Tale Bearer

Election Sensor?

Bureaucrats are by and large risk-averse and thrive on stability, contrary to the philosophy of their masters, the political class, who lives in chaos. There are, however, exceptions. The fate of private secretaries to ministers, who are drawn from the elite IAS, is wedded to their bosses.

This reality begins to resound louder as elections get nearer. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s private secretary is hoping to “parachute” into the World Bank. Nothing unusual, except that he has decided to defer the decision until April. Does it imply that elections will not be held before that?

Regulating Travel

The petroleum regulator is, for the most part, a grounded entity— it can merely regulate pipeline tariffs and not gas prices. The petroleum regulator, Labyendu Mansingh, unfortunately, is grounded for other reasons as well. The ministry is not keen on approving the regulator’s plan to travel to England.

The problem: The invitation is from a private consulting company; it came from a low-down functionary in the British High Commission; and the regulator prefers to take along his deputy rather than fellow colleagues.