PROFESSIONS, CHECKERED CAREER, AND LESSONS-PART SEVEN (From Librarian to CPRO to CM KCR) ....... A Journey from Khangi School to Center for Excellence : Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao

 PROFESSIONS, CHECKERED CAREER, 

AND LESSONS-PART SEVEN

(From Librarian to CPRO to CM KCR)

A Journey from Khangi School to

Center for Excellence

Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao

Prefatory Note

(These reflections arise from close observation and lived experience during a defining phase in the history of Telangana. They are offered with deep respect for Kalvakuntla Chandrashekhar Rao, a leader of rare intellectual depth, political courage, and unwavering commitment to the idea of Telangana. What follows is not merely recollection, but an attempt to record how vision, resolve, and governance converged to shape a people’s destiny.

While this narrative draws upon a professional journey that spans eleven organizations and multiple institutional settings, it consciously begins with the final and most consequential phase of that journey. A brief reference to my academic formation is included at the outset only to provide essential context, before the account moves directly into the concluding chapter of my professional life.}

During his meeting with the Chairman of the Fifteenth Finance Commission, NK Singh, on February 19, 2019, Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao referred to the Telangana Model of Development, which had by then taken center stage nationally. He asserted that States were sufficiently mature to formulate their own plans, prioritize expenditure, and, in fact, were often more fiscally prudent than the Centre. One of his most compelling observations related to the Cabinet Resolution that led to the formation of NITI Aayog.

KCR mentioned that it had raised expectations of building ‘Team India’ by making States equal partners in the nation’s development and by promoting cooperative fiscal federalism. He categorically pointed out that the promised departure from a one-size-fits-all approach had, over time, largely remained unfulfilled. Significantly, the Finance Commission Chairman described the irrigation projects designed under KCR’s leadership as ‘Engineering Marvels.’ Both KCR’s observations and NK. Singh’s appreciation have remained etched in my memory.

I vividly recall that the Economic Survey 2018-19 made a singular reference to Telangana’s Samagra Kutumba Survey (SKS) as a notable lesson in federalism among governments. The document compared the SKS digital initiative with Transport for London (TfL) and the digital transparency policy introduced under President Barack Obama in the United States in 2009. This comparison received wide media coverage in July 2017.

One of the most unparalleled and intellectually demanding exercises initiated and successfully accomplished by KCR was the Samagra Kutumba Survey, conducted on a single day, the August 19, 2014, to ensure objectivity and eliminate duplication. Conceived as an integrated, database-driven platform, the initiative was highlighted in the Economic Survey’s chapter on data convergence, titled ‘Data of the People, By the People, For the People’ as an exemplary model of harnessing data for social use.

Almost the entire field-level government machinery was mobilized for the SKS and actively engaged in the data collection process. The survey employed a simple yet effective format, which added to its uniqueness. Information was collected on a voluntary basis to avoid litigation and covered eight broad areas comprising ninety-four items, making it a comprehensive exercise. Chief Minister KCR declared a holiday and requested citizens to remain at home on the survey day. My colleague Vijay Kumar and I prepared the first conceptual press release following the review meeting held at the NIRD Guest House, away from the city. The acumen displayed by KCR during that meeting was truly impressive.

Being present at several review meetings and extended discussions conducted by KCR with concerned officers and subject experts, prior to the landmark Telangana Municipalities Act, 2019, which was passed by the State Legislature on July 19, 2019, proved to be an enriching learning experience for me. These interactions vividly recalled my MA (Public Administration) student days, particularly the classes on Local Self-Government. I had a similar experience earlier during the formulation of the new Panchayati Raj Act.

The Municipalities Act was a citizen-friendly, transparent, one-time, and well-conceived piece of legislation. KCR envisioned the establishment of an Urban Centre of Excellence as a hub for urban-sector innovation and research. He also introduced a forward-looking Urban Policy to work in tandem with the Act, aimed at addressing complex urban challenges and enabling improved citizen services. Similarly, KCR’s unwavering commitment was evident in the formulation of the new Panchayati Raj Act, passed in the same year, which sought to transform every village into a progressive, prosperous, and ideal habitat, characterized by greenery and cleanliness.

Citizen-Centric Good Governance was the hallmark of KCR’s administration. It has always been the common expectation of citizens to experience an administration that is efficient, open, responsive, accountable, clean, and dynamically adaptive at all levels. Governance, in essence, must correct the negative perceptions of public services as apathetic, insensitive, dilatory, corrupt, or discriminatory. Accountability, transparency, and the cleansing of public services are interlinked imperatives for ensuring a responsive and trustworthy administrative system.

This philosophy was consistently insisted upon by KCR from the very beginning of his tenure. In matters of crisis management, his administrative acumen stood unmatched. The manner in which KCR handled the COVID-19 pandemic deserves to be documented as a textbook case and process guide for future generations. From day one, he adopted a practical and balanced approach, without triggering panic or resorting to alarmist measures. He neither frightened the public nor pressed panic buttons.

In this regard, many, including myself, drew valuable lessons from his leadership. During a press meet on April 11, 2020, when KCR referred to concepts such as ‘Quantitative Easing (QE) and Helicopter Money,’ these terms quickly entered popular discourse, to the extent that even laypersons began discussing them. He reinforced this approach by writing to Prime Minister Narendra Modi soon after the Cabinet meeting held the same day, emphasizing that ‘distressed times need desperate measures.’ This, too, was a lesson in leadership communication.

As Peter Drucker observed, ‘Efficiency is doing things right, whereas effectiveness is doing the right things,’ Chief Minister KCR exemplified both efficiency and effectiveness, a quality clearly reflected in his handling of the coronavirus crisis. He provided decisive and effective leadership to contain and prevent the spread of COVID-19, while ensuring that public confidence remained intact.

When KCR repeatedly emphasized the necessity of Regulatory Farming, it deeply resonated with people like me who had lived closely with agriculture decades ago. As he often observed, the spirit of the good old days of farming needed to be restored. The excessive use of fertilizers and pesticides, he insisted, must be curtailed, and the seeds required for each village should ideally be produced within the village itself. KCR advocated for need-based cultivation by farmers and firmly believed that if agriculture was to become truly profitable, there was no alternative to the adoption of Regulatory Farming.

In one of his review meetings on education, KCR deliberated at length, demonstrating his conviction that the sector required a comprehensive revamp from the ground up. He advocated radical reforms to make education more relevant and responsive to the ever-changing needs of society. At the primary level, he preferred a curriculum focused on basic languages, mathematics, science, hygiene, good habits, and greater emphasis on fun, play, and team-building activities. By the fourth and fifth classes, children, he felt, should be exposed to nature, public life, and the values of caring and sharing.

From the sixth to the tenth classes, students should gain hands-on exposure to diverse crafts such as carpentry, weaving, tailoring, masonry, and basic electrical work. At the Intermediate level, KCR suggested that, in addition to the conventional MPC, BPC, CEC, and MEC streams, students should be offered unconventional and flexible subject combinations based on individual aptitude, such as history with biology, biology with mathematics, or geography with chemistry.

KCR emphasized embedding skill development within the Intermediate curriculum and integrating polytechnic diploma courses with Intermediate education. Higher education, in his view, also required restructuring to align with the needs of industry, business, trades, and traditional humanities alike. Arts, social sciences, and professional streams, he asserted, must coexist, and evolve in parallel.

While introducing the New Revenue Act through two Bills, namely, the Abolition of Posts of VROs and the Telangana Rights in Land and Pattadaar Pass Books Act, in the Legislative Assembly on September 9, 2020, the manner in which Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao summed up their historical importance, significance, and necessity was deeply moving. He stated that the sense of happiness he was experiencing at that moment was akin to the joy he felt when the State of Telangana was formed.

Seated in the CMO gallery, just three to four feet away from the Chief Minister, separated only by a wooden partition, I felt a surge of excitement when he emphatically declared that the Act would, once and for all, put an end to the land-related sufferings of helpless poor farmers and eradicate corrupt practices in the revenue system.

In my heart of hearts, I firmly believed that this declaration would etch the name of Chief Minister KCR in the annals of revenue reforms, and that he would be remembered alongside reformers such as Sher Shah Suri, Todar Mal, Captain Reed, Captain Munro, Salar Jung, Burgula Ramakrishna Rao, and PV Narasimha Rao. His intellect, coupled with experience and articulated through powerful words, remains vivid in my memory.

KCR observed that it was perhaps his righteous conduct in a previous life that had given him the opportunity to introduce such a transformative Act. He traced the evolution of organized farming and land reforms, referring to efforts undertaken by Sher Shah Suri, Emperor Akbar through Todar Mal, Captain Alexander Read and Sir Thomas Munro during the British period, Salar Jung I, the Communist movements against jagirdars in the 1940s, Burgula Ramakrishna Rao, and PV Narasimha Rao’s Agricultural Land Ceiling Act of 1971.

Among the many reforms heralded by the Act was the Dharani Web Portal, conceptualized by KCR as a single source of truth for all land parcels, integrating all land-related services in an efficient and effective manner with near real-time processing. Equipped with a GIS-based system offering visual representation of land records, the Dharani Portal emerged as a key catalyst in making land administration hassle-free: from registration and mutation to ownership rights, and as a comprehensive solution to land disputes. This transformed Telangana’s revamped revenue system into a model for other States. KCR formally launched the Dharani Portal at Moodu Chintalapalli village in Medchel–Malkajgiri district on October 29, 2020, thereby creating history.

The Forest Survey of India (FSI) Report, released in October 2020, lauded the ‘Telangana Ku Haritha Haram (Green Necklace)’, yet another visionary initiative of KCR, for its significant contribution to the increase in forest and green cover in the State. The report detailed aspects such as the recorded forest area (RFA), the presence of three National Parks and nine Wildlife Sanctuaries, forest canopy density classifications--very dense, moderately dense, and open forests--and the key factors responsible for the enhancement of forest cover. From its conceptualization at the Secretariat to its launch at the Chilkoor Balaji Temple, and the eventual transformation into lush greenery across Telangana, I was a direct witness to this remarkable journey.

 In the series of first-of-its-kind governance initiatives, one concept that stood out for its originality and long-range institutional thinking was the creation of Rythu Vedika. It was rare in conception and bold in execution, a structured, farmer-centric platform defined, designed, devolved, and set in motion under the direct vision of KCR. In the broader journey of Indian agriculture administration, this marked a decisive shift, as an attempt to reshape the working culture of the farming sector through organized collective space rather than scattered individual effort.

The formal inauguration of the first of 2601 such Vedikas by KCR at Kodakandla in Jangaon district on October 31, 2020, remains in my memory not merely as an event, but as the visible beginning of a new agricultural dialogue architecture. The vision extended across all Agriculture Extension clusters, giving the idea both reach and rootedness. What followed that beginning, as I recall from my period of close engagement as CPRO to CM KCR, was not routine scheme progression but mission-mode commitment. His passion while speaking about the purpose of these platforms was unmistakable.

KCR viewed them as instruments to bring clarity, confidence, and coordinated strength into the farming community. The larger intent was to remove isolation from agricultural decision-making and replace it with shared understanding and informed collective action. His articulation of Rythu Vedikas was not limited to operational convenience, but he elevated them as centers from which farmers could gradually emerge as an organized and articulate force in governance discourse itself.

Conceptually, what made the Rythu Vedika idea exceptional was that it recognized farmers not merely as beneficiaries of policy but as participants in policy environment. It provided a dignified common space, not symbolic, but functional, where discussion, learning, coordination, and assertion could coexist. I often appreciated how this initiative reflected his deeper administrative philosophy that, when communities are given structure, they develop voice, and when they develop voice, governance becomes more grounded. This was leadership by example in institutional form, creating platforms before asking for participation.

Another dimension worth recording was that Rythu Vedika represented preventive governance rather than reactive governance. Instead of waiting for distress signals to surface, it created a standing forum where issues, ideas, and innovations could circulate continuously. The emphasis was on preparedness, awareness, and mutual support. In several communication exercises that I was associated with as CPRO to CM, care was taken to present these platforms as living centers of agricultural cooperation and knowledge culture.

It is also my considered view that institutions of this nature must be preserved with continuity, irrespective of political transitions. Even if future administrators identify procedural gaps or operational areas needing refinement, the foundational idea should be strengthened, not set aside. When collective platforms created for farmers lose policy backing, the loss is not infrastructural, but it is relational. Trust networks weaken, coordination habits dissolve, and the sense of organized agricultural voice recedes.

From what I observed during my tenure as CPRO to CM KCR, such platforms generate long-term behavioral change, and behavioral change once interrupted takes far longer to rebuild than to improve. Seen in this light, Rythu Vedika stands as another strong illustration of how KCR’s example-based leadership moved beyond announcements to institution-building, and thus, creating enduring spaces where policy, participation, and progress could meet. This, in my assessment and experience, is how governance leaves a working legacy rather than a passing imprint.

Another forward-looking intervention that deserves explicit credit to KCR is the conceptualization and promotion of the AgHub or Agri Innovation Hub model, a first-of-its-kind effort to bring structured innovation culture into the agricultural domain. During my tenure as CPRO, I could clearly see that KCR viewed the future of farming as inseparable from research-led experimentation, start-up thinking, and youth-driven Agri-Enterprise.

KCR’s encouragement to create an institutional platform dedicated to agricultural innovation was rooted in the belief that farmers, students, researchers, and entrepreneurs must interact within a common enabling framework so that new ideas could move quickly from concept to cultivation. This was not merely an academic extension but a practical innovation bridge for the farming ecosystem.

The vision of AgHub is to emerge as a world class center that promotes innovations and entrepreneurship in Agri-food systems through mentoring, piloting, and facilitating access to market, research, and investment. As part of this the incubator has been funded by National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) and started functioning from October 2020.

What stood out in KCR’s approach was that the AgHub or Agri Innovation Hub was positioned not as an isolated project but as a directional shift, signaling that agriculture must be future-ready, technology-aware, and enterprise-supported. It reflected his governance instinct to anticipate the next curve rather than react to the last problem. By backing such an innovation-centered agricultural platform, he reinforced his consistent leadership pattern: build institutions that outlast announcements, and create ecosystems that enable continuous progress rather than one-time intervention.

WHEN PROGRESS STEALS THE ‘KICK’ FROM LIFE (THE FUTURE-FUTURE MADDENING WORLD) : Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao

 WHEN PROGRESS STEALS 

THE ‘KICK’ FROM LIFE

(THE FUTURE-FUTURE MADDENING WORLD)

Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao

The Hans India (February 8, 2026)

{Progress may be unstoppable. But meaning, if guarded carefully, still is not. Whom do we blame? The scientist who invented? The engineer who refined? The market that demanded convenience? The youth who adapted quickly? Or ourselves, who welcomed ease without asking its price? There is no single culprit and so, none can be blamed. Change did not arrive as an intruder, but it arrived as an invitation. We accepted it gratefully.} – Synoptic Note by Editor Hans India

The other day, while travelling to my native village, something quietly unsettling happened. I have known that route since childhood, not just the main road, but every deviation, every Banyan and Neem Tree, every shortcut connecting at least fifty surrounding villages. I was born there, grew up there, and spent the better part of my youth navigating those paths long before signboards existed.

Yet this time, urged enthusiastically by my children, I switched on Google Maps for the driver. As the blue arrow obediently guided us turn by turn, efficiency replaced memory. Certainty replaced curiosity. But the kick of the good old days was missing.

I felt a gentle sadness realizing that we no longer have the chance to ask directions from a village passer-by, with a hand-rolled tobacco cigar in his hand, and his waistcloth hitched up in the easy rural manner. The brief conversation with a stranger who becomes a guide correcting human doubt was absent. That small thrill of being lost and found again by people, not by pixels- small dots of light on a phone, was missing. Well, it was not just about road, but about life itself.

That small surrender, choosing certainty over experience, convenience over engagement, felt harmless, even sensible. Yet it reflected something much larger than a navigation choice. It captured the spirit of our times, a steady movement away from effort, involvement, and human exchange toward seamless efficiency. What was gained in speed quietly replaced the kick and the lived satisfaction that once accompanied. Earlier, progress meant effort and tomorrow it could result in complete absence of human involvement.

When we imagine ‘The Future-Future Maddeningly Advanced World,’ we must pause and ask: where is the kick, the thrill, the struggle, and the satisfaction, that once defined living!

For instance, consider the humble car. Its earliest avatar demanded intimacy between man and machine. A peculiar Z-shaped iron rod had to be inserted and rotated with force. One wrong move and the engine could kick back, injuring the driver. It was risky, noisy, physical, but alive. The driver felt the machine, though demanded skill, patience, and respect. Then came self-starts, gears became smoother, brakes sharper, and lights brighter. Eventually, automatic transmission arrived. Today, cars park themselves, correct the driver, and drive without anyone. We call this evolution, but something disappeared. Yes, the kick is missing.

There was a time when Cricket matches stretched across five days, players wore whites, and patience was as important as power. The umpire stood as the final authority where human judgment was final. Decisions were debated later, not reversed instantly. Then came One Day Internationals (ODIs) followed by T20s. Faster. Louder. Shorter. Then, third umpires, replays, ball-tracking, edge detection. The Umpire’s decision is practically provisional. What next? And the kick is missing.

From childbirth to death, life itself is mechanical. Food arrives at the door with a click. Milk no longer knows the cow. Curd is cultured in factories. Every provision we require comes packed, sealed, barcoded, sanitized. Buy without knowing, consume without connecting. Choice exists in abundance, yet involvement is absent.

Medicines are prescribed by algorithms. The doctor by search engines. The hospital by online opinions. Google is the new Multi-Super-Specialist. ChatGPT ultimate consultant. Seldom goes wrong. We eat without hunger, rest without fatigue, learn without curiosity, and speak without listening. Everything is available, yet nothing is earned. And the kick is missing.

Once, with a personal choice, we touched the cloth, held against the light, imagined it becoming part of our daily life. We walked to the familiar tailor, who knew our posture, habits, and even temperament. He measured not just the body, but the person, for a slight looseness for comfort, a tighter cut for confidence. The first fitting, the second adjustment, the final satisfaction, and that was the kick. Today, the tailor is almost extinct. We are expected to settle for ‘Ready-Mades’ that fit no one perfectly. The barber has been replaced by apps.

Reading has followed the same path. Books once had weight, smell, margin notes, damaged pages that marked not just chapters but moments in life. We returned to passages accidentally and rediscovered ourselves. Today, everything is searchable. Kindle remembers for us, Google summarizes for us, and ChatGPT writes for us.

We no longer linger with ideas. Knowledge is instant, but wisdom slow, repetitive, reflective, and endangered. Handwriting required thought and revealed mood. Pauses meant something. Letters vanished. Receiving a letter was an event. Now messages arrive instantly, carelessly, and disappear just as fast.

Music, too, has changed its nature. There was a time when we waited for a song on the radio, adjusted the antenna, sat still, listened fully. The wait sharpened the pleasure. Now music plays endlessly in the background, unheard, and unfelt. Even memory has been outsourced. We no longer remember phone numbers, birthdays, routes, or recipes. Forgetting is no longer human, it is mechanical.

All these changes point to one truth that, life has not become easier, but has become solvent. The question is: How can we live meaningfully in a world rushing ahead, when our wisdom belongs to a slower rhythm?  

The answer is not resistance, but selective slowing to restore the Kick. For the young speed is excitement. For the old depth is joy. The tragedy is forcing everyone into the same tempo. Society has no option except to respect both.

Late life does not need acceleration, but it needs meaning. It needs spaces where experience is valued over efficiency, and where the kick comes not from novelty but from recognition. Progress should add years to life, and life to years. And that life, often, moves best at a human pace. To me at seventy-eight (78) years of age, optimism is no longer noisy.

Technology will not reverse. The world will not unlearn speed. Convenience once tasted, is never surrendered. In that sense pessimism is not a choice, but it is an acknowledgment. The kick in many areas of life, may never fully come back. Yet surrender is not wisdom either. There remains a narrow but vital space where choice still survives. We may not decide the direction of the world, but we can decide the distance we keep from it. We can step back without stepping away, and participate without dissolving.

We sit with crossed fingers, not in fear, but in fragile faith. Faith that wisdom still matters, that slowness still has dignity, and that the last chapters of life need not be rushed to keep pace with a restless world. Progress may be unstoppable.

But meaning, if guarded carefully, still is not.  Whom do we blame? The scientist who invented? The engineer who refined? The market that demanded convenience? The youth who adapted quickly? Or ourselves, who welcomed ease without asking its price? There is no single culprit and so, none to be blamed.

Change did not arrive as an intruder, but it arrived as an invitation. We accepted gratefully. And yet, consequences remain even without culprits.

If blame must exist, it may rest nowhere outside us, but in our collective impatience, our preference for speed over substance, answers over understanding, convenience over connection. Not a moral failure, but a human one.

The question does not point outward. It circles back quietly that, When everything became easier, why did we stop asking what we were giving up? There may be no one to blame. But there is still something to learn.

And perhaps that is the last responsibility left to us, to leave behind not solutions, but questions worth asking, before the world moves on too fast to notice them. This shall remain the question mark.

PROFESSIONS, CHECKERED CAREER, AND LESSONS-PART SIX (From Librarian to CPRO to CM KCR) ...... A Journey from Khangi School to Center for Excellence : Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao

PROFESSIONS, CHECKERED CAREER, 

AND LESSONS-PART SIX

(From Librarian to CPRO to CM KCR)

A Journey from Khangi School to

Center for Excellence

Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao

Prefatory Note

(These reflections arise from close observation and lived experience during a defining phase in the history of Telangana. They are offered with deep respect for Kalvakuntla Chandrashekhar Rao, a leader of rare intellectual depth, political courage, and unwavering commitment to the idea of Telangana. What follows is not merely recollection, but an attempt to record how vision, resolve, and governance converged to shape a people’s destiny.

While this narrative draws upon a professional journey that spans eleven organizations and multiple institutional settings, it consciously begins with the final and most consequential phase of that journey. A brief reference to my academic formation is included at the outset only to provide essential context, before the account moves directly into the concluding chapter of my professional life.}

On March 3, 2018, KCR, for the first time, openly articulated the need for a fundamental and qualitative change in the country’s political landscape. While doing so, he clearly hinted that he himself was prepared to play a leading role in shaping such an alternative. He expressed deep dissatisfaction with the slow pace of national progress and what he described as the cumulative failures of the existing political system.

I was present at that moment, watching him closely, not merely listening to the words, but observing the intensity of his expression and the depth of his conviction. As he went on to enumerate over a hundred evidence-based issues, repeatedly pointing out where the country’s leadership over the past seventy years had faltered, especially when compared with the trajectories of other nations, it unfolded as a meticulously reasoned political analysis, backed by data and comparative insight.

His call for a qualitative transformation in politics, anchored in the idea of setting a fresh national agenda, resonated strongly with public sentiment. Personally, I felt that KCR had demonstrated his capacity to make a meaningful difference in Indian politics by thinking beyond conventional frameworks and by articulating goals that few leaders had even attempted to define. I recall listening to him with rapt attention during the discussion on the Appropriation Bill in the first week of April 2018 on the same subject with a transformation.

 On that occasion, he explained that a national alternative did not merely mean electoral arithmetic or coalition politics, but the forging of unity among all sections of society around a common developmental agenda. It was a powerful and rare articulation of inclusive nationalism. KCR’s decisiveness, and the precision with which he chose his words, often left me astonished. There were moments when I felt that had the political system genuinely understood the substance of what he was proposing, the course of national politics might have been different.

One such moment came on April 27, 2018, when he addressed the TRS Party Plenary in Hyderabad. His speech created palpable tremors in political circles. Referring to his own age and physical frailty, he said, in substance, that though he might appear fragile, he had led the struggle for Telangana, ensured its steady progress, and transformed it into a powerful and advantageously placed State.

KCR then, urged people to think big and think firmly, and then made an announcement that reverberated well beyond Telangana, that, he intended to launch from Telangana soil an initiative of national significance, aimed at doing good for the country. He observed, with quiet confidence, that this simple declaration had unsettled and frightened his adversaries. Witnessing that moment, I felt I was seeing a leader consciously stepping beyond the boundaries of State politics into a larger national imagination.

Back again about his welfare initiatives: one of the most widely discussed and nationally acknowledged initiatives of KCR’s governance was the Rythu Bandhu scheme, which attracted attention far beyond Telangana and received strong endorsement from eminent economists. The scheme was widely analyzed and praised in three authoritative articles, one by Arvind Subramanian in The Financial Express, another by The Economist in its Asia edition, and a third by Neelkanth Mishra in Business Standard. Each of these writings examined the scheme not merely as a welfare intervention, but as a potential redefinition of agricultural policy itself.

Arvind Subramanian described Rythu Bandhu as a social and agricultural policy template, characterizing it as an embryonic Universal Basic Income (UBI), or more precisely, an embryonic Quasi-Universal Basic Income (QUBI). He suggested that it could well represent the future of agricultural policy in India. The Economist viewed the scheme as a project that could eventually enable the phasing out of less efficient subsidies, while Neelkanth Mishra referred to it as an ambitious and structurally significant intervention. Such assessments from globally respected voices validated the intellectual and policy foundations of the program.

During the first fifty-one months of KCR’s first term as the first Chief Minister of Telangana, the State witnessed remarkable progress in a relatively short span following its formation. This progress was driven by a governance approach that placed poor and marginalized sections at the center, combining welfare with structural reform. The pace and scale of implementation reflected both political will and administrative clarity.

Among the many initiatives undertaken during this period were: enhancement of income limits to better identify Below Poverty Line families, expansion of Aasara pensions, implementation of Kalyana Lakshmi and Shaadi Mubarak schemes, enactment of the SC/ST Special Development Fund (Sub-Plan), upgradation of Girijan Thandas into Gram Panchayats, focused welfare measures for minorities, sheep distribution, Brahmin welfare initiatives, KCR Kits, farm loan waivers, Rythu Bandhu and Rythu Bheema, uninterrupted quality power supply, rectification and purification of land records through Dharani, construction of major irrigation projects etc.

Furthermore were: Mission Kakatiya and Mission Bhagiratha, double-bedroom housing for the poor, Telangana Ku Haritha Haram; administrative reforms, expansion of residential schools, Kanti Velugu eye-care program, introduction of a new zonal system, the TS-iPass single-window industrial clearance mechanism etc. At various stages of these processes, I was involved, sometimes actively, sometimes in a supportive or advisory capacity, supplementing and complementing the decision-making whenever the Chief Minister sought my inputs. KCTR’s typical style of seeking advice was inexplicable. 

KCR had the wisdom of economy and was fully conscious of the sectors where benefits from the investments were the highest. However, he was also allocating for spending funds to satisfy the basic needs for the welfare of poor and vulnerable. Underlying all these initiatives was KCR’s keen sense of economic prioritization. He demonstrated a clear understanding of sectors where public investment yielded the highest long-term returns, while remaining equally conscious of the need to allocate resources to meet the basic welfare requirements of the poor and vulnerable.

Accordingly, funds were channeled not only into visibly productive sectors, but also into areas where benefits were less immediately apparent, such as human development and capacity-building, recognizing that these investments ultimately enhance productivity and social stability. Within just three years of its formation, Telangana emerged as one of the select States eligible for additional borrowing limits, a reflection of its fiscal discipline and economic management.

Thus concluded the first fifty-one months of my association with K Chandrashekhar Rao as the first Chief Minister of Telangana, a phase that was historic not merely for its scale of governance, but for the clarity of thought, firmness of purpose, and originality of vision that defined it. The December 2018 Assembly elections reaffirmed the people’s faith in KCR’s leadership, returning him triumphantly for a second consecutive term.

With a landslide victory in the State Assembly elections held on December 7, 2018, K Chandrashekhar Rao was sworn in as Chief Minister of Telangana for a second term. The election results sent a clear signal that the slew of welfare measures implemented by his government had been well received by the people and had effectively translated into a strong vote bank for his (TRS-BRS) party. Despite hectic campaigning by top BJP leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the impact was negligible.

I continued to serve alongside him in the new mandate. The experiences of the second term, shaped by greater confidence, higher expectations, and more complex challenges, unfolded in a different yet equally compelling context. Those years, which also I have documented, merit their own narration, one that reflects the evolution of governance from consolidation to maturity. They follow form here.

Significantly, in his very first press meet, KCR identified the ‘National Economic Model’ as his top priority, aimed at addressing the distress of nearly 15 crore farmers across the country. Immediately upon assuming office, KCR once again focused on the principle of ‘Good Governance,’ placing emphasis on meticulous planning and effective implementation of both election promises and ongoing welfare and development schemes.

He left no stone unturned in steering the State toward stabilizing and advancing the vision of a ‘Golden Telangana.’ In his role as Chief Minister, he remained intensely engaged in continuous reviews of departments, one after another. I had the opportunity to observe him closely and with admiration, particularly the manner in which he consistently demonstrated strong guidance and leadership capabilities.

KCR’s characteristic combination of conventional and contemporary leadership of the highest order, marked by statesmanship, vision, multifaceted qualities, and deep commitment, along with his decision-making process rooted in consensus, consultation, and rigorous review, together resulted in the conceptualization and implementation of people-oriented, welfare-driven, and development-focused schemes in Telangana. In my close observation, this leadership model merits inclusion as a case study at institutions such as Harvard Business School, or any comparable global institution.

His review meetings exemplified a rare blend of personal humility and professional expertise: channeling determination toward building robust systems for long-term continuity; providing clear vision, strategy, and direction; inculcating a culture of discipline across all levels of the bureaucracy-both political and official, as KCR preferred to describe them, to achieve breakthrough results; sharing rich experiences drawn from diverse fields, including discipline, challenges, and successes; and driving participants to deliver outstanding outcomes in both the short and long term. Disseminating the essence of these deliberations through press releases was the responsibility of the Public Relations team, led by me as CPRO to the Chief Minister.

Despite his demanding schedule, KCR consistently remained mindful of certain responsibilities that lay outside conventional political priorities, such as promoting Universal Peace and prosperity. From January 21 to 25, 2019, he performed the Sahasra Maha Chandiyagam at his Erravalli Agricultural Farm, an initiative which, to my knowledge, has rarely been undertaken either by Chief Ministers who openly project themselves as staunch proponents of Hinduism or even by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. What deeply impressed me was KCR’s intent and the larger objective behind the ritual: the all-round well-being of farmers, workers, labourers, employees, businesspersons, and, in essence, society at large. 

This event reminded me of an observation by the eminent Sanskrit scholar Professor Johan Frederik Staal of the University of California, a specialist in Vedic rituals and mantras. Reflecting on ancient traditions, he wrote: ‘Temples, cathedrals, and skyscrapers were built and fell into decay; languages and religions have come and gone, and innumerable wars were fought, but the Vedas and their rituals continued to be transmitted by word of mouth, from teacher to pupil, and from father to son. What a triumph of the human spirit over the limitations of matter and the physical body!’ In that spirit, I felt that KCR had performed a truly meaningful act. It is also noteworthy that he had conducted an Ayuta Chandiyagam during his first term as well. 

Putrakameshti, Divine Dessert, and Birth of Lord Rama (SIMPLIFIED AND FAITHFUL RENDERING OF THE ADI KAVYA-9) : Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao

 Putrakameshti, Divine Dessert, 

and Birth of Lord Rama

SIMPLIFIED AND FAITHFUL 

RENDERING OF THE ADI KAVYA-9

Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao

Rishyasringa conveyed his decision that Dasharatha shall perform the Putrakameshti Ritual in accordance with Atharvaveda Hymns for children, and with his consent, commenced the Ritual on behalf of Dasharatha. Rishyasringa offered oblations into the sacred fire procedurally. The Divinities and the Celestial Beings assembled there to receive their part of the oblations. By then, already being perturbed at the atrocities of Ravana the Demon King, the Celestial Beings requested the Creator of the Universe, Lord Brahma, to plan for eliminating him. This scene reminds us how, even in divine narratives, collective concern for justice arises when evil surpasses limits, a message still vital today when societies unite against wrongdoing and imbalance.

Celestial Beings told Brahma that his blessings of boons to Ravana were the cause for his misdeeds, including torturing the three worlds, hating the functionary gods, and assailing Heaven King Lord Indra. The Sun God, Lord of Air, and Ocean God were also scared of Ravana, Brahma was told. They requested Brahma, keeping in view his capabilities, that he must come to their rescue. In response, assuring them of his support, Brahma told them that though Ravana besought the boon that he shall not be killed by anyone, out of disrespect he did not verbalize about humans and monkeys then, which information made them feel happy. It subtly conveys that arrogance blinds even the mightiest. Ravana’s disregard for the humble forms of life became the very cause of his downfall, a reminder that strength without humility leads to destruction.

Meanwhile, riding on his Eagle-vehicle Garuda, Lord Vishnu arrived there. All the divinities including Brahma requested Vishnu to maneuver to quadruple himself and take birth in the wombs of the three wives of Dasharatha, who have the resemblance with ‘Virtue, Affluence, and Glory,’ and on taking human birth, to kill Ravana. In response, Lord Vishnu assured them that he would not only kill Ravana with his sons, grandsons, ministers, forces, his friends, cousins, and relatives, but also that after that he shall be on earth for eleven thousand years. Hence, he asked them to get rid of their fear. The idea of the Infinite taking finite form reflects a profound truth that, divinity often manifests through human values of courage, righteousness, and compassion. The same spirit still inspires ordinary individuals to rise as instruments of good in difficult times.

Consequently, Vishnu thought about His birthplace in the mortal world in His mind, manifested Himself as four-fold, and then chose Dasharatha as his father. Meanwhile, when the Vedic Ritual Putrakameshti was in progress, an astonishing and delightful one for sight, ‘Prajapatya Purusha the Divine Being’ rose from the sacrificial fire, gave a golden vessel of divine sweet dessert to Dasharatha for distribution among his queens to beget progeny, and on eating it they would conceive their children. The divine dessert or ‘Payasam’ symbolizes the sweetness of faith, how sincere prayers, when performed with purity of intent, yield blessings not only for individuals but for generations to come.

Agreeing cheerfully, King Dasharatha had taken the golden vessel onto his head, revering the Prajapatya Purusha who was amidst the Altar of Ritual Fire, and performed circumambulations around him. The Divine Being, having completed his assignment, disappeared from there. Then Dasharatha, on entering the palace chambers, told Queen Kausalya to receive the dessert and gave her half of the dessert, and to Queen Sumitra half of the remaining half. To Kaikeyi he gave half of the remaining half. He gave the remnant portion to Queen Sumitra. Thus, the king distributed the dessert to his wives differently to beget sons. The sequence also underlines equality and divine design, though the portions differed, destiny ensured that each queen’s child played a unique and indispensable role in the grand narrative of dharma.

The three Queens, on consuming the dessert, quickly conceived pregnancies with the resplendence equaling Lord Fire and Lord Sun. Dasharatha, on hearing the good news, regained his lost heart for sons and became happy. When Vishnu attained the sonship of Dasharatha, then Brahma ordained Gods to be born on earth as Vishnu’s supporting army. He further said that he himself had already created the Bear Jambavanta from his yawning face. In a broader sense, this divine planning shows that every great mission requires both a guiding force and a supporting community, a timeless lesson about teamwork and purpose.

Accordingly, monkey-shaped progeny equaling Vishnu's Valor were to be procreated from the physiques of prominent gods, the Apsaras, Gandharvas, Yakshas, Pannagas, Kinnaras, Vidyadharas, etc., who shall be wizards of miracles and audacious ones. They shall have air speed, be bestowed with intellect, apprehenders of ideation, possess divine physique, ineliminable, endowed with attacking aspects of missiles, and untiring in their efforts. Gods agreed to Brahma’s order and started to parent sons in the semblance of monkeys. The creation of these Vanaras illustrates how even seemingly lesser beings can rise to heroic stature when driven by noble purpose, an encouragement to modern readers that greatness is measured by devotion, not form.

Indra procreated Vali, the Lord of Vanaras, who by his physique was like Mount Mahendra. The Sun God procreated Vali’s brother Sugreeva. The intelligent Tara by Brihaspati, Gandhamadana by Kubera, Nala by architect Vishvakarma, Neela by Fire God Agni, Mainda and Dvivida by the Ashwin Twin Gods, Susheshana by the Rain God Varuna, and Sharabha by Thunder God. Most importantly, Hanuman, with an indestructible body and equal to Garuda, the divine eagle vehicle of Vishnu in speed, was the son of Air God Vayudeva. Each of these births signifies a divine collaboration that, when various strengths unite under a righteous cause, impossible tasks become attainable, much like global teamwork in today’s world for the welfare of humanity.

Thus, millions of such noble-souled Vanaras (valorous monkeys) as the chiefs of warriors who could change their appearance at their wish, and with immeasurable strength and bravery, to eliminate Demon King Ravana, were procreated by different Gods. They became the prominent generals among the principal battalions of monkeys. They also procreated brave monkeys on their own. A few thousands of them stayed on the ridges of Mount Riskshavat, while others reached many other similar mountains and forests. All of the monkeys stood by the brothers Vali and Sugreeva, and with the monkey generals like Nala, Neela, Hanuma, etc. Vali protected bears, langurs, and monkeys. These Vanaras, though born of divine essence, represent the collective energy of nature itself, symbolizing how even the wild and untamed can serve divine order when guided by righteousness.

They, with their elephantine, mountainous, and prodigious bodies, took birth in bears and monkeys. Some of the Vanaras were endowed with superior valor. They were endowed with guise-changing faculties, with bodily might, and by their pride and might were identical to lions and tigers. All of them were the assaulters and attackers with stones, trees, their nails, and claws. They were capable of rocking greatest mountains, ripping firm-rooted trees, agitating the ocean with their speed, shattering the ground with their two feet, leaping, and crossing over great oceans, seizing the clouds entering the arch of heaven, catching strong elephants that tumultuously move in forests, and making sky-flying birds fall just with the sound of their blare. This vivid imagery not only glorifies their might but also teaches the power of disciplined strength, energy directed toward good becomes creative; left uncontrolled, it turns destructive, a truth equally relevant in our technological age.

Meanwhile, on the completion of the Great Horse Ritual, King Dasharatha entered Ayodhya along with the company of his queens, servants, guards, and vehicles. Rishyasringa, his wife Shanta, and his father-in-law Romapada left Ayodhya. Later, in the twelfth month, on the ninth day of Lunar Chaitra Masa, when it was Punarvasu (Constellation) Nakshatra of Navami Tithi, and when five of the nine planets; the Sun, Mars, Jupiter, Venus, and Saturn were in ascension in their respective houses, and Aries, Capricornus, Cancer, Pisces, and Libra, Jupiter and the Moon were in conjunction, and the rising sign was Cancer, and when the day was advancing, Queen Kausalya gave birth to a son, the Lord of the worlds, who chose to take human form and sent down half of His essence as her son with all the divine attributes. The astrological precision noted by Valmiki also mirrors humanity’s age-old quest to find order and meaning in cosmic alignments, linking heaven’s rhythm to life’s milestones.

Queen Kaikeyi gave birth to a son, and Queen Sumitra gave birth to two sons who were the embodied epitomes of Vishnu. Kaikeyi’s son was born under Pisces, where Pushyami was the star of the day, and the sons of Sumitra were born under Cancer, where Aslesha was the star of the day and when the sun was rising. Kausalya’s son was born on the ninth day of Chaitra Masa. Kaikeyi’s son was born in the earlier part of the next day, the tenth of Chaitra. Sumitra’s sons were born later that day. The four sons thus represented the fullness of divine purpose, each born at a distinct moment, each destined to uphold different dimensions of dharma: strength, devotion, wisdom, and service.

After eleven days, the naming ceremony was performed. Chief Priest Vashishta named the high-souled elder one, Kausalya’s son, as Rama, Kaikeyi's son as Bharata, and one son of Sumitra as Lakshmana and the other as Shatrughna. King Dasharatha was highly gladdened with four of his highly fortunate sons. The princes were engrossed in the studies of Vedas. Gradually, Dasharatha contemplated the matrimonial alliances of his sons. The naming of the four princes marked not only the fulfillment of Dasharatha’s prayers but also the beginning of a legacy of values, courage, sacrifice, fraternity, and duty, that still illuminate Indian consciousness and can guide the world beyond boundaries of time and geography. {{PHOTOGRAPHS COURTESY  ANONYMOUS RAMA BHAKTA}}

PROFESSIONS, CHECKERED CAREER, AND LESSONS-PART FIVE (From Librarian to CPRO to CM KCR) ...... A Journey from Khangi School to Center for Excellence : Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao

 PROFESSIONS, CHECKERED CAREER, 

AND LESSONS-PART FIVE

(From Librarian to CPRO to CM KCR)

A Journey from Khangi School to

Center for Excellence

Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao

Prefatory Note

(These reflections arise from close observation and lived experience during a defining phase in the history of Telangana. They are offered with deep respect for Kalvakuntla Chandrashekhar Rao, a leader of rare intellectual depth, political courage, and unwavering commitment to the idea of Telangana. What follows is not merely recollection, but an attempt to record how vision, resolve, and governance converged to shape a people’s destiny.

While this narrative draws upon a professional journey that spans eleven organizations and multiple institutional settings, it consciously begins with the final and most consequential phase of that journey. A brief reference to my academic formation is included at the outset only to provide essential context, before the account moves directly into the concluding chapter of my professional life.}

CM KCR often recalled the historical injustices inflicted on Telangana with the precision of a contemporary chronicler. He repeatedly described the Congress Party as the ‘Number one villain’ of the State, tracing this assessment through specific historical decisions, like Jawaharlal Nehru’s role in merging Telangana with Andhra, Indira Gandhi’s abrogation of Mulki Rules, and prolonged delay by successive UPA governments in addressing the demand for statehood. He categorically rejected the notion that Telangana was created out of benevolence or affection. In his view, the decision emerged at the eleventh hour, out of compulsion, political calculation, and absence of any viable alternative.

Whenever KCR spoke about initiatives such as Mission Kakatiya, Mission Bhagiratha, the re-engineering of irrigation projects, comprehensive agricultural reforms, timely supply of seeds and fertilizers, financial assistance to farmers, creation of crop colonies, revival of hereditary professions, sheep distribution, Bathukamma saree distribution, TS-iPass industrial policy, Telangana Ku Haritha Haram, KCR Kits, and round-the-clock quality power supply, his emotions were evident. These programs represented the fulfilment, and often the surpassing of promises made during the Telangana movement. Observing this commitment at close quarters was a constant source of inspiration for me.

The creation of the Telangana State Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Special Development Fund (SDF) was one of KCR’s most thoughtful institutional interventions. Conceived as a dedicated mechanism for planning, allocation, and utilization of funds earmarked for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, the SDF aimed at accelerating their development in a focused and accountable manner. The emphasis was not merely on expenditure, but on achieving equality through economic empowerment, educational advancement, human development, social security, and the preservation of dignity, thereby promoting equity among these communities in a substantive sense.

When KCR embarked upon the historic and long-overdue exercise of survey and settlement of lands, with the objective of correcting land records and putting an end to chronic land litigation, it was a moment of particular satisfaction for me. Coming from a village background and having witnessed first-hand the hardships faced by farmers, I understood the significance of this reform. The clarity with which KCR provided guidance, outlined the roadmap, and shared implementation strategies reflected his determination to cleanse the revenue administration system and eliminate the scope for corruption and avoidable disputes.

Strengthening Panchayat Raj institutions consistently remained high on KCR’s agenda. He firmly believed that genuine development must flow through local self-governance, and that the weakening of Panchayat Raj institutions over time had contributed significantly to the underdevelopment of both the State and the country. He frequently recalled the vision of SK Dey, who had pioneered community development in independent India, not as a mere administrative arrangement but as a people’s movement. In his review meetings and public forums, KCR often referred to the recommendations of the Balwant Rai Mehta, Ashok Mehta, GVK Rao, and LM Singhvi Committees, articulating his vision of Telangana as a model State in Panchayat Raj governance.

I distinctly remember October 26, 2017, when KCR, as Leader of the House, displayed rare statesmanship at the Legislative Assembly’s Business Advisory Committee meeting. In response to the Opposition’s demand for a 20-day winter session, he unexpectedly proposed an unprecedented 50-day session. The move not only demonstrated confidence in governance and legislative accountability but also turned the tables on the Opposition, leaving them visibly unprepared. It was a moment that revealed a quality seldom seen in contemporary political leadership.

Another of KCR’s distinctive initiatives was the KCR Kit, conceived as a comprehensive intervention in maternal and child health. Under his direct guidance, the Health and Medical Department designed the program with multiple objectives: reducing maternal and infant mortality rates, ensuring quality medical care, compensating wage loss for pregnant women, strengthening antenatal care, increasing institutional deliveries, and curbing indiscriminate caesarean sections. The program was implemented with clarity of purpose and administrative rigor, and its impact soon became evident across the State.

In the third week of January 2018, K Chandrashekhar Rao participated in an interview moderated by Rajdeep Sardesai at the India Today Conclave held in Hyderabad. What made this interaction particularly striking was that it was entirely extempore, there was no prior preparation, and consent to participate was given at the last minute. Despite this, or perhaps because of it, the interview unfolded with remarkable clarity and confidence.

KCR asserted that the formation of Telangana had heralded a great success story and made it clear that there was no question of regretting the separation of the so-called Telugu identity at any stage. In his view, no such homogeneous identity had ever truly existed. He traced the creation of wealth in Telangana back to the Nizam era, firmly anchoring the State’s economic history in its own distinct past.

Expanding on this theme, KCR stated with conviction that Telangana was inherently rich and would emerge as the richest State in the country, driven by the simple but powerful principle of ‘Grow, grow and grow.’ In a moment that reflected both confidence and openness, he remarked that he would have no objection if Hyderabad were made a second capital of the country, provided there was a national consensus on the concept of having a second capital at all. He even added, with characteristic sarcasm, that he would not mind if the entire country chose to come to Hyderabad.

These remarks, delivered without artifice, reflected a leader comfortable with ambition and scale. What followed was a lucid articulation of what KCR described as the Telangana Model. He explained it not as a slogan but as a set of interconnected interventions: identifying and nurturing human resources with a fresh perspective; revitalizing the rural economy, treating sheep distribution as a ‘moving bank’ that created wealth rather than dependency, ensuring uninterrupted quality power supply, providing Aasara pensions on an unprecedented scale, and designing welfare schemes that used subsidization to lift people out of vulnerability.

He spoke of how farmers’ suicides were halted, confidence restored, agriculture rejuvenated, irrigation stabilized, and minimum support prices ensured. At the same time, he emphasized preserving Hyderabad’s character as the City of Lakes and the City of Pearls. Taken together, these elements constituted the Telangana Model as he envisioned and implemented it.

KCR also displayed exceptional clarity regarding his relationship with the Centre and with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, an attribute he often demonstrated in governance and one that, in my view, every Chief Minister should cultivate. During the interview, Rajdeep posed two pointed questions: whether KCR would concede that Sonia Gandhi and the Congress had given Telangana, and whether his decision to contest elections independently while building an equation with Prime Minister Modi amounted to adopting a ‘Hyderabadi way of doing business,’ keeping all sides satisfied.

KCR’s response was distinctly statesmanlike. He remarked that if he failed to conduct himself logically, he would indeed be illogical. His primary interest, he emphasized, was the State of Telangana and its people, not what he described as ‘silly politics.’ He clarified that any Chief Minister was constitutionally bound to maintain a cordial and constructive relationship with the Government of India, and that such a relationship between the State and the Centre was both necessary and desirable. He further stated that he maintained an equal distance from both the Congress and the BJP, reinforcing his position of political independence.

Throughout the interview, KCR exhibited his characteristic style of expressing views, explicitly, honestly, and without defensiveness. This was a quality I observed and learnt from at every stage of my association with him. When criticized for inducting members of his family, his daughter, son, and nephew, into politics, and when Rajdeep questioned whether this reflected ‘Telangana pride or family pride,’ KCR responded but did not react.

KCR defended rather than denied. He stated that it was he and his family who had led the Telangana agitation, gone to jail, and later been elected by the people as Members of Parliament and Members of the Legislative Assembly, but not nominated by anyone. He concluded with a line that stayed with me and that I have often used contextually in my own professional communications: ‘His family, he said, was Telangana itself.’