May 11, 1998

By Amarnath K Menon

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu is known to be a difficult taskmaster. There are stories galore in the state secretariat about how he sets stiff targets and then pulls up his officers -- even ministers sometimes -- when they fail to meet them. His subordinates now will have to prepare for worse. With elections to the state Assembly due before the end of next year, Naidu has unveiled plans to push through a series of reforms. He is working overtime to ensure there are no hitches and in the process is taking unpopular decisions, holding out threats, to the extent of issuing suspension and sack orders against those who fail to fall in line.

There is ample proof of his determination. When a section of employees of the Andhra Pradesh State Electricity Board (APSEB) struck work from April 27 in protest against plans to privatise the public utility set-up, he threatened to issue shoot-at-sight orders if they indulged in acts of sabotage. He also introduced a bill to restructure the APSEB and had it passed by the Assembly in the absence of the Opposition which had walked out. Naidu's strong-arm tactics seemed to have yielded results. The strike, said to have been instigated by the CPI, once Naidu's ally, was called off in three days.

Many may consider Naidu's ways autocratic but he is clear about his objectives. The restructuring of the APSEB, which involves privatising Rs 80,000 crore worth of assets, is his first major effort to shore up the state's economy. The bill ratified by the Assembly has thrown open the power sector to private investment not only in generation, but also in transmission. In the new set-up, there would be a completely revamped power sector that comprises various corporations and companies. There will be two corporations for generation and transmission while several private companies will be involved in the distribution of power to consumers.

Predictably, the move has drawn flak from political opponents, with parties ranging from the Congress to the CPI(M) and the TDP(NTR) saying the restructuring was being done at the behest of the World Bank, that it would lead to retrenchment of workers and increased tariff for consumers. They ridicule the chief minister's assertion that the tariff would actually come down and that the APSEB has signed a memorandum of understanding with workers' unions assuring every employee of job security. Nor have they been appeased by Naidu's promise to publish a White Paper on the conditionalities laid down by the World Bank for sanctioning a loan of Rs 4,000 crore to help restructure the APSEB.

Naidu believes that the best fuel for growth lies in providing basic public utilities and improving infrastructure. He is convinced that if he can get the large tranche of funds from the World Bank, it would kick-start the much-needed economic reforms in the state, which may in turn ensure the success of the TDP in the elections next year.

After the setback in the recent Lok Sabha polls, Naidu's worries are not entirely misplaced. The TDP's vote share has been dwindling and that's not good news for Naidu who has publicly stated his desire to continue as chief minister for at least 20 years. That explains the "Vision 2020" programme that he unveiled a few months ago. APSEB is only his first target. He has plans to restructure other loss-making state sector units, in some cases downsizing operations and even shutting down the hopeless ones in a phased manner. "We have the human element at the back of our mind and therefore we are making changes in a gradual manner," says Finance Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju. To allay workers' fears of large-scale retrenchment, Naidu has promised that those displaced by the reforms process will be imparted fresh training in other fields.

A year ago, taking a pragmatic view of the cash-strapped state's need for funds, the chief minister scrapped prohibition, introduced by former chief minister N.T. Rama Rao in 1995. Naidu was well aware that he was backtracking on a populist scheme that had swung votes the TDP way in the 1994 assembly elections. Having invited a full-fledged public debate on the issue, he finally decided to allow the sale of liquor in shops again.

In fact, his earliest initiative to usher in reforms was to introduce computers for day-to-day operations like collection of commercial taxes. Tax evasion is also checked through a grid linking checkposts along the state's borders. Extensive computer training is being given to officials at all levels, while there is a freeze on fresh recruitment. The officials are under great pressure to learn the new technology as those unable to change are simply asked to leave.

For meaningful reforms, Naidu believes that the work culture in government departments must change. Officers and staff in the state secretariat are now being asked to wear badges, their time of entry and exit is recorded, and they are given individual targets for processing papers. The periodic file-clearance weeks are meant to facilitate them to meet these targets.

Even at the grassroots level, Naidu is trying to motivate people to take up more voluntary work for the construction of roads, school buildings and other public utilities. To cut cost and time overruns, he has scrapped the tender process in the case of such infrastructure projects.

Despite the odds, Naidu says his efforts will pay off in the long run. Even when he got the power reforms bill passed in the absence of the Opposition, Naidu justified his action by saying that such initiatives were inevitable in a growing economy. Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, for one, is impressed. At the annual conference of the Confederation of Indian Industry in Delhi last week, he commended Naidu saying, "The country must take note of the bold but painful steps."

Vajpayee, no doubt, would like to have more chief ministers who will deliver thus, but it is also clear that the prime minister's fulsome praise is aimed at wooing Naidu to attend the May 9 Coordination Committee meeting of the BJP-led coalition, which he supports but has refrained from joining.

The tactful Naidu, who wants to keep his options open, says, "My party is committed only to extending issue-based support to the BJP." That leaves the United Front in two minds. On May 4, it has scheduled a rally in Hyderabad to be attended by its top leaders who are debating on the line against their former colleague. Evidently, some of the front partners are hopeful that Naidu will return to their fold. Gimmick garu or master strategist, what Naidu wants is a sound future for the TDP. For the moment, he believes it lies in reforms.

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