Known for his one-liners, Union Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu used an interesting analogy to explain how bringing about cleanliness through his government’s Swacch Bharat mission is a gradual process, and not a one-time initiative. Much to everyone’s amusement, Naidu said cleaning the entire country was like shaving beard — something that had to be done on a regular basis. For those who like to keep beard, trimming it was important for it to look neat, he said. Go Mobile To mark Gandhi Jayanti, the Youth Congress is organising a Gandhi Sandesh Yatra in Delhi. And those who cannot participate in it in person can do so virtually through a mobile app. People can send their footsteps recorded through a ‘Just Move’ mobile application specially designed for it. Not just that, the Youth Congress is asking its workers who participate in the yatra to walk for at least 3 km every day for the next two weeks. The steps will be tracked through the app and those who walk for 3 km or more will be recognised. Keeping An Eye Her dreams of launching a federal front delayed but not dismissed, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is keeping a close eye on all regional channels to keep track of what is happening in other states. During her recent visit to the capital, she spoke about how she has started following channels from Odisha, Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu to know what the respective chief ministers of those states are up to. All In The Family BJP’S newest friend and prospective partner, SNDP, which is all set to launch a political party, is also accused of something the ruling party has been fighting against: dynasty. SNDP leader Vellappally Natesan was under criticism for making the influential outfit of Ezhavas in Kerala a family enterprise. It was Natesan and his son Thushar, who is the vice-president, who came to New Delhi for the talks with BJP chief Amit Shah. But for his meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Natesan wanted to ensure that his wife Preethy also accompany him to 7 RCR. Natesan recently told a Malayalam magazine that he and his wife have never stayed separately, not even for a night since they got married in 1967. Number Matters Speaking at a function to celebrate the VHP chief Ashok Singhal’s 90th birthday, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said on Thursday that he has completed “ninyanbe (99)” years. When the audience corrected him, Singh quickly said “unyasi (79)” years, only to be reminded once again that it was “nawasi (89)”, and not unyasi. Singh perhaps realised the mistake, but said that “by unyasi we mean that only”, leaving the audience laughing aloud. Singh, who has a razor-sharp pronunciation of standardised Hindi, then said that pronunciation varies in different regions.
