If You Succumb To Pressure You Are Just A Manager Not A Leader Tukaram Mundhe

MUMBAI: On the morning of Independence Day, hundreds of students thronged the St Xavier’s College hall to hear Tukaram Mundhe, the FDA commissioner who has been the cynosure of attention thanks to his sustained drive against defaulting food establishments.

As the lead speaker for the annual college festival, Malhar, Mundhe, who was scheduled to give a lecture titled ‘Man on a Mission’, however, steered clear of his clean-up drive that has raised the hackles of many in the state. Instead, he used the occasion to urge students to take up leadership roles in society. “Don’t look for leaders to lead you—you lead with solutions instead,” he said. “Don’t own the problem, own the solution. I expect you to be leaders in your own field.”

Gen Z students heard Mundhe out in rapt attention. Many who had heard about his work said they connected with most of what he said, and found him inspiring.

A large part of Mundhe’s talk dwelt on asking students to take responsibility. “Don’t restrict yourselves to collecting knowledge; instead, develop analytical skills and process these to develop solutions,” he said. “Diagnosis of problems is easy, but coming up with solutions by identifying the unmet gaps in society is the key to leadership.”

As an example of an analytical skill, Mundhe mentioned the ability to sift through the overload of knowledge. He said this was very pertinent in the civil services exam, and was a skill that helped IAS officers take critical decisions. However, he cautioned the students that they should consider the civil services only if they were absolutely sure that they had the courage and commitment to contribute toward a better society and world. “Civil service is not just a job,” he emphasised.

The FDA commissioner told students to ask themselves if they had made someone happy and to imagine a society where everybody mattered, not just them. “Pause and think if you are going in the right direction,” he said, adding that discipline would see them through life. A leader can lead only if he is disciplined,” he stressed.

Touching upon his 21 years as an IAS officer, Mundhe brushed aside the well-known pressures on him as part of his work. “There will be pulls and pressures but if you succumb, you are not a leader, you are just a manager,” he said. “There will be noise but it should not let it affect you. A leader is one who has the courage to change things for the better.”

When asked to recall the best feedback of his career, he mentioned receiving hundreds of letters during his stint in Solapur, where he helped resolve water-scarcity issues, though choosing to add that bouquets and brickbats were an inherent part of his work.

When the session was opened for questions, Mundhe sidestepped one about his favourite restaurant. Instead, he asked students to constantly question the quality and ingredients of the food they ate, and avoid junk, spicy and salty food.