Delhi Underground; Sometimes,size does matter in court

For some,the MCD’s future is not uncertain

With the Centre giving its “in-principle” nod for a three-way split of the MCD,some city councillors seem to have accepted their fate. A councillor came to the office of Women and Child Development officer Kiran Walia,armed with a pack of files,demanding her help for clearing the budget for proposals of “welfare measures” that the MCD finance wing had been constantly denying her. “Ma’am,now the MCD is under Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit,so I am coming to you . Please go through this file,” she said. The woman was so sure about the MCD’s future that she paid no heed to repeated explanations from Walia and other officials that the civic body hadn’t come under the government’s domain yet. “You are a councillor,you should know that the Chief Minister does not have control over the MCD yet. So,please be patient,” Walia asked her. Finally giving up,the distraught councillor said she would seek an appointment with the Chief Minister herself.

SMS decision makes Team Anna smile

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s decision to increase the SMS cap from 100 to 200 has brought smiles to several faces. Among them are media coordinators from Team Anna,who heaved a sigh of relief after being told about the telecom authority’s decision this week. Anna Hazare’s Maharashtra Sadan press conference,which had been organised after the social activist broke his maun vrat,had seen media coordinators of the movement being bombarded with angry complaints from mediapersons. Most of them were annoyed on account of the abrupt halt of SMS updates. A number of television crews had missed Anna’s 7 am Bharat Mata ki jai moment,when he broke his vow of silence at Rajghat. It was his first “major” appearance in the Capital after the Ramlila Maidan hunger strike. Media coordinators were seen cajoling the scribes,explaining how things would improve after the TRAI increases the SMS cap.

ASI ‘stop work’ notices just skin deep?

Even as the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) slapped a ‘stop work’ notice on the Delhi Metro for carrying out preliminary construction work on the upcoming Central Secretariat-Kashmere Gate corridor,a section of ASI officials said they had to do so to save their own skin. After the amendment in the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act-2010,any construction work within 300 metres of the protected monuments requires the approval of the National Monument

Authority. However,the body is yet to be formed,even 19 months after the amendment was made. While some ASI officials agree that the law is rigid and irrational,the ‘stop work’ notices had to be issued for ensuring that the people concerned do not land in jail.

The excitement never ends in 2G courtroom

It’s been 10 months since former Minister of Communications and Technology A Raja’s arrest on February 2,but the interest surrounding the 2G spectrum allocation case is showing no signs of dying down. In fact,the case is only set to get more eventful in the days to come. The Central Bureau of Investigation is to file a third chargesheet in the current case,naming some corporates as well. The special CBI court hearing A Raja’s case has also readied itself for the days to come — it now calls itself the special court for 2G spectrum cases now,anticipating that more cases will arrive soon.

Officials make most of oncoming MCD split

MCD employees are making the most of an extended Diwali vacation.

With the Central government giving in-principle approval for the trifurcation of the civic body,the employees are simply biding their time — waiting for further information on what is to become their fate. Meanwhile,the process of splitting the civic body is causing a lot of hassle for the common man,with officials reluctant to finalise any new projects or their implementation. Even as most departments wait to see how the trifurcation process unfolds,it is understood that several senior officals have been making trips to the Players’ Building (the Delhi government headquarters) to lobby for a suitable posting once the split comes into effect.