The George Method

George Fernandes has hit upon a first-rate idea to get the wheels of government rolling. What better way to teach obstructive defence ministry officials the terrible error of their ways than to send them out to the Siachen glacier? Below-zero temperatures and the thin air at high altitudes are just the right antidotes to the arrogance of people who have known nothing harder than a cushioned seat all their lives. In those desolate snowscapes they will learn the difference between real life and the cossetted little kingdoms they have created for themselves. They will see why the environment takes a higher toll of jawans8217; lives than enemy fire. There, at last, they will understand what snowmobiles are and why they are so urgently needed. The experience should last them the rest of their bureaucratic lives. Perhaps television crews could go along and record this passage to wisdom for the rest of babudom.

Why stop at three callous officers who have been stalling a defence ministry requisition forsnowmobiles for five years? There are hundreds of thousands of their equals all over the country who could do with similar correction. Anyone who has chased a file has encountered some part of the formidable mysteries of government departments. Bureaucrats are masters of obfuscation and correct procedure. After all, it is they who write the rules and interpret them. It is hopeless meeting them head-on or trying to browbeat or outmanoeuvre them. So, the George Method recommends itself strongly to anyone, from ministers down, who has stood powerless before the great Indian babu. Imagine the possibilities. Cancelled flights? Ground Indian Airlines bosses. Dead telephones? Cut off the zonal manager8217;s connection. Slum colonies which put up with no electricity, no water and open sewage drains would be glad to accommodate uninvited guests from the upper echelons of the municipality.

There are limits to the Method, of course. What does one do about stalled project clearances? How can the best candidates bechosen from among a battery of officers in a battery of departments obstructing the same file? Clearly the Method will work in some situations, not necessarily all. But it is worth putting into effect on a regular basis and on a wide scale. It should not be regarded as a punishment but as a process of updating skills and of familiarisation with real life. No one can deny that as the world has become more complex, the education of babus has been falling behind. They themselves would endorse in quadruplicate the importance of making informed decisions. They are second to none when it comes to applying for government-supported courses in institutions abroad or stints at the World Bank. And quite rightly so. Education is a continuous process. Knowledge is power; the acquisition of new skills essential. So why not learn a thing or two by sitting on the other side of the desk and getting a first-hand feel of the frustrations? It8217;s a pity Pay Commission awards were not tied to such self-education processes.But there is definite promise in George8217;s way of reforming babus.