What people say about us!

I am a regular reader of your whispers and they are very accurate.
Devasekhar

Is Mamata withdrawing support from the Center?
It is heard that TMC is likely to withdraw support from the centre ahead of the Presidential and panchayat elections to be held in West Bengal around end of 2012-13.

BUREAUCRACY

Justice Alam to be new Chairman of CAT!
Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court Syed Rafat Alam is being tipped to be new Chairman of the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT).The post was earlier held by Justice V K Bali who retired on March 8.

Justice Sapre to move to Chhattisgarh High Court?
Grapevine has it that Justice A M Sapre, the senior-most Judge of the Rajasthan High Court, is moving to the Chhattisgarh High Court.

IPS officer Navneet Rajan Wasan to join as Additional, DG (NIA)?
Navneet Rajan Wasan, OSD in Andhra Pradesh Bhawan, New Delhi, is likely to join as Additional DG (NIA). He is an Andhra Pradesh cadre IPS officer of 1980 batch.

Anu Garg to be JS, NACO
Anu Garg is being tipped to be new Joint Secretary, National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO). She is a 1991 batch IAS officer of Orissa cadre.

IPS officer resigns in Uttar Pradesh
1977 batch IPS officer Shailja Kant Mishra is reported to have put in his papers in Uttar Pradesh.

Vinod Kumar Thakral is ACS in Manipur
Vinod Kumar Thakral on his return from central deputation has been posted as Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) by the Manipur Government. He is an IAS officer of 1982 batch who belongs to Manipur-Tripura (M-T) cadre.

P V Ramashstry relieved to join NIA
The Uttar Pradesh Government has relieved 1989 batch IPS officer P V Ramashastry to join the GoI as IG, NIA.

Haryana Chief Secretary to retire this month
Haryana Chief Secretary Ms Urvashi Gulati is retiring on March 31. She is a 1975 batch IAS officer.

1986 batch IPS officers of AGMU cadre to get Spl. Commissioner rank
1986 batch IPS officers of Additional Director General rank of AGMU cadre are likely to be Special Commissioner rank officers as the matter for their empanelment is under process.

Hitesh Chandra Awasthi, Joint Director in CBI gets extension
Hitesh Chandra Awasthi, Joint Director, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has got an extension in his central deputation for a period of 6 months. He is an IPS officer of 1985 batch who belongs to Uttar Pradesh cadre.
(We said this on 21 February 2012).

Who will be key players in Defence Ministry?
Just in case Samajwadi Party (SP) supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav comes to the Centre as Defence Minister then who will be key players in the said Ministry? This question is a hot topic of discussion in corridors of power.

Meena Agrawal to be OSD in Finance Ministry
IRS officer Meena Chaudhary who is presently Joint Secretary, Expenditure in the Government of India will now be OSD in the rank of Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Finance.

Anand Kumar, Joint Director in IB to get in-situ promotion
Anand Kumar, Joint Director, Intelligence Bureau is likely to get in-situ promotion in Intelligence Bureau. He is an IPS officer of 1981 batch who belongs to Madhya Pradesh cadre.

Mahesh Kumar Aggarwal, DIG in CBI gets extension
Mahesh Kumar Aggarwal, DIG, Central Bureau of Investigation, Chandigarh Circle, has received further extension of his central deputation for a period of two years. He is an IPS officer of 1994 batch who belongs to Tamil Nadu cadre.

Will Kulbir Krishna join GoI?
Kulbir Krishna DG (Prisons) Meghalaya Shillong has applied for central deputation for the post of DG .He is an IPS officer of 1976 batch who belongs to Assam Meghalaya cadre.

Ish Kumar to get extension
Ish Kumar, IG, BPR&D, Ministry of Home Affairs, GoI is likely to get extension in central deputation for further one year. He is an IPS officer of 1985 batch who belongs to Andhra Pradesh cadre.

Bureaucrat successfully resolves cricket conflict in Rajasthan
Using all the negotiation and conflict management skills that he probably learned at Harvard, Rajasthan's Sports Secretary, Rohit Kumar Singh ensured that IPL matches will continue to be held at Jaipur this year. While the warring politicians, bureaucrats and BCCI bigwigs almost led to shifting the venue outside the state, Singh's relentless efforts help end the impasse.

Deadline for SEBI Member expires on March 23, 2012
The deadline for submitting applications for two posts of SEBI expires on March 23, 2012.

1994 batch IPS to get IG rank in Orissa
Two 1994 batch IPS officers are being promoted to the rank of IG in Orissa this month.

Over 120 posts of AD/DDIT, Addl./JDIT & DIT vacant at IT Directorates
Over 120 posts at Assistant Director, Deputy Director, Additional Director, Joint Director and Director level have been lying vacant at various Directorates offices of Income Tax Department.

Nair gets DG rank in Kerala
Venugopal K Nair, Addl. DG, Kerala police, has been promoted to the DG rank in Kerala. He is an IPS officer of 1979 batch who belongs to Kerala cadre.

Pankaj Chandra is new Chairman, UGC
Professor Pankaj Saran presently serving as Director, Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Bangalore has been cleared for appointment as Chairman of the University Grants Commission (UGC).
(We said this on March 6)

Mrs. Dhami posted as OSD, CCIT (CCA), Delhi region
Mrs. Monika Dhami, Joint Commissioner of Income Tax, has been posted as OSD in the office of CCIT (CCA), Delhi region.

DPC held for Additional Secretary, Law
DPC for three posts of Additional Secretary in the Law Ministry was held last week under the chairmanship of Cabinet Secretary.

IPS reshuffle in Uttar Pradesh
There is IPS reshuffle in Uttar Pradesh. New postings are Mssrs :-
Jagmohan Yadav ADG (Law and Order), Subesh Kumar Singh ADG Training, Sunil Chandra Vajpayee SSP Agra, Asim Kumar Arun, ADP office, J L Tripathi IG, Meerut Zone, Rajiv Krishna DGP, office, O P Dixit DG Vigilance, Rizwan Ahmad ADG, Telecom, A P Maheshwari ADG, Human Rights and Abhay Kumar Prasad IG, PAC Lucknow.

Madhurani delivers a baby boy
Slain IPS officer Narendra Kumar's wife who is also an IAS officer Madhurani Tewatia, delivered a baby boy in Delhi hospital.

BHEL signs contract for setting up 300 MW Thermal Power Plant (UPDATED)
Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) has signed a contract with Abhijeet Projects Limited (APL), an Independent Power Producer (IPP) for setting up a 300 MW thermal power plant in Visakhapatnam. This is the first order bagged by BHEL for its new rating 300 MW thermal set and has been won in the face of stiff international competition. Valued at Rs.630 Crore, the contract envisages design, engineering, manufacture, supply, erection, testing and commissioning of Boilers, Steam Turbines and Turbo-Generators along with state-of-the-art Controls and Instrumentation (C&I) and other associated auxiliaries for APL's 1x300 MW Thermal Power Plant in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. BHEL has fully established state-of-the-art technology for the manufacture of thermal sets up to 1,000 MW rating. To meet customer demand, the company has introduced new rating thermal sets of 150 MW, 270 MW, 300 MW, 525 MW and 600 MW, in addition to 250 MW and 500 MW thermal sets. The company has also equipped itself to produce thermal sets with supercritical parameters of 660/700/800 MW unit rating suited to Indian coal and Indian conditions.

Ms.Vandana Yadav to be PS to Rail Minister (UPDATED)
As the grapevine has it Ms. Vandana Yadav will be private secretary (PS) to Railway Minister Mukul Roy. She is an IAS officer of 1998 batch who belongs to West Bengal cadre.

Dutt to be Member of PESB ? (UPDATED)
Former CMD of the Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) Ashwani Kumar Dutt is likely to be appointed new Member of the Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB).

Mrs. Govil posted as OSD, CCIT (CCA), Delhi region (UPDTATED)
Mrs. Ruchika Chaudhary Govil, Commissioner of Income Tax, has been posted as OSD in the office of CCIT (CCA), Delhi region.

Mohapatra posted as ED, Finance Railway Board (UPDATED)
B N Mohapatra, SAG/IRAS, Divisional Railway Manager (DRM), Tinsukia, North East Frontier Railway, has been transferred to Railway Board and posted as Executive Director/Finance (Expenditure).

Mookerjee is FA & CAO, Con., Eastern Railway (UPDATED)
S Mookerjee, Adviser (FX), Railway Board has been made FA & CAO, Construction, Eastern Railway.

Jawed Usmani appointed new Chief Secretary of U P (UPDATED)
Now suspense is over. The new Government has appointed Jawed Usmani as Chief Secretary of Uttar Pradesh. He is 1978 batch IAS officer.
( We said this on March 5 )

NERAMAC's INDPACK-2012 held at Guwahati (UPDATED)
INDPACK-2012 was inaugurated by Meghalaya Governor Ranjit Shekhar Mooshahary at Maniram Dewan Trade Centre, Guwahati. This event organised by NERAMAC jointly with IIP, Mumbai is the first ever exclusive packaging exhibition held in the North East from March 15 to 17, 2012. The event is aimed at promoting North Eastern Packaging industry, which is believed to be the key sector crucial for the development of the food processing industry of the region. S Bhattacharjee, MD, NERAMAC, said that "the event shall give the right impetus to the packaging industry of the NE Region, which is one of the important link in the development of the food processing industry". The event was attended by Nabokumar Das, IAS, Chief Secretary, Govt. of Meghalaya and R L Rinoma, IRS, Principal Secretary Industries, Government of Mizoram were the guest of honour.

DEBATE - Should bureaucrats alone be held accountable for policy decisions ?

Bureaucrats now feel that Ministers and Politicians also be held responsible for 'policy decisions' taken by the government. They also want that entire cabinet should be held accountable for policy decisions. How far they are correct in their thinking ?

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

CORPORATE

Subrata Roy much sought after man
Under the new dispensation, people in Uttar Pradesh (UP) have begun to make a bee line before noted business tycoon & chief of Sahara group Subrata Roy.

Ganguly resigns as Director, Kingfisher Airlines Ltd
Anil Kumar Ganguly has resigned as Director of Kingfisher Airlines Ltd w.e.f. March 17, 2012

Irani resigns as Special Director, HDFC
Dr. J. J. Irani has resigned as a Special Director of Housing Development Finance Corporation Ltd (HDFC) w.e.f. March 19, 2012.

Irani appointed Addl. Director, HDFC
Dr. J. J. Irani has been appointed as an Additional Director of Housing Development Finance Corporation Ltd (HDFC).

Sagar resigns as Director, Midfield Industries Ltd
M. Ashok Sagar has resigned as the Director of Midfield Industries Ltd and also as Executive Director on February 14, 2012.

Srikanth appointed Addl. Director, Midfield Industries Ltd
U. Srikanth is appointed as the Additional Director of Midfield Industries Ltd w.e.f. March 19, 2012. He is also designated as Whole-time Director of the company.

Rao resigns as Director, Midfield Industries Ltd
V. G. Krishna Rao has resigned as the Director of Midfield Industries Ltd w.e.f. March 10, 2012.

Pillai resigns as Senior VP (Mktg.), Infinite Computer Solutions (India) Ltd
Murugeshan Pillai Senior Vice President (Marketing), Infinite Computer Solutions (India) Ltd has resigned from the company w.e.f. March 2, 2012.

Pardhi appointed Director, Ferro Alloys Corporation Ltd
Keshaorao Pardhi has been appointed as a Director of Ferro Alloys Corporation Ltd w.e.f. March 16, 2012.

Naidu appointed GM, Lotus DMC, Mumbai
Lotus DMC has appointed Rajan Naidu as General Manager, Mumbai.

Iyer new country manager ICLP
Krishna Iyer is the new Country manager of ICLP

Agarwalla resigns from Warren Tea
Rajat Agarwalla has resigned as director of Warren Tea

Kidwai appointed joint managing director of Warren Tea
Ravi Kidwai has been appointed as joint managing director of Warren Tea

Menon appointed Secretary General of AFPPA
Surendran Menon has been appointed as Secretary General of The Aseptic Food Processing & Packaging Industry Association of India (AFPPA)

Tak Machinery & Leasing changes name
Tak Machinery & Leasing has changed its name to Mangal Finance Holding

Dadia resigns as director of DSJ Communications
Jayesh Dadia has resigned as the director of DSJ Communications

2 directors resign from Mahamaya Steel Industries
Arvind Nath Jha and Dinesh Kumar Porwal have resigned as directors of Mahamaya Steel Industries.

They should be held responsible

If cabinet and politician take a decision contrary to that recommended by bureaucrat, they should be held responsible. If bureaucrat is party to decision, he/ she is solely responsible as bureaucrat is duty bound to give correct advice and stick by it.

K Thomas

Are MoD & MHA working for the same govt & nation?

I wish to bring to your notice the following,

This is in respect to the recent notification by UPSC for limited comp exam for IPS 2012. Unfortunately Regularly Commissioned Army officers are not allowed as per Army HQ Letter No 36094/CIV EMP/ IPS EXAM / MS-7B Dated Mar 15, 2012.

It states that 'only' Permanent Low Medical Category persons shall be allowed. i.e Officers with Medical Incapacitation shall be allowed. This makes a Joke of the Government order and MHA Gazette Extraordinary of Mar 03, 2012 as physically incapacitated officers will not be fit for policing operations in Naxal infested areas and combat zones.

Are MoD & MHA working for the same govt & nation?

The Senior defence functionaries strongly feel that the acceptance of IPS post by Majors etc will somehow concede to the fact that Army officers are inferior to IAS/IPS.

Why compare two services whose Functioning and are of expertise is so different. Why should personal preferences , Old orders of 1987 and Turf-wars

come in between for the noble cause of public service?

--GR

Well done

Well done Rohit Singh! It would have been sad if no matches would have been played in Jaipur, the home ground of the reigning Ranji champions.

P N Mathur

Pranab babu still lives in the past

Budget 2012 shows Pranab babu still lives in the past. While rest of the world relies on direct taxes to mop up revenue, P babu has gone for the easy way of Indirect taxes. Think of the cumulative impact on common man on account of railfare hike,Excise duty,Service tax hike and future fuel hike. With Pranab Mukherjee around, Congress does not need opposition to defeat them in next election.

Karan

People travel for enjoyment

Khurda Road is a Railway Division Headquarter 20 kms away from Bhubhneshwar. Recently, I had gone to that place from Bhubhneshwar in a super fast train. I paid Rs.25/-. On my return I took a fast passenger and the cost of Railway Ticket was only Rs.3/- only. In China, if you travel in rail you have to give reasons. In this country people travel for enjoyment. A poor man is ready to purchase a Rs.75/- alcohol bottle and rich is ready to pay Rs.75/- for eating masala dosa. But they will not be able to give Rs.75/- extra for traveling from Delhi to Kolkatta. Laloo Yadav fudged figures and brought one sick PSU namely Bharat Wagon Limited under Railways purview. Then Madam Mamta Banerjee brought two sick PSUs namely Braithwate and Burn Standards under the Railways purview. Railways are in an ICU and very soon the pensioners may not get their pensions. We are heading for Egypt, Syria etc. type situation in the country.

A Srivastava

Congratulations

Bharat is a well deserving officer for this empanelment.

Kishori Lal

Are the details of the service book liable to be disclosed?

The estranged wife of a government servant asked whether the name of wife has been entered in the Service Book of her husband; If yes, the name as entered in the Service Book; and the name of the nominee & his successor. The appellant also sought the attested photocopy of Service Book and GPF documents of her husband, Shri R B Bhavuk. The third party strongly objected to the disclosure of the requested information on the plea that the same was his personal information and moreover, if disclosed it would not only endanger his life but also the life of the nominee as well. The CPIO declined to disclose the information under Section 8(1)(g) & (j) of the RTI Act. The Commission observed that whether the name of the wife has been entered in the Service Book of any employee is relevant to the functioning of the personnel and establishment division of the Public Authority. Hence, the Commission directed to disclose in 'Yes' or 'No' whether the name of the wife has been entered in the Service Book of her husband. Refusal of the information about the GPF and nominees was upheld under section 8(1) (j).

Comments

Some parts of the Service Book are personal in nature where other parts are purely administrative in nature. The places of posting, total period and category of leave availed of from time to time etc. ae administrative information and can be disclosed.

[Smt. Nirmala Bhavuk v. Central Excise & Customs in Appeal No. CIC/SS/A/2012/000107]

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