Care givers to career makers: An interview with Meera Sanyal

She is headed to Hillary Clinton's International Council on Business Leadership later this month. To her credit are many efforts that are helping change the conversations around women and politics. The former CEO and chairman of the Royal Bank of Scotland in India and a member of the Aam Aadmi Party, Meera H. Sanyal was in the banking business for over 30 years before she decided to step down, roll up her sleeves and get to the grassroots. She stood for elections in 2009 and then again in 2014 Lok Sabha elections, as an Aam Aadmi Party candidate .

Even though she lost the elections, she hasn’t lost hope as she is making incremental changes every day to add to her ideas. She is an inspiration for women all across the country. She defines leadership and what it means to be an empowered woman in India today. Shubhangini Arora spoke to Ms. Sanyal about her work and future plans in an interview  conducted by SheThePeople.TV. Here is an excerpt from the conversation.

Q. You are a multi-faceted personality. You are a politician, you are on the boards of a couple of NGOs and the Indian Liberal Group. You are also a member of CII and FICCI. How do you manage to give your hundred percent to each one of these?

Meera: The Board positions I have taken up are with organisations, whose activities I believe in and identify with, such as Pradan which works for the empowerment of women in remote parts of India and Right to Play which uplifts disadvantaged children across the world through the power of Play. Working with them is a great joy and learning experience !

Q. You are a special achiever. A person stepping down from the top position at one of the leading Banks to serve the general public is not something one gets to hear everyday. What inspired you to take such a bold decision?

Meera: Politics matters. Especially in a country like India, where Good governance is of critical importance. I believe it is important for all of us, no matter what our political affiliations to participate constructively in the democratic process. In 2009 I stood for elections, by taking a sabbatical from my job. Over the next 5 years, I spent a lot of time both travelling through India, and in studying the problems of South Mumbai my constituency. This provided me with a deeper understanding of both issues and potential solutions for our city and our country. I had spent a very happy 30 years in banking - and last year I decided that I would like to devote the next 30 years - or as long as I live to India. So I relinquished my job and stood again for the 2014 Lok sabha elections.

Q. You were invited by the Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as the sole Indian representative on her International Council on Women's Business Leadership. Apart from this, you have also been a part of many other significant global seminars in different parts of the world. How have these experiences influenced you?

Meera: It was a great honour to be invited by Secretary Clinton to her Council. In fact she has just recently revived the Council and I am traveling to Washington at the end of October for our next Council meeting, which I am greatly looking forward to, as we focus on the economic, social and political Empowerment of women - a subject which is very dear to my heart. I believe that in an increasingly global world, it is important for us as Indians to participate actively in such Global fora. We can learn a lot from the experiences of other nations, and equally we can contribute a lot.

Meera H Sanyal>

Q. As the former CEO and Chairperson of RBS, what according to you are the most vital steps that need to be taken to advance more women at workplace?

Meera: Women in India are extremely hard working, diligent, innovative and entrepreneurial. This is as true in the world of banking as it is in a small tribal village in the heart of Jharkhand. What we need to do is to create conditions that empower a woman to devote time to her job at the same time as managing a family.A woman is the primary care giver - everywhere in the world. Most women give up their jobs or careers to focus on their families. If we can provide an environment that supports a woman logistically, socially, and emotionally to cope with both her family and her job, many more women will stay and advance in the work place - which is good for her, her family, her community and our entire economy.

Q. Now that the elections are over, what are your future plans? How do you plan to implement and bring a change to the Indian society?

Meera: In my 2014 Lok Sabha campaign, Mumbai's PortLands were central to my campaign. I committed to keep working to reclaim the PortLands irrespective of the outcome of the elections.

Mumbai’s PortLands, (comprising approx 1000 acres of non operational land within the Mumbai Port Trust, along the eastern water front) represent a unique and perhaps the only chance to revitalise and reimagine the city of Mumbai.

The Mumbai Port was once the fulcrum of a great industrial city from the 18th-20th century. However with rising costs Industry migrated, with a corresponding decline in Port operations. Once thriving warehouses turned derelict and the area is now a dumping ground for coal (1.8 mln tonnes in 2013), a toxic ship breaking yard, (where the iconic air craft carrier Vikrant has been beached for scrap) and other polluting and undesirable activities.

I believe this area should become a green lung for the city offering much needed public utilities such as schools, colleges, vocational training centres, incubation spaces for young entrepreneurs, hospitals, libraries, playgrounds, sports facilities, arts & crafts zones and open spaces.

Though I lost the elections I am delighted to share that I won my campaign ! The new Government has picked up this idea, and Mr Gadkari has promised to re-develop the PortLands.

Working with a talented group of young architects, urban planners we formed a citizens group called APLI Mumbai and proposed the attached vision plan to the Mumbai Port Trust.

In addition to architectural plans we have proposed a legislative and financing framework to make this proposal a reality - for which I have drawn on all my past experience.

In November, along with Columbia university we have planned a Conference on the PortLands, to learn from best practices on Urban regeneration from across the world. So I remain committed and fully engaged in working towards making India a better place and Mumbai a Smarter and more Liveable city !

 Interview by Shubhangini Arora