Delhi underground

Even on the second call,no counsel appeared for Doordarshan,prompting a wry remark from the Bench: “It seems Doordarshan is living up to its name. It is actually door se darshan (view from a distance). You can see them only from a distance and,hence,no lawyer has appeared,” Justice Sikri said as he proceeded to hear the PIL without Doordarshan’s representation.

Small disasters

Officials have decided to treat even “smaller” accidents as disasters,though these do not come under this category in the Disaster Management Act. “Since Delhi has not prepared itself in disaster management,it would be a good learning experience worth every effort to respond to road accidents and building collapse,” a senior official said. He said any incident that would need the help of multiple agencies could be defined as “disaster”.

“We will have our quick response teams in each districts. They will respond to any incident,even if that is not strictly a disaster (as defined by the guidelines),for a coordinated response over a period of time. This will help us deal with real disasters,” he said.

Left not right

The Left-bended Students Federation of India (SFI) in JNU criticised the CPM for supporting UPA’s presidential candidate Pranab Mukherjee. Sources said it was the culmination of pent-up anger of the SFI against the CPM for a host of reasons,including the political murder of a Communist leader in Kerala in May. Soon after,the SFI’s Delhi unit vice-president defected to the NSUI of the Congress. At an NSUI hunger strike at Delhi University’s Arts Faculty in June,the former Leftist leader was on the front row. He was embarrassed when a few reporters,who were unaware of his defection,asked him what he was doing there.

Impressing boss

All SHOs are busy sprucing up their police stations and keeping the files up to date. Sources attributed this “cleanliness” drive to the new Commissioner of Police’s (CP) surprise,late-night visits to police stations. A number of them,who became SHOs during former police chief B K Gupta’s tenure,have placed orders for framed photographs of new CP Neeraj Kumar.

Cyber travails

The AIIMS administration has a new task at hand —- monitoring the contents of newly launched personal websites of its doctors and ensuring that the institute’s site is restricted to the field of medicine. A senior faculty member had put his “milestone work” in philosophy and the “science of consciousness and knowledge” in his department’s sub-section in the AIIMS site,with links to his publications. Another doctor had to be admonished for showcasing some low-cost diagnostic facilities of the institute on his own site as his personal endeavours. “While their varied interests are of immense value to us,we are trying to ensure that personal feats are highlighted in their own sites,while the institute’s portal has all the appropriate information the patients need,” an official said.

Courting trouble

For a lot of people,‘Judge Sahab’ seems to be the ultimate panacea for all ills. The distinction between a civil and criminal matter seems irrelevant. An undertrial filed an application before a magistrate’s court,asking the court to pass an order against the Delhi Police since they were not allowing him to set up shop on the road in Kalka Mor outside the police station. The ACMM had to ask him to withdraw the complaint since it was not within his jurisdiction. When the man protested and pleaded that his livelihood was at stake,the judge told police officers to allow him to do what he wished “anywhere he wanted except in front of Rashtrapati Bhawan and the Prime Minister’s house”. The man withdrew his application.

Clean reward

Rajesh Bhatia,a North Delhi Corporation councillor,is convinced that nothing is accomplished without incentive. So he launched a scheme for the cleaning staff in his wards —- monetary reward of Rs 1,100 and a certificate of good work for the ‘Best Safai Karmchari of the Month’. “I tried everything to keep my ward clean,but nothing changed. Therefore,I started this. I will pay the reward money from my own pocket,” he said.

Patriotic zeal

It seems Delhi University is intent on unwaveringly following certain “nationalist ideals”. When its “educational train journey” was flagged off,the function could rival any Independence Day celebration. Students sang patriotic songs,while many of them,including the Vice-Chancellor,wore white kurtas,marigold garlands and tikas on foreheads. An official,unhappy with the fact that he had to go to the function on a Sunday morning,said: “How am I supposed to get a break (from the admission rush) if I have to get up at 6 am and mark my attendance here?”