New Delhi, Sept. 4 -- Over the decades, India has witnessed its share of turmoil. From the 1970s onwards, public violence would periodically erupt, sometimes along communal lines, sometimes over caste conflicts and often around social and economic grievances.
The country has also lived with another recurring reality: natural and man-made disasters. Devastating floods, cyclones, earthquakes, industrial accidents and other calamities have repeatedly tested the capacity of the civil administration.
There has traditionally been a familiar protocol: when situations went beyond the ability of the civil machinery, the Army, Navy or Air Force would be called in, depending upon the nature of the crisis. The moment uniformed personnel took charge, a certain sense of assurance would descend, as they represented discipline, professionalism, preparedness, impartiality and, above all, a commitment to service.
It is against this background that the appointment of retired Air Marshal Jeetendra Mishra as the first Chief Executive Officer of the Ram Mandir Trust assumes significance. The Ram temple is not an ordinary institution. It is the physical culmination of a movement that,
for millions, represented faith, civilisational memory and cultural nationalism.
Since the consecration of Ram Lalla in January 2024, forget about the donation controversy, there has been dissatisfaction among pilgrims, increasingly centred on the experience of visiting the temple. The problem, therefore, is not with Ram Lalla. It is with the manner in which the devotee encounters Ram Lalla. That distinction is fundamental to understanding what is expected of Air Marshal Mishra.
The controversy surrounding the temple administration and allegations regarding financial irregularities may occupy political and governmental discourse. But the CEO's responsibility is much larger. His immediate challenge should be to restore the confidence of the ordinary
pilgrim in the institution that has been created in the name of Ram.
There is an irony here which should not be missed. In times of crisis, the uniformed services are summoned because the
civil administration is perceived to have fallen short. The arrival of the uniformed man creates
an expectation that things will be done differently, more systematically, efficiently and without excuses.
Air Marshal Mishra, therefore, arrives at Ram Mandir carrying more than an administrative designation. He carries the expectations associated with the institution from which he has retired.
The first transformation must be from "suraksha to sewa", that is, from security to service. Security personnel must understand that they are not merely guarding a building. They are facilitating the journey of a devotee towards his deity. That requires training, discipline and sensitivity.
The complaints about the pilgrimage experience are, in many ways, remarkably mundane. A hot stone pathway in the summer, inadequate arrangements for drinking water, ineffective cooling arrangements, long queues and discourteous responses from security personnel may appear small in isolation. Collectively, however, they communicate something much larger: whether the institution cares for the person standing in the queue.
Air Marshal Mishra can bring to the temple administration the very qualities associated with the armed forces: clear chains of responsibility, punctuality, standard operating procedures, accountability, training, inspection and measurable performance. More importantly, he can bring the culture of institutional responsibility, where a problem is not passed from one desk to another but owned and resolved.
The CEO should ask simple questions: How long does an ordinary devotee have to wait? Is the waiting environment humane? Is drinking water available at every necessary point? Are elderly pilgrims, children and persons with disabilities being adequately assisted? Are toilets clean? Are queues managed intelligently? Are security personnel trained to communicate courteously? Is information available in a simple and accessible manner? Is there a mechanism through which a pilgrim can complain and receive a response?
These are not sophisticated management questions. They are questions of basic dignity. The real test of the Ram Mandir administration, therefore, is not how comfortably a VIP enters the temple. It is how respectfully the ordinary Ram Bhakt standing at the end of a long queue is treated.
The VIP route may provide convenience. The mass route provides legitimacy. Air Marshal Mishra should, therefore, spend time where the ordinary devotee spends it: standing in queues, walking the prescribed pathway, looking for drinking water, seeking directions and experiencing the security arrangements. He should see Ram Lalla, metaphorically speaking, through the eyes of the pilgrim who has no influence, no access and no special privilege.
Air Marshal Mishra's task, therefore, is not simply to run a temple. It is to ensure that an institution born out of extraordinary faith does not become diminished by ordinary administrative indifference. The expectation is simple: "If this is Ram's temple, the devotee should experience Ram's compassion."
Views expressed are personal. The writer is President, Centre for Reforms, Development & Justice
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.