I TOO HAD A DREAM: SYNOPSIS & EXCERPTS

Verghese Kurien belonged to an illustrious family wherein his father was a civil surgeon in British, Cochin and his mother too was highly educated. Kurien had completed his graduation in B.Sc and wanted to obtain his masters in metallurgy and physics. He applied for the British Scholarships that enabled the student to go abroad and complete their masters. Despite having a comfortable job in TISCO at the age of 23, Kurien was adamant of studying further and that too from abroad. However there came the first glitch- The government selected him to grant scholarship but on one condition- He had to pursue a masters in Dairy Farming and not in metallurgy or nuclear physics!!...for that was the need of the government! Kurien agreed for he wanted to get away from TISCO and thought he would take up a side course in metallurgy and physics while pursuing his obligations in dairy farming!!

As he came back from US on completing his dairy farming course he already had a job that promised to pay Rs. 1000/- a month...in the year 1948!

However the government reminded him that according to the bond that granted him scholarship he had to work for the government for at least the next three years! and thus he was posted in a remote dusty village called Anand in Gujrat.

Thus this reluctant young man began his journey in the 1948 believing that he will fulfill the bond and leave for better pastures...he had no idea of the pastures that he was going to create right there in Anand....and dedicate his entire life to the farmers of Gujrat and Kaira Co-operatives and the soon the to the whole of India, making India the largest milk producer in the WORLD.
EXCERPTS FROM THE BOOK (also see excerpts on http://shockaday.blogspot.com )

"When our country fought for freedom from the British it evolved leadership of quality that any nation anywhere in the world would be proud of. Leaders with calibre and nobility of purpose from different states of India. It is dismaying to see that we no longer have that uplifting nobility and are producing increasingly inferior leaders."

"While integrity and loyalty are core values there are other values too that are integral to achieve success in any field. For example, the leader must first set an example and then explain to others in what way the change is going to take place."

"What is the primary job of the manager? To bring in and groom the right people on the team. Once this is done, to groom the successor most appropriate for the institution."

"If you are paid less than what you are worth than you might get respect but if you get much more than what you are worth than you'll definately not get respect(of colleagues/ staff)."

"Our greatest national resource is our people and we have more often than not neglected this. Whether intentionally or not, we have created an illusion that everything is in the hands of the government."

"Great change takes place through sometimes small, even invisible steps"

"When employees begin to believe that the institution exists for them rather then they exist for the purpose and ideals for which the institution was built, then clearly, that institution has mutated into bureaucracy."

GOOD BOOK...GREAT STORY...MUST READ...HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.