A new Modi ministry is taking charge of the nation on Thursday. As Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah were engaged in selection of ministers, the nation eagerly awaited the character and complexion of the new team in the making. The first Modi ministry of 2014-19 was no great shakes, if expertise and talent to run various ministries were any indication. It just passed muster, and Modi won a new term more by his lung power, possibly, and less by any exemplary performance. Hope now rests on possibilities of more expertise coming in to make a stronger Modi show for another five years.
The outgoing ministry was faced with several serious problems. Health of ministers was one. Manohar Parrikar was already ailing when he left the Defence Ministry midway through the five-year-term and returned to Goa to be chief minister. He was tasked to handle the Defence Ministry five months after Modi started his innings. Till then, Arun Jaitley held dual charge of Finance and Defence.– an unusual scenario of one minister holding two top ministries. Later, Nirmala Sitharaman was brought in as Defence Minister. Finance minister Arun Jaitley himself was ailing and another minister, Piyush Goyal remained as stand-by for months. External Affairs Minister, Sushma Swaraj had serious health problems and remained away for some time. All these, even as Modi kept the old guard, meaning those over age 75 out of the reckoning as a matter of policy. It is safe to assume that the ministries’ functioning was affected by these ‘health’ issues. The shuffling of portfolios, as was evident also in the case of HRD, midway through the term did no good.
Perceptions are that Rajnath Singh as Home Minister did a good job. He carried with him both strength and experience. Nitin Gadkari as Highways minister too acquitted himself well in execution of projects, but other problems with him persisted. External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj did a good job. Railways ministry faced odds as first minister Sadananda Gowda was shifted out and Suresh Prabhu brought in. Who handled what in both Railways and Civil Aviation ministries were confusing at times. Railways showed signs of modernization, but too little was done, considering the huge requirements. Things did not move fast in the defence sector, and handling of finance ministry left much to be desired.
What makes a difference to governance is deploying the right people to the right posts and a copious flow of expertise. Hope is that Modi’s new team will inspire the nation and provide good governance as promised.