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Journalism of Courage
Indirect gains
The reported poll pact between the Congress and Ajit Singhs RLD for UP Assembly elections is said to have gladdened the hearts of DMK ministerial hopefuls. There is talk of Ajit Singh being inducted into the Union Cabinet as part of the poll pact,and this would open the possibility of a few DMK members also being accommodated in the Cabinet. The DMKs share of Cabinet berths has been lying vacant ever since the resignation of A Raja and Dayanidhi Maran,both of whom got embroiled in financial scandals. While the replacements have not been finalised,the hopefuls are at least enthused by the fact that everything seems well between the DMK and Congress party as evident from K Karunanidhis warm and cordial meeting with Sonia Gandhi recently.
Mature Process
Indias premier defence higher learning institution,the National Defence College NDC that runs a specialised course for Brigadier and above level officers of the armed forces,wants more mature representation from the civil services for its flagship 47-week programme on national security and strategy. While the current requirement for civil servants who have a small quota in the course is to have a minimum of 16 years of service,it is learnt that the college has written to the Cabinet Secretariat for raising this bar. An officer in the armed forces spends a minimum of 20 years to reach Brigadier level,and it has been reasoned that raising the criteria for civil servants would bring parity in the candidates taking the course.
Land Use Formula
Railway Ministers are routinely flooded with requests from MPs and state governments to initiate rail projects in their respective areas. New Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi seems to have found an innovative way to deal with this. Trivedi is learnt to have decreed that whoever wants a rail project would have to ensure that land for the purpose is given to Railways for free. The minister,along with his top officers,has already started a tour of states to sort out pending demands of state governments,including for new rail projects. The irony is that Railways is already sitting on vast tracts of unused land,though much of this is under encroachment or litigation.
Anniversary waltz
The CRPF,Indias largest paramilitary force,is celebrating its 72nd anniversary on November 1 this year. This is the fourth different date in the last four years on which the force has celebrated its anniversary. In 2008,it was November 16,and in 2009,it was November 29. Last year,it celebrated its anniversary on December 28. For the record,the CRPF was raised on July 27,1939 and at that time it was called Crown Representatives Police. It became CRPF on December 28,10 years later. All other central police organisations like BSF or ITBP observe their anniversaries on their Raising Days,which is a fixed date.
On Thin Ice
While Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jarbom Gamlin quit after months of uncertainty,many other Congress chief ministers remain on shaky grounds thanks to a series of controversies stalking them. While Goa CM Digambar Kamat is on the mat over alleged illegal mining in the state,his Rajasthan counterpart Ashok Gehlot has been embroiled in one controversy after another. His government got a rap from the Rajasthan High Court,while the CM himself was snubbed by Rahul Gandhi who landed in communal strife-hit Bharatpur without informing the state government. Andhra Pradesh CM Kiran Kumar Reddy is not in a very comfortable position either. The party leadership thinks he is over-confident and has little to show on the ground. The party is allowing these CMs to continue for the time being but all of them are said to be under constant watch of the top leadership.
