Farakka: When I Had to Live by My Wits Alone

There are comfortable postings.
There are challenging postings.
And then there are postings that test whether you deserve to call yourself a leader.

My posting to Farakka fell in the third category.

At that time, I was at Vizag Steel Plant, having just completed the erection of the captive power station with blowers as Site In-Charge. The work was tough but satisfying — the kind where you sleep well because steel and steam obeyed you during the day.

Then came the order from Corporate Office, Delhi.

Overnight transfer.

Destination: Farakka Super Thermal Power Project.
Role: Replace the existing Site Head from BHEL.
Reason (unofficial but well known): NTPC was unhappy.

In two years, only 7% progress had been achieved on the 500 MW project.

I was being sent to control the damage.

Prelude in Kolkata: The First Skirmish

Before proceeding to Farakka, I halted in Kolkata. At that time, Eastern Region was under RNB. I met him as a matter of courtesy.

To my surprise, Mr. Dube from HR calmly declared:

“Eastern Region has not received any copy of such transfer order.”

I showed him the Corporate Order.
I showed him the Southern Region release order.

Still, procedural silence.

Now, I am generally a polite man. But I dislike bureaucratic theatre.

So, sitting in RNB’s office, I reached for the telephone.

Not dramatically. Just quietly.

“I think I should speak to CMD,” I said.

The CMD himself had initiated this transfer to pacify NTPC’s growing irritation. I had earlier worked at Singrauli, so NTPC’s higher management knew me.

That simple gesture — reaching for the phone — did the trick.

Suddenly, files started moving.

My joining was “accepted”.

Later I realised something important.

This was not confusion.

It was orchestration.

The sitting Site In-Charge at Farakka — let us call him SKG — had been there since Phase I (3 × 220 MW). Nearly 10 years in one location. Deep roots. Political contacts. Contractor loyalties. Trade union friendships.

And now, an outsider was coming.

The Art of Not Giving Charge

I reached Farakka with the naïve optimism of a soldier reporting to the battlefield.

I assumed I would take charge within a week.

SKG had other ideas.

For nearly a month, he copied letters to every possible office. Queries. Clarifications. Administrative technicalities.

Charge was not handed over.

I contacted RNB again.

He expressed “inability.”

That was when I realised something fundamental:

In leadership, authority on paper is different from authority in action.

So I applied a simple management principle — create a deadline with consequences.

I gave SKG two days.

Calmly.

“In two days, if charge is not handed over, I escalate to CMD.”

No shouting. No drama. Just a timeline.

He vacated.

But before leaving, he planted what I call “time bombs.”

The Minefield

When a man spends 10 years at one site, he doesn’t just build projects — he builds ecosystems.

Farakka in early 1990s was not an engineering site alone. It was:

Political undercurrents
Trade union activism at its peak
Contractor networks
BHEL site staff enjoying informal privileges
Hostile officers who were unsure about the new man

And there I was — with no real backing from HQ.

For the first time in my career, I felt I was living purely by my wit.

But life had prepared me.

Lessons from Barauni Refinery

My early years at Barauni Refinery were in a rough, demanding industrial environment. There, if you showed fear, you were finished.

Those days taught me:

Never react emotionally in hostile environments.
Understand the power structure before exercising authority.
Separate noise from risk.
Win the neutral majority before confronting the vocal minority.

Farakka needed exactly that approach.

Strategy 1: Stabilize Before Speed

The temptation was to prove myself quickly.

But I first stabilised the ecosystem.

I met NTPC officials individually.
I listened more than I spoke.
I assessed real progress versus paper progress.
I identified bottlenecks: engineering gaps, contractor delays, labour indiscipline.

When entering turbulence, the first job is not acceleration — it is balance.

Strategy 2: Don’t Fight All Battles

Trade unions were aggressive.

If I had chosen confrontation, the project would have stalled further.

Here, my late friend G. S. Sohal of NTPC became invaluable. He understood the internal dynamics and helped moderate union tensions.

Lesson:

In hostile territory, build at least one trusted ally within the system.

He became that bridge.

Strategy 3: Remove Informal Privileges Gradually

Some BHEL site employees had grown accustomed to “advantages.”

Direct removal would have triggered rebellion.

So instead:

I introduced process discipline.
Linked privileges to measurable output.
Shifted discussions from entitlement to performance.

When systems become objective, personal grievances lose oxygen.

Strategy 4: Visible Commitment

In troubled projects, morale is low because people don’t believe completion is possible.

So I made it visible:

Regular site rounds.
Daily review meetings.
Transparent milestone tracking.
No closed-door politics.

When the leader is seen on the ground, resistance weakens.

The Numbers That Matter

When I took over, only 7% work had been completed in two years.

In the next two and a half years, we completed the remaining 93%.

Two 500 MW units were commissioned.

That was not merely engineering success.

That was organizational turnaround.

What Farakka Taught Me

Looking back, Farakka remains one of the toughest assignments of my career.

Not because of engineering complexity.

But because:

There was no cushion from HQ.
A section of officers was hostile.
Political and union pressures were intense.
The predecessor had deep networks.

I survived and delivered because of a few principles:

1. Authority Must Be Asserted Early

Delay invites resistance.

2. Calmness Is a Weapon

When others expect anger, offer silence.

3. Escalation Is a Tool — Use It Sparingly

Reaching for that phone in Kolkata worked because I did not misuse that power later.

4. Performance Silences Politics

Once turbines begin rotating, opposition weakens.

5. Tough Postings Build Character

Comfortable postings build resumes.

A Touch of Humour

Many years later, someone asked me:

“Roy saab, were you not afraid?”

I said,

“In Barauni I learnt to handle boilers. In Farakka I learnt to handle human boilers.”

Both require pressure control.

Final Reflection

At 80, when I look back at my long journey — from Barauni to BHEL to NTPC projects — Farakka stands out.

There, I was not protected by systems.

There, I had to rely on:

Experience
Instinct
Relationships
And a little strategic stubbornness

Leadership is tested not when everything supports you.

It is tested when:

You are isolated.
The environment is hostile.
The clock is ticking.
And results are non-negotiable.

Farakka was that crucible.

And I remain grateful for it.

Because it proved something to me:

When institutions hesitate, individuals must act !

Samaranand's take

Saturday, February 28, 2026

Farakka when I had to live with my wits alone