T. S. R. Subramanian

Thirumanilaiyur Sitapati Ramana Subramanian (11 December 1938 – 26 February 2018) was an Indian bureaucrat who served as the cabinet secretary of India from August 1996 to March 1998.[1] He was a 1961 batch Indian Administrative Service officer from Uttar Pradesh Cadre.

T. S. R. Subramanian
T. S. R. Subramanian: Fourth from the left
Cabinet Secretary of India
In office
1 August 1996 – 31 March 1998
Preceded bySurendra Singh
Succeeded byPrabhat Kumar
Personal details
Born
Thirumanilaiyur Sitapati Ramana Subramanian

(1938-12-11)11 December 1938
Thanjavur, Madras Presidency, India
Died26 February 2018(2018-02-26) (aged 79)
New Delhi, India
OccupationCivil servant

Early life and education

He was born into a middle class Tamil family and had spent much of his schooling days in Thanjavur, Tamil nadu. Subramanian has a master's degree from Calcutta University, and has studied at the Imperial College London (officially Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine). He also held a master's degree in Public Administration from Harvard University.

Career

Subramanian served in the Indian Administrative Service, where he held various positions including that of Cabinet Secretary (1 August 1996 to 31 March 1998), the highest post in the Indian administration and the post of Secretary in the Ministry of Textiles. He was Non-Executive Director of HCL Technologies from September 1999 to November 2011. He was a founder member and former Chancellor of the Shiv Nadar University.[2] He held directorships for a few companies like HCL and SABMiller.[3] He was also Founder Chairperson, VidyaGyan Leadership Academy & Trustee, Shiv Nadar Foundation.

Remarks

On 31 October 2013, the Supreme Court's decision in T.S.R. Subramaniam v. Union of India drastically reduced political pressure on top bureaucrats by ruling that they must get an assured minimum tenure in posting. Additionally, the Court held that civil servants were not bound to follow oral directives from the Government. "Fixed tenure of bureaucrats will promote professionalism, efficiency and good governance," bench observed. "Much of the deterioration in the functioning of bureaucracy is due to political interference," the SC said. The SC also directed the Centre and state governments to pass an order within three months on giving fixed tenure to civil servants. The PIL filed by 83 retired bureaucrats including former cabinet secretary T S R Subramanian seeking its directions for insulating bureaucracy from political interference.[4] "This is a landmark judgement. Public servants are not private servants," Subramanian said.

Works
  • India at Turning Point: The Road to Good Governance [5] ISBN 9788129130877
  • GovernMint In India: An Inside View (2009) ISBN 9788129114822
  • Journeys Through Babudom and Netaland: Governance in India (2004) ISBN 9788129105875

References
  1. "T.S.R. Subramanian". Cabinet Secretaries Portal. Archived from the original on 10 March 2010. Retrieved 20 October 2012.
  2. "T.S.R. Subramanian- Chancellor, Shiv Nadar University". Shiv Nadar University Portal. Archived from the original on 17 October 2012.
  3. https://www.bloomberg.com/Research/stocks/people/person.asp?personId=9117300&privcapId=777058
  4. "SC to bureaucrats: Don't take oral instructions from netas". The Times of India. 31 October 2013.
  5. Pisharoty, Sangeeta Barooah (8 January 2014). "A livening debate on bureaucracy & politics". The Hindu.
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