Lucknownama

No trickledown effect

Union Water Resources Minister Saifuddin Soz has sent a letter to all chief ministers requesting them to prevent the wastage of packaged drinking water. He has pointed out that usually one litre water bottles are served in official meetings, seminars and public functions and most of it goes waste because the participants drink very little. Soz has, therefore, suggested that bottles of 200 ml be served. But despite his initiative, the letter is yet to be circulated among the secretaries and principal secretaries in UP. Obviously, even simple things don8217;t get done easily in government.

The other option

On Sunday morning, Information Department officials were mortified to find that reporters of television news channels were missing at the BSP convention on 8220;The problems of upper castes, causes and solution,8221; which Chief Minister Mayawati was to address. It turned out that Samajwadi Party president Mulayam Singh Yadav had called a media conference at the same time, and most of the reporters had gone there. The reasons were obvious. This was the BSP8217;s third such convention in a week and nobody expected it to make great news. But Mulayam Singh was meeting the media after quite some time. Besides, unlike Mayawati, Singh is easily accessible and answers media queries which can make a good copy. For the babus, however, it came as a revelation that reporters would prefer an opposition leader to the chief minister.

SOS heard?

A senior minister in the BSP government, waiting for his flight in the VIP lounge of the Delhi airport, had an interesting encounter with a bureaucrat who was recently chargesheeted by the CBI in a corruption case. To his great surprise, the babu began with falling at his feet. Then getting up, he began his tale of woe, which continued through the bus ride to the aircraft. What is yet to be known is whether for all his pains, he received any assurance of help.

Once bitten

It was a piquant situation for Higher Education Minister Rakesh Dhar Tripathi outside CMS auditorium last Saturday. The honourable minister wanted to cross a barricade to reach the gate through which Chief Minister Mayawati was to emerge after the BSP convention on problems of SCs/STs and OBCs. But a policeman stopped him, saying, 8220;The CM is coming out shortly, you can8217;t go there8221;. The minister argued but to no avail. Looking upset, he walked away, muttering, 8220;because of people like you, others get a bad name8221;. The policeman was not one to back down. 8220;I once got a scolding for allowing someone like him. I won8217;t make the same mistake again,8221; was his loud riposte.

Paper trail

The Lucknow jail authorities recently learnt that Sabaudin, a terror accused in their custody, is well informed about the developments in the world outside. The jail officers were on tenterhooks for days regarding his source of information. Did it indicate a breach in the jail8217;s security system? Finally, one of them accosted the accused with a direct question. And the answer left him flummoxed. 8220;Sir, you give me two newspapers daily,8221; said Sabaudin, 8220;since I have nothing else to do, I read everything printed there.8221;

Password

In the BSP regime, the very mention of 8220;Behenji8221; can work miracles. An official at Kanshi Ram Memorial, which is coming up on Jail Road, felt that a contractor was taking too long to polish the stones at the entrance. He asked him to speed up the work iquest; in vain. So one morning, he spread the word that the 8220;Behenji8221; would be inspecting the project that evening. Lo and behold, the work was finished on time. Of course, the 8220;Behenji8217;s8221; visit is still awaited.