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7/29/2019 S R Sankaran in Memoriam
1/3
commentary
Economic & Political Weekly EPW october 23, 2010 vol xlv no 43 25
S R Sankaran: In Memoriam
E A S Sarma
S R Sankaran, the retired IAS
ofcer, who died on 7 October
was an extraordinary person
who directly touched the lives
o perhaps tens o thousands o
people. As a civil servant he was
deeply involved over the decades
in the abolition o bonded labour
and empowerment o the adivasis
o Andhra Pradesh. He was also
chie secretary o Tripura and atthe centre he was involved with
some major policy issues such as
the nationalisation o coal in the
1970s. Position and power did not
matter to Sankaran, the rights
o the poor did. Post retirement,
Sankaran remained as active as
beore: he was involved with a
number o peoples organisations,he headed a committee o
concerned citizens to mediate
between the government and the
Naxalites in Andhra Pradesh, he
worked withsafai karmacharis to
abolish this antediluvian practice
and he was generally concerned
with the threat to democratic
rights. Two tributes.
Serukalathur Ramanathan Sankaran
will remain a legend to be remem-bered by the civil servants in the
country, as well as by the people o
Andhra Pradesh. Some o us closely asso-
ciated with him during the last our
decades are yet to reconcile ourselves to
his passing.
During the 30-odd years that he served
the state and the centre as a civil servant
in various capacities, Sankarans home
oered an open shelter to anyone in need
o help and solace. He transcended the
rigid barriers o the civil services to reach
out to the needy, the oppressed and the
deprived. His uprightness, sincerity and
compassion or the poor disarmed politi-
cians, inspired young civil servants and
provided hope and succour to millions o
voiceless people. He was a civil servant
with a dierence. More than that, he was a
sel-eacing human being par excellence.
On 7 October, as soon as news o his
demise spread and on the next day, when
his cremation took place, thousands opeople thronged his residence and then
the crematorium nearby, to see him and
pay respect to him. Among them were
many individuals, dalits, their amilies
and their associates to whom Sankaran
provided comort and support when
needed. There were safai karmacharis
or whose cause he devoted a signifcant
part o his later years. There were many
adivasis or whom he always remained a
ather fgure. There were several handi-
capped persons or whom Sankaran was
the abiding source o hope and help. He
brought up many an orphan, helped him
or her to progress in lie and become
sel-reliant.
As a comparatively junior ofcer in
Andhra pradesh, I always wondered how
Sankaran could cut through the bureau-
cratic jungle o rules and regulations to
come to the help o any young colleague
trying to provide relie to a needy person
or serve the larger public interest. He wasa beacon o hope and a source o inspira-
tion or youngsters like me.
When I was the district collector o
Medak during the 1980s, Sankaran
inspired me and some o my colleagues to
conduct a camp or agricultural workers
to make them aware o their rights and
responsibilities under the various laws, so
as to enable them to resist bonded labour,
untouchability, usurious moneylendingand other such practices. I still remember
Sankaran, who was then secretary (social
welare) in the government o Andhra
Pradesh, unostentatiously mixing with
the agricultural workers, sharing ood
with them and sleeping on the oor
along with them, so as to be able to listen
to their concerns and share their experi-
ences frst hand, more as a riend than
as a senior ofcer o the state govern-
ment. The example he set to all o us at
the camp transormed each one o us into
a Sankaran.
What ollowed rom the Medak camp
was truly a miracle. For the frst time in
the state, we could document a airly
comprehensive register o vil lagewise in-
stances o bondagein at least one district,
Medak. We secured the release o several
agricultural workers rom bondage and
arranged their rehabilitation by provid-
ing them with assistance. Cases were
fled against landlords who were ound re-sponsible or pushing the workers into
orced bondage. In some instances, cases
were fled against those who practised
untouchability. By organising the agricul-
tural workers, it became possible or the
administration to enorce the minimum
wage laws eectively. The camp had a
positive impact on the morale o the agri-
cultural workers all around.
Tribal Welfare
Sankarans contribution to governance in
the tribal areas o the state was pheno-
menal. It was during Sankarans term as
principal secretary (social welare) that we
introduced the single line administration
in the tribal areas. The Integrated Tribal
Development Agencies (ITDAs) became the
nerve centres o administration in their
respective areas. They were empowered
sufciently to be able to eectively address
the problems o the adivasis. Teachers
Training Institutes were set up to groomthe tribals as teachers to provide an impetus
to education. The powers available under
E A S Sarma ([email protected]) is a ormer
secretary to the Government o India.
7/29/2019 S R Sankaran in Memoriam
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commentary
october 23, 2010 vol xlv no 43 EPW Economic & Political Weekly26
the Fith Schedule o the Constitution
were invoked to enorce maximum reser-
vation or the tribals in appointments to
the posts o teachers, as workers in the
Girijan Cooperative Corporation and in a
ew other departments operating in the
tribal areas o the state. A series o devel-
opment measures that covered education,health, agriculture, animal husbandry and
so on were initiated. Despite their short-
comings, the ITDAs in AP stand out today
as a airly good model o tribal administra-
tion at the national level. Sankarans com-
mitment and personal involvement in all
this acted as the single most important
motivational actor to energise the admini-
stration in the tribal areas.
When Sankaran, along with a ew junior
colleagues, was kidnapped by the Peoples
War Group in the orest areas o East
Godavari district in 1987, the incident let
a lasting impression on his psyche. While
he understood the concerns o the adivasis
better than many others, he was not in
avour o any kind o violence, whether it
was committed by an extremist group,
apparently espousing the cause o the
adivasis, or by the State itsel, ostensibly in
the name o maintaining law and order.
Perhaps this was at the back o his mind
ater his retirement rom the government,
when he undertook the daunting but rus-
trating responsibility o leading a serious
dialogue between the government and
the Maoists during 1997-2002. He took
part in the negotiation process in a highly
assiduous and constructive manner, un-
mindul o his deteriorating health. Theseries o reports released on this dialogue
by the Committee o Concerned Citizens
provide invaluable insights into the prob-
lems o the adivasis and the respective
roles played by the state agencies and the
Maoists in the ongoing struggle in the
tribal areas. These reports clearly show
the relentless eorts made by Sankaran to
resolve the deadlock. Whatever be the
reasons, the outcome o the dialogue
seemed to weigh heavily on Sankarans
mind till his demise.
Chief Secretary of Tripura
Beore the East Godavari incident, Sankaran
had been chosen to head the Lal Bahadur
Shastri National Academy o Administra-
tion at Mussoorie. He was considered an
ideal role model or the young civil servant
trainees at the Academy. However, ater
the East Godavari incident, Sankaran
became controversial overnight in the
eyes o the rulers at Delhi. His assignment
was abruptly cancelled.
When I visited Tripura last year, I met
several residents there recalling Sankarans
stint as chie secretary o the state in the
1980s. I Sankaran had remained a bach-
elor with very ew belongings throughout
his lie, so was Nripen Chakraborty,Tripuras well-remembered chie minister,
whose liestyle was equally simple and
spartan. Sankaran once narrated to me how
Nripen Chakraborty preerred to spend a
night sleeping on an uncovered wooden
bench in the verandah o a ramshackle
single-room rest house in a remote part o
the state, so as not to disturb Sankaran
who had already gone to sleep by then.
Sankarans knowledge o Tripura and its
problems was as comprehensive as his
knowledge o Andhra Pradesh. He was
instrumental in resettling many daily
wage construction workers in the south-
ern part o the erstwhile Bihar, when he
ound that they had been orcibly trans-
ported to Tripura by unethical contractors
and orced to work at low wages, under
subhuman conditions.
When Mohan Kumaramangalam was
minister in charge o mines in the early
1970s, Sankaran assisted him in pushing
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7/29/2019 S R Sankaran in Memoriam
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commentary
Economic & Political Weekly EPW october 23, 2010 vol xlv no 43 27
through the nationalisation o the coal in-
dustry, which ultimately paved the way
or introducing scientifc practices in min-
ing and bringing about a sea change in the
working conditions o the coal miners.
I had the beneft o working closely
with Sankaran on an expert group consti-
tuted by the Planning Commission a coupleo years ago on Development Challenges
in the Extremist Aected Areas. The
fnal report o the expert group carried
Sankarans imprint. The recommenda-
tions contained in the report have ar-
reaching implications or governance, not
only or the extremist aected areas but
also or the rest o the country. The central
government is yet to act on the fndings o
the Expert Group.
Sankaran was deeply concerned at the
diminishing space or democratic and
human rights in the country. On more
than one occasion, he voiced his distress
at this emerging trend.
Ignored by the Government
Soon ater the Congress government cameto power in Andhra Pradesh, in a letter
dated 18 August 2005, I proposed to the
then chie minister a detailed action pro-
gramme or enorcing the constitutional
rights o the adivasis and or promoting
their well being. In that letter, I suggested
that the state government should take
inputs rom Sankaran on what I had
proposed, as he was located conveniently
in Hyderabad not ar rom the State
secretariat. I grossly underestimated the
distance that existed in reality between
Sankaran and the secretariat. The state
government did not fnd much merit
in what I said then. It did not care to
seek inputs rom Sankaran. I consider it
an irreparable loss or the adivasis o
Andhra Pradesh.Ironically, the same government accorded
state honours to embellish Sankarans
fnal journey. Sankaran himsel would
have disliked any such ritual!
I hope that Sankarans ideas will shape
the civil services o this country or a long
time to come. I hope his vision will one
day inuence the minds o the rulers at
Hyderabad and Delhi. For us, Sankaran
will always remain alive.
An Extraordinary Public Servant
K Subramanian
SR Sankaran was no ordinary person
though he always wished to remain
one. In his position and with his
deep involvement in public aairs, especially
those concerning rural poverty, tribal wel-are and the uplit o weaker sections, it
was an achievement or this extraordinary
person to remain ordinary.
He died on 7 October in his small apart-
ment in Amrutha Hills, Hyderabad. He
died in the same private way in which he
had led his lie while in service and, later,
ater retirement.
What was extraordinary about this
ordinary man? It is true that he had held
several senior posts in the state and
central governments and had also risen in
the hierarchy. It is equally true that he was
an ofcer o the Indian Administrative
Service. Truth to tell, among most ofcers
o that category whom I have come across,
there was none who was less bothered
about the IAS badge than SR. For him,
the opportunities oered by the service
were more important than personal gains
or status. And he did not hesitate to use
them to achieve his objectives. It was not
an easy journey and not many may be
aware o the trials and tribulations he
had to ace.
SimplicitySRwas given to the utmost simplicity and
lived with the barest minimum in lie.
When he came to Delhi in the early 1970s
to take up the position o special assistant
to Mohan Kumaramangalam (MK) who was
the then union steel minister, he landed in
our at. His worldly possessions consisted
o one attach case with a broken latch
and a small box which contained his
clothes. He used to buy books and give
them away to riends ater reading them.
It was later in lie, ater retirement, that
he started collecting books. His books and
document collections in his apartment
were always in a shambles!
He was embarrassed by any show o
ostentation and had the utmost disdain
or consumerism. Even so, he did not wear
his values on his sleeves and make his
riends uneasy about their liestyles. He
could mingle with them with ease without
being aected by their living styles. This
is perhaps detachment in the truest sense.In his early days in North Block in the
fnance ministry, he was spotted as the
only ofcer going about in winter in a
khadi bush shirt, while all o us used to
shiver in our tweed coats. He was known
to say that he would change over to wool-
lens only ater the poor in our country
were provided with warm clothing. (He
did change in later years with age and ill-
ness getting the better o him!)
Nobody who had visited his apartment
in Hyderabad would ever know, unless
told by others, that he was a retired secre-tary to the Government o India. Many
members o that tribe live in palatial bun-
galows or gated luxury condos in Noida
or Gurgaon. Until a year prior to his
retirement, SRdid not have any place o
his own where he could lead a retired lie.
Some o his riends compelled him to sign
on a ew documents and arranged or the
ownership o the apartment and also or
fnancing, through withdrawal rom his
own provident und!
SRs commitment to the causes o the
poor and downtrodden was known rom
the earliest days in service. In Nellore
where he was collector or two terms, the
people continue to worship him. In Tripu-
ra where he was chie secretary or nearly
six years, he became a legend. Along with
Nripen Chakraborty as chie minister he
worked or a orm o humane socialism
which would lit the tribal people to
higher levels o welare. Until SR went
there, there was not one senior ofcer,orget a chie secretary, who had ever
visited the tribal people in their dwellingsK Subramanian ([email protected])
retired rom the Union Ministry o Finance.