What people say about us !

Really, it is a very good and informative site.

S C Dhawan

Who will form the Government in UP?
Who will form the Government in Uttar Pradesh? There is consensus on one issue that it is going to be a hung Assembly. One theory says that the BJP and the BSP will form the Government and other theory says that the Congress and the Samajwadi will join hands to form the next Government.

Congress to gain?
There is general consensus that number of Congress seats will go up in the ensuing Vidhan Sabha elections. May be between 23 and 50.

JD (U) to damage Congress
JD (U) partner of NDA has announced to go it alone in the Uttar Pradesh Vidhan Sabha elections. It means JD (U) is going to cut Congress votes. A good game plan of the BJP.

Amar Singh to target Samajwadi party
Amar Singh is going to put up candidates only to damage the Samajwadi Party led by Mulayam Singh Yadav.

Will N D Tiwari put up 70 candidates?
There are reports that former CM and Governor N D Tiwari is going to field 70 candidates in Uttarakhand Vidhan Sabha election on the banner of Nirantar Vikas Samiti. Interesting development in favour of the BJP.

Sangh 's diktat, Khushwaha out
Its heard that RSS has issued a diktat to BJP leadership to sack Babu Singh Kushwaha immediately.

Is Gadkari preparing for next Assembly elections?
It is heard that Nitin Gadkari is already getting surveys of MLA performance done in various states. However what will he do in Gujarat needs to be seen.

Finance Minister has no time for Banks?
There is a talk that Finance Minister and Minister of State Finance have more time for IRS than the Banks. Any guess?

NRI's keen on Knowledge city & Parasnath in Jharkhjand (UPDATED)
Non resident Indians (NRIs) who have flocked to the pink city of Jaipur have evinced keen interest in the "Knowledge city" with which the Jharkhand government is coming up in the state capital i.e. Ranchi. Sources close to the development told whispersinthecorridors.com that Jharkhand Chief Minister Arjun Munda who had specially flown to Jaipur for the NRI's meet titled "Pravasi Bhartiya Sammelan" received a very good response from NRIs. They have shown their keenness on investing in fields of hardware, education and Information Technology (IT). Besides, Munda received very strong proposals from NRIs for development of Parasnath -a Jain's pilgrimage in Jharkhand. The Government of Jharkhand is coming up with a mega "Knowledge City" in Ranch in an area of over 200 hectares. It is quite close to Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Ranchi, Law Institute & the Jharkhand's Central University.

CMs of Bihar & Arunachal Pradesh also reach Gaya (UPDATED)
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumnar and Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Nabam Tuki have reached Gaya (Bihar) to attend the event ''Kalchakra''. As it is, many Budhists including many Ministers as well as Government officials of Arunachal Pradesh are in Gaya. The event mainly envisages delivery of discourses by Dalai Lama. It has been organised by Pema Dorjee, Tourism Minister of Arunachal Pradesh.

CM Modi receives standing ovation by NRIs at the Pravasi Sammelan (UPDATED)
To match other countries and reach the pinnacle of glory making India truly a global power, the need of the hour was to think on a bigger scale, develop skills and execute them with speed, said Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Monday while addressing the 10th Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas - 2012 conclave at Gandhinagar. Infact, Modi said, new India should stand on the three pillars - Scale, Speed and Skill - a model propagated by the state of Gujarat, to realize its full potential. Gujarat, he said, is the India's global capital of solar energy while Gujarat and Rajasthan are major hubs of solar energy radiations. "When I think of Gujarat, I think of Rajasthan too. Gujarat is the first state in India to have a solar energy policy which was later adopted by the Government of India. World's largest solar park with 3,000 MW capacity is being established in Gujarat jointly with Clinton Foundation", he said adding that the Central Government may consider setting up huge solar power projects on western Indo-Pak border, which can be managed by the Border Security Force (BSF). "Our vision is growth of Gujarat for India's development. There are only four governments in the world who have responded very seriously to the issue of climate change. The Government of Gujarat has a separate climate change department. The renewable energy initiative has been taken up at a massive scale by the state", he stressed Modi also spoke ab out other achievements of Gujarat like availability of broadband connectivity in 18,000 villages since 2009, establishment of a university to prepare world-class teachers, setting up of the Indian Institute of Temple Management which trains priests and send them to nearly 15 countries of the world with significant Indian population.

BUREAUCRACY

Bureaucratic & political surgery in April
As the grapevine has it, a major bureaucratic and political surgery at the Centre is on the anvil in April 2012. Broadly, it is expected to take place after the budget session of the Parliament.

Ajit Sharan to be Additional Secretary IT?
Ajit Sharan is likely to be appointed Additional Secretary Information Technology in the Government of India. He is 1979 batch IAS officer of Haryana cadre.

CSB assesses IAS officers of 1992 batch
Assessment of IAS officers belonging to 1992 batch for empanelment in the Government of India (GoI) as Joint Secretaries has been done by CSB.

1977 batch IAS unlikely to be new Secretary Personnel
As long as 1976 batch Orissa cadre IAS officer R C Mishra is Secretary Administrative Reforms, appointment of 1977 batch IAS is unlikely as Secretary Personnel. This is the reason Mishra has been given additional charge of Secretary Personnel.

Will Sharad Gupta become Secretary?
1977 batch Assam-Meghalaya cadre IAS officer Sharad Gupta is scheduled to retire in October. Will he become Secretary in the Government of India? He is presently DG - Bureau of Indian Standards.

1990 batch IRS (IT) promotion list in a day or two?
Promotion and transfer list of 1990 batch IRS (IT) officers to the rank of Commissioner is expected to be issued in a day or two.

J P Meena to be new Joint Secretary Animal Husbandary
J P Meena (Assam-Meghalaya, 1983) is going to be the new Joint Secretary in the Department of Dairy Development in Ministry of Animal Husbandry.

Military Secretary to retire this month end
Military Secretary G M Nair is retiring on January 31. New appointment is yet to be made.

Sanjeev Chachra to be Military Secretary?
In all probability Lt Gen Sanjeev Chachra is being appointed new Military Secretary in the Indian Army.

Three Corps are vacant in Indian Army
Currently Core 9, Core 14 and Core 15, are lying vacant in the Army in the country.

Arun Kaul tipped to be CMD of Bank of India
As the grapevine has it, UCO Bank's Chairman-and Managing Director (CMD), Arun Kaul, may be laterally shifted as CMD of the Bank of India.

Sarangi to join Cabinet Secretariat
1990 batch Orissa cadre IAS officer Sudansu Sarangi is all set to join the Cabinet Secretariat as Joint Director.

Atul Kumar is new DGP of UP
On the orders of the EC Atul Kumar has been appointed new DGP of Uttar Pradesh in place of Brij Lal. He is 1976 batch IPS officer.
(We said this on November 30)

Manjit Singh replaces Fateh Bahadur in UP
Manjit Singh has replaced Fateh Bahadur as Principal Secretary Home in UP. He is 1979 batch IAS officer.

Semwal is also Secretary to Goa Governor
Neeraj Semwal Secretary Tourism has also joined as Secretary to the Goa Governor. He is 2003 batch UT cadre IAS officer.

Disinvestments on the back burner
Disinvestments in the GoI have been put on the back burner owing to downward trend in the stock market.

No poll observer to talk to media
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has given strict instructions to poll observers in 5 states not to talk to the media at all.

Lt. Gen. A M Verma to join AFT
Lt. Gen. Anand Mohan Verma is poised to join the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) as Member Administration.

1987 batch IAS is PS in Meghalaya
Three 1987 batch IAS officers KN Kumar, RM Mishra and P Kharkongor have been promoted to the rank of Principal Secretary in Meghalaya.

Who says MP and CG are poor states?
Who says Tribal pre-dominated Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh are poor states in the country? Income-Tax collection and recovery in these two states is going to be much higher than other prosperous states in the country.

Bhadhra posted as Dy. Director (Hqr.) C&AG, Kolkata
Timir Bhadhra, Deputy Accountant General (Coml) in the office of Accountant General (CW & RA), Orissa, Bhubaneshwar, has been transferred and posted as Deputy Director (Hqrs.) in the office of Principal Director of Audit, Ordinance Factories, Kolkata, under the department of Comptroller and Auditor General of India.

Why did Sutanu Behuria meet HP CM on Sunday?
Why did Dr Sutanu Behuria meet Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister P C Dhumal on Sunday? Is this meeting something to do with the Chief Secretaryship of the state?

DoPT asks for panel of JS NER
Ministry of North-East has asked DoP&T for a panel for a Joint Secretary, Ministry of North-East region New Delhi.

Dr Afroz Ahmed to be Member of NCA
Dr afroz Ahmed is likely to be promoted as Member, Environment and Rehabilitation of Narmada Control Authority under Ministry of Water Resources.

Manu Sharma is back to India
Manu Sharma, 34 year old youth, name known to Media and Broadcast service industry, who started as an entrepreneur after launching his company Salt and Pepper Media and Films Private Limited, is back to India. He being an MBA in Strategic Marketing from UK would be involved in launching initiatives in Media, Technology, Education and Film industry along with management, sales, business development and advisory services to corporate houses. He was earlier with BT for 12 years having his last assignment as Director - Business Development- Asia Pacific based in Singapore.

17 DIG level vacancies in Tamil Nadu
The Tamil Nadu Government has sought permission from the MHA to fill 17 DIG level vacancies.

14 Writ petitions against two IPS in Tamil Nadu
As many as 14 Writ petitions have reportedly been filed against two brave IPS officers, Sandeep Mittal (IPS, TN, 1995) and Dr. Senthilvathanan (IPS,TN, 2002).

Will Satyendra Garg move?
Grapevine has it that Joint Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Satyendra Garg is moving as Jt.CP/NR in Delhi.

Arya to be Spl CP P & L?
Aditya Arya is likely to be appointed Spl. CP/P&L in Delhi Police. He is 1981 batch IPS officer.

Post of Director (Fin.) vacant in DFCCI Ltd
The post of Director (Finance) has been lying vacant in Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India (DFCCI) Limited. Those willing to apply can send their applications to Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB) before March 9, 2012.

Majority people in Arunachal Govt. reach Gaya
Majority of people in Arunachal Pradesh Government are nowadays in Gaya (Bihar) to attend the event ''Kalchakra''. They include Ministers as well as Government officials. The event mainly envisages delivery of discourses by Dalai Lama. It has been organised by Pema Dorjee,
Tourism Minister of Arunachal Pradesh.

Vice Admiral Thapliyal appointed COP
Vice-Admiral Anurag Gopalan Thapliyal, Commandant of the Indian Naval Academy - Ezhimala, has been appointed the Chief of Personnel (COP) of the Navy.

IPS changes in Uttar Pradesh
H C Kashyap will now be IG Security. B P Jogdand has been moved as IG Allahabad. Mohammad Jawed will be new IG Lucknow. Ashish Gupta has been shifted as IG Budget. Ram Kumar goes as DIG Barelley and D Prakash DIG Allahabad.

PAKISTAN WHISPERS
Pakistan: Army Controls 3.96 lakh acres land in Punjab
Pakistan's army is holding 3.96 lakh acres of land in the Punjab province. This is in addition to the cantonments in the province and is used for cultivation, dairy farming and 'such other activities' by the military' Punjab's law minister Rana Sanaullah has told the provincial assembly while answering a question. It also includes land up to 5 miles from the Indo-Pakistan border in the province. Record of this land is maintained by the concerned Military Estate Officers (MEOs) who also make allotment from time to tine and the state government has no control over its administration or management.

Pakistan: CDA proposal to nullify Supreme Court order
The building control department of Islamabad's Capital Development Authority (CDA) has forwarded a proposal to its board members to regularise commercial buildings having come up on plots allotted by the authority for community purposes. In July 2007 a division bench of the Supreme Court comprising of Justice Khalilur Rehman Ramday and Justice Falak Sher had ordered demolition of these structures and also imposed fines on the allottees for the violation. After nearly two and a half years the CDA has now floated the subject proposal that seeks to nullify the apex court's order and at the same time benefit the law breakers. There are 19 such plots blatantly commercialised by the allottees after taking over possession on the pretext of 'community purpose'. One of the allottees started a Chinese restaurant soon after completing the construction on the plot. CDA's argument in favour of regularising the violations is that it will result in additional revenue for it by way of conversion and regularisation charges to be realised from the allottees.

Ms Jayashree Mukherjee inaugurates 3rd Mall festival of NERAMAC at New Delhi (UPDATED)
NERAMAC, a Govt of India Enterprise under the Ministry of DoNER, has started the 3rd Mall Festival . DoNER Joint Secretary, Ms Jayashre Mukherjee, IAS, inaugurated the same at TDI Mall, Rajouri Garden in New Delhi on January 8, 2012. The festival which is sponsored by the North Eastern Council, Shillong, will continue till January 14, 2012 and a permanent outlet selling north east products has also started functioning at the TDI Mall being the third such outlets in Delhi NCR set up by NERAMAC in last three months to show case and sell the naturally organic produces & products of the north east. These outlets will also support the tiny and small agri-entrepreneurs of north east in marketing their produces & products to the high end consumers of NCR Delhi.

R K Mathur bereaved (UPDATED)
Shakuntala Devi mother of R K Mathur Secretary MSME in the Government of India has passed away in Delhi on Monday. She was about 84.

R K Malhotra, IRAS, NR, shifted to Railway Coach Factory (UPDATED)
R K Malhotra, JAG/IRAS, Northern Railway, has been transferred to Railway Coach Factory,Rae Bareli and Posted as Dy. FA&CAO, Lucknow.

36 IRS (IT) officers of 1985 batch empanelled for Joint Secretary level (UPDATED)
As many as 36 IRS (IT) officers of 1985 batch have been empanelled for holding the post of Joint Secretary or equivalent level under the Central Staffing Scheme.

Bhasin and Trehan elected for SEPC (UPDATED)
Lalit Bhasin, renowned Advocate, and Dr. Naresh Trehan, renowned Cardiologist, have been re-elected as Chairman and Vice Chairman, respectively, of Services Export Promotion Council(SEPC), set up by Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Govt. of India. Rajesh Sharma is the Director General and CEO of SEPC. SEPC has been created by Department of Commence to promote export of services from India.

IAS cadre of Lalithalakshim transferred from TN to WB (UPDATED)
The cadre of V Lalithalakshmi has been transferred from Tamil Nadu to West Bengal on the ground of marriage to Saurav Pahari--a 2008 batch IAS officer of West Bengal. Lalithalakshmi is an IAS officer of 2008 batch belonging to Tamil Nadu cadre.

UPSC announces SCRA-exam result (UPDATED)
Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has announced the result of Special Class Railway Apprentices' (SCRA)-Examination, 2011. As many as 42 candidates qualified the examination.

Kumari Nirmaljit Kaur appointed Addl. Judge of Punjab & Haryana HC (UPDATED)
Kumari Nirmaljit Kaur has been appointed an Additional Judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court for a period of six months with effect from January 10, 2012.

DEBATE

Is it appropriate or inappropriate for an elected representative to address a bureaucrat as "Sir"?

Orissa Chief Minister Navin Patnaik has asked Cabinet Ministers to maintain dignity of the office. Patnaik conveyed his mind when a Minister addressed "Sir" to an IAS officer in his presence. "You are Cabinet Minister and should maintain your dignity" the Chief Minister said. How far it is appropriate or inappropriate for an elected representative to address a bureaucrat as "Sir".

Mail your to the point views to suresh.mehrotra@yahoo.com or mehrotra.suresh@gmail.com

CORPORATE

Will Tata's message be a cue to India Inc as a whole?
Ratan Tata who heads the biggest industrial conglomerate has advised his companies to moderate projections in line with current realities. In his year-end message, Tata admitted that while 2012 would be a tough year, it would also present opportunities. Will other companies
too take a cue from Tata in making projections for 2012?

More schemes to attract dollar inflows on the cards
It is learnt that the Reserve Bank, SEBI along with the Ministry of Finance is planning to introduce more FDI schemes whereby foreign funds can be encouraged to flow in the country.

Gupta resigns from Vakrangee Software
Brij Kishor Gupta has resigned from the board of Directors of Vakrangee Softwares.

IT spending to rise in 2012
Worldwide IT spending is forecast to total $3.8 trillion in 2012, a 3.7 percent increase from 2011, according to the latest outlook by Gartner, Inc. In 2011, worldwide IT spending totaled $3.7 trillion, up 6.9 percent from 2010 levels.

Pandey resigns from Lakhani India
Narendra Kumar Pandey has resigned from the directorship of Lakhani India

Venugopal appointed Additional Director Tata Metaliks
Pingali Venugopal has been appointed as additional director on the Board of Tata Metaliks.

Agrawal appointed Additional Director, Radha Madhav Corporation
Subhash Agrawal has been appointed as the Additional Director of Radha Madhav Corporation.

Ahmed elected Chairman FIEO
Padam Shree M Rafeeque Ahmed, Chairman of the Farida Group of Companies, is elected President of Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) at New Delhi.

Sudhir Rao quits
DMD of the Renault India Sudhir Rao has reportedly quit.

Sanghi resigns as Director, Sanghi Polysters Ltd
Ravi Sanghi, Director, Sanghi Polyesters Ltd has resigned from the Board of Directors of the company w.e.f. January 6, 2012

Dasgupta appointed VP (HR), eRevMax International
eRevMax International has appointed Anupama Dasgupta as Vice President (HR) of the company.

Venugopal appointed Addl. Director, Tata Metaliks Ltd
Tata Metaliks Limited has appointed Dr. Pingali Venugopal as an Additional Director of the company.

Agrawal appointed Addl. Director, Radha Madhav Corporation Ltd
Subhash Agrawal has been appointed as Additional Director of Radha Madhav Corporation Ltd w.e.f. January 4, 2012

Sharma appointed GM, Coutyard by Marriott, Chennai
Marriott International has appointed Ankush Sharma as General Manager , Courtyard by Marriott, Chennai.

Kumar resigns as Director, Lakhani India Ltd
Narendra Kumar Pandey has resigned as Director of Lakhani India Ltd w,e,f, September 9, 2011.

DEBATE (1)

Sir, it's more as a matter of courtesy rather than protocol or breach of it. The question of dignity should not come in the way to cultivate better etiquettes.

U S NAIK

DEBATE (2)

It is funny that in a democratic country we are discussing who should be 'Sir' and who not. In fact we should address every one by her/his first name, like people do in developed countries. I was asked by a foreigner why we use call bell to call people, only animals are to be called by signals in a developed society and I had no words to reply to him. It is time that we came out of the colonial mindset. When showing respect means being slavish, it has to be changed. Respect
people in your heart and not by addressing them like a slave.

Prakash

A blatant fraud by General V K Singh?

I read in an Editorial (Economic Times or Times of India) a few days ago that what General V K Singh did in 1966 was a blatant fraud. When he joined the NDA in 1966, he was just 15 years of age (considering his correct year of birth as 1951) whereas the eligibility age to join the NDA was 16 years. Therefore, he forged his year of birth to 1950 solely with the criminal intention of gaining wrongful entry to the NDA.

If the editorial is correct (which is deemed to be), it is a serious issue. This is a clear case of forgery and the General is liable not only for Court Martial/ departmental proceedings for dismissal but also for criminal prosecution for forgery and cheating. I wonder why the MoD is not taking such action against him. Why has the MoD been sitting over this issue since the time it considered his promotion to the rank of Major General when he was asked to certify his year of
birth as 1950? The anomaly was detected long ago, still he was spared by the powers that be. Is he above law? Even some politicians have stood up in his favour. And there is some talk of 'Compromise' going on between the Govt and the General to dissuade him from going to the
Court and make him retire on the decided date and in return to make him a Governor/ Ambassador. This is ridiculous. The General should better go to the court as it would rather expose him only to departmental and legal action.

The electronic media should highlight this blatant mockery of rules and law.

K Khanna

DG Police(Retd)

Why are Rajput regiment officers posted to key appointments?

Why are Rajput regiment officers being posted to key appointments in Delhi including the change in posting of an officer posted to key appointment of selecting officers for foreign assignments replaced by a Rajput officer?

GOC Delhi Area - a Rajput officer...

No special exemptions will be allowed to judges other than the exemption prescribed in Sec.10 of the I.T.Act.As per the sub section 14 of this section any allowance specifically granted to the
employees will be exempted to the extent of expenditure actually incurred. Any additional exemptions, if,proposed to the Judiciary will be against the equality.

Koyaji

Fury of nature

I am in Pondicherry and am witness to the fury of nature on the 29th and 30th night. Man really seems so frail in the face of such disaster. The ravages caused to the city by that cyclone is seen to be believed. Hundreds of trees were uprooted and the city looked like one big garbage dump in the war zone. It is eight days and they are still removing the debris. Outside Pondy things have yet to be normalised. Cuddalore about 21 Kms from here is in a very bad shape. What irks one
is the response by the administration to such disasters. It is so slow and has its own pace while one is required to deal with such tragedies on war footing. The resources, it appears with the Government of Pondicherry are limited and the task is simply overwhelming. The Centre is still assessing the damage. Home minister came and the team from the centre is yet to arrive. Administration at its pace whatever may be the cause. Sad indeed.

Aarti Khosla

It's after 10 years of service

RK wrote "There is no harm in increasing the retirement age...... Employee can get retirement benefit on the basis of years of service rendered." They do after 10 years of service, after implementation of Sixth pay commission, as pension is 50 percent of last pay drawn.

R Kumar

Examine performance of CMDs first

he Government should first examine the performance of these CMDs in these Banks as some of them have failed to deliver in their existing Banks which may turn to be reward for non-performance.

A K Sanoria

Can the High Court rules over-ride the RTI Act?

The appellant's request for information relating to the Haryana Superior Judicial Services was refused by the APIO citing the rules 4(a) and 5 of the High Court of Punjab and Haryana (Right to Information) Rules 2007. On appeal, the FAA directed to provide information on certain points. Regarding remaining information, the FAA endorsed the decision of the APIO without claiming any exemption section of RTI Act. The respondent submitted that he was bound by the rules framed by his own High Court and could not comment on whether those rules were in conformity with
the provisions of the RTI Act or not. The Commission held that the stand taken by the Respondent is totally out of sync with the provisions of the RTI Act and directed to provide the information.

Comments

Many PIO's tend to refer to departmental rules or rules made by the public authority in exercise of its powers under Section 28 of the RTI Act. Section 28 confers powers on the competent authority, to make rules to carry out the provisions of this Act. But no competent authority can make rules to obstruct the disclosure of information by adding additional exemption provisions not contained in the original Act.

Shri Sudesh
Kumar Goyal v. High Court of Punjab & Haryana in file
No.CIC/WB/A/2010/000070SM

[Mr. Paras Nath Singh v. Ministry of External Affairs in CIC/SG/A/2011/002072/15657Adjunct]

- 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)