Date:09/10/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/10/09/stories/2007100959590200.htm

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

A packed hall is what you see when Kiran Bedi speaks

Staff Reporter

She spoke on management, leadership, communication at ‘Paradigm 2007’

— Photo: S. Thanthoni

Journal released: Kiran Bedi, Director-General, Bureau of Police Research and Development, releases Ethiraj College MBA Department’s journal ‘Paradigm 2007’ on Monday. Chairman of the Ethiraj College Trust S. Jagadeesan and college principal M. Thavamani are in the picture.

CHENNAI: No other lecture at Ethiraj College would have got as rapt an attention from the audience as this one. The auditorium was packed to overflowing and the only sounds from the audience were the occasional bursts of applause and laughter. Kiran Bedi’s speech had the students enthralled.

At the inaugural function of ‘Paradigm 2007’, the annual inter-college fest of the MBA Department of Ethiraj College, Ms. Bedi, Director-General, Bureau of Police Research and Development, spoke to the students on management, leadership and communication.

“I have three interesting things to tell you,” she began, “and I’m excited about telling them.”

From experience

Her third and most fascinating thing was about attitude. She talked about her experience as Inspector-General of Tihar Jail, where, confronted by 10,000 inmates in a system that was both corrupt and violent, her optimistic attitude helped reform the prison. “My first option was to declare nothing can be done. The second option was to look at what I have. I have 10,000 human beings. I started to communicate with them,” she said, explaining that despite having no budget for education she started an education programme by winning the cooperation of the inmates. Graduate prisoners became teachers, schools were asked to donate used books and soon a full-fledged education programme was running within the jail. “The message is, when you go into management as professionals, look at what you have and create wealth out of it,” she said.

About being a student of management, she said that each student was a consumer and a producer. Those who consume more and produce less become a liability to society.

“As students you are a national wealth. Getting an education is for you to enhance this wealth,” she said. Urging students to use their time productively, she said that this was the only period in their lives where they could spend all their time in a library. You can draw on the knowledge you gain now forever, she added.

Alternating between Hindi and English, Ms. Bedi also interacted with the students, asking them if they had watched the film ‘Chak De India’ and declared it a movie with all the ingredients of leadership.

She also focussed on the differences between a man and a woman as a manager and told the students that each had to work on their strengths and weaknesses. She urged the faculty of the college to devise special programmes that taught students how to balance the head and the heart. She also urged the faculty to teach the students both hard and soft skills.

Chairman of the Ethiraj College Trust S. Jagadeesan was present at the function. The journal of the MBA department, ‘Paradigm 2007’, was released on the occasion.

Around 40 colleges are participating in the event, including 17 from outside the city.

Several business and management-based competitions such as ‘business plans’, ‘stocks and shares’ and ‘best manager’ are to be conducted over the two days of the programme.