Modi overhauls team

 Prime Minister Narendra Modi effected the first and the biggest ever expansion-cum-reshuffle of his second ministry after the 2019 Lok Sabha election, when he inducted 36 new faces among 46 sworn-in on July 7 after dropping 12 other senior ministers. The expansion was preceded by a media hype that was meant to overshadow problems that the country faces due to the second deadly coronavirus wave. Also, politically the expansion also relegated the day-to-day slugfest in West Bengal between the BJP and the TMC. Modi needed something to boost up his government’s falling political image especially after the disastrous West Bengal election defeat. After seven consecutive years as prime minister, Modi has certainly got to know India better and should also understand that his Gujarat Model has actually not paid political dividends. Therefore, in his second tenure, Modi has decided to realign his focus and the recent cabinet expansion offers him the opportunity to reorganize his team so that the talents can suit the need of the day. Modi is fond of phrases both Hindi and English which he uses effectively to promote himself and his party. One of Modi’s favourite maxim during the 2014 Lok Sabha elections was his promise to bring “minimum government with maximum governance”. Of course, this phrase did not promise a lean cabinet as the NDA-II(Vajpayee headed NDA-I) had 71 ministers. This time, after the expansion, the number of ministers in the NDA-III has risen to 77. To sound different, the NDA-II in 2014 promised to club some co-related ministries together such as Railways, Highways and Shipping together to take advantage of the synergies. There was some effort to put this into practice but in the end it did not take shape and ultimately this plan was underwhelming. Media had commented on this by quoting an expression attributed to then prime minister P.V.Narasimha Rao as a “change with continuity”. Modi’s recent cabinet expansion contained a mix of talented young leaders (below 60) and who represented various segments of society including professionals. The eclectic mix of professionals include- eight lawyers, four doctors, two former IAS officers, four MBA degree holders and several engineers among the 36 new faces. Apart from addressing regional and community aspirations, the focus, the purpose appears to be on bringing in highly qualified members and those with experience of administration in states in an effort to reboot the government midway through its term. With a the average age of the new team being 56 (down from 61) with a wide variety of talent and experience, the new Modi team should be able to prove itself. Reacting to the cabinet overhaul, the Congress said the problem was with the engine (PM) but coaches (ministers) were being changed. The Congress cited soaring fuel prices including LPG that has fueled inflation and how the faulty GST has ruined lakhs of MSME businesses across the nation. The party blamed the engine (PM) for the mess but instead the bogies were being changed. There have been many failures and misses by the Modi-I and Modi-II governments. This is not an exception since it would have been the same, if not, worse under other party governments. The challenge before Modi is to allow his team to function freely within their brief and get rid of the hangover of the Gujarat model that worked on the basis of over centralization of power.