Railway Man

This is the story of an engineer par excellence who not only built bridges in the toughest terrains, but also bridged divides among people.

R.R. Jaruhar gives a fascinating and vivid account of his long and illustrious career in the Indian Railways. The engaging narrative is peppered with awe-inspiring anecdotes as well as amusing adventures often experienced in the most trying of conditions. Jaruhar’s steely determination, humility and cheerful disposition helped him survive murderous dacoits, tough union leaders and even tigers! The most striking reminiscence—in a Bollywood-like story of social engineering—is when he got dacoits to eschew violence and join as stakeholders in the construction of the Gandak rail bridge.

He shares some of the milestones achieved by the Indian Railways over the years and reflects on why each milestone holds important management lessons—especially the dramatic turnaround of the Railways between 2005 and 2007. This turnaround became a subject of research at not only the World Bank and the Harvard Business School, but also IIM Ahmedabad and the Indian School of Business, Hyderabad. However, it is Jaruhar’s perspective on life and relationships that shines through. The maturity and the grace with which he dealt with crippling adversities, conniving colleagues and punishment postings hold an important lesson for us: The right train of thought can take us to a better station in our lives.