Throughout the 30 minute Fortuner ride from Escorts Mujesar metro station on the Pink Line of Delhi Metro to Sikra office of LTC Logistics, Anand Lakhani saab kept me flooded with his insight into the Indian transport ecosystem from his perspective. Good learning it was.
Categorical he was that most of his driver relationship management gyan that he was sharing over the past few months was culled out of one and only Devinder Kohli. "He is the hands on man. Operational head and interacts round the clock. He knows the inside out of every single driver," he confessed.
No wonder, my curiosity was getting higher and higher to meet this gent. Who is he? How does he look like? What could he his background? Going by what Lakhani saab has shared of his thoughts on driver relationship and what he had written for an exclusive piece for DRIVERS DUNIYA (to be published in June 2017 issue), the depth was phenomenal. Now that I know Lakhani saab's is received wisdom, a mulaqat with asli gyani assumed extra vitality. Any day, an ounce of practice is worth a ton of theory. On that parameters, Devinder stood very high on my barometer.
When Inder introduced his General Manager (Operations) in his corner office, I found him interesting. A glint in his eyes. Eagerness to talk, but not an eager beaver wanting to jump the queue. Waiting for his turn. When you have a group, each wanting a share in the conversational pie. Lakhani saab, I noticed, decided to be a spectator. Possibly he felt, he downloaded his gyan already during the Fortuner ride! Inder, between responding to the non-stop flow of emails on his laptop, he did share his insights into his business. So too his nephew Mayank.
When the topic of drivers popped up, I turned to Devinder sitting next to me. As a preamble, I shared that a majority of drivers whom I had interacted with have a good word for their motor maliks but their ire or angst is against middle level with whom they interact on a regular basis. "The line supervisors treat drivers badly. Do you share that opinion?", I asked Devinder.
He did not respond directly but he shared his experience. At LTC Logistics, he has a regular Saturday meetings with his drivers - whoever happens to be at the workshop/office for regular maintenance check up or other matters on that day where they share their mutual concerns and get them sorted out. Good practice. Because Devinder himself participates. He is not the cabin type and to meet him you need no permission! There are many such specimens in this segment.Protocol-driven!
Devinder believes mutual trust and treatment is essential to get the best out of anyone - including drivers.
Are LTC Logistics drivers on payrolls? Rs.7,500 a month and other allowances while on trips. Social Security benefits such as PF, ESI? None. A long way to go, I tell myself.
Post lunch and post-Operations wing visit, we amble onto the workshop space. Floored by the interaction with Tire Doctor, we move on. The next room is open and we enter. Two wooden cots placed diagonally along the walls. Four are sitting on one and two sleeping alone on the other. On the floor, someone is sleeping, snoring gloriously.
Drivers? I ask. Devinder confirms.
The seated four turn around to reveal that they are all from Agra. While three are waiting for their trucks to get ready, one with a towel wrapped around his head says he has returned after a month long chutti and waiting for re-allotment of vehicle for him to resume work.
All look very young. Less than 25 year old, I reckon. This lot belongs to the Uttar Pradesh lot, disclosed earlier by the top honchos. Recruitment of drivers happens through referrals. Simple. Existing driver recommends someone - mostly from his own village or one of his relatives. With or without license. The modus operandi or rationale is crystal clear. It is sort of a moral and unwritten guarantee by the experienced driver who is recommending.
The guarantee is a must for the motor malik to agree to induct the newcomer into his empire. What if, the new guy runs away en route or indulges in some unlawful activity? That's where the guarantor steps in. He is held responsible by the motor malik. The guarantor has to ensure the anomaly is set right. So the guarantor is also very careful in recommending someone. This is something similar to the practice in self help groups (SHGs) when one debtor defaults, other members of the group step in to leverage their collective strength to make good. Long haul truck driver recruitment does not happen via job portal routes, though many have been trying.
Why motor maliks are scared of direct recruitment? Elementary. Safety principle. In this case, the financial risk is very high. Today, the price tag of truck is upwards of Rs.30,000. Materials it carries will be nothing less than Rs.100,000 every trip. Plus, the fuel tank of 250-300 litres multiplied by Rs.60 a litre or above depending upon the states the truck passes through; and the trip advance (inclusive of feeding the bribe hungry highway officials), running into Rs.50,000 at least one way. Am talking about long hauls.
Simply put, the motor malik hands over a truck with materials and sizeable cash along with the truck key and trusts - that's the key word - to some less educated and most likely not a pass out of some driver training institute. Mind you, he has given a commitment to the end user (consignor) that the maal will reach the destination on the scheduled date. Everything based on bharosa!
What if? That is the biggest if. By and large, long haul truck drivers are trust worthy. After all, they have to earn a livelihood. If they leave this truck driving job, they will find it difficult to get another job. Yet. Probability of someone acting funny cannot be ruled out. That's why the referral.
Let me share a personal experience of recommending a driver to one of my well known transporter friends few years ago. I have known this long haul driver for long and he had a good reputation among his peers. So when he sought my assistance for a job, I obliged him as someone was looking for a driver. Demand and supply marketplace dynamics in play. The driver got the job and I have forgotten about that. A month later, I receive a call from someone - introducing himself as GM (Operations) from the transport company demanding my intervention. For what? "The driver you referred and we hired is gayab. No idea where the vehicle is and his mobile is switched off. The client is shouting."
The time was close to midnight. That's was the first and last driver candidate I placed with any company. Many IT jambawans think, running a job portal for truck drivers is easy. Dive in, folks and experience the elixir!Placement of truck drivers in a job portal or placement centre route is paved with huge challenges.
One out of the four confesses that he took to driving two months ago. License? No. Is he getting a chance to drive the truck? Of course. What's the point if he does not get a chance to steer the truck?
I glance at Devinder.
This is a common practice. This is how India is training truck drivers. On the Job!
Listen to this conversation, I had with a veteran long haul truck driver at Raipur, a few years ago, to understand the disdain these men have for driver training institute-trained ones!
I step out and ask Devinder about toilet facilities for these drivers. There is. Usable? Sort of. Not cleaned properly. Perhaps none felt a need that drivers' toilets need to be as good as the white collar staff's.
My take on toilets for drivers is simple. Let there be a common toilet for both white collar and truck drivers. When that happens, cleanliness will automatically kick in. Yes, drivers need education on hygiene. Who has to teach them? Who else, but the staff under Devinder and perhaps Devinder himself during his weekly Saturday meetings.
Talking about toilets, brings back memories of my battle with Renault Nissan stock yard at Chitoor, Andhra Pradesh a few months ago. Toilets built for parking drivers at the stock yard was barricaded citing that drivers have no sense of using toilets and forced to go behind bushes outside the yard. Well, after a protracted canvassing, the Franco-German automotive giant conceded to reopen those toilets to drivers.
Amenities for truck drivers is not a priority for motor maliks or OEMs who utilize their services. They need a lot of education than drivers. Outsourcing does not mean abdication of responsibility.
Highway amenities is of paramount importance to fight driver fatigue and slash down accidents by half as chalked out by the government.
Driver comfort is still not getting adequate traction. He is not asking for air-conditioned rooms. His needs are basic: clean bed. Good ventilation with coolers and fans. A decent subsidized canteen. Toilets and washroom. Not difficult to fulfill. What's missing is the desire to make him feel better and perform better.
Devinder promises that he would keep these things in mind and do his bit. I hope so.
Wonderful May Day outing, spending a couple of hours at LTC Logistics.
Before dropping me at Escorts Mujesar metro for my ride back home, Lakhani saab assures that whenever I visit next time, I shall see a better LTC. I trust him. Next May Day - May 1, 2018 - perhaps.
Ciao
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