‘Collector Bro’ Prasanth Nair tells us why every Person in Power should Focus on People and not Things
Text : Rochelle D’Souza Photos: Anand A N & Nikhil Wilson
Once upon a time, there was a little boy named Prasanth. One day Prasanth was accompanying his mother – who was a professor at the Government Medical College service in their hometown – to the office of the director of medical education. With the intention of voicing out an issue with regard to her transfer, they walked into the office of the director and greeted him. The man did not acknowledge them nor did he raise his head up to look at them. He spoke little, apart from a few occasional grunts he made in response to her requests. When it became evident that he would avail them no help, Prasanth and his mother left the office and made their way to the Secretariat. By this time it was late evening, around 5.30 or 6 pm and as they made their way to the office, they saw the Health Secretary rush in after a meeting. He immediately apologized for the delay, bid them to sit down and spoke to them pleasantly. Unbeknown to this man, he had just changed the life of an impressionable young boy. Prasanth looked up to his mother and asked, ‘Who is this man?’ to which his mother replied, ‘He’s a civil service officer.’ As they left the office he turned back – almost cinematically – and looked at the officer’s name board. He saw the words ‘IAS’ written on it. That was the day that Prasanth Nair knew exactly who he wanted to be when he grew up.
“The impression that man created in me not only helped me choose my career but also helped me choose how I would go about in my career by behaving well, trying to sort out issues, interacting with people and being helpful to all those in need.” says the IAS officer better known as ‘Collector Bro’.
Lauded for his work as District Collector of Kozhikode, Prasanth Nair has brought newfound ideas and changes into his line of work and set the bar sky high for anyone who intends to step into his shoes, but one of his biggest eye openers and contributions to his field is his idea for compassion in administration. Here is an excerpt from FWD Business’ interview with this enterprising personality.
From day one you set out to change the way your predecessors and your counterparts have gone about fulfilling their administrative duties. Why did you choose to do differently and why?
“I think it’s necessary that you know fully well when you enter into any administrative services, that you are bound to not just serve the country and its people but also enrich yourself with knowledge and experience. When I got the post I knew exactly what I wanted to do – I would concentrate on the social sector. Building infrastructure like roads, bridges and metros are things that will happen irrespective of whether a collector roots for them or not. There are a lot of notaries and pressure groups for that sort of development but on the other hand, there are other aspects that are systematically ignored. Take a look at our old age homes, mental health centres, orphanages etc. These are areas that are ignored because stakeholders and inmates have no voice. Everyone has vested interests in other projects like roads, real estate and so-called ‘development’ and I really don’t feel like I need to be devoting my time and energy to them that was how Compassionate Kozhikode and its related programs came to be.”
Why the Social Sector
“In my 10 years of service I have made some astonishing discoveries, but perhaps one that I was most appalled by took place during my collectorship in Calicut. I came across the fact that the menu in the Calicut Kuthiravattom Mental Health Centre has remained the same since it was fixed in 1971 and the staple diet of the occupants over the last 45years was wheat kanji – godhambu kanji. Since the occupants aren’t in a position to raise an issue about it and articulate their problems, the matter went unnoticed for nearly half a century in the middle of an affluent city like Calicut. We tried to fix it but there were excuses like, no budget allocation, sanctions and what not. So we decided to source locally and get the community involved – residents association, hotels and restaurants association, baker’s association and merchants – to get them good food. And this small change – changing the menu – made such a difference to these people. On the first day, we served them puttu and the medical superintendent called us saying what an emotional thing it was to watch because something that we take for granted brought these people such immense joy.”
You delivered a TEDx talk on ‘Compassion in Administration’ and implemented programs – like Compassionate Kozhikode and Operation Sulemani – along the lines of compassion towards the lesser fortune during your tenure. How much of a change can compassion bring about in the world of administration?
“Compassion is the cornerstone of successful administration. Most issues have a solution in compassion. I’ve found that most of the issues I’ve faced in office have come about due to a lack of compassion. You have people fighting over half a meter of property for which they are willing to stab each other to death and it goes out of control thanks to their ego, arrogance and pride – essentially a lack of compassion.”
Lawyer, IAS officer, scriptwriter. What’s next for ‘Collector Bro’?
“The most interesting person I’ve ever met was an Australian man. He started off his career as a postman, then he became a plumber. He then studied engineering and became an engineer. Then he studied law and practiced for a while and when I met him he was teaching public administration in a university. Interestingly enough he used to give musical performances as well. I think it’s safe to say that he lived life to the fullest.
I’ve always believed that you shouldn’t be typecasted in a way of life or career because your identity and personality isn’t limited to that. Before I am an IAS officer and civil servant, I am a human being who has varied interests. I have always been a movie buff and I used to watch, critique and discuss movies and it was just a matter of time before I took the plunge. I’m actually looking forward to direction as well.”