O Captain, My Captain: Why leadership matters, especially amid difficult times

Like in every other sphere, be it sports, business or politics, a good team is important, but a good leader is the pivot around whom the entire team revolves. The leaders are the change-makers. No matter how good your team is, a bad leader at the helm can lead to ruin, and even a mediocre team can be inspired into greatness by a great leader. More than in any other sphere of life, having a good leader is the most important ingredient in building up a nation. For, one good leader can change the fate and future of a country.

Let’s, for example, look at the stride India has made and the positive transformation it has undergone since 2014 when Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power for the first time in Delhi.

The Transformative Leader

Through his mantra of “Seva, Sushasan and Antodaya” (service, good governance and uplift the most marginalised), he has truly brought India to the 21st century.

In the past, the funds allocated by the Central government meant for various welfare schemes, especially grants in cash, would be sent to the respective state governments, which would then send it further down to districts. From districts, it would reach sub-divisions, development blocks, municipalities and finally panchayats. Because there were multiple layers through which the funds traversed, it paved way for middlemen to crop up, who demanded their ‘share of cut’ before the fund was sent further down, eventually leading to the final recipient — citizens in need — being left with only a fraction of the funds actually meant for them. This had given impetus to such a level of corruption that one of the prime ministers had to confess in public that “only 15 paise from every Re 1 sent for the welfare of people reaches them”.

In contrast, instead of complaining about the existing system and its inherent flaws, one of the very first actions that Narendra Modi undertook after assuming the office of the prime minister was to change the system fundamentally, so that corruption could be curbed at all levels of governance.

Ensuring Financial Inclusion: JAM Trinity

Not many may realise this, but it was PM Modi’s vision of Jan Dhan account and currency note ban that encouraged citizens to open bank accounts. This contributed immensely towards the financial inclusion of those who had otherwise been left out of the system so far. Using the JAM trinity of Jan Dhan, Aadhaar and mobile technology, Modi transformed the way the government provided service, ensured empowerment, and financial inclusion of every section of the society.

Initiatives like seeding of Aadhaar data with the bank accounts, leading to Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT), development of the United Payments Interface (UPI) and the development of digital payments in mere eight-years’ time is nothing short of a financial miracle. The hallmark of the Modi government has been that each and every action of the government is preceded by developing a vision, holistic planning, allocating resources, and appointing the right agency/individual for implementation of the plan to realise the vision.

Today, thanks to these measures, the citizens are getting 100 per cent of their share of welfare measures directly deposited in their accounts, with no middlemen involved. As of date, almost 10,000 services of the Central, state and local self-government have become available online. From scholarships, payments to farmers, government assistance, everything is transferred directly to the bank account of individual citizens.

Imagine the scale of financial inclusion and empowerment that people have been made a part of, today: India is the world’s leading nation in terms of digital economy. In the year 2021, 40 per cent of all real-time digital financial transactions across the world happened in India, worth over Rs 20,000 crore every day, and the beginning of all this can be traced back to PM Modi ensuring every citizen had a Jan Dhan account opened up.

That is what leadership is all about. 

Infrastructure Development

One of the key impediments towards India’s development was lack of world-class infrastructure. Despite India achieving high growth through the 1990s and early 2000s, the rate of infrastructural growth was abysmal. In 2013-14 when the UPA government was in power, only 12 km of highway was being constructed in a day; today, it has reached an average of 37 km per day. A staggering 300 per cent rise in mere eight years.

Same is the story of growth in every sphere of infrastructure, be it rural roads, railways, airports, or ports. Through various initiatives like Bharatmala, Sagarmala, Inland Waterways, Dry/land ports, UDAN, Parvat Mala, and now PM Gati Shakti, thereby ensuring seamless connectivity for movement of people, goods and services from one mode of transport to another. All these together are set to revolutionise travel and transportation in our nation. 

Manufacturing Revolution and Export Promotion

Along with ensuring the benefits of welfare measures reaching every citizen, and the development of world-class infrastructure, the Central government under PM Modi has worked tirelessly to turn India into an international manufacturing hub. Beginning with the reduction in corporate tax rates, ensuring investment policy reforms, reduction in compliance burden through improved ‘Ease of Doing Business’ ranking, India has become the leading nation to attract investment in the manufacturing sector. Today, India has emerged as a leading exporter of goods and services, with total exports reaching nearly $670 billion or over Rs 50 lakh crore for the first time in 2021-22. Not many may realise this, but today India is exporting over $75 million or Rs 580 crore worth of goods and services every hour.

This is happening because of the innovative and visionary programmes like Skill India, Digital India, Make in India, Vocal for Local, Performance Linked Incentives (PLI), among others. More importantly, all these have helped instill a sense of confidence and attitude of “Yes! We can do it” in every Indian. 

Reaching the Last Person: Hallmark of a true leader

At the end of the day, there is only one measure of success when it comes to a nation: How do these measures translate in real terms, especially vis-à-vis the most marginalised sections of the society? This becomes all the more important given the unprecedented health and socio-economic scenarios faced by the world due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Today, India is the only country that has provided over 192 crore free vaccines to its citizens, and supplied vaccines to numerous other countries. And, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has recently applauded India for bringing its “extreme poverty” below 1 per cent.

This is why leadership matters. 

Raju Bista is the Member of Parliament from Darjeeling and national spokesperson for the BJP. Views expressed are personal.

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