With that sharp and curious glint in his eyes, the young Frank Noronha saw an impressive-looking cavalcade of cars swooshing past him on the concrete road. His father told him that (then) Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was travelling in one of the vehicles. “Why aren’t you in this convoy,’’ the boy asked his father, a teacher. The elder man smiled at his son and told him that if he studied well and became successful, he too could be sitting in one of those cars one day.
This was no idle conversation. Because years later, when Frank Noronha reached that sought-after station in life after clearing Indian Information Service (IIS), he became a regular participant in such cavalcades, often travelling with Prime Ministers, Presidents and other important officials of Indian Government.
But he still remembers that conversation with his father.
EARLY LIFE AND STRUGGLES
Born and brought up in Hassan district of Karnataka, Mr. Noronha, now retired, became an IIS officer in 1982. He completed his schooling from St. Joseph’s in Hassan with average grades, so much so that he faced difficulties in getting admission in the science stream after schooling.
Speaking with Indian Masterminds, Mr. Noronha recalled, “The way I was brought up, I was proud that I knew my language Kannada well. But once I stepped in St. Joseph’s college Bangalore and was admitted in a hostel for higher studies, I started feeling a little inferior as there were people from all backgrounds who were mostly conversing in English.”
He discussed the matter with the warden, who was a highly educated Jesuit priest Mr. Julian Fernandes. The warden looked at the boy intently and told him that he should stay in the college for three months, and then decide his future course of action. “After three months,’’ said Mr. Noronha, “ I forgot what my issues were as the education which was being imparted was of a high level, and I developed a deep interest in studies for the first time in my life.”
No wonder the connection he established with studies enabled him to excel in debating, and soon he won a gold medal in political science and economics. He was also adjudged as one of the outstanding alumni of the college.
CLEARING CIVIL SERVICES
During his graduation, Mr. Noronha also found his interest gravitating towards philosophy, and he decided not to jump to post-graduation right after college. He tried his hands at various places such as working in a textile company and selling tea leaves to institutions, but he was not successful in any of it. These ventures, he realized, were not his cup of tea.
Soon as he was becoming more philosophical by following people like J Krishnamurti and Osho. As he went deeper into philosophy, he came across U G Krishnamurthy. After meeting him he realized a lot of things that he was mistaken about and soon started preparing for the civil service exam.
Mr. Noronha cleared the prelims in the first attempt and failed to clear the main exam. He said, “I was so excited and happy that I did not prepare well for the mains exam but still I scored good marks in political science!”
As fully concentrated on UPSC during his second attempt, he cleared the examination and became IIS officer of 1982 batch. It was a proud moment for him as well as the family.
RUBBING SHOULDERS WITH HIGH AND MIGHTY FOR 35 YEARS
Mr. Frank Noronha, having held different positions in Delhi, has had the privilege of working with the Prime Minister’s Office for nearly six years with four Prime Ministers Rajiv Gandhi, VP Singh, Chandrasekar, and for four months with Narasimha Rao.
In his career spanning 35 years, he has also served in various media units of the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting. He was also the Deputy Press Secretary to the President of India Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma.
Mr. Noronha was also the Spokesperson for the Ministry of Communications and worked closely with Cabinet Ministers Buta Singh, Jagmohan, Sushma Swaraj and Ramvilas Paswan.
Following his transfer to Bangaluru in 2001, he headed the Press Information Bureau(PIB)and the Directorate of Advertisement and Publicity (DAVP) in Karnataka. He was later promoted as the Director-General, DAVP, Delhi in 2009.
Prior to his retirement, Mr. Noronha held the post of Principal Director General at Press Information Bureau (PIB), Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Government of India and was also the principal spokesperson to the Government of India during Mr. Narendra Modi’s ongoing tenure as the Prime Minister. He played a key role in the dissemination of cabinet decisions and organized mega-media campaigns on the flagship policies of the government.
Now after retiring in 2018, Mr. Noronha is comfortably settled in Bengaluru. But he continues to be associated with the Government in various capacities.
