It is great to see the viewership count on the website. More than a crore eyes have had a look.

Ravish Shridhar

Contact-suresh.mehrotra@yahoo.com> & <mehrotra.suresh@gmail.com>

Mohna and his Cabinet met to discuss inflation and what do you think they did do?

Stuffed apna apna mooh!!!

Rather than the topic of discussion their eyes were on the cookies and cashews!!!

And then how can one talk when one chews????

So they came , stuffed their gobs and went their ways!!!!

And do not forget that for this 'gob stuffing' who in the end pays?????

Onion Wholesalers went on a strike and onion prices fell!!!

What does this tell????

Maybe Congress will indulge in some drama-baazi!!!

And Congress Mantris will go on a hunger strike in an effort to make us raazi!!!

Rahul may announce that till inflation comes down he'll eat only one meal a day!

Congress will go berserk saying to us 'see for you hungry Rahul karr raha hai stay'!!

We know all the sanitizing that was done for his Dalit homestay!!!

This one meal and say will also go the same way!!

This inflation is created by Pawar and gang Mohna cannot do a thing!!!

Pawar has to be sacked if inflation under control UPA wants to bring!!!

Now the base price of Onions has risen and stands at 20!!!!

This price barrier will not break even when onions in the market are aplenty!!

After saying CAG Report on 2 G scam is a pack of lies!!

Now 'why did CAG leak the report' Sibal laments and cries!!!

He has been pressed into duty to trash the CAG report!!!!

And everyday to Madam on his trashing he has to report!!

When the order on Bofors is announced!!!

By Sibal it will be denounced!!!

He is already working on how he will denounce the Court's order!!!!

Even if on contempt his trashing does border!!!

Madam has to realize Bofors will not go till it gets a 'judicious closure or end'!!!!

If not then future generations of Gandhis Bofors allegations will fend!!

After Q was let off in Argentina Madam breathed a sigh of relief!!

Bofors is now a finished issue was here belief!!

Even if Q pops it allegations about his connection with Sonia and Rajiv will stay!

And more will be uncovered if Justice Congress tries to waylay!!

Confucius says..... Madam ji think!!!!!

You cannot wish away with Q your link and the Bofors stink!!!

Bharat Kumar

TOP CORPORATE POWER CENTRES OF INDIA

1. Mukesh Ambani: For the record Mukesh is worth over 27 Billion Dollars as per Forbes list and may be the richest man in the World by 2014. Mukesh's man Friday in Delhi Bala Subramaniam takes care of the networking. He has unhindered access to all power centres in Delhi be it Congress party's Pranab Mukherjee or Motilal Vora, BJP's L.K.Advani or Nitin Gadkari, Communist party's Sitaram Yachuri or D. Raja, RJD's Laloo Yadav or other smaller parties. His target - a Bharat Ratna for Dhirubhai Ambani and 100 percent allegiance of all bureaucrats and politicians in the country. Feverishly working on Prime Minister Dr Man Mohan Singh and Rahul Gandhi. Ever since row over Ms. Neera Radia surfaced the RIL's prestige has been adversely hit. Anil Ambani and his team is as usual active in the corridors of power.

2. Shashi and Ravi Ruia : They are number four in Forbes list with assets of 15 billion dollars, but maintain an extremely low profile. The government is said to have supported them in the attempt to restructure their group in recent years and they enjoy the most unhindered access to all political parties. The fact that they have no political ambition has stood them in good light with all political parties. Their man in Delhi is Sunil Bajaj, who enjoys an easy access to all political bigwigs and bureaucratic strongholds. They only travel to Delhi when work calls for their presence and their coming and going go unnoticed as they travel unobtrusively with the minimum noise. Of late, the Group's networking too has acquired a higher crescendo, what with all the expansion plans, and acquisitions in foreign countries.

3. Gautam Adani : Forbes has put him at number 7 with more than 10 billion dollars in kitty. This is the fastest growing group in the country,s Corporate world. People say he is the Dhiru Bhai Ambani in the making. His political connections are fantastic. His claim to fame is having been caught on the wrong side of the law than any other business man in the country but sails ahead with his enviable political connections with LK Advani, Narendra Modi and Ahmed Patel. His key aide Puneet Sharan looks after his good PR work in Delhi.

4. Ratan Tata : For the record Forbes does not have him on their list. Is he a billionaire? No. Ratan Tata is not a Billionaire. Of course he is the chairman of Tata Group having 96 Businesses out of which 28 are publicly listed and are worth more than 70 billion dollars. But still Ratan Tata is not a Billionaire. Well, because to become a billionaire, on your financial statement, your assets must be worth Billions of dollars. Of course Ratan TATA is running a TATA Group Empire. But the main bulk of the shares of its 96 Businesses is not on Ratan TATA's Financial Statement but it is not the Financial Statement of TATA Group's Key holding Company TATA Sons. And the 65% ownership of TATA Sons is not of Ratan TATA's but it is held by various TATA group caritable organizations out of which Sir Ratan TATA Trust & Sir J R D Tata Trust are the main holders of the TATA Sons. And 18% of the ownership of TATA Sons is of Pallonji Shapoorji Mistry who maintains low profile and is known as "Phantom of Bombay House". Ratan TATA himself holds less than 1% of TATA Sons, the key holding Company of TATA Group. This is the reason why Ratan TATA is not a billionaire. Ratan Tata given his respect among common man should have been number one in this list but his public spat with Mamata Banerjee over Nano (He wanted to name his car Mamta) and then moving NANO to Modi's Gujarat had marred his chances of being awarded Bharat Ratna until Congress is in the power. His personal office general manager who happens to be son of a senior lady journalist in Delhi is RNT's networking man. Ever since row over Ms. Neera Radia surfaced the TATA group's prestige has been adversely hit.

5. Lakshmi Mittal : Forbes put him at number two with 26.1 billion dollars. His journey to become one of the richest man in the world, has been very controversial from his association with former Indonesian President Suharto to British Prime Minister Tony Blair who all helped him in his business ventures. In India his association started with for Union Minister NKP Salve and this helped him move closer to power centres in India. He enjoys personal rapport with Prime Minister Dr. Man Mohan Singh and Congress Political Secretary Ahmed

Patel and enjoyed equally closed relationship with former Prime Minister Vajpayee's family.

6. Sunil Mittal : With 8.6 billion dollars he is number 9 in the Forbes list. Son of a father who was MP from Ludhiana of the Congress Party, started business with manufacturing cycle parts at the age of 18. He is a risk taker and known to have best networking with political masters in Delhi. His office door (conference room) near Qutub Minar says it all SULTANAT. His aim is to be Emperor of telecom world .

7. K.P. Singh : Forbes pitches him ahead of Mittal at number 8 with 9.2 Billion Dollar fortune. His chance meeting on the road with Rajiv Gandhi turned him from a small time builder of south Delhi to the biggest builder in India. His controversial tie up with Dubai World company Emaar has tarnished his image and probably made him loose some billions. He is regarded as the Ambassador of Good times by the political glitterati in Delhi. He is said to be richest person in the national capital.

8. VN Dhoot : Videocon Industries limited being headed by its Chairman & Managing Director (CMD) Venugopal N Dhoot is the flagship company of USD 5 Billion Videocon Group having diversified business interests in white and brown goods, power generation (both conventional and renewable energy) Exploration and Prospecting Oil and Gas, Providing GSM Mobile Telephone Services , Last mile retail, and Direct to Home Delivery of Television Contents. Its activities are well spread out in India, China, Brazil, Mexico, Indonesia and Mozambique, with employee strength of more than 15,000. Venugopal N Dhoot, a second-generation entrepreneur and an engineer by training, transformed Videocon from a conference room-sized assembly line in 1979 into a conglomerate across the verticals of consumer electronics and home appliances, office automation, telecom, power, crude oil and natural gas. Dhoot is an avid cricket fan and accomplished flautist. The Videocon School of Cricket launched in Kolkata under the guidance of former Indian cricket captain, Sourav Ganguly, trains and promotes young cricketers of India. Videocon's major breakthrough came when it received one of the first licenses to manufacture color televisions in India in the early 1980's. The company has now become the largest manufacturer of color picture tubes and CPT glasses in the world, with operations across Mexico, Italy, Poland, China and India. Armed with an uncanny foresight and a global outlook, Dhoot has successfully acquired the

color picture tube operations of the Thomson Group and the Indian operations of AB Electrolux, Sweden thereby enhancing its capabilities in both India and overseas. He has led Videocon to foray into exploration and production of Oil business in India and participated in a JV in the Ravva Oil Fields and recently acquired Brazil's Encana Brazil Petroleo Limitada jointly with BPCL. Dhoot has a vision to led Videocon and make it a Fortune 500 company in the next five years.

Videocon launched its mobile services on a pan-India basis in 2010, it intends to target large subscribers in the next four years. Videocon's strategy is to strengthen its focus in oil and natural gas, and is currently pursuing opportunities in Oman, Australia and Timor Sea near Indonesia. Dhoot is an environmental enthusiast having successfully completed a project of planting 2,00,000 teak saplings across India. He is multi-lingual in the true sense of the term and speaks Hindi, English and Marathi fluently.With his passion to make a powerful social impact, Dhoot has established a 250-bed multi-specialty hospital and research institute, specializing in cancer and heart surgery, in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, for the underprivileged people.

9. Subrata Roy : Chairman of the Sahara Group having India's biggest - land bank, NBFC, Media & Entertainment Company, Service & product company, exclusive Aamby Valley City along with Major housing & commercial building projects including Malls, Premium Apartments, Hotels and Hospitals, Life Insurance Company, Mutual Fund House, Housing Finance Co., Consumer products & Retail Chain, Integrated travel & tourism services. Chief Guardian of world's largest family, providing livelihood to millions, directly touching the life of one out of every fifteen Indian, believing in collective sharing & caring for collective growth, proved over decades through CSR projects and activities carried out all over India and particularly in UP & Bihar, one of world's poorest regions, up to the assistance to families of Martyr's of Kargil war and 26/11 Mumbai attack. Biggest supporter of Sports, being a character builder of nation, more than 60 % medal winning Indian athletes in CWG 2010 sponsored by Sahara India Pariwar. Extended critical support which made the event wonderful for India. Exploring overseas value adding acquisitions like England's legendry soccer club Liverpool, one the oldest Hollywood Studios MGM, iconic London Hotel Grosvenor House. A visionary par excellence, one of the all time great entrepreneur, dedicated to nation building.

10. Kumar Mangalam Birla : Kumar Mangalam Birla is the Chairman of the US$ 29 billion Aditya Birla Group, a global conglomerate with operations spanning 27 countries. An iconic figure, Birla holds several key positions on various regulatory and professional boards. He is a Director of the Central Board of Directors of the Reserve Bank of India and Chairman of the Staff Sub-Committee of the Central Board of the Reserve Bank of India. He serves on the Prime Minister of India's Advisory Council on Trade and Industry. A chartered accountant, Birla earned an MBA from London Business School, where he is also an Honorary Fellow. Birla and his wife, Mrs. Neerja Birla, have three children, Ananyashree, Aryaman Vikram and Advaitesha.

Birla group has, however, not changed like other business groups. They still believe in old business method. They feel problems in expanding further business. Now they are only trying to consolidate their present business establishments. They do not want to walk on the waves of the time.

11. Anil Agrawal : Anil Agrawal heads the powerful Vedanta Group. He has an ambition to become the richest businessman in India. The day it came in media that Agrawal is going to be the number one businessman in India, his rivals

succeeded in his efforts to expand his base in Orissa. He is said to have a direct access in the Ten Janpath.

12. G.M. Rao : GMR Group Chairman G M Rao, a mechanical engineer, is the founder Chairman of GMR Group - global Infrastructure major. The Group is well diversified and professionally managed with focus on business verticals of Airports, Energy, Highways and Urban Infrastructure including SEZs, apart from interests in Agri-business. Born on July 14, 1950 in a small town of Rajam in the Srikakulam district of Andhra Pradesh, Rao established the GMR business empire starting from a single jute mill in Rajam in 1978. Rao expanded the group's presence in the infrastructure sector by leading the group's foray into Highways. The group bagged its first global project by winning the bid to modernise the Sabiha Gokcen International (SGA) airport at Istanbul, Turkey and also ventured into the new business sector of Urban Infrastructure. The group will set up a 3300 acre multi-product SEZ in Krishnagiri District of Tamil Nadu. It is marching ahead on lines of the Adani group.

The Group has already completed two Greenfield road projects and four more projects are nearing completion. Realising that Airports will drive the economy in the 21st century, G M Rao spearheaded the Group's entry into the high profile airport business. Under his leadership the Group has developed the new Greenfield International Airport at Hyderabad, and is modernising and restructuring the Delhi International Airport. The first phase of Delhi Airport will be commissioned by 2010 in time for the Commonwealth Games.

Besides infrastructure, the other focus area for the GMR Group is Agri-business. The Group already has a sugar plant in Andhra Pradesh and is coming up with more in the state and in Karnataka. The existing plant provides livelihood for over 25000 farmers from 500 villages of the region in one form or the other.

With a strong desire to serve the needs of the marginalised sections and the rural society, Rao set up the GMR Varalakshmi Foundation, to raise their living standards. The Foundation is active in the areas of education, health and hygiene, community development and empowerment.

13. Gopichand Hinduja : Gopichand Hinduja is worth billions of dollars, but he still shares a kitchen with his three brothers. He co-chairs the Indian multinational corporation Hinduja Group with his eldest brother Srichand. Srichand, 75, and Gopichand, 70, are based in the exclusive district of Mayfair

in London. The third brother, Prakash, 65, is in Geneva, while the fourth, and the youngest, Ashok, 60, remains in Mumbai. In each country, there is a house with a joint kitchen for all four of the brothers and their families to use. They are estimated to be worth a total of about US$9.5 billion (Dh34.89bn), according to The Sunday Times 2008 Rich List. At one stage they had fast emerged as a force to reckon with in the corridors of power, but now seem to have preferred lying low.

He wants to make a difference in Jharkhand
Effective governance with greater transparency using available technological tools to reach out to the poorest of poor in the State is the key initiative and thrust area on which the Jharkhand Chief Minister Arjun Munda is working on. Taking charge of the state plagued by political instability, the Red Terror and corruption, Munda has his task cut out. Brimming with confidence and a resolve to make a difference in Jharkhand, he is working out an action plan that will propel the state into the forefront in national mainstream in the long-run. Munda shared his thoughts about the state and the problems staring him, with our Editor and Country Head Sanjeev Majupuria and Editor Prakash Pillai in a free-wheeling interview recently.

The following are some of the excerpts of the interview-

Q: Jharkhand is today synonymous with political instability and corruption. What measures do you intend to take to remove this perception?

A: You are right. Today, nobody realizes that Jharkhand can turn out to be the mineral reserve of India and can soon be one of the leading states. It is known for all the wrong reasons. I do admit political instability is a key factor but people of the state are fast learning and as they showed in the Panchayat and local bodies elections hopefully they would not leave the state in a political mess in future. After taking over as the Chief Minister, I am concentrating on improving coordination with all political forces in the state.

As far as corruption is concerned, it stems out mostly from the mining contracts that were a lucrative business in Jharkhand along with government purchases. After due diligence, I have advised the state to use the Information Technology and go for e-bidding for all mining related activities and government purchases. This would lead to greater transparency. All our departments have been asked to follow the procedure. We have reinstated the Lokayukta and the State Human Rights Commission so that they can curb any excesses or misuse by the state.

Q: You talked about ICT, how are you using it for governance?

A: Well, you would be surprised to know that we have started an ultra modern data centre in Ranchi that houses government records. In the next six months all government data -be it relating to functioning, policy or revenue - would be available digitally. Price Water Coopers is our consultant for the project. Besides, to check pilferage and leakages in the Public Distribution system we are introducing Biometric scheme, whereby monitoring will become easy and effective at each stage. To improve efficiency we have converted the Panchayats as Panchayat Secretariat and about 4500 panchayats in the state are being linked to "Jharnet". This will help in quick disposal and effective implementation of policies, early redressal of grievances and coordinated planning.

Read the detailed interview in Jan 2011 issue of WHISPERS IN THE CORRIDORS, Magazine

BUREAUCRACY

Who planted story in media ?
Who planted story against Secretary Finance Ashok Chawla and why ? This is the hot topic of discussion in the corridors of power.1973 batch Gujarat cadre IAS officer Chawla is scheduled to superannuate on January 31.He is considered to be suave, hardworking and straightforward officer.

1981 batch IAS frozen for central deputation
1981 batch IAS has been frozen for the central deputation. Meanwhile, circulation of CRs of this batch for empanelment to the rank of Additional Secretary has started.

Arun Prakash nominated to National Security Advisory Board
Arun Prakash, former Navy chief, has been nominated to National Security Advisory Board, reconstituted by Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh.

Om Prakash in fray for Jt. Secretary's post in MHA
Om Prakash had appeared before Home Minister P. Chidambaram to face an interview for the post of Joint Secretary, Naxal Management, in the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). He is an IPS officer of the 1981 batch who belongs to the Karnataka cadre.

Where is the file of Rajesh Khullar ?
Nobody knows where is the file of Rajesh Khullar. 1988 batch Haryana cadre IAS officer Khullar is tipped to be Joint Secretary in the Department of Economic Affairs.

A.M. Kulkarni elevated in IB
A.M. Kulkarni, Deputy Director, Intelligence Bureau, SIB Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh, has been promoted as Joint Director, I.B. at same place. He is an IPS officer of the 1990 batch who belongs to the Maharashtra cadre.

Buzz in the MEA Corridors
MEA corridors are buzzing about postings from A+ to A+ stations by the Foreign Board recently. Ms R Sandhu JS in MEA(1988) has been posted to the UN Mission in Geneva, an A+ posting. Her earlier posting was in New York another A+ posting. Her spouse TS Sandhu is the JS incharge of administration and a close confidant of Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao. Earlier the Board had transferred Ms Mukta Tomar as Counsel General to Chicago. She had been posted to Bangladesh and prior to that was also in New York. Her spouse is the Additional Secretary administration in MEA. Issues of correctness of these postings is now being debated.

Ashok Kumar promoted as IG in BSF
Ashok Kumar, DIG, CRPF has been promoted as IG, Malda Frontier, Kolkata, West Bengal in BSF in place of Khandu, IG (Admn.).He is an IPS officer of the 1989 batch who belongs to the Uttarakhand cadre.

Rakesh Jaruhar Special DG, CRPF transferred
Rakesh Jaruhar, Special DG, CRPF HQ, New Delhi has been transferred as Special D.G. West Bengal in place of Vijay Raman who is retiring on January 31, 2011. Jaruhar is an IPS officer of the 1976 batch who belongs to the Jharkhand cadre.

Udayan Banerjee DIG, CISF shifted
Udayan Banerjee, DIG, Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA), Delhi has been transferred as DIG, North Zone. He is a CISF cadre officer of the1989 batch.

K.N. Tripathi DIG, CISF shifted to Delhi
K.N. Tripathi, Senior Commandant, Hyderabad has been transferred as DIG, Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA), Delhi. He is a CISF cadre officer of the 1990 batch.

Cadre review of IES officers completed
The much awaited cadre review of Indian Economic Service (IES) officers has been cleared.

T.V. Ravichandran to be promoted
T.V. Ravichandran Deputy Director, Intelligence Bureau (IB), SIB, Chennai, is likely to be promoted as Joint Director, IB. He is an IPS officer of the 1990 batch who belongs to the Tamil Nadu cadre.

Two contenders for the post Home Secretary Delhi
As the grapevine has it, two senior IAS officers of the AGMU cadre are in reckoning for the post of Home Secretary Delhi.

8 banks to have new CMDs in 2011-12
As many as eight public sector banks will get new Chairman and Managing Directors (CMDs) in the financial year of 2011-12.

Gauri Shankar Rath to be DGP Jharkhand ?
Presently posted as Additional Director General of Police (ADG), CID Ranchi, Gauri Shankar Rath is in race for the top police post. He is an IPS officer of the 1977 batch who hails from the Jharkhand cadre.

15 candidates short listed for DF of POWERGRID
As many as 15 candidates have been short listed for the post of Director Finance (DF) in POWERGRID interviews for which are scheduled to be held on January 13, 2011.

Gautam appointed Security Advisor in Jharkhand
Former Bihar DGP D.N. Gautam has been appointed as security adviser, with status of minister of state.He is retired 1974 batch IPS officer.

IPS changes in Andhra Pradesh
P.S. R. Anjanenyulu will now be IG of APSP Battalions. S. Umapathi is now posted to CID.A.B. Venkateswara Rao was posted in his place. A.R. Anuradha will be the new Additional CP, co-ordination, in Hyderabad Commissionerate. Other new postings are Mssrs Harish Kumar Gupta - IG Guntur Range; K.R.M. Kishore Kumar - IG, Training; K. Satyanarayana Rao - IG, Intelligence; Kasireddy V.R.N. Reddy - IG Vigilance and Enforcement; Jitender - IG, CID. N. Chandramouli - IG Rayalaseema Region; Santosh Mehra - IG, Police Transport Organisation; Anjani Kumar - IG - Warangal Range and Anjana Sinha - Director, Police Communications.

Raman is President of SAFA
A. N. Raman, a Central Council Member of The Institute of Cost and Works Accountants of India (ICWAI), functioning under the aegis of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, has taken over as the President, South Asian Federation of Accountants (SAFA), with effect from January, 2011. He was elected yesterday in the 72nd meeting of the General Assembly of SAFA held at Chennai. The meeting was attended by the representatives of eight of the nine Accounting Institutions from Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Shri Raman was the Vice President of SAFA during last year. Muhammad Rafi of Pakistan has been nominated as Vice President of the Federation for the year 2011.

12 SAS officers to be promoted to IAS in Jharkhand
In order to cope up with the shortage of officers at the senior level, Jharkhand overnment is planning to promote about 12 State Administrative Service officers into the IAS.

Maharashtra Government recommends suspension of Tiwari
The Maharashtra Government has recommended suspension of the State Information Commissioner Ramanand Tiwari for his alleged role in the Adarsh Housing Society scam.

8 IPS shifted in UP
Eight IPS officers have been transferred in Uttar Pradesh.

1991 batch IFS get super-time scale
1991 Batch officers have been promoted to the Super Time Scale of Indian Forest Service in the rank of Chief Conservator of Forests in Andhra Pradesh. They are
Sidhanand Kukreti,Dr. C. Suvarna, IFS,G. Chandrasekhar Reddy,IFS and R.P. Khajuria, IFS

Punjab CIC's landmark verdict
The State Information Commission, Punjab has held that penalty can be imposed on a government officer for reasons of delay or denial of information under RTI, provided it is first established that such delay or denial was without reasonable cause or was willful or malafide. Disposing of a case filed by Hardev Singh Arshi, Ex-MLA against the District Welfare Officer, Mansa, seeking information regarding Ashirwad (Shagun) scheme, the Chief Information Commissioner R.I. Singh held that the requested information has since been given to
Arshi, who is fully satisfied with it. He said that the PIO has given an explanation of the delay, which is reasonable and therefore held that it is not a fit case warranting imposition of penalty. Laying down broad principles which may govern imposition of penalty on Public Information Officers, the CIC held that, "Facts of each case shall have to be examined to see whether there was a reasonable cause of delay in furnishing information. Factors and details such as duration
of delay, its extent and context would be relevant. The circumstances and conditions surrounding the delay and whether a justifiable nexus or a rational relation exists between such circumstances and the cause of delay etc. may be gone into. If sufficient and rational explanation comes forward explaining any delay, a judicial cognizance of the same will have to be factored, before arriving at a final decision on the issue of penalty".

Sharma is new Ambassador to Kazakhstan
Ashok Kumar Sharma, Joint Secretary at MEA headquarters, has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to Kazakhstan.

Aaradhna Johri is now AS NACO
Aaradhna Johri has been elevated to the rank of Additional Secretary in NACO.She is 1980 batch IAS officer of Uttar Pradesh cadre.

Anil Mukim is now CVO HUDCL
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the proposal of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation for appointment of Anil Mukim IAS(GJ-85), presently working as Joint secretary in the Ministry of Commerce as Chief Vigilance Officer in the Housing and Urban Development Corporation Limited, New Delhi.

Shubra Singh promoted to JS rank
Director Census Operations in Rajasthan Ms Shubra Singh has been promoted to the rank of Joint Secretary.She is 1989 batch IAS officer.

RTI

Are Employee Associations covered under the definiton of Public Authority?

Information about the election for Executive Committee proposed to be conducted by All India SC/ST Railway Employees Association (AISCSTREA) was refused by the Zonal President, claiming that the Association is not a Public Authority. The Commission noted that AISCSTREA is indirectly controlled and substantially financed by the Railway Board, Ministry of Railways. The office premises have been granted by the Railways and substantial financing in the form of receipts under the head Central Share are received from the Railways. Even the letterhead of the Association clearly states that it owes it's recognition and registration to the Railway Board. The CIC observed that a regime of transparency is in the interest of the Association. The CIC declared the Association a Public Authority under the RTI Act 2005 and directed the General Secretary to appoint the CPIO in the organization and comply with the other provisions of the RTI Act.

Comments

There are thousands of organisations claiming to represent the interests of employees of the Public Authority out of which many receive grants from the government. Some of these unions appear to be accountable to no one. Will this order turn out to be a milestone for the transparent working of the associations ?

[Mr. Kumar Shrawan Bhivgade v. Western Railway and the All India SC/ST Railway Employees Association [CEC] in File No: CIC/AD/C/2009/001263]

- Weekly article by Dr. (Mrs.) Anuradha Verma (dranuradhaverma@yahoo.co.in), RTI Consultant to IIM, Indore and Co-author of the book: RIGHT TO INFORMATION - LAW AND PRACTICE by Taxmann. (The views are Personal)

CORPORATE
Vedanta Group gaining ground in Petroleum Ministry
It seems Vedanta Group has started gaining importance in the Petroleum Ministry. This is evident from the fact that the PMO has asked oil ministry to decide on giving consent to Vedanta Resources' $9.6-billion acquisition of Cairn India by January-end. What is the significance ?.Anil Agrawal is the group chairman.

SBI nominates Director on State Bank of Mysore Board
The State Bank of India has nominated B. Ramesh Babu, Deputy General Manager (Associates and Subsidiaries), State Bank of India, A & S Group, Mumbai as a Director on the Board of State Bank of Mysore in place of S.A. Thimmiah with effect from December 25, 2010.

HPCL appoints directors
S.K. Roongta and Anil Razdan have been appointed as part-time Non-official directors on the Board of Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) effective from January 10, 2011.

Krishnamurthy is new CVO BEL
M.N. Krishnamurthy has taken over as Chief Vigilance Officer (CVO) of Navaratna defence PSU Bharat Electronics Ltd. (BEL). He is 1984 batch IPS officer of Kerala cadre.

Bartronics India appoints Addl. Director
Bartronics India Limited has appointed A. C. Varma as Additional Director of the Company.

Godrej, Shroff win awards
Adi Godrej and K C Shroff have won lifetime achievement awards at the annual awards event hosted by Chemexcil--- the basic chemicals, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics export promotion council.

Dabas is Head (Planning), McCann Erickson
McCann Erickson Delhi has appointed Jitender Dabas as Head (Planning). He joins from JWT Delhi, where he was in the role of Executive Planning Director and Vice-president.

Salva resigns as Director, Speciality Papers
Rasik Vershi Salva, has resigned as a Director of Speciality Papers Ltd owing to personal reasons with effect from December 7, 2010.

Satija is MD (Asia-Pacific), InMobi
InMobi, the independent mobile advertising network, has appointed Atul
Satija as Vice President and Managing Director, Asia Pacific.

Bali joins Sistema Shyam Teleservices as COO
Sistema Shyam Teleservices Ltd (SSTL) has appointed Shankar Bali as Chief Operating Officer, Delhi NCR & Haryana Circle

Anandan joins Google
Former MD of the Microsoft Rajan Anandan has joined search giant Google as the Vice President (Sales and Operations) and Head of India region.

FORUM
(The views expressed in this column are of the contributors. We do not owe any responsibility, whatsoever, of the views of our surfers as they are their personal opinion. However, we would also request our contributors not to be personal, directly or indirectly, in presenting their views. Instead of countering the views which ‘X’ has already expressed, our contributors are advised to present their own views. Also be brief, say about 200 words at the most since any views longer than that if eliminated at our end would carry the risk of the contrbutor’s item losing its original essence)

Worrying trend in Indian Bureaucracy

If the Forum is any indicator of the quality and though process of the Indian bureaucracy than there is something to be really worried about. I have been trying to map the Forum for the last few days and it would appear that the Indian civil servants are obsessed with their own future only. We harldy see the civil servants expressing concern and providing suggestions on how best to improve administration . This website can be an important platform to articulate thoughts about good governance too! let us not confirm the popular public notion that Indian Babus are self seeking and selfish...

Sudha

MoSPI's split is not financially prudent

The proposal for bifurcation of Min of Statistics & Programme Implementation (MoSPI) as reported in this website on Jan 10, is a retrograde step, ill -advised by vested interests.

As a Joint Secretary in this ministry in 2002,I had taken the suo motto initiative for the merger of two wings viz; the Statistics and the Programme Implementation wings despite stiff resistance by a coterie of officers having hidden agenda as their discretionary powers were being curbed. I received the unstinted support of the successive Secretaries and Ministers (including those from the Congress), the Cabinet Secretariat and the PMO. The records can be verified and even placed in the public domain. After approval of the highest authority, suitable amendments were made in the Allocation of Business Rules with the approval of the then PM. The amalgamation of two wings under the same Secretary and Minister, had generated thousands of Square feet of scarce and surplus general pool office space in S P Bhavan, Delhi, surplus manpower besides resulting in recurring annual savings running into crores of rupees. Under the old dispensation, there was wide duplication of all administrative activities.

Bringing staus quo ante against this background will be a retrograde step by the present regime unless there are ulterior motives. It is understood that a Note for the Cabinet is ready for effecting the contemplated re-structuring of MoSPI. The Minister is more inclined towards the dual charge of Coal ministry and does not seem to be bothered about MOSPI and how decisions are taken there in blatant violation of prescribed rules.

I would draw the attention of the Cabinet Secretary and the Principle Secretary to PM to peruse the original records first before placing the matter before the Cabinet. Let the matter be handled in a transparent manner. If the present Secretary-cum-CSI, finds it difficult to handle the Ministry in its existing form ,let an IAS officer take over. After all, handling administration, is not every one's cup of tea! Let us not waste the tax payers money irresponsibly.

Incidentally, the MOSPI has not surrendered the hired office space vacated by it in the LIC building after creating a new building at NASA ,Greater Noida, UP. The Directorate of Estates is blissfully ignorant about this serious lapse, ostensibly as it is headless for the past several months without a Director. There is no accountability in the GOI.

A K Saxena (A retired civil servant)

He is entitled to his views !

Please do not withhold the name of such brilliant IAS officer, who has converted your site into a site for mere "bureaucracy", as if serving towards good governance or public administration is not the objective of civil services! May be he thinks his bureaucracy is otherwise!! Let him understand it clearly that the IAS is made of better stuff than the proof he has given and all civil services put together "execute"/implement government policies, programmes and schemes. Persons like him only question others in their utter ignorance & arrogance.

M L Gupta

CSSS & CSS merger not needed

Thanks to Ram for his/her concern with merger. Government is well aware of difference between the nature of duties relating to officials of CSS and CSSS, their entry to the services and pre-requisite qualification for appointment etc. Merger does not mean anything. It is felt that CSS is not in favour of merger whereas CSSS advocates merger citing the recommendations of 6th CPC. Why? Can this question be answered ? No. CSSS intends to take benefits at the cost of CSS. CSS and CSSS are difference cadres with different nature of duties, therefore, let this continue.

RC