A Modi shocker for ministers

 A day after the reshuffle of the Union council of ministers, many senior and junior ministers began to read a strong  message from Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the exercise. It was not just about individual performance alone that mattered, they
felt.

What was equally important was that the ministers must realise that Modi’s emphasis on delivery of promises on the ground is an “actionable” fiat.

If the ministers cannot ensure proper implementation of various new programmes and schemes, they would be answerable to the Prime Minister's Office, which is already tasked with monitoring their tasks on a monthly basis.

Interestingly, those who survived the reshuffle as well those who felt rewarded said Modi had given them a jolt.

It was a stark reminder that only three years were left to show “solid results” on the ground.

A minister, who did wanted to be quoted, said the prime minister felt that his team had, in fact, only one year on hand to roll out important schemes and “tangible” results must show by 2017-18.

Modi’s tagline that “the people must feel the difference” was a serious call and no minister could ignore the standards that the prime minister expected of his colleagues, an aide said. As a senior minister put it, no one is indispensable and no one should try to project proximity “imagined or otherwise” and do what he or she pleases.

The shifting of Smriti Irani from the high profile human resources development ministry to economy driving textiles ministry was a shocker that should be seen a wake-up call for others, another aide said. Raking up controversies won’t help any minister to stay in the limelight. Each minister will get a chance to perform. “The prime minister will support them, stand by them, and help them, and if still things don’t work out, he will replace them,” said a junior minister.

The prime minister has also indicated that he does not go by the publicity generated by most ministries. “Some low-key ministers have been given important responsibilities like Minister of State for Railways Manoj Sinha who has got  additional and independent charge of telecommunications,” said the minister.  Modi is certainly not amused  that some ministers seek to derive satisfaction from repeated speculation in the media about their elevation or promotion.

Those who were expecting a Cabinet berth and had seen their names frequently mentioned in the media were disappointed by Tuesday’s reshuffle exercise Like previous prime ministers, Modi does not think that he has said the last word yet.  The prime minister could carry out a similar exercise in a few months as there are other “under-performing ministers” who are still in charge of some important ministries. They should assume that have got another chance to prove their mettle, a BJP official said.