What people say about us!

Sir the website run by you is a great step towards the dissemination of Bureaucratic /Political and Corporate information which otherwise is not available. The people of this nation owe you a lot for this. I would like to suggest that like IAS, IPS, IT or customs there are other important machineries like ESIC, EPF, Airport Authority, etc. If posting of SP CBI is mentioned than posting of Regional P F Commissioners and Regional Director ESIC, whose jurisdiction spreads to 8-20 districts and some time a state, should also be given space in your website. It is requested to accord importance to these departments as they are equally important field machineries effecting lives of nearly a fifth of the Indian population. Thanks again for the wonderful website.

K K Singh

Is Digvijay Singh returning to Madhya Pradesh politics?
A couple of national TV channels have said that AICC General Secretary Digvijay Singh is now returning to the Madhya Pradesh politics. Is it a plant of certain Congress leaders opposed to Digvijay Singh or a reality? Only Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi can answer to this question.

Who has provoked Yeddurappa and Keshu Bhai Patel?
On the eve of the national executive of the BJP, two significant developments have taken place. Keshu Bhai Patel's tirade against Narendra Modi and former Karanatka CM B S Yedurappa's threat and praise of Sonia Gandhi. Who is behind this game and why?

Rahul Khullar is new Chairman of TRAI
Secretary, Commerce Rahul Khullar has been appointed the chairman of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) for a period of three years. He is a 1975 batch IAS officer of UT cadre.
(We said this on April 4 and again on April 16)

B.C. Gupta poised to head CWC
As the grapevine has it, Dr B.C. Gupta, Secretary - Food and Public Distribution, Government of India (GoI), is poised to be new Chairman of the Central Warehousing Corporation (CWC). He is a Punjab cadre IAS officer of 1975 batch. Dr Gupta is scheduled to retire this month end.

Will Dr Sutanu Behuria be Secretary, Coal?
Union Minister Coal Sriparakash Jaiswal has asked the services of Dr Sutanu Behuria - 1976 batch IAS officer of Himachal Pradesh cadre as his Secretary. Will he be appointed Secretary, Coal in place of Alok Perti, who is superannuating by this month end? Picture is not clear.

Who will be new Election Commissioner?
Who will be new Election Commissioner in July? This is hotly discussed topic in the corridors of power. Infact, the term of Chief Election Commissioner S Y Qurashi is coming to an end on July 16.

Rakesh Bhushan Sinha is Joint Secretary, Agriculture in GoI
Rakesh Bhushan Sinha on central deputation has joined as Joint Secretary Agriculture & Cooperatives in the Government of India (GoI). He is an Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer of 1986 batch who belongs to the Madhya Pradesh cadre. Earlier, he was posted as Chief Conservator of Forests (CCF) Betul.
(We said this on May 1, 2012)

Shreekant Singh returns to Maharashtra
Orders regarding return of Shreekant Singh from the post of Deputy Chairman of Mumbai Port Trust (MPT) to his parent cadre of Maharashtra have been issued. He is an IAS officer of the 1986 batch. It may be stated that Singh in the past has served as Municipal Commissioner, Thane, joint MD - City & Industrial Development Corporation of Maharashtra (CIDCO) & Additional Municipal Commissioner of the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM).He was Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Slum Rehabilitation Authority of Maharashtra Government before joining the MPT.
(We said this on May 2, 2012)

Will Shishir Priyadarshi be new CMD of MMTC?
Shishir Priyadarshi is likely to be appointed new CMD of the MMTC. He is a 1980 batch IAS officer of Uttar Pradesh cadre.

File of CVO, SAIL still lying in the DoPT
As the grapevine has it, Chief Vigilance Officer (CVO) SAIL has been lying in the Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT) for a long time.

There is a files' log jam in TN, CM's office
As the grapevine has it, there has been a files' log jam in the office of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Ms. J. Jayalalitha.

Anil Jain joins Planning Commission
Anil Jain has joined the Planning Commission as Advisor (Energy). He is a 1986 batch IAS officer of Madhya Pradesh cadre.

K B Singh to get extension?
K.B. Singh, IG (pers,ITBP) is likely to get extension in his deputation tenure. He is an Orissa cadre IPS officer of 1985 batch.

Rina Mitra joins as Director, BPR&D
Ms Rina Mitra has moved from Wildlife Crime Control Bureau to BPR&D as Director (IG rank). She is a 1983 batch IPS officer of Madhya Pradesh cadre.
(We said this on January 17)

Cabinet Secretary to chair meeting on new DG, IGNFA- Dehradun
Cabinet Secretary Ajit Kumar Seth is going to chair a meeting on appointment of new Director General (DG) of the Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy (IGNFA), Dehradun. The meeting is scheduled to be held at 6 pm on May 14, 2012. Two Indian Forest Service (IFS) officers are in the fray. They are: R.K. Goyal (1977 batch) & A.K. Wahal (1978 batch). Though, the search committee headed by Cabinet Secretary Ajit Kumar Seth had met once, it could not finalise on either of the candidates.

Arvind Singh is inducted in IB
Arvind Singh,(DD) Deputy Director (HQrs) Intelligence Bureau, New Delhi, has been inducted as hard core officer in IB. He is an IPS officer of 1998 batch who belongs to the Manipur-Tripura cadre.

Arvind Kumar promoted as JD, IB
Arvind Kumar, Deputy Director, Intelligence Bureau (Hqrs.), New Delhi, has been promoted as Joint Director. He is an IPS Officer of 1992 batch of Manipur Tripura Cadre.

Who will head Western Command of Navy?
Who will succeed Vice-Admiral D K Joshi as Chief of the prestigious Western Naval Command? Tie is said to be between Vice Chief Robin Dhowan and Vice Admiral Shekhar Sinha.

List of Bank EDs now in ACC
List of the appointment of 22 Executive Directors in the nationalized banks has reportedly been sent to the ACC.

New uniform for students in Kendriya Vidyalayas
As the grapevine has it, there is going to be a new uniform for students in Kendriya Vidyalayas being run by the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (KVS) of which Commissioner is Avinash Dikshit. He is a 1986 batch officer from Indian Defence Account Service (IDAS).

28 positions of IAS officers vacant in HP cadre
As many as 28 positions of IAS officers have been lying vacant in Himachal Pradesh cadre. There are 101 officers in the position against strength of 129 IAS officers in the State.

IA & AS officer Ms. Snehalatha is DG, Audit (Central), Chennai
Ms. S Snehalatha, Principal Director of Audit (Central), Chennai, has been promoted to the grade of Principal Accountant General (PAG) and posted as Director General of Audit (Central), Chennai under the Comptroller & Auditor General of India. She is an IA&AS officer of 1987 batch.

Major Gen Chaddha to be Lt Gen in Indian Army
Major General Chaddha has reportedly been cleared for promotion to the rank of Lt General in the Indian Army.

Lt Gen Chachra to head Chandigarh Command
Lt Gen Sanjiv Chachra is likely to move to Chandigarh to head the Command.

Meena to join Cabinet Secretariat?
Shivhari.Meena , Astt. SP, Jaunpur District, Uttar Pradesh, is likely to Join the Cabinet Secretariat. He is UP Cadre IPS officer of 2010 batch.

Sudhir Yadav to continue in Delhi

Sudhir Yadav, Spl. Commissioner of Delhi Police (Traffic), who has been transferred to Andaman in place of S B Deol is going to continue in Delhi till the latter's case is decided. He is an AGMU cadre IPS officer of 1985 batch.

Vivek Saxena moves as DIG
Vivek Saxena, Director, Ministry of Environment, Government of India, has been transferred as DIG in the same Ministry. He is a Haryana Cadre IFS officer 1991 batch.

Kuldeep Singh goes to Brunei
IFS officer Kuldeep Singh who is First Secretary in Indian Embassy Copenhagen has been transferred to Brunei in the same capacity.

Naidu to move to Hyderabad
P R K Naidu, IG/Joint Director, National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB) is likely to move as Joint Director, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy, Hyderabad. He is Jharkhand cadre IPS Officer of 1987 Batch.

Padhi is head of Shri Jagannath Temple Administration
Arabinda Padhee has been appointed Administrator of the Shri Jagannath Temple in Orissa. He is a 1996 batch IAS officer of Orissa cadre.

ADG rank post for NTRO advertised
National Technical Research Organization (NTRO), Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India has advertised for filling up Chief Analyst Officer Post equivalent to ADG rank.

43 posts in CVC vacant
As many as 43 posts have been lying vacant in Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) against 296 sanctioned posts. These include 9 group 'A', 15 group 'B' and 19 group 'C' posts.

Post of Director Census Operations vacant in Haryana
The post of Director, Census Operations, Haryana, is lying vacant on deputation basis. Those willing to apply can send their applications to Department of Personnel and Training (Services Branch-II) at the earliest.

DEBATE

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has asked civil servants to take bold decisions, assuring them that there would be no witch-hunting in the name of fighting corruption. How far it is possible ?

Mail your views-mehrotra.suresh@gmail.com or Suresh. Mehrotra @yahoo.com

CORPORATE

Trivedi appointed additional director of Visa Steel
Subroto Trivedi has been appointed as additional director of Visa Steel.

Ruia resigns as director from Essar Oil
Prashant Ruia has resigned from directorship of Essar Oil.

Two directors resign from Mudra Lifestyle
Murailal Agarwal and Ravindra have resigned as directors from Mudra Lifestyle.

Raghani resigns as Director of Nivyah Infrastructure and Telecom Services
Deven Raghani has resigned as director of Nivyah Infrastructure and Telecom Services.

Rana resigns as director of Nila Infrastructures
Jaswinder Rana has resigned as director of Nila Infrastructures.

Agarwal resigns as CEO of Balaji Telefilms
Manuj Agarwal has resigned as Chief Executive Officer, Television, from Balaji Telefilms.

Prakash appointed as nominee director of Butterfly Gandhimathi Appliance
R.S. Prakash has been appointed as nominee director of Reliance Alternative Investments Fund - private equity scheme-I at Butterfly Gandhimathi Appliance.

Gupta resigns as MD of Palsoft Infosystems

Amit Mahipal Gupta has resigned as managing director of Palsoft Infosystems.

Krishnamurthy resigns as Director of Butterfly Gandhimathi Appliance
D Krishnamurthy has resigned as director of Butterfly Gandhimathi Appliance.

2 appointed as independent directors of Butterfly Gandhimathi Appliance
K.J. Kumar and G.S. Samuel have been appointed as independent directors of Butterfly Gandhimathi Appliance.

Nambiar appointed as additional director of Loyal Textile Mills
Madhavan Nambiar has been appointed as additional director of Loyal Textile Mills.

Comfort resigns as Chairman of Oracle Financial Services Software
William T Comfort, Jr. has resigned as Chairman of Oracle Financial Services Software.

Venkatchalam to head Oracle Financial Services Software
S Venkatchalam has been appointed as Chairman of the Board Of Director of Oracle Financial Services Software

Subramanian appointed as additional director of Hathway Cable & Datacom
Biswajit A Subramanian has been appointed as Additional Director of Hathway Cable & Datacom.

Gupta resigns as MD, Palsoft Infosystems Ltd
Amit Mahipal Gupta has resigned as Managing Director of Palsoft Infosystems Ltd w.e.f. May 11, 2012. However, he will continue to remain the Director of the company.

Bilimoria steps down as MD, Business India Group
Pheroza Bilimoria has stepped down as Managing Director of Business India Group.

Khatri appointed Company Secy. Aravali Securities and Finance Ltd
Ms. Gayatri Khatri, has been appointed as the Company Secretary of Aravali Securities and Finance Ltd w.e.f. May 9, 2012.

Kulkarni appointed Head (Securities Services), BNP Paribas
BNP Paribas Securities Services has appointed Viraj Kulkarni as Head (Securities Services).

Gupta resigns as Company Secy. Kirti Nutrients Ltd
Ms Priyanka Gupta has resigned as Company Secretary of Kirti Nutrients Ltd w.e.f. April 4, 2012.

Jaitely appointed Company Secy. Kirti Nutrients Ltd
Sumit Jaitely has been appointed as Company Secretary of Kirti Nutrients Ltd w.e.f. April 16, 2012.

Trivedi appointed Addl. Director, Visa Steel Ltd
Visa Steel Ltd has appointed Subrato Trivedi as an Additional Director of the company w.e.f. May 12, 2012.

Tipnis appointed Director (Mktg. & Sales), Hover Automotive India
Hover Automotive India (HAI) has appointed Nitish Tipnis as Director (Marketing and Sales).

Rana resigns as Director, Nila Infrastructures Ltd
Jasvinder S Rana has resigned as Director of Nila Infrastructures Ltd.

Increase retirement age
Committee on Central Public Sector Reforms has submitted its report to Planning Commission, Government of India, in November 2011. It has recommended increasing the retirement age of Directors and Chairman to 63 years and of DGMs and above to 62 years. Government should also increase retirement age of PB-4 urgently. It shall also help Government in mitigating the financial crunch.

Mani

Air India pilots not paid
Air India pilots have not been paid salary for the past five months. Is Air India run directly by Government since nothing is heard from the management so far other than insinuations through press. It is only the Minister who is briefing the public.

Capt N K Palit

Disturbing reading
A tribute or affront to memory of late Babuji! The news about Babu Jagjivan Ram Memorial in several mainstream dailies makes a disturbing reading. The occupation of a bungalow in Lutyen's Delhi for several years and its unilateral conversion into a Memorial by the family of late Babuji, has raised an unsavoury controversy. There are over 600 memorials in India named after Pt Nehru, Indira-Rajiv- Sanjay Gandhi. Why could the bungalow occupied by late Babuji not allowed to be converted into a Memorial? Was it because Babuji vehemently opposed the Congress-imposed emergency in 1975 and resigned as Defence minister?

The GoI, in 2000, banned conversion of government bungalows into memorial sites. Delhi's MCD violated ban orders by erecting the sign board with a statue of Babuji. The CPWD remained a passive observer. The GoI is now in a bind. The question is: Could it waive the outstanding dues by violating its orders? The decision regarding 'retrospective allotment' of bungalow to the wife of Babuji with effect from March 1990 for life on payment of normal license fee was considered unprecedented. In the absence of specific guidelines, the controversy is refusing to die down.

The GoI must lay down guidelines that are uniformly applicable to celebrities and the proverbial Aam aadmi who is present everywhere but is invisible to the Government. Nothing should be left for decision to political discretion.

A K Saxena ( A retired civil servant)

The "misguided" & the "guided"
Replying to the debate on the demands for grants of his ministry, the Home Minister,Chidambaram acknowledged the civil society views on the Maoist cadres being "misguided". But he said that they were really guided in as much as they knew their targets and objectives of replacing a government as by law constituted by the power of the barrel of the gun. Before the HM could delve deeper into the subject, he picked up the old jargon. It would have been beneficial had he appreciated that the so called "guided" are the leaders misguiding the young impressionable minds by a hypnotic jargon, which needs to be matched by a more attractive reply. Instead, our response has been greater and more policing. That makes India into a Police State. It is time to a-policise the government response to all kinds of extremism in the country, including naxalism and Maoism, The HM had publicly acknowledged the "governance & trust deficit" in the country. Police cannot be the face of the government. It has to be more than that. The government would do better if it finds out what exactly is "that" more which is required to be done. It is no war and hence use of the hard power of the state is in itself a misguided response. Hope the minister applies balm rather than inflict more physical and emotional injuries!

M L Gupta

TAIL-PIECE
Sonia Gandhi with the Queen of England.

Sonia - "Your Majesty, now that I am also a Queen... of the Gandhi-Nehru dynasty in India...

are there... any tips you can give to me to stay in power?"

?"Well," said the Queen, "the most important thing is to surround yourself with intelligent people."

Sonia frowned, and then asked, "But how do I know the people around me are intelligent?"

The Queen took a sip of tea. "Oh, that's easy; you just ask them to answer an intelligent riddle.

"The Queen pushed a button on her intercom."David - would you come in here, please?"

David Cameron walked into the room and said, "Yes, Your Majesty?"

The Queen smiled and said, "Answer me this please, David, your mother and father have a child.
It is not your brother and it is not your sister. Who is it?"

Without pausing for a moment, David Cameron answered, "That would be me, ma'am."

" Very good! Thank you, David - that will be all!" said the Queen. Then she turned to Sonia with a smile and said "See?"
Sonia went back to India and called Manmohan Singh and asked "Manmohanji, answer this for me. Your mother and your father have a child. It's not your brother and it's not your sister. Who is it?" "I'm not sure," said Manmohan. "Let me get back to you on that one..."

Manmohan went to his advisors and asked every one, but none could give him an answer.

Finally, he ran into Narendra Modi and asked, "Narendrabhai, can you answer this for me? Your mother and father have a child and it's not your brother or your sister. Who is it?"

Narendra Modi answered, "That's easy, it's me!"

Manmohan said, "Thanks!" Then, he phoned Sonia. "Madam, I did some thinking and I have the answer to that riddle.

It's Narendra Modi!!!"

Sonia slapped her head and shouted,

"No! No! It's David Cameron!"

Contributed by-A Visitor

Can an applicant insist on getting a signature verified under RTI?

Through the RTI application filed with the Department of Revenue, Government of NCT of Delhi, the applicant requested the Public Information Officer (PIO) to verify the caste certificate issued to her husband. The PIO informed the applicant that the caste certificate mentioned by her in the application was not recorded in the register available with them. The First Appellate Authority (FAA) directed the PIO to allow the inspection of relevant records to the appellant. The respondent stated that they do not have any record by which they could verify the authenticity of signature in the caste certificate the appellant has mentioned in the RTI application. The appellant provided a copy of the caste certificate available with him requesting the PIO to verify whether the signature was that of the then BDO so that he can intimate the reply to the concerned authorities in his office who had questioned the authenticity of his caste certificate. The respondent submitted that he was a junior officer and was not in a position to write to the Deputy Commissioner (the then BDO) and ask him to verify his own signature. The Commission directed that the PIO to transfer the appellant's RTI application to the Deputy Commissioner so that he may give factual information to the appellant after verifying the authenticity of signature (whether it is his signature or not) on the caste certificate the appellant has mentioned.

Comments

Ordinarily, the Commission has adopted the practice of giving a direction to provide the copy of the relevant document like, the caste certificate in this case, rather than getting into the nitty-gritty of verifying the signature. This case is likely to set a trend in future where someone may be asked to verify the authenticity of documents.

Citation: Mr. Narendra Kumar Gupta v. Allahabad Bank in Decision No. CIC/SG/A/2012/000593/18384

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)