Opinion - Editorials

Basking in the glory, deservedly

If the Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad broke with tradition to invite a politician to deliver a special lecture, it was not without good reason. Railway Minister Lalu Prasad has brought about a wholesale transformation of the Indian railways in the last two years and indeed the stellar performance of the public sector monolith is the subject of business school case studies. It cannot be denied that his arch rival and predecessor and currently Bihar Chief Minister, Nitish Kumar, laid the foundation for the turnaround. But it was with Mr. Prasad's further push that the results have started showing and he seems to be deservedly basking in the glory. Imagine a loss-making organisation with the largest workforce in the public sector like the Indian Railways raking in huge profits without increasing either passenger fares or freight charges. This has been achieved largely through meticulous planning, streamlining of operations, and a remarkable improvement in efficiency and productivity. The enviable generation of internal revenues has made it possible for the Railways to grow, within a five-year span, from being a defaulter in payment of dividend to the Centre to a substantial contributor — it paid Rs.13,612 crore last year and intends to pay Rs.20,000 crore this year. The Minister's announcement of setting up a Chair at the IIM-A to study the Railway infrastructure and its economy augurs well for the further professionalisation of the management of the organisation.

Mr. Prasad's political leadership and non-interference in the day-to-day management aside, the Railway Board and the Zonal Railways must be given due credit for their part in the achievement. The Minister himself told the students that he gave the officials functional freedom, but more importantly, it was a change in mindset that helped. While accepting the Minister's political decision of not raising fares or freight tariff, and even absorbing the cost of the diesel price increases in the past two years, the Railway administration has shown how astute planning and implementation can yield tangible gains. The Railways' social commitment extends beyond keeping fares down and includes such changes as supplying tea to passengers in environment-friendly kullads, and proposing to set up farmers' markets near stations. Despite the growing competition from the airlines that are weaning away passengers, and the road sector that offers easy and convenient freight transportation, the Railways has remarkably held its own. An efficient utilisation of the rolling stock, judicious planning of special trains to cope with seasonal traffic, a customer-friendly approach to trade and industry, and the computerised booking facility have made all this possible. Now, the task ahead of it is to sustain the momentum.

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