Language Barrriers

While the recent BRICS summit saw India and China working towards closer cooperation on a number of issues

Language Barrriers

While the recent BRICS summit saw India and China working towards closer cooperation on a number of issues,language is one barrier that proved literally difficult to bridge for other members of the delegation. When Prime Minister Manmohan Singh landed in China earlier this week,to attend the meeting of leaders of the BRICS grouping,some of the officials accompanying him were unable to step out of the plane for some time. The stepladder for the rear exit could not connect because the Air India door in-charge and the Chinese controller of the stepladder were unable to communicate. The officials had to be finally re-routed through the other exit to avoid a delay.

Taking Credit

What is the genesis of the words Lokpal and Lokayukta? According to Congress spokesman Abhishek Manu Singhvi,it was his father the late jurist L M Singhvi who had first coined these words. After returning from Scandinavia in 1962,the eminent jurist had apprised the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru of the office of Ombudsman there. Nehru had then asked him to Indianise it. It was then that L M Singhvi had translated Ombudsman as Lokpal and Lokayukta. Of course,the fact that the Lokpal Bill lay in cold storage all these years is another story.

Chilean Cost

It turned out to be a false alarm for the Central Bureau of Investigation CBI about the apprehension of a key IC 814 key conspirator apprehended in Chile as well as a costly affair. The two-member team sent to Chile included an official from the Intelligence Bureau and a CBI officer. The officials estimate that nearly 9.5 lakh was spent on a trip which turned out to be a false alarm. The biggest contributor to the cost was the two-way air ticket which alone came for Rs 3.25 lakh for each person. It was only due to such a high airfare that the CBI had decided to send only one person from the agency.

The Amul Factor

We all owe it to Kerala Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan for having at last provided the political lexicon with a singular description for all the young followers of Rahul Gandhi in the Congress party,and not in a very positive light. The Amul-baby quote is already a big hit. A member of the PAC,when asked if MP Naveen Jindal was as noisy as other Congress members at committee meetings,said,Oh,he is an Amul-baby. Implying that he only played a minor role. Utterly delicious.

The Hunt Begins

The hunt for a new Cabinet Secretary has begun in right earnest. Two bureaucrats who are in the reckoning and may make it to the final short list are said to be Anup Mukherjee,a 1974 batch IAS officer,who is currently the Chief Secretary in Bihar,and Ajit Seth,Secretary Coordination and Public Grievances in the Cabinet Secretariat itself. Seth is a 1974 batch,Uttar Pradesh cadre officer. Mukherjee is said to be an officer with an impeccable track record while Seth is said to be efficient and straightforward. The current odds are on one of these two officers. Watch this space.

Filmy Diplomacy

Bollywood music made its presence felt at the power lunch that Chinese President Hu Jintao had hosted for leaders of Russia,India,Brazil and South Africa at the summit of BRICS grouping. As the leaders savoured the delicacies on offer,the famous Shammi Kapoor song of yesteryear Baar baar dekho,hazaar baar dekho played in the background. Whether the message got home is another matter.