were either words I’d recently used  or words that the country was suddenly using a lot more often than usual (like “pandemic” and “quarantine”), or words in the news (like “impeachment” and “apostrophe”), or sometimes just words that I could tell interesting stories about (like & “curfew” and & “defenestrate”). 

 

It all began with the delightful correspondence Tharoor had with fellow writer Chetan Bhagat who asked the word wizard to praise him using "big words".Much to the delight of Bhagat, Tharoor the diplomat-turned-politician replied,

"Sure, @chetan_bhagat! It's clear you are not sesquipedalian nor given to rodomontade. Your ideas are unembellished with tortuous convolutions & expressed without ostentation. I appreciate the limpid perspicacity of today's column." For the unversed, 'sesquipedalian' means a word being polysyllabic, 'rodomontade' is boastful, 'convolutions' means complex, 'ostentation' means being pretentious, 'limpid' is clear and 'perspicacity' is to be shrewd.

Shashi bandied in Twitter and praised Bhagat for his article in Times of India, titled "The youth need to shut their phones and ask about the economy".Shashi termed Bhagat's opinion piece as "superb" and one with a "clear message".

The book has 53 words with definitions and the history of the word and also an Indian context in some. The copious details and choice of words make this an unusual compilation . He repeats some words but offers them a different meaning.

Any word lover will love this work of love for language and the way it constantly evolves.

Sashi is noted for his recondite scholarship that makes one chase a lexicon. The author and politician has a vocabulary that has been admired for how expansive it is. It has also inspired countless memes. Tharoor, however, has always been the first to laugh at himself. An evidence of this is his new book.

Tharoor’s mind-boggling plethora of uncommon words have forced the common man to become astounded and even aghast!.

In 2017, Tharoor's tweet, with words like "exasperating farrago of distortions", made headlines and became the buzz word of the Internet.

As an asthmatic child, often confined to the bed, Tharoor  took to the comfort provided by books. This was in the era of fewer distractions. There was no television, mobile phone, PlayStation, or the Internet. "They [books] were my entertainment, my escape and my education. I would read copiously and indiscriminately," he shares. When he came across the same words in different books and in various contexts, he quickly learned "how they are used, their meanings and nuances". "As a result, my vocabulary naturally expanded," Tharoor added.

The idea for the book was born out of a column that Tharoor used to have in a Sunday newspaper, till recently, where he would discuss a new word, every week.

There was no particular reason for the choice of words he included in the book. "They were either words I'd recently used in a tweet (like 'farrago' and 'kakistocracy'), or words that the country was suddenly using a lot more often than usual (like 'pandemic' and 'quarantine').

Defenestrate is also a word that he is "overly fond of" and goes back to his college days at St Stephen's in Delhi. "The word literally means 'to throw out of a window', and while opportunities for its literal usage are limited in our civilized times, its metaphorical possibilities are limitless! Especially for an Opposition MP trying to defenestrate the ruling party," he quips. A word, he feels, Indians should be using more often is "agathokakological," which means something or someone made up of both good and evil. "We see so many examples of agathokakological people, situations, and stories in our daily lives in India."

What Tharoor finds most amusing is when people ask him, which dictionary or thesaurus he refers to, to improve his vocabulary. "People think I am some sort of nutcase who studies dictionaries all day long, but the reality is that I have barely opened a dictionary in my life."

 The book displays his famous wit. Select the word ‘Goon’ .Shashi writes, “The goons who assaulted students at Jawaharlal Nehru University could not have entered and left without the complicity of the police.” . It would feel almost disingenuous, especially in my profession, to write without reference to the terribly unjust times we are living in. Those who committed the violence at JNU most certainly exemplify the word “goon”.

 The love of learning is self-reinforcing — the more you practice it, the stronger it becomes. That has certainly been true in my own experience. In a multilingual polity like ours, familiarity with usage is often a challenge, and wit and humour, in particular, can often be lost in translation.

Shashi like Amitabh in Namak Halal, can leave the ‘Angrez’ behind. He can talk English, he can walk English, he can laugh English, and it’s that last characteristic that turns his new book a huge entertainer --indeed a minor achievement.

The origin of the words and the process by which they evolved into their current avatar are limpidly clarified . Tharoor is a great yarn spinner with a Wodehousian sense of the comic!

Tharoor is an accidental artist of the long word. Indeed, his early forays into this domain were not quite distinguished . The number of Tharoor-isms has increased, and their adoption by a vibrant social media soon made him the Pope of the spoken word.

Shashi does not cloak his political leanings . So often there is more swipe than required of Narendra Mody and this does pall. Perhaps a more uncommitted wordsmith would have been equally critical of the Dynasty. Sans doubt Shashi has his prejudices,likings but these are the warp and woof of life.

The charm of the tome is redoubled by the deligh tful illustrations of Mihir Joglekar. Sashi’s book is not exactly un-put-downable but surely is engaging,entertaining and occasionally elevating. With Tharoor around there is a promise of there being not dull moment after the diplomat –lexicographer’s landing in God’s own country.

                                

                                                  Shashi Tharoor

P.P.Ramachandran.

01/11/2020.

Overdraft by Dr.Urjit Patel ; Published by Harper Business; Pages 195 ; Price Rs.599/- ************************* Dr.Urjit Patel was the 24th Governor of R B I and resigned on December 11, 2018.He was the first Governor to state personal reasons as a driving factor for his resignation. He is the Fifth RBI Governor to have resigned before the end of his term. In his new book, “Overdraft: Saving the Indian Saver”, he gives some insights on what led to this unprecedented resignation. Dr. Patel’s book is focused on the massive Non-Performing Assets problem, its effect on the economy and financial stability and the way forward. This book adopts the path laid down by predecessors like Raghuram Rajan compiling a book of speeches with introductions and epilogues. Patel’s book banks heavily on his previous academic work, and lectures at various universities in the US and India after he laid down office. It is very meaningful while analysing the bad loan situation in banks and examining solutions to the problems. It serves as a stern warning which ,one hopes the Government would consider carefully. Patel does not spare any stakeholder and clearly points out that everyone has been responsible for the mess including the government which failed to question excessive lending by the banks it owns, and regulators who woke up late to problems and then told themselves, “this time it is different” to the financial media which applauded lenders who had been upbraided by the RBI. According to him RBI supervision teams felt the “Stockholm Syndrome” and came “up with mitigating explanations for not recommending apposite strictures and penalties commensurate with transgressions that have been brought to light”. Three parameters have been highlighted and these are “Fears of the 3Cs (the Central Bureau of Investigation, the Central Vigilance Commission and the Comptroller and Auditor General) . Patel writes “The regulator fell short on several counts in the period leading up to 2014. It failed to challenge assumptions through, for example, more rigorous stress-test scenarios at bank level as well as sensitivity analysis on (demand assumptions) and sector (policy) risks.” A year ago Patel had adumbrated a trilemma in a lecture--- it is impossible for a) public sector lenders to dominate the banking system while having b) independent regulation and c) the government adhering to fiscal prudence. Thus, if the government wants to direct credit flow in the economy and stick to fiscal deficit targets (and not recapitalise banks), then the regulator will have to relax its norms. On the other hand, if the regulator sticks to its guns, and the government continues to do policy interventions through credit, then it has to necessarily recapitalise banks and say goodbye to fiscal prudence. Patel is convinced that independent regulation has taken the hit. Relaxation of norms over time and conferring ease on crony capitalists has become inevitable with objectives of Government being often different. According to the Governor an asset quality review on NBFCs and MSME borrowers was started in a quiet way in 2018 but that “seems to have been postponed”. Even in the case of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, Patel believes Government could have ensured better follow-up. Patel is unhappy with the current RBI dispensation diluting the central bank’s framework for bad loan resolution outside the bankruptcy code. He affirms : “Decisions in 2019 and early 2020 by the government and other stakeholders have increased the likelihood that long-drawn cases are here to stay. Periodic bailout by the government and official entities will likely continue, at least for some banks.” Government continues to lean heavily on the banking system to boost demand. At the same time, bad loans are estimated to shoot up by as much as 50 percent this financial year while regulatory forbearance has re-emerged. Patel sounds a note of warning “We have to be vigilant that U-turns don’t usher a serial bout of ever-greening and zombie borrowers; otherwise, victory over crony capitalism will, at best, be short-lived, and that the limited progress so far could turn out to be a false dawn." The most glaring omission in the book is the absence of a discussion on demonetisation. Patel was RBI Governor when the Modi government implemented the policy, and he received a lot of flak for remaining quiet, back then. But he continues to remain silent on the issue. As RBI Governor in September 2016, Patel worked out the ‘9R’ strategy, which he affirms would save savings, rescue banks and protect them from unscrupulous racketeers. His ‘9R’ strategy is divided into five steps. The first has 4Rs: Recognise, Record, Report and Recovery. The second step involves Resolution of bad loans under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC). In the third step, there is the 6th and 7th R aimed at legally enforcing Resolution and Recapitalisation commitment. The fourth step (8th R) focuses on cementing the change (Reset and Ring Fence) and the fifth and final step calls for Reform, aimed at restoring faith in government banks. Prompt Corrective Action (PCA) norms were relaxed to ‘graduate’ five loss-making government banks out of the PCA framework in early 2019. “Recapitalisation of these PCA banks helped them meet the criterion on net NPAs. Hardly anyone disagreed that this was to facilitate higher credit growth.” Patel talks of two other parties that are responsible. The first are various industry associations that have never criticised the defaulters. One of the reasons as to why banks maintain higher spreads on deposits is that they must provide for these NPAs, which, in turn, impinges on capital. Hence the cost is spread across all borrowers. India Inc cannot shun responsibility and just keep quiet, as it affects everyone. Patel does argue against farm loan waivers and supports agri reforms, which have a more long-lasting effect on the lives of farmers. We have a chapter on governance and less interference from the government when it comes to PSBs. Highlighted by Patel is a significant issue, of the RBI having no power when it comes to PSBs, which was making headlines even when he was Governor. This anomaly must be corrected if we are to show any improvement in this sector as regulation becomes difficult. The book is an essential read for students of finance, economy and commerce. For those entrusted with managing the banking sector, it is a valuable guide and a reminder of the pitfalls of falsehoods. P.P.Ramachandran. 18/10/2020.

Backstage by Montek Singh Ahluwalia ; Published by Rupa ; Pages 434 ; Price Rs.595/- *************************** Montek Singh Ahluwalia strode like a Colossus the Indian Economic Scene for over 30 years. He was held in respect and struck fear in equal measure. In him was an uncommon amalgam of intellectual brilliance, vision and propriety . Sans doubt Montek emerged as a world renowned economic policy maker. Only one of the two non--I A S Officers to become Finance Secretary, he dictated the contours of India’s fiscal liberalisation programme under Dr. Manmohan Singh and P.Chidambaram. Montek had many feathers in his Turban—always Blue---- Finance Secretary, Ministry of Finance, Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Commerce Secretary, Special Secretary to the Prime Minister and Economic Adviser, Ministry of Finance. He was Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission. He has been involved with economic policymaking in India at senior levels from 1979 till 2014, except for a few years of the Vajpayee regime.Montek was the architect of the country's 11th and 12th Five Year Plans and witnessed the economy's deep issues during the tumultuous years of 2009--14 when the Global Economic Crisis derailed the Indian economy and caused the NPA crisis which continues to haunt to this day. He was awarded the Padma Vibhushan and the Skoch challenger Award for Lifetime achievement, both in 2011. The book under review is an uncluttered chronicle of one legendary, brilliant, self-assured and suave economist participating in the momentous changes in India that mirrored his own career. It portrays the story of the Indian economy being catapulted from a middling performer to a growth dynamo post the reforms. The book gives a clear, step by step account of the key moments in that reform process and is particularly useful on the build-up to 1991. It provides for the researcher a preliminary draft that describes the transformation of the economy from a state-run mixed economy to a market-led structure. The book is utterly free of malice and is an object lesson in being nice and a successful effort in not making enemies. The book does not say a single negative thing about anyone. There is a mild indirect criticism of the Gandhi family for constraining Manmohan Singh. The Gandhis frittered away the party’s talents. The chronicle has several laudable achievements . One observes admirable consistency and clarity of intellectual outlook. Montek emerges as a truly detached stoic. The only occasion when Montek becomes emotional is when he recounts the anti-Sikh riots of 1984, when Arun Shourie had to drive Montek’s parents to safety amidst the carnage. Expectedly Montek has many heroes the most favourite being Manmohan Singh. However,the towering personality is Montek Singh’s father who was a clerk in the Defence Accounts Service. His commitment to his children’s education was remarkable. After Montek got a double promotion in primary school, and was just beginning class in the new school year, young Montek’s mother took him away for a week for a wedding in the family, and the father sat in his son’s maths class for that week, so as to be able to fill his son in on what he had missed. Before his last posting, he had a choice, either become a promotee officer in his service and take up a posting in some remote part of the country or decline the promotion and relocate to Delhi. So that his children might get a better education, the elder Ahluwalia chose Delhi over becoming an officer. The third hero is the author himself--- Montek who studies hard, wins scholarships and friends, puts behind himself, in succession, DPS , St Stephens, Oxford, the World Bank, India’s finance ministry, the Prime Minister’s Office, the Planning Commission, the IMF’s global evaluation office and finally the post of deputy chairman of the Planning Commission . Montek accords to Manmohan Singh credit for pushing through the initial set of economic reforms in 1991, in a manner that would make Singh blush. Montek says Singh once described himself as an appointed prime minister. Without Rao’s backing and political guidance, it is open to doubt if Finance Minister Singh would not have been booed out of Parliament in one day. The path-breaking industrial policy that did away with licences and permits and clearances from the Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Commission was not part of Singh’s reform budget. Reorienting India’s foreign policy away from its Westward bias and post-Soviet recalibration towards the East was Rao’s contribution, as was the decision to carry on with India’s nuclear programme.Ahluwalia stands squarely in Singh’s corner and even tries to recalibrate the historical weightage allotted to him. Montek is unwilling to locate UPA II’s unwinding in Singh’s own lack of control over the narrative. Montek has no hard answers.The charitable explanation is diplomatic restraint. Ahluwalia is unable—or unwilling—to pull his punches for the Left parties which had often publicly articulated their distaste for his policies. There is a side-swipe at the BJP’s duplicity in, first, opposing multiple strands of the reforms programme, then implementing the same agenda when in power and claiming credit for it. It is disappointing when Ahluwalia strenuously side-steps Singh’s inaction when corruption allegations and policy stasis undermined the United Progressive Alliance’s second term in Parliament, from 2009-14. One is surprised to note pretty little of Montek’s interactions with Narendra Modi, especially when he visited the Planning Commission as Gujarat’s chief minister, imploring the Soviet-style organisation for a higher allocation of Central funds and development grants. The book has a high autobiographical content, with either his role or his views invariably recorded for every major economic development in this period. Montek’s account is particularly valuable for its historical span, meticulous documentation and deft analysis. It is the first insider account of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA)’s decade in power, written by someone who served at the very heart of that government. There was a belief that Manmohan Singh was a weak leader and the country was yearning for a more decisive prime minister. “The performance of this government in the first seven of its 10 years was outstanding. The economy clocked an average growth of 8.4% in this period, the fastest growth rate ever”, writes Ahluwalia. “Pulling 138 million persons above poverty was hailed internationally as a major achievement.” The first problem was that the UPA responded inadequately, even incorrectly, to the 2G and “Coalgate” controversies. In the process, it allowed them to become scandals that shrouded its successes. Ahluwalia ends by revealing, “I have often urged Dr Manmohan Singh to write his memoirs but have had no luck so far.” The former PM is waiting for history’s verdict, confident it will be kinder than that of his contemporaries. Yet, that could be hampered by his refusal to leave behind his side of the story. One does look forward to the tale told by Manmohan Singh. P.P.Ramachandran. 11/10/2020.

A Ringside Seat to History ; An Autobiography by Pascal Alan Nazareth; Published by Konark Publishers ; Pages 256 ; Price Rs.800/- *************************** It is a matter of common knowledge that Indians are not famous for recording history and we can boast of few biographies and autobiographies. Happily post Independence we have a number of books of this genre. Retired ICS Officers wrote memoirs and these included the works of K.P.S.Menon.B.K.Nehru,Chintaman Deshmukh. Nazareth’s autobiography is a valuable addition. The ancient Chinese have a wonderful form of blessing—An elder person would say-- “May you live in interesting times.” Surely the author of the book under review has lived in interesting times, met interesting people and experienced extraordinary events in several countries. Two important people who were close to him are Mother Teresa and Zubin Mehta. At the end of this review I give two valuable anecdotes about them. The book is the riveting autobiography an ordinary young man, whose father earnestly wanted him to be a part of the coveted Indian Administrative Service , but the son got selected for the Indian Foreign Service . This in fact ,enabled him to witnesses historic events at close proximity in several parts of the globe and what is more also play a role in some of them. He was holding a Masters Degree in Economics from Madras University, when he cleared IFS. He learns of the Dalai Lama's crossing the Tibetan border into India, in Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru's office; witnesses a Japanese politician being assassinated in Tokyo; handles the aftermath of military coups and bloody executions of Heads of State in Ghana and Liberia; relentlessly pursues a fraudulent and well-connected NRI shipping magnate, Jayanti Dharma Teja, in the US and Costa Rica and ensures he is repatriated to India; crosses swords with nefarious arms dealers in London; makes major economic gains for India in West Africa and Latin America and makes a vital contribution in projecting India as a 'Cultural Superpower. He and his wife Isobel played an excellent role in the aftermath of the devastating Peruvian earthquake. They also coaxed Mother Teresa to open a MoC home in Lima. His post-retirement years have been dedicated to reviving Gandhian ideals, promoting friendship and peace with Pakistan and lecturing on 'Blue Waters'. Struck with two major personal tragedies he sublimates them into socially impactful projects and spiritual self-transformation. This is the autobiography of Shri.P.A.Nazareth who in his 35-year IFS career has served in a number of India's diplomatic missions . Diplomacy is the conduct of relations between countries through negotiations and discussions, especially in an age when national interest is secured no longer through isolation but interaction. Diplomats, therefore, are a vital part of this arm of the nation-state, reaching out across the globe to further cooperation for their countries and salvaging the situation when the ties are in choppy waters. The writer, an accomplished diplomat, was part of an era in the Indian Foreign Service when the country carved a niche for itself in the global arena. He has served in India's diplomatic and consular missions in Tokyo, Rangoon, Lima, London, Chicago and New York and as India's High Commissioner to Ghana and Ambassador to Liberia, Upper Volta, Togo, Egypt, Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador A Belize. Since retirement in May 1994, he has lectured at many prestigious institutions such as Universities of Bengaluru, Banaras, Delhi, Stanford, Yale, Columbia, Heidelberg, Uppsala and Peking. His book “Gandhi's Outstanding Leadership” has appeared in 12 Indian and 23 foreign languages, including Arabic, French, Mandarin, Russian and Spanish. Former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev has written the Foreword for 12 of its foreign language editions. In 2007, Nazareth was presented the U Thant Peace Award for his 'Life Time of World Service'. Earlier distinguished recipients are Pope John Paul II, Mother Teresa, the Dalai Lama, Mikhail Gorbachev, Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu. Nazareth has delivered International Day of Non-Violence keynote addresses at the UN in New York in 2012 and UN Library in Geneva in 2017. His second book “Gandhi: The Soul Force Warrior” was published in 2018. Nazareth recalls how his batch of the IFS was taken to meet P.M.Jawaharlal Nehru .At that precise moment the PM was informed that the Dalai Lama had crossed over into the country from Tibet that morning. “These young officers will be dealing with today’s consequences,” was Nehru’s decision. History was being made and Nazreth was introduced to diplomacy. Delightful personal memories are shared of how his father did not allow him to get married before leaving for his first posting in Japan, but sent his mother instead for company.The reader is captivated by Nazareth’s utterly honest account of his partnership with Isobel,the sense of tragic loss when his daughter Seema died as also the great relief and joy at the recovery from cancer of his son Andy. During the 1982-85 period, when Mr. Nazareth was ICCR Director General, multifaceted Indian cultural festivals were held in Britain, USA and France, and international conferences on 'Buddhism and National Cultures' and 'India and World Literature', and a World Poetry Festival at New Delhi. An India-Greece Symposium organized during this period at Delphi resulted in the scholarly publication India and Greece'. Subsequently when Mr. Nazareth was Ambassador to Egypt and Mexico 'India and Egypt' and 'India and Mexico' were published, following similar symposia held in Cairo and Mexico City. He successfully handled the presentation in India of the Bolshoi Ballet,Paris Opera and NYPO. Mr. Nazareth retired in May 1994 and since then has been guest lecturer at National Institute of Advanced Studies, Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore and National Defence College, New Delhi. He has also lectured at or participated in seminars in several prestigious Universities all over the world. Nazareth is a founder and Managing Trustee of Sarvodaya International Trust which is dedicated to promoting the Gandhian ideals of Truth, nonviolence, communal harmony, humanitarian service and peace. Nazareth is the Chief of Gandhi Centre of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Bengaluru. He has conducted international conferences on India and World Literature in New Delhi and organised events where many scholars presented papers on how India has been projected in world literature and India’s contribution to world literature. This is a chronicle which is at once graceful and compelling and opens for the reader a new world of experience and enlightenment. It is difficult to disagree with Ambassador Rasgotra when he declares in his Foreword, “...There is much more in the book that will delight, inform,intrigue and enlighten readers about the ways in which Indian diplomacy engages with the world”. Two Anecdotes: Mother Teresa Andy, the author’s son has undergone a surgery for cancer in New York’s Sloan Kettering Hospital. Providentially Mother Teresa arrives there and goes to see Andy, pats him on his cheeks, prays over him intensely with her eyes closed for about three minutes, then makes him recite a short prayer to Infant Jesus and tells him, “You will soon be well.” Andy recovered very fast after that. According to Doctors,a very speedy recovery. Zubin Mehta On a visit to Jerusalem by car.Nazareth and Isobel arrived at the Erez border post and faced a problem.The Immigration Officers were friendly but after examining their passports courteously pointed Israeli visas, that though they had Israeli visas,their passports had been stamped “valid for all countries except Israel and South Africa.”. One of the Immigration Officers asked, “Ambasador Nazareth,Do you know Zubin Mehta?”. The author confirmed “I know him very well”.They established contact with Zubin who talked to the Israeli Foreign Minister who cleared the proposal and the author and his wife could enter Israel. Next evening they attended Zubin’s programme at the Mann auditorium and watched the show from Zubin’s box. P.P.Ramachandran 4/10/2020.