Himachal Confedential

Pink bureaucracy

Women bureaucrats are calling the shots in the state. Chief Secretary Rajwant Sandhu,who has an image of a ‘hard-task master’,also has her next closest Principal Secretary (Personnel) Manisha Nanda,a woman officer. No wonder that perhaps for the first time,the new civil list 2011 book has a pink cover to replace the all-time favourite white. “The message is loud and clear. Himachal bureaucracy is in the pink of health,” a woman officer says.

Role reversal

Last week’s news about Union Minister Virbhadra Singh seeking “voluntary “ exit from the Central ministry has suddenly brightened the gloomy faces of his loyalists back home. But,his detractors,including PCC president Kaul Singh Thakur- a chief ministerial aspirant—have gone on an offensive. “No,Please! This should not happen. We are going to ask Soniaji (Sonia Gandhi) to keep him there,” a senior Congress leader was heard pleading at PCC office. Quite strangely,Singh’s loyalists are lobbying hard in Delhi for his return,but rivals are campaigning for retaining him in the Cabinet.

No ramp walk ,please

Young Hamirpur MP Anurag Thakur-who is also the All India Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) president—was the chief guest at a fashion show organised at Shimla’s heritage Woodville Palace hotel. At the end,he was invited on stage. Incidentally,he was dressed in sparkling dark black suit,a colour chosen for the last round for the models and entry of actor Udita Goswami. Anchors insisted that he should also walk down the ramp, but Anurag firmly declined. “He (Anurag) seems to have taken a good lesson from the negative publicity for dancing with Sushma Swaraj at Rajghat ,” remarked some members in the audience.

Tail piece

On Virbhadra Singh’s birthday,a young bureaucrat’s appearance at ‘Raja Sahib’s’ residence surprised IAS and IPS officers close to Virbhadra Singh as this officer is a staunch RSS ideologue. This has given a good handle to many pro-BJP officers to carry tales to Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal to target another RSS loyalist bureaucrat.