Delhi underground

Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit had recently backed out from inaugurating the Munirka Flyover at the last moment.

Not playing second fiddle
Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit had recently backed out from inaugurating the Munirka Flyover at the last moment. The inauguration was scheduled for February 6. Dikshits office,however,told organisers of her decision only at the last moment,saying she had to attend the Chief Ministers conference,an event that was planned months ahead. The flyover has been open since last December. PWD minister Rajkumar Chauhan had already conducted a quasi-inauguration by visiting the flyover on the day it was opened to traffic. It has almost become a trend for the PWD to have dual inaugurations of all their projects. Sources said that finally,Dikshit had wisened up to not always being seen as re-inaugurating after Chauhan.

Hi-tech gardens
After the Presidents Mughal Gardens and the Delhi Chief Ministers Nature Trail,the Lieutenant-Governors garden at Raj Niwas,too,may begin to play host to Delhis eco clubs and curious visitors. Following a note issued by the Presidents Office to the governors of all states,asking them to develop the lawns of their respective offices on the lines of the Mughal Gardens at the Presidents estate,the Environment department in the Delhi government has been frantically identifying plants and shrubs to be planted at the Raj Niwas,particularly since the lawn is a tad smaller than the lawns at the Chief Ministers residence and needs to match its standards. Incidentally,the CMs lawns will soon have touch-screens computers in front of important and rare species of plants and trees,giving details to visitors.

Green alert
Even as the Delhi government recently launched an advertising campaign on instilling civic sense among residents and the idea of keeping the city clean as the Commonwealth Games approach,Finance Minister A K Walia was recently left embarrassed by the state of the BRT corridor. On his way to Madangir in South Delhi with a delegation of World Bank officials,the minister was appalled by the lack of greenery and cleanliness on the corridor that,quite ironically,displayed posters of the civic awareness campaign at the bus stops. Both the Transport department and DIMTS the agency in charge of operating the corridor were instantly sent text messages and directed to plant more trees immediately.

Heritage on backburner
As heads roll in the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) for the second time in a year,work has taken a backseat. The chief of the heritage body has changed twice over a years time. With the new director general taking a while to get a hang of the processes,work has most certainly taken a beating. So much so that several projects that had been initiated over two years ago are yet to see any progress as the new heads maintain that it does take time to understand the working of the organisation.

Fair weather
Our weathermen have been the butt of jokes for their predictions of sunny days getting doused in rain most of the time,but according to them,they are still the best in Southeast Asia. While according to them,the leaders in making correct predictions are China and Japan,in the Indian subcontinent,Indian weathermen are apparently held in high esteem. Hence,every year,weathermen from places like Myanmar,Bangladesh and Sri Lanka come to the Mausam Bhavan to be trained. Right now we have some people from Myanmar learning various aspects of predicting weather because we are the best in this part of the world, an official said.

Toddler golf
Schools in the Capital and the NCR have been stressing on the overall development of all students for a long time now. Everyone,however,was surprised when a school in East of Kailash decided to give golf lessons to students enrolled in its playschool section. While the concept of two and three-year olds holding golf clubs and putting might be difficult to imagine,the school principal says that all care is taken to make it convenient for the children the golf clubs are imported from the United States and are custom-made. Putting Tees before your ABC.

Stay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram

Loading Taboola...