New Delhi, Aug 29 (IANS) Does Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh’s grip over the intricacies of his subject make bureaucrats feel overshadowed and underutilised?
The ministry will need a replacement for its secretary, Vijai Sharma, by the end of the year as he is retiring, but no civil servant has shown enthusiasm for the post so far, according to the Paryavaran Bhavan grapevine.
Senior IAS officers do not appear interested in a position that they feel will be dwarfed by a high-profile minister who is described variously as an eco-fundamentalist or a green warrior.
Ramesh is seen as someone who does not need prodding by officials as he beats his own path towards India’s economic salvation by taking on ministries and fellow cabinet colleagues over a range of issues, from highway expansion to mining rights to setting up of greenfield airports, which he sees as inimical to the country’s larger environmental and sustainable lifestyle interests.
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Shush! Games later, gossip first
Corruption in the Commonwealth Games has become the talk of the town and politicians are no exceptions. In the parliament corridors, it’s a common sight to see senior leaders huddled in groups or talking in hushed tones.
Many often keep looking over their shoulder to see if anyone is trying to hear what they have to say to their chosen journalists. Everyone is ready to point fingers at one another but no one is ready to share the blame.
‘So much for camaraderie. They are all ready to pin the blame on others. Some are in fact relishing the fact that a few are getting the heat. The Games seem to hold no importance for them,’ quipped a journo.
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In the name of Mother Teresa
It was Mother Teresa’s birth centenary and time for two parties with high stakes in next year’s West Bengal polls to outdo each other.
Railway Minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, who smells a clear chance of being chief minister in the next polls, took the lead in Kolkata by launching the Mother Express – a three-coach train displaying the nun’s life and works.
The Congress was not far behind as it fielded Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee to release two commemorative coins on the Nobel laureate in Delhi.
The efforts did not amuse the state’s ruling Communists. The CPI-M said it did not believe in exploiting religious sentiments in politics and then quickly pointed out that Mother Teresa and Jyoti Basu had the best of relations despite ideological differences!
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Look who’s afraid of RJD musclemen
The Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) may differ on many things, but they have found common ground as far as the Bihar polls are concerned. Both are keen that the state elections are conducted on a single day.
Though the demand is unlikely to be met, given the complexity of conducting polls in the violence-prone state, the two parties have apparently conveyed their demand to the Election Commission.
Both believe that a single day’s poll will prevent Rashtriya Janata Dal musclemen from travelling from one part of the state to another to spoil the chances of the two parties!
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Purposeful praise
Congress legislators in the Delhi assembly first termed city police chief Y.S. Dadwal’s absence during a discussion as ‘contempt of the house’ and joined the opposition in getting the issue deferred by two days.
But when discussion started in Dadwal’s presence, two ruling party legislators were vocal in praising the top cop for efforts to maintain law and order. A little birdie said they had pending cases and the praise was not without reason!
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Playing to press gallery
Seeing and hearing Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad in parliament is a treat. The seasoned minister knows how to play to the gallery, spicing up his statements with funny anecdotes or words, making even hardened politicians smile.
But the former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister knows that his real audience is made up of scribes. His eyes keep darting towards the press gallery above Lok Sabha speaker Meira Kumar’s seat while he reads out the statement or when he is coming out with his one-liners.
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Corporate responsibility versus N-liability
Heated discussions took place in the Lok Sabha on the nuclear liability bill, but Corporate Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid made a quick getaway to attend the launch of a learning module on corporate social responsibility.
‘You can see how much importance we give to corporate governance…almost on a par with nuclear liability because I have left that to be here. When I go back to parliament and if anybody tries to give me a sharp look saying where were you, I will say: I was looking after corporate responsibility, you look after nuclear responsibility,’ said Khurshid. ‘Corporate is much bigger than nuclear!’ he joked.
