Mahesh Neelkanth Buch[1] was an Indian civil servant and urban planner, considered by many as the architect of modern Bhopal.[2][3][4] The Government of India honored him, in 2011, with Padma Bhushan, the third highest civilian award, for his services to the nation.[5]
Padma Bhushan Man of Vision Award Aga Khan Award UNEP Award
Biographyedit
Our Constitution mandates free and fair elections,wrote M. N. Buch, It allows, in fact encourages, different political parties to present their ideology, broad policy framework, specific programmes and agenda of government.[6]
Buch took voluntary retirement from the government service, as the Principal Secretary of the State Government, in 1984,[9] and founded the NGO, the National Centre for Human Settlements and Environment, Bhopal[10] for which he served as the Chairman.[11]
Buch died on 6 June 2015 succumbing to a paralytic attack which followed cardiac problems.[12][13] He was married to Nirmala, a government servant who worked as the adviser to the Chief Minister under the Uma Bharati government[14] and the couple had a son, Vineet. The family lived in Bhopal at the time of his death.[7]
Positions heldedit
In a democracy, no one person can be a decision maker. The decisions have to be taken collectively. Democracy works on the basis of the interest of various groups and the number of compromises that must be made,wrote M. N. Buch in his article, Excellence in Administration, This is the reality of administration in India.[15]
M. N. Buch held several government positions of authority during his civil service such as the post of the District Collector, District Magistrate, Director, Government Secretary and the Commissioner of various departments such as Tribal Welfare, Housing, Forests and Town country planning.[2] Some of the other positions are:
Director General of the National Institute of Urban Affairs[2][9]
Vice-Chairman - National Commission on Urbanization[2][7]
Chairman - Lutyens Bungalow Zone Committee of the Government of India [2]
Chairman - Committee on the Heritage Zone of Mehrauli[2]
Chairman - Empowered Committee for the New Vidhan Sabha building in Madhya Pradesh[2]
Chairman - Board of Governors ABV – Indian Institute of Information Technology and Management, Gwalior[2]
Dean - Centre for Governance and Political Studies[16]
Chairman - National Centre for Human Settlements and Environment[9]
Chairman - Atal Bihari Vajpayee Indian Institute of Information Technology and Management[7]
Personal traits and legacyedit
Buch has been reported to be a straight-talking, no nonsense bureaucrat.[9] He was credited with the initial efforts in the modernization of Bhopal.[2] The organization he founded, the National Centre for Human Settlements and Environment, focusses on the sustainable development of settlements in a holistic manner.[17]