Reporter’s Notebook

Lighting up the show

It’s commonplace to go for a show and hear the performer or compere request the audience to switch off their mobile phones and put them away. But at the Pritam show held in the city on Thursday the audience was taken back when the composer-singer asked them to do the exact opposite. Mid-way through the programme when the audience asked for an encore from the singer for a number he had just rendered,Pritam replied,”I will on the condition that you all take out your cellphones and switch on the light and wave it as I sing.” In an instant hundreds of mobile phones came out even as lights were switched off at the auditorium. The scene that followed was a surreal one with scores of mobile phones lights moving in the otherwise darkened auditorium to create an amazing ambience in tandem with one of Pritam’s soulful renditions.

Silence is golden

Mayor Mohansingh Rajpal has been popular for creating controversies by commenting on the functioning of PMC and had been retracting his statement many times. He has also been under criticism from his party leaders for making irresponsible statements. Rajpal is so careful now that after addressing press conference he urges the mediapersons to get the facts confirmed with the leaders of other political parties to avoid any controversy. “You can get the facts confirmed with leader of house,opposition leader or some other party leaders,” Rajpal said after addressing reporters on the decisions taken in meeting of party leaders.

Washed away

Come heavy rains and the administration goes into a tizzy with blame games from different departments. Even as the irrigation department had issued warnings through the Pune flood control cell,about water to be released from the Khadakwasla spillway,the civic administration was seen waking up late giving out the necessary warning signals to the common man. Result? Many denizens found their vehicles submerged under water under the bridges. Even as the irrigation officials were clear that they had given the administration clear signals well ahead of the release,the citizens complained that there was no signboard or anything kept at the time when the irrigation department released over 15,000 cusecs from the Khadakwasla spillway. While irrigation officials put their hands up not wanting to take any responsibility,the civic administration on the other hand declared that they had issued the necessary warning. However it was the citizens who continued to suffer without the appropriate warning. Will the authorities pay heed to this?

Another ‘slowdown’

Many senior officers with Pune police who use laptops for daily work have now been given plug-and-surf Internet datacards. A senior officer who was trying to install and was doing the set up for the Internet had an interesting take on the data transfer speed of the unit. When asked about the kbps speed during an informal chat with a group of reporters,the officer said,“I don’t have any idea,I am yet to try it out.” One of the reporters who had earlier used a similar unit gave an estimate of the speed.” The officer quipped,“It would definitely be lower than that. It has come to us through government machinery.”

Contributed by Anuradha Mascarenhas,Ajay Khape,Nisha Nambiar & Sushant Kulkarni