The latest star on the lecture circuit is India's irrepressible Railway Minister Lalu Prasad.
On January 11, Lalu will undertake a ten-day lecture tour to Japan and hold forth on how he has turned around the loss-making Indian Railways into a profitable public sector undertaking.
The minister, during the tour, will also study the functioning of high-speed 'Bullet trains' and the Japanese railways, in general, to understand what more can be done by the Indian Railways to become a world-class people carrier, sources in the railway ministry said on Monday.
However, some skeptics have raised doubts over the benefits of Lalu's Japan tour. They point out that the railway minister had visited Europe last year on a similar mission, but that trip did not bear any tangible results for the railways.
They say that upon his return from Europe, the minister spoke about how clean the trains and railway platforms were, but did nothing to improve the cleanliness in the Indian trains and platforms.
However, it remains to be seen what Lalu brings back from Japan after his lecture and study visit.
Image: Railway Minister Lalu Prasad was a very big hit with IIM-A students as he regaled him with his management mantras in his rustic style in September 2006. | Photograph: Rediff Archives
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