Amazing Pics

Funny read... dont know about the authenticity of the report




From an INFOSCION to a POLITICION - Nandan's Chronicles - 2

Continuing my tryst with capturing the life and times of Nandan Nilekani in his


New avatar as a Cabinet Minister, here is what he had penned after his first day
in the Parliament. The last entry stopped when the House was just about to begin.
Let's see what happened thereafter….

The House was in pin drop silence. I was brimming with anticipation and
excitement!!!! Manmohan had informed me that my introduction was one of the
important points of the agenda. I hoped that I will be able to make my speech
properly. After so many interviews and conferences, I was nervous today!!!! After
the Speaker indicated that the proceedings of the House could begin, Manmohan
formally introduced me to the entire House. He mentioned that as the head of the
Unique Identification Authority of India, I was responsible to ensure that each
and every Indian had a digital smart card as a proof of his existence.
Manmohan spoke about why I was selected and also some references to the various
projects executed by me in Infosys were mentioned. The House listened with rapt
attention. I was asked to say a few words and I did exactly the same!!! I thanked
the Government of India for having given me this opportunity and I assured the
House that I would strive to successfully deliver this project. The Speaker then
formally inducted me into the House and before the proceedings could move any
forward, there was a small commotion on the other side of the hall.

It was Minister of Textiles(Dayanidhi Maran) who had a comment to make before the
next point on the agenda. He made a request that I should be attired in a more
austere way instead of a flashy suit. It did not go well with the image of a
minister who should live to serve the common man and should be less ostentatious
in his habits. I stood up to reply. I offered my apologies to the Honourable
Minister and assured that I shall be in a more acceptable dress next time. I felt
that he was right. We also used to have corporate dress code in Infosys. So it's
here as well!!!!

I sat down and felt somebody nudging me. I turned around and to my surprise; it
was the former Indian skipper and one of my favourite batsman Mohd. Azharuddin. I
remembered that he had recently won the elections. I smiled at him and mentioned
to him that I used to like his game very much, shaking his hand. No Rolex, I
noticed. Azhar told me that he would "fix" me an appointment with an Italian
designer who had designed his dapper Kurta suit. An Italian designer in Milan
doing Kurtas!!!!! I made a note of this and reminded myself to give this example
to Friedman for his next book," The World Markets are flattened".
Since there was no doubt about the "Fixational" capacities of Azhar, I told him
to give me the details and I would consider. The proceedings of the House went on
with numerous bills being debated and passed as I sat as a passive audience
waiting for my project's turn to come up. After the lunch break, it was the
moment for me!!!!

MY PROJECT"S FIRST REVIEW CAME UP FOR PRESENTATION.
I was at sea. My laptop did not have any reserve power. I went to Manmohan and
apprised him of the situation. I was sweating. He calmly replied that this would
not be a cause of concern. I was flummoxed!!!! The Speaker asked me to explain to
the House on what were my plans for the Unique Identity Project. I replied that I
have a plan prepared for 30-60-90-120 days' milestones and I have presentation to
make for which I need a power socket, a projector and a screen. I had no idea
what was going to happen after this.

The next couple of minutes were a complete jolt for me. I was completely in a
tizzy. Let me just summarize what happened. A Joint Cabinet Secretary Committee
was set up to judge the feasibility of my request. The Under Secretaries for the
Ministries of Power, IT and Broadcasting will prepare a Viability Report after
scrutinizing National Security threats to my request. This was because the power
socket comes under Power, laptop comes under IT and projector comes under
Broadcasting. I have also been told to reconsider my timelines of 30-60-90 days
and start thinking in terms of years. Probably, they are right. I did not have
the foresight in this matter.

The summary of the issue is that I need to come up with a more inclusive,
democratic, comprehensive long term plan for this project to be executed over the
next five years. I have also been given a presentation slot 3 months from now (by
which the issues related to the power cord etc will also be resolved). I am
filled with mixed reactions. I was planning for a quick resolution; the
management wants a strategic solution. I come out of the House and text Murthy.

"You won't believe it but these guys work just like us. I am on a NATIONAL BENCH
for the next three months!!!!!!!!"