Security and the log-jams

The Air Force Station at Palam was a hub of hectic activity early this week. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice8217;s landing coincided with the Prime Minister taking off for Bangalore. Caught in the midst of all this was a Ukrainian delegation, which was stopped from entering the airport by the Air Force staff. They had to wait till the PM and Rice left. Ironically, Rice, who came to India for a night, ended up waiting for almost half an hour for a meeting with External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, thanks to a traffic jam. Mukherjee, who had gone to Maidan Garhi to attend an IGNOU event, got caught up in traffic while coming to Hyderabad House for talks with the US Secretary of State.