Quiet crusader

The two key figures in the JPC inquiry panel chairman P C Chacko and CAG Vinod Rai who deposed before the JPC on Monday share a little-known common bond: Thrissur. While Chacko represents the cultural capital of Kerala in the Lok Sabha,Rai was the Collector of Thrissur some 35 years ago. Rai recalled at a function once: I landed at the Thrissur Railway Station burdened by a steel trunk,a bed roll and a tennis racquet over 30 years ago. When I departed after my stint as District Collector,I had acquired a wife,begot three children,and had accumulated household articles to fill more than a truck. He now has to inquire into the acquisitions of others.

Broadening the band

Following the footsteps of most southern political parties which have their own media outlets,the Telangana Rashtra Samiti led by K Chandrashekhar Rao too had launched a television channel some time back mainly to propagate its views on Telangana. Now,it is adding media bandwidth by coming out with a daily next week. To be called Namaste Telangana,the multi-edition daily,TRS leaders say,will counter the media offensive launched by anti-Telangana formations. Set up as a private venture called Telangana Broadcasting Corporation,the partys news channel called T News is already competing with other media networks for eyeballs in the Telangana region. TRS leaders say the Srikrishna Committee,in the eighth chapter of its report that was never made public,had made a clear reference that the Telangana agitition must be countered by an extensive media campaign.

Genetic strain

Will he or wont he? A nondescript dispensary within the precincts of the Delhi High Court is gearing up for a rather unflattering event on June 1. Congress leader and former governor N D Tiwari along with lawyer Rohit Sharma,who has filed a paternal suit against him,are to give their blood samples for a DNA test in the dispensary at 11 am. Sharma,31,has claimed he is the biological son of Tiwari,born out of an illicit relationship that the 85-year-old Congress leader had with his mother,Ujjwala Sharma. Tiwari,who unsuccessfully tried to wriggle out of the lawsuit,now faces the ignominy of giving his blood sample or skipping the exercise and agree to an ex-parte decision in favour of Sharma.

Thought for food

While the countrys granaries are overflowing with huge stocks,Food Minister K V Thomas remains concerned about the food wastage during weddings,funerals and other social occasions. One gets to hear that Thomas has constituted a 15-member committee comprising top officials of his ministry along with representatives of different state governments and some journalists and social activists to suggest ways to bring down this ostensible wastage of food.

Kabul with love

The Defence Ministry has lately been keeping very busy with international visits. Top officials of the ministry are currently tied up with the Defence Secretary-level talks on the Siachen issue with Pakistan,but many are preparing for a much more high profile visit later this week. On Wednesday,a day after the Indo-Pak talks end,the Afghan Defence Minister,Gen Abdul Rahim Wardak,will reach New Delhi for a bilateral visit. Following up on PM Manmohan Singhs visit to Kabul during which India opened the doors for assistance in all areas including security,the Afghan minister will be in India for high-level talks with his counterpart A K Antony and the senior political establishment. Unlike the French and German ministers who visited South Block over the past few days,the Defence Ministry is going the extra distance and according Wardak a formal guard of honour.