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B K Jung

POLITICS

Obituary

Well known Senior Journalist and Editor and Country Head at Whispers in The Corridors Mr. Sanjeev Majupuria passed away Wednesday evening. The journalistic flair he had is hard to find in the present generation. He was as at ease with politicians as with the bureaucracy who treated him as the last word in the news that mattered most to them. It is hard to believe that the man who was a friend of friends and who saw many shades of power from rising politicians to struggling bureaucrats is now no more with us. His last rites were performed at Bhadbhada Vishram Ghat, Bhopal, on Thursday afternoon, amidst a distinguished gathering of politicians, bureaucrats, journalists and friends. May his soul rest in peace.

----- Editor

As I have lost my confidence

In an association of a decade, I have been privileged to be closest to Sanjeev bhai. I found him farsighted and the most informed media man as far as happenings in the corridors of power were concern. For bureaucrats, diplomats, politicians and Top corporates in the country he was more than a friend - just a call away. He was one of the strongest pillars of whispersinthecorridors.com. His sudden demise is an irrecoverable loss for us and for entire who's who fraternity across the globe.

Abul Hasan
Vice President & Business Editor

Characteristics of 49 year old Sanjeev Majupuria

Sanjeevji had the journalistic flair very hard to find in the new generation of today. He was at ease with politicians as also with the bureaucracy who in a way treated him as the last word in the news that mattered most to them. The man who saw many shades of power from rising politicians to struggling bureaucrats, Sanjeevji had a grip on the subject very deep but wore it very lightly. Whenever he went to events he was the man most people intriguingly asked 'how do you get your news so correct ?'

- Bhagyashree Pande

I am shocked at the untimely demise of Sanjeev ji. He left us all of a sudden.

Sunil Salve

Condolences

My heartfelt condolences go to the family of a good colleague and friend we lost. It's shocking to hear the news.

Santosh Chowdhury

I am shocked to hear about the sad demise of Mr Sanjeev Majupuria, Country Head of whispersinthecorridors.com. I have occasions to interact with him telephonically. It has always been encouraging. Even when he was sick and bedridden, he assured his support for the right
cause. It is difficult to fill the gap created by his sad departure but the best tribute to him is to stand by his endeavor and pursue the high standard set by him. I pray Lord to bless his soul with love and peace.

A K Verma,

Secretary,
Indian Statistical Service Association (Eastern Chapter), Kolkata

BUREAUCRACY

Petroleum fuels frantic lobbying; guessing game goes on?
With the date of retirement of Petroleum Secretary, January 31, approaching fast, the race for the top slot in Petroleum seems to be on its peak. Until the dark horse comes in light, the guessing game would go on.

Will Jairaman be Special Secretary, Internal Security ?
S Jairaman, Special Director, IB, Government of India, is likely to be appointed as Special Secretary, Internal Security(SS-IS), Ministry of Home Affairs. He is a 1977 IPS officer of West Bengal cadre.

Who will be successor of Madhav Lal as CS of J&K?
The countdown for Madhav Lal's next posting as Secretary; GoI has fuelled the guessing game for his successor in J&K. Three officers of 1978 batch namely Iqbal Khanday, Anil Goswami and Pankaj Jain are in the fray. The fresh buzz is that Parvez Diwan may make it as Omar Abdullah's preferred choice; given Diwan's willingness to make it a comeback to the state.

Vijay Laxmi Gupta to be Member (Finance ) TRAI
Vijay Laxmi Gupta is being tipped to be new Member (Finance) of the TRAI. She is a retired 1974 batch IDAS officer.

Bhaskar to go to Kabul
O N Bhaskar will go to Kabul as Counsellor in the Embassy of India. He is a 1997 batch IPS officer of Bihar cadre.
( We said this on January 7, 2013 )

Number of empanelled officers goes to 52
The number of 1982 batch IAS officers empanelled to the rank of Additional Secretary in the Government of India has now risen to 52.

Process for empanelment of IAS officers of 1983 batch to begin
Process for empanelment of IAS officers of 1983 batch in the Government of India for appointment as Additional Secretary is going to begin towards January 15, 2013.

1979 batch IPS officers to be DG in 2015
As many as 21 IPS officers empanelled of 1979 batch for appointment as Additional DGP will be considered for empanelment as DGPs in 2015.

Bhagwan Shankar is now JS, Administration in MHA
Bhagwan Shankar, Joint Secretary (PM) Division, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, has been transferred as Joint Secretary (Admin) - Ministry of Home Affairs. He is a 1988 batch IAS officer of Sikkim cadre.

Veena Kumari Meena is JS, PM Division in MHA
Ms Veena Kumari Meena, Ex Director, Ministry of Urban Development, GoI, has joined as Joint Secretary-PM Division, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, in place of Bhagwan Shankar IAS. She is a 1993 batch IAS officer of Uttar Pradesh cadre.

Asthana is now IG, BPR&D
Pramod Asthana, IGP (on study leave), has been appointed as IG/Director, Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D), Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. He is an IPS officer of 1986 batch who belongs to the MT cadre.

Who will be Member NHAI (Admn) ?
The panel for Member (Administration) in NHAI is being finalised after interview held on January 5, 2013 by Search Committee, under chairmanship of Ajit Kumar Seth, Cabinet Secretary. Two probable names in the panel are V K Sharma, IFS (84-UK) and Satish Chandra, IAS (85-AP). While Sharma is an internal candidate who was permanently absorbed in NHAI and presently working as CGM (Land Acquisition) but worked in administration several times, Chandra is Joint Secretary in Fertiliser Ministry. Both these officers have wide experience.

A K Tyagi to be CMD, MECON Ltd
A K Tyagi is number one in the panel selected for the post of CMD, MECON Ltd. He is presently, Director ,Commercial.

Two-day International Conference for Academic Institutions concluded at Gandhi Nagar
A two-day 'International Conference for Academic institutions (ICAI)-2013 organised by Gujarat Government at Gandhi Nagar concluded on January 10, 2013 with Dr Hasmukh Adhia, Principal Secretary, Education summed up the session. Dr Adhia, D J Pandian, Principal Secretary, Energy and Petrochemicals, Dr Jayanty Ravi, Commissioner, Higher Education and Dr T Natarajan, Commissioner, Technical Education received the suggestions from delegates attended the conference from various countries. During the conference, as many as 519 MoUs were signed in order to meet an education standard at global level. Dr Adhia said that suggestions received by Gujarat Government would be executed in the State. Besides, Dr Renu Khator, President, University of Houston showered the praises upon Gujarat Government for its visionary approach and commitment for development in education sector. More than 260 universities including 145 international participated in the conference.

Behera to be Director (Finance), ITDC
The Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB) has put the name of Trinath Behera number one in the panel for the post of Director (Finance), India Tourism Development Corporation Limited (ITDC).

Devraj to be Director, DoPT
M Devraj will join the Government of India as Director in the Department of Personnel and Training (DOPT) . He is a 1996 batch IAS officer of UP cadre.

Deputation tenure of Amit Agrawal extended
Central deputation tenure of Director in the PMs Economic Council, Amit Agrawal has been extended till July 7. He is a 1993 batch IAS officer of Chhattisgarh cadre.

Archana Verma is Director, DoPT
Archana Verma has been appointed Director in the Department of Personnel in the Government of India. She is 1995 batch IAS officer of Assam-Meghalaya cadre.

IFS officer appointed Chairman of KSERC
T M Manoharan has been appointed as the chairman of the Kerala State Electricity Regulatory Commission(KSERC). He is a 1976 batch IFS officer.

A K Pawar is new CC Customs and Excise in Bhopal
A K Pawar has been appointed Chief Commissioner of Customs and Central Excise in Bhopal.

Ramanujam is now Secretary to PM (UPDATED)
R Ramanujam has been appointed Secretary to the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. He is 1979 batch IAS officer of Madhya Pradesh cadre.

18 Punjab State Civil service officers promoted to IAS (UPDATED)
As many as 18 Punjab State Civil Service have been promoted to the grade of Indian Administrative Service (IAS).They are Tejinder Pal Singh Sidhu ,Chander Gaind , Manvesh Singh Sidhu ,Dharam Pal,Gagandeep Singh Brar, Baiwinder Singh Dhaliwal (SC),Arun Sekhri ,Manjit Singh Narang , DS Mangat Jaswinder Kaur ,Indu Malhotra ,Amar Pratap Singh Virk ,Gurpreet Kaur Sapra (SC) Preet Dev Singh Shergill ,Gurlovleen Singh ,Ashwani Kumar Ravinder
Singh , Ritu Aggarwal.

Gujarat to be role model in world: Gujarat CM (UPDATED)
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said that his state is a gateway for investors and businessmen and his government is committed to developing it as a role model not only in the country but also in the world. Inaugurating three day Vibrant Gujarat -2013 Global Summit, Modi said that since the future belongs to the younger generation, his government is making policies in the interest of youth. The Summit, he said, will change the mindset of the entire country as far as development is concerned adding that Gujarat could be developed in line with Singapore. The CM said that the doors are open for investors having strong interest in setting up the business in the state. The big industrialist like Ratan Tata, Mukesh Ambani , Anil Ambani , Anand Mahindra, Chanda Kochhar also spoke the scope of business and new opportunities for the projects in Gujarat. Delegates around 200 countries participated in the summit.

CORPORATE


K Mohan Das appointed Director HLL Lifecare Ltd
Former Secretary in the Government of India, K Mohandas has been appointed Independent Director on the Board of HLL Lifecare Ltd. He is a retired 1974 batch IAS officer of Kerala cadre.

Mathew T is LIC's Representative Director on Board of Voltas Ltd
Thomas Mathew T, Managing Director of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has been appointed as a LIC Representative Director on the Board of Directors of Voltas Ltd.

Mishra appointed Part-time Official Director, BEL
The Central Government has appointed P K Mishra as Part-time Official Director on the Board of Directors of Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL).

Sood quits Generali India Life Company
Deepak Sood has resigned from the post of MD & CEO of Future Generali India Life Company.

Agrawal is new MD & CEO ,Future Generali India Life Company
G N Agarwal, Chief Actuary and Chief Risk Officer, has been appointed as the interim CEO of the Future Generali India Life Company.

Goswami quits Blue Coast Hotels Ltd
Basant Kumar Goswami has resigned as Independent Director of Blue Coast Hotels Ltd.

Three addl. Directors appointed on Board of Gemstone Investments Ltd
Gemstone Investments Ltd has appointed Mahendra Chhaganlal Dave, Rohan Kiritbhai Barot and Ms Dhara Chandravadanbhai Brahmbhatt as additional Directors on the Board of Directors of the company.

Mandhana steps down as Company Secy., Hindustan National Glass & Industries Ltd
L N Mandhana, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) has relinquished the additional post of Company Secretary of Hindustan National Glass & Industries Ltd.

Rai appointed Company Secy., Hindustan National Glass & Industries Ltd
Ajay Kumar Rai has been appointed as Company Secretary of Hindustan National Glass & Industries Ltd.

Savalagi appointed Company Secy. , Mather and Platt Fire Systems Ltd
Vasudev Savalgi has been appointed as the Company Secretary of Mather and Platt Fire Systems Ltd.

Arvind Nath Seth quits Modi Rubber Ltd
Arvind Nath Seth has resigned as Director of Modi Rubber Ltd

Rasquinha ceases to be Nominee Director, Alok Industries Ltd
Export Import Bank of India (Exim Bank) has withdrawn the nomination of David Rasquinha from the Board of Directors of Alok Industries Ltd

Joseph appointed Nominee Director, Alok Industries Ltd
Samuel Joseph, Chief General Manager, Export Import Bank of India has been appointed as Nominee Director on Board of Directors of Alok Industries Ltd.

Modi quits Kwality Credit and Leasings
Rohit Modi has resigned as Director of Kwality Credit and Leasings.

(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)

Argument for and against merit

There can be argument for and against merit. The issue related to the difficulty faced by the SC/ST's in getting fair treatment in promotions. He said that the SC/ST do not have any merit because they score 50/100 marks less than the general candidates in the civil services. This need to be made clear that the reservation in civil services is only at the initial stage of recruitment and all officers, including SC/ST, have to get promoted on merit based on ACRs. There is reservation in promotion in Group B and C and upto lowest rung of Group A. A general category candidate, last in a selection panel, may be getting 50/100 marks less than the first or the topper in that selection. If such person is considered meritorious, others can also be so treated as such. SC/ST who competes in their own categories are also to be treated as such. More so, all general category officers are not race horses. Same is the case for others and all SC/ST officers are not asses. Here, the problem relates to treating even the race horses among the SC/ST otherwise. This is because the SC/ST officers are not acceptable by the system in general and the seniors in particular. Even the asses among others are acceptable by people of their own clan sitting above. Everybody knows, for now, as to how the bureaucracy functions. What is required is fairness and transparency in the evaluation for promotions, or, for that matter, even the postings. Many officers of the underprivileged categories have done very well in the services. Reservations have been in place for quite some time. If these were detrimental to efficiency etc, then governance system should have collapsed by now. However, it is still functioning smoothly despite the presence of Dalits. It is also nobody's case that all the ills in the system can be attributed to the Dalits; because higher offices are mostly captured by the 'meritorious' people only. This only proves that even Dalits have been making their humble contribution to the nation's development and peaceful progress. The other day, one of the contributors mentioned that if the Dalits were so meritorious, they should have brought many Nobel prizes by now. I would say that if merit was the only criteria then all meritorious general category people should have been given the prize. If Mahatma Gandhi did not get the prize so did Dr Ambedkar. In many respects, the latter was also a much deserving candidate because he provided Roti and Respect to millions of Dalits. If discrimination on caste lines is a consideration, which can be worse than racism, then no Indian should get it because India practiced untouchability, even after its abolition by the Constitution. This is evident from the existence of manual scavenging even after decades of independence. This is just a matter of utter disgust and shame. For this kind of evils, at least, Dalits are not responsible.

Partap Singh

Bank officials should also be given opportunity

The entry should be at the level of Chief Manager rank and bank officials should also be given opportunity to appear in such services.

Ranjeet kr srivastava

Indian definition of merit!

In CAT exams a general candidate even with 99 percentile (without work experience) does not get admission in top ranking IIMs while with reservation a candidate with as low as 80-82 percentile gets a seat in those IIMs. Similarly in Civil Services exams, if a non- reserved candidate is not within 100th rank he cannot get into IAS whereas a reserved candidate with 600th odd rank gets into IAS/IFS and yet our friend says that the selections are all merit based! of course with Indian definition of merit!

B Prasad