My Innings

 

With my ever loving spouse, Venkata Naga Satyavati.

My (Second) Innings

B. Yerram Raju

Legacy made my choice in favour of the banking career that started on 1^st August 1966 as a probationary officer and retired on the 28^{th of} February 1994. The career was truly exciting as it was all through a career of learning. As a probationary officer, I was lucky in working under legendary officers like R.K. Talwar, P.K. Nayar, Soloman Raj, Dr. K. Srinivasa Rao, P.S. Prasad Rao, A. Sankar, H.V. Ranga Swamy, P.V. Subba Rao, V. Subba Rao, A.B. Mohan Rao, M. Krishna Murthy, K.G.K. Menon, M.N. Dandekar, V. Mahadevan, C.L. Khemani to name a few. I am grateful to them. All of them respected compliance, regulation, and compassion to the small borrower – whether in farming or small industry. Extension with credit delivered the results. Doing duty in banking was like doing karma.

Exciting part of my career in the bank was as Agent, Agricultural Development Branch; Branch Manager, Nellore Town branch; Senior Faculty at the State Bank Institute of Rural Development, Chief Inspector, Inspection Department – Nagpur and Jaipur zones; and Regional Manager, East Godavari District, Visakhapatnam Zonal Office.

Divi Seema floods in 1974 beckoned me to serve the cyclone-affected areas that took away 10000 lives in its stride. Morvi floods of UP, Cyclone of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh and recurrence of natural calamities caused distress to the farmers and both the agricultural term loans and crop loans came under stress. Government of India commissioned Agricultural Finance Corporation and IBA jointly, to draft the guidelines to rehabilitation and revival of agricultural credit to the areas affected by natural calamities. Central Office placed me as member of that committee. P.F. Gutta was the executive Chairman of the Committee while Ghulam Ghouse, chairman, AFC was the Chairman. All the calamity affected areas in the country were visited; discussions with stakeholders and local banks and cooperative institutions were held and guidelines were drafted. As member-secretary, I had the privilege of drafting the white booklet containing the guidelines in 1974 that were accepted by the RBI and circulated to the banks for implementation.

While in the Bank, I preferred to do PhD instead of CAIIB, the panchakshari mantra for elevation in the bank. I completed PhD from the Department of Commerce and Management Studies, Andhra University in 1984 while I was Branch Manager, Nellore and my thesis was on Credit Planning and Management – Focus on Medak District. Mrs. Indira Gandhi was the Member of Parliament from Medak Constituency when I was its Lead District Officer. Very rare for an official of my cadre in those days to interact with Mrs. Indira Gandhi and had the privilege of release of the District Plan and District Plan at Sangareddy.

Another challenging opportunity – a unique one – descended on me while I was inspecting Pedder Road branch in 1990. Union Government indented on my services to serve as Professor of Economics, Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, Mussoorie. Shri M. N. Goiporia, the then Chairman summoned me to his office to discuss the prospect and assess me for the deputation. He took the decision to relieve me for this assignment and advised me to keep up the prestige of the Bank as it is very rare that a banker would be requested to such position that involved training of the civil servants of the country. I formulated the syllabus for Economics in line with the liberalization, privatization and globalization policies that were getting under way.

I authored by that time more than 100 articles in the Economic Times, Business Standard, Financial Express and the Hindu and a couple of books. These publications coupled with my proven track record as field executive covering rural development and agriculture caught the attention of International Biographical Society, Cambridge to confer on me the title of INTERNATIONAL MAN OF THE YEAR, 1991. On my repatriation I was posted as Regional Manager, at Visakhapatnam. My assignments at the SBIRD and LBSNAA made me think of a career where knowledge sharing will be possible. Further, I realized that all that one could learn in banking would take place – managing credit, situations, people and customers and conflict resolution – only till scale VII. Unless one learns the art of compromising in life, it will be difficult to rise to the top position. I decided to go for a more independent and peaceful as also a sharing career.

The End of First Innings

sbi TAUGHT ME MANY THINGS AND LEFT MANY ACQUAINTANCES IN awe. lATE t. nAGABHUSHANAM WAS MY gURU IN pROBATION AT VIJAYAWADA AND HE SUCCEEDED ME AS aGENT AT adb, vISAKHAPATNAM AND mAHARANIPET. dR. cHOWDARI pRASAD AND VEDANTHAM JAGANMOHAN PRODDED ME TO WRITE MY AUTOBIOGRAPHY.

 The second innings started from October 1994 with the Administrative Staff College of India, Hyderabad where I was invited as Senior Faculty. Within a year, I became the Dean of Studies. I did not have to look back thereafter. During this period, I conducted two studies on sickness of small-scale industries for the states of AP and Jammu and Kashmir. I have drafted the Small-scale Industries Bill for the Government of India and studied a few organisations for corporate restructuring. This second innings concluded with my attaining the age of superannuation in December 2001. During this second innings, my learning curve sharpened into areas of governance, world trade organization issues and financial management.

Third innings started after retiring from the ASCI. I have set up my own consulting organization. I worked on several consulting assignments with state governments – Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat – and several corporate undertakings. I pursued financial risk management professionally. I toured Southeast Asia, UK, Switzerland and interacted with several who mattered around Risk Management. 2003 and 2004 saw me as MEMBER OF JURY, ASIA-PACIFIC BANKERS’ CONGRESS, MANILA.  In 2005, I was appointed as Member of the SME working group of the RBI.

I had set up chapter of Professional Risk Managers’ International Association at Hyderabad and became Regional Director. I conducted training programmes in risk management for a few banks. Academic experience beckoned me again to head the Indian Institute of Economics as Director for a year. 

Government of Andhra Pradesh invited me in 2009 to be a Consultant to their Cooperative Department. In 2011, RBI inducted me as Expert Member of the Short-term Cooperative Credit Structure of a Committee constituted for the purpose.  

After the formation of Telangana State, I was consulted by the Planning Department for writing their first Socio-Economic Outlook in 2015 and Industries Department. Government of Telangana, seeing merit in my suggestion for establishing a separate institution to tackle the sickness in micro and small manufacturing enterprises had set up Telangana Industrial Health Clinic Ltd in 2017 as NBFC.

I had many innings, and my effective retirement took place in March 2021 from the as Adviser, TIHCL, Government of Telangana after I reached Eighty. Now, happily continuing my hobbies, I keep reading religious scriptures and writing occasionally for reputed dailies and journals a few articles on invitation.  

The lessons I learnt are many. But those that others also may like are: 1. See merit in what others say and listen to them. 2. Take a good morning walk for at least 30 minutes. 3. Have your food conservatively but on time every day. 4. ‘Keep your eyes and ears open but mouth shut’ – an old saying. 5.Keep others happy and be happy. Friends and well-wishers were a great strength to me. I must admit that I had several critiques who made me of sterner strength.

I am happy with my spouse, three daughters, two grand daughters and three grandsons. I wrote over 2000 articles in the leading financial dailies and the Hindu, and authored 16 books – the last book being, my autobiography - ROOTS TO FRUITS – THE JOURNEY OF A DEVELOPMENT BANKER. I have passion for Agriculture and Micro and Small Enterprises.

Here is my family photo with parents and brothers at the time of marriage of my third daughter Shanti Vikas and Vikas Waghrey. 

Published in SBI Pensioners' News Bulletin, November 2021. Acknowledged with thanks.