Though strictly not a babu or even from Dilli there is no doubt that RBI governor Raghuram Rajan is India’s biggest “finance babu” for now. He is one of very few officials to have been appointed by the Manmohan Singh government to survive well into the Modi sarkar. And perhaps that is the trouble. Increasingly he has found himself at odds with the current establishment, whether over monetary policy or his public utterances. The chorus of critics reached a crescendo when maverick BJP MP Subramanian Swamy publicly demanded that Dr Rajan be packed off as he is not fit for the job.
Mr Swami, of course, is not the sole critic of Dr Rajan. The ripples of dissent however have now found resonance within the government. The timing of the attacks on Dr Rajan however is easy to see — his three-year term is ending in September and there would be many within the BJP fold who would be eying his position.
But much as though the dissenters may wish to see Dr Rajan’s back, the reason why Narendra Modi did not disturb Dr Rajan was probably due to an absence of capable candidates to replace him. Curiously, in a recent interview, Dr Rajan mentioned that “there is always more to do” which has been taken by some as a hint that he may be looking for another term. Babus in Mumbai believe otherwise.
The PMO has kept quiet on this issue even as the rising decibels of anti-Rajan talk suggests that there is growing support at the top for his removal.
Success stories Tina Dabi has become the second Delhi girl to top the Civil Service examination in consecutive years, after Ira Singhal in 2015. More significantly, she is the first ever dalit girl to top the UPSC examination, an incredible achievement given the deep and complex social changes taking place in the country. Sadly that also makes her the instant target of fake posts in her name and other such modern-day illnesses.
Sources say that following the announcement of the results, many senior dalit officers were quick to take note of the “history of the moment” and its inspirational value to others in the community. This year more than half of the selected candidates are from the SCs and STs.
Ms Dabi has chosen the IAS with a preference for Haryana, Delhi’s neighbouring state, which is developed economically, but faces many challenges on the social front. She says that she wishes to work on gender equality, as Haryana has the lowest child sex ratio in the country.
Just as the success of Ms Dabi is inspiration for dalits, J&K is lauding Athar Aamir-ul-Shafi Khan who was placed second in the merit list. Interestingly, he cracked the UPSC exam twice in a row, while improving his ranking from 560 last year to number two this year.
Back to basics While we don’t know if the stern admonishment delivered two years ago by the then Cabinet Secretary Ajit Seth to all secretaries across ministries and government departments about badly drafted Cabinet notes worked, things apparently haven’t changed much. He noted that sub-standard notes cause ministers “considerable inconvenience” and decisions are being delayed. He further urged babus to attend workshops on the subject and devote personal attention while preparing Cabinet notes.
Mr Seth’s lucid observations on the importance of good drafting did not of course trickle down to the states. Nor, it seems, have many babus chosen to study the Handbook on Writing Cabinet Notes written by Mr Seth in 2014, published online by the Union Cabinet Secretariat. Recently Karnataka chief secretary Arvind Jadhav had to issue a similar note to babus in the state, lamenting that the Cabinet notes being prepared by the bureaucrats “lack clarity and are riddled with grammatical errors”. Apparently some of the notes are so poorly drafted that they “test his patience”.
But how many babus will take this slap on the wrist and go back to relearn the basics of writing is hard to say.
