Year 2011: Will bureaucrats be forced to disclose their assets?

IF YOU are an Indian bureaucrat battling hard to argue why your assets should not be disclosed in public domain, you are probably fighting a lost battle. Have a reality check. Sooner or later, Indian bureaucrats may have to place the movable and immovable assets in public domain in the same way as Indian politicians currently do. No one knows whether that could take place in 2011 itself, or it may take a few more years, but the reality is that the bureaucrats’ lone battle to get their assets outside the purview of the RTI is becoming increasingly difficult.

The latest salvo has come from Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar who with a renewed mandate is determined to bring in transparency and accountability to administration. Remember Nitish Kumar is the flavour of the season, and his direction to the state’s IAS officers to declare their assets and those of there kin by January 31, may have ripple effects in other states too.

During the beginning of 2010, senior bureaucrats in Delhi sat together to deliberate at length whether bureaucrats should compulsorily disclose their assets or not, but the consensus was a firm “no”.

In February, 2010, BoI reported how Madhya Pradesh government was keen to bring assets of about 300 IAS officers of MP cadre under the ambit of RTI after a series of I-T raids in the MP and its neighbouring Chhattisgarh. For the record, I-T department does not hand over personal details of any citizens including bureaucrats. But an order of the Central Information Commission, pronounced by Information Commissioner Shailesh Gandhi said that disclosure of information such as assets of a public servant cannot be construed as an invasion on the privacy of an individual. The order said, “...If people who aspire to be public servants must declare their property details, it is only logical that the details of assets of those who are public servants must be considered to be disclosable”.

During the year, the same debate came up in other states like Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat too. In Gujarat, for example, the issue is being sorted out in High Court as Arvind Agrawal, a 1984 batch Gujarat cadre IAS and MD of Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation, took up the case of bureaucrats in the court and challenged the CIC order asking the state government to furnish Annual Property Returns of its senior bureaucrats.

But Nitish Kumar’s dictate could finally be the game-changer. His government said that the asset declaration of IAS officers should also include the details of their ancestral property besides that of their wives and close relatives. What’s more, similar intructions could be drafted for the state’s IPS and other officers too.

So, does it make it a sense to presume that Indian bureaucrats would be fighting a lone battle in defending their reluctance to disclose properties and other assets? Maybe, the year 2011 may bring more clarity to this intricate issue.

Read

The officers who have declared assets

Gujarat Case on disclosure 

Bureaucrats face the biggest challenge

Nitish's Bill to punish lazy babus

Action and Appointments

a) Pankaj Sharma, a 2000 batch ICAS has been appointed as deputy secretary in the department of economic affairs under the ministry of finance.

b) Biswanath Dhar, a 1989 batch ITS who was appointed as Assistant Director General (director level) in the Unique Identification Authority of India under the Planning Commission at Guwahati, has been debarred from deputation for a posting under the Central Staffing Scheme for a period of five years with effect from September 3, 2010 as he failed to join the above mentioned post.

China to crack the whip on excessive partying by bureaucrats

INDIA may love to follow China in most respects, from chasing growth numbers to building massive infrastructure, but when it comes to its bureaucracy, Indian babus must try not to emulate them. If the latest report on China’s plan to crack down lavish parties by its bureaucrats, is anything to indicate, there have been a number of instances in which Chinese bureaucrats indulged in sex and booze-fuelled parties apart from being beneficiaries of the country’s rampant corruption.

According to media reports being highlighted in US among others, the cost of the visit to foreign junkets including trips to Las Vegas amount to about USD 60 billion per year. The reports further point out how Chinese top politicians took notice of bureaucrats’ indulging in parties filled with casual sex, drinking and under-the-table payments. None other than President Hu Jintao himself warned officials of the temptations of beautiful women, money and power. Recently, the ruling party has come out with a plan to weed out corruption which also included an end to excessive partying at the expense of tax payers’ money.

Also Read

China asks military officers not to create blogs 

Japanese bureaucrats are back!

The influence of Japanese bureaucrats in the country’s decision-making process could come back once more as there are indications that they would again attend crucial meetings which are now being confined to political leadership. Once anti-bureaucrat Democratic Party of Japan came into power in September, 2009, senior bureaucrats were kept out of the decision-making process. Now, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshito Sengoku says that vice ministers and deputy vice ministers both of whom are non-elected bureaucrats in Japan, should attend the ministerial meetings.

Read

Japanese bureaucrats get lessons from comedians

Bureaucracy bashing as a fashion statement

Action and Appointments

Alok Prasad made India’s ambassador to Japan

a) Alok Prasad, an Indian Foreign Service officer of 1974 batch and presently Deputy National Security Advisor, has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to Japan, to replace HK Singh (Read: HK Singh as a good host). According to a release by ministry of external affairs, Prasad is expected to take up his assignment shortly.

b) Rakesh Sood, a 1976 batch Indian Foreign Service officer and India's Ambassador to Nepal, has been appointed as Deputy National Security Advisor (NSA) in place of Alok Prasad.

Adarsh Row: Action against bureaucrats may not be easy, say reports

MAHARASHTRA government’s first attempt to take action against bureaucrats allegedly linked to the Adarsh society scam, has entered into a problem zone. Maharashtra chief information commissioner Ramanand Tiwari and state human rights commissioner Subhash Lala, have refused to resign despite chief minister wanted them to put in their papers, according to media reports. Whereas Ramanand Tiwari is a 1972 batch retired IAS, Subhash Lalla is a 1977 batch retired IAS. Chief secretary SA Dange was quoted saying that both the retired bureaucrats have not resigned as yet.

The state government decided to crack the whip on bureaucrats after it was felt that politicians may have to bear the brunt whereas over 20 bureaucrats whose relatives were beneficiaries of the disputed housing project in the heart of Mumbai could go scot free.

In fact, the state government first targeted the retired bureaucrats whose removals are believed to be much easier than those in service. But under section 17 (1) of the RTI Act, for example, the state government has to seek the consent of the governor before taking action against the state information officer, reports DNA quoting a legal expert. In case of removal of state human rights commissioner, President of India’s consent is needed. Now, Tiwari and Lalla have refused to resign citing that proper procedure of their removal was not followed.

Sources have claimed that more heads are likely to roll as the state government is not satisfied with answers of most of the 21 bureaucrats who replied to the query of Maharahstra government’s General Administration Department on whether “they had ever dealt with the Adarsh file, the source of their funds and whether their sons or daughters were members of the society”. Among those under the scanner are: former municipal commissioner and 1978 batch IAS JM Phatak, former city collector and 1996 batch IAS Ms IA Kundan, former BEST general manager and 1984 batch IAS Uttam Khobragade, current Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation commissioner and 1980 batch IAS Swadheen Khastriya to name a few.

Action and Appointments

RAS officer, not IPS to head RAW

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the following:

a) To allow 1971 batch Jharkhand cadre IPS, KC Verma, currently secretary (Research and Analysis Wing), Cabinet Secretary, to superannuate on December 30, 2010.

b) And appointment of 1972 batch RAS, SK Tripathi, as secretary (Research and Analysis Wing), Cabinet Secretariat on a two-year tenure with effect from December 30, 2010 in place of KC Verma. 

Bureaucracy 2010: Unsung heroes in India's corridors of power

MN Jayakumar is not a familiar face in Delhi’s power centre dominated by bigwigs such as TKA Nair, KM Chandrasekhar and GK Pillai. Nor has he turned controversial like RK Chandolia or Ravi Inder Singh. But this low profile Indian Forest Service officer received an UN award for his spectacular photography of Indian birds. On the eve of year 2011, BoI salutes some unsung heroes whose works were underplayed in power reporting of babusofindia.com.

Wild life of an IFS officer

For MN Jayakumar, a 1979 batch Indian Forest Service officer and Karnataka’s Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, an affair with camera developed nearly two decades ago. In 2010, Jayakumar was selected for an UNESCO award, MFIAP, the highest distinction awarded by International Federation of Photographic Art for 20 of his images named “Spectacular Indian Birds”. Jayakumar’s photographs were displayed at exhibitions in countries such as England, Germany, Belgium, Spain, Finland, Australia, Scotland, USA and South Africa.

Read

1979 batch IFS

Prabhat Kumar gets applause in court

In this season of scams when bureaucrats along with their political masters are feeling the heat, here is a rare story of an IAS officer getting a virtual special jury award! Prabhat Kumar, a 1985 batch Uttar Pradesh cadre IAS and witness to Neera Yadav case was termed 'very important' in its judgement by the court. Prabhat Kumar who served as deputy CEO at Noida Authority from January 1996 to April 1997, spotted faults in the corporate group housing scheme which was an open ended scheme with no ending date. Kumar got a special mention in the 73-page judgement passed by CBI special judge AK Singh at Ghaziabad recently.

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Who is Prabhat Kumar?

Dr Trivedi's performance maths 

A non-IAS officer Dr Prajapati Trivedi who spent most part of his life in the World Bank working in no less than 25 countries around the world, has spent the year on a mission to bring in efficiency of government administration. Dr Trivedi, secretary of the performance management division under cabinet secretariat, is the man behind the government’s recent attempt to assess the performance of each ministry and give marks to it. If the Cabinet approves, Trivedi’s formula of paying more to performing bureaucrats could become a reality.

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Who wants to make IAS a lakhpati?

IAS as a manipulative contractor

During Bharat Rang Mahotsav last January, Kerala’s tourism secretary Dr V Venu, a 1990 batch IAS, donned that role of a manipulative contractor as he acted in a Malayalam play ‘Palangal’, (bridges), an adaptation of the work of famous poet K Ayyappa Panicker.

Directed by D Reghoothaman and staged by Abhinaya theatres, Thiruvananthapuram, ‘Palangal’ depicts the events that surround the proposed construction of a bridge where Dr Venu came to the centrestage, literally

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Well on stage

(In Picture: Air Force Band playing at India Gate in New Delhi on December 26, 2010)

Mantras to crack civil service exam

Are you someone preparing for next year’s civil service exam? Log on to www.jobcorridors.com to spot 7 mantras during UPSC preparations.

Sidelights of Indian bureaucracy, 2010

Fake Memo Brings Joy

The year 2010 might have witnessed many disappointing events in power corridors, but what disappointed the bureaucrats most was a clarification on a fake official circular. For many Central government employees, it was the Diwali coming too soon when the finance ministry in an office memo dated March 27, 2010 announced a revised rate of Overtime Allowance. But as it turned out three days later, it was a fake Office Memo, and the government had no clues who had played the prangs! The DoPT clarified that no such allowance would be doled out.

Read

Fake official memo

A Moment Of Anger

Many bureaucrats were upset and angry at Samajwadi Party supreme Mulayam Singh Yadav’s reported comment on daughters and wives of officers and businessmen. Yadav who opposed the Women’s reservation Bill tooth and nail in Rajya Sabha, reportedly said that if the Bill was passed, “wives and daughters of officers and businessmen who invite whistles from boys” would enter Parliament. Though many politicians love to insult their bureaucrats and always want them to behave like their private secretaries, this is probably the first ever seriously objectionable remark by a senior politician about wives and daughters of bureaucrats.

Read

Mulayam’s comment on bureaucrats’ wives

Happily Ignored

Cabinet secretary KM Chandrasekhar wrote two official letters on March 3, 2010 to all government of India secretaries and state chief secretaries insisting that there was a need for an image make-over of India’s civil servants. He mentioned how the recent “disturbing incidents” called for “serious introspection by civil servants”, and reminded the officers of the government’s policy of zero tolerance on corruption. The letters were shot off after a series of Income-Tax raids unearthed a huge amount of cash in senior IAS officials’ residences.

Read

KM Chandrasekhar’s advice

Brand Police To Sell Products

Despite Indian police personnel suffering an image crisis thanks to day-to-day experiences of ordinary citizens, a newly set-up insurance company, IndiaFirst Life Insurance, put up huge hoardings along the roads of major Indian cities featuring two police officers. The message was to drive home a nationalistic feeling and connect to the audience that India comes first. After all, it’s rare to spot a company selling their products through “brand police”.

Read

Brand Indian Police

A Bureaucrat By Mind, Poet By Heart

For Bishnupada Sethi, a 1995 batch Orissa cadre IAS, life is a bigger canvas and poetry is his art. Sethi published a collection of poems, My World of Words with an underlining theme that words are central to human existence. Sample this:

Lying quietly on a wooden cot,

kept on the verandah of a mud hut,

I move my eyes slowly

like the rare waves

in the cool waters of a static lake.

Read

A poet by heart, IAS by mind

Sporting Beard

When a Japanese town banned sporting beard by bureaucrats, there were laughter in corridors of power. When babusofindia.com reported the news there were gossips in Raisina Hills that what would happen if such rules apply to Indian bureaucracy as well. Yes, food processing industries secretary Ashok Sinha who sports a French cut will have to rush to the bathroom with a razor and come clean, literally.

Read

No beard please, we are bureaucrats

PM calls IPS a privileged service

PRIME Minister Dr Manmohan Singh has called Indian Police Service a very privileged service, along with the IAS. While addressing IPS probationers of 2009 batch, PM has highlighted key challenges and reminded the young police officers of various responsibilities. Here are a few excerpts of his speech.

India and Bharat

India lives in the states. Therefore our young officers equip themselves with knowledge, wisdom and experience about what is happening in various states of our Union and that is the unique privilege that both the IAS and IPS have…The fact that our founding fathers of the Constitution designed this structure for the IAS and the IPS which while working in different states we must not lose sight of the value system and of what critical importance it places on strengthening the unity and integrity of our country.

Common Market

In dealing with problems, we must not lose sight of the fact that India is one large common market. Our Constitution makers gave us this unique privilege of being a vast common market that people can move freely from one part of our country to another where goods can move freely from one part of our country to another. In other countries in Europe, people have struggled to create common markets. This is a gift that has come to us from the founding fathers of our Republic and you must be always be mindful of preserving, building on and nurturing that concern for the unity and integrity of our country.

Have-nots

We are getting growth rates of 8-9% per annum but there are people who believe they are left out. When they are left out, I think the grievances against the system multiply and some of them take the form of challenging the authority of law and order. The crime rate goes up probably it is inherent in processes of urbanization that incidents of urban crime will be a problem for quite some time to come and it may be an increasing problem. 
(In Picture: Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh with the IPS probationers of 2009 batch, in New Delhi on December 24, 2010. Principal secretary to Prime Minister TKA Nair and the National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon are also seen.)
Also Read
What's the shortage of IPS?
Prez Pratibha Patil on women IPS


Action and Appointments
a) Former urban development secretary M Ramachandran as taken charge as Advisor (Infrastructure) in UP government. He will be based out of Noida and hold a rank of a cabinet minister in the state. Read: Centre's loss, UP's gain
b)  Giri Iyer, an retired accounts service officer and husband of first woman foreign secretary of India, Chokila Iyer died. When the name External Affairs Wives Association was changed to External Affairs Spouses Association, EAWA decided that the membership would open up to the spouses of all the lady IFS officers. Giri Iyer was the first and the only male member of the association.

Flame-haired Russian spy and daughter of a diplomat may warm up Moscow's politics

Anna Chapman, flame-haired Russian spy and daughter of a diplomat, has entered into a new innings in Russian politics. Dubbed as modern day Bond girl and considered to be hot favourite of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, 28 years old Anna got a prominent role in a pro-Kremlin youth party.

Significantly, she was arrested along with nine others on June 27, 2010, on suspicion of spying under the Russian Federation’s external intelligence agency --- SVR. Later, she was deported from US.

Anna Chapman is actually Anya Kushchenko, the daughter of a Russian diplomat Vasily Kushchenko who had worked in Russian embassies in Africa. When she was arrested in US, her British ex-husband, Alex Chapman, narrated many events to the British media. He found his ex-father-in –law very intimidating. Anna’s diplomat father had a Land Rover with blacked-out windows and there was always one car in front of it and one car behind, Alex told media. The couple got married in 2002, merely five months after they met in a London nightclub, but the marriage ended up in a divorce in four years. In London, she worked at NetJets where she helped the company selling private jets to rich Russian clients, and then worked with Barclays Bank too. Later, she moved to US. (Picture Source: Facebook)

Action and Appointments

a) Vinay Kumar Sahni, a 1981 batch IDAS officer, has been appointed as joint secretary in the ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs.

Manmohan Singh’s old hand Rahul Khullar could become India’s finance secretary

Rahul Khullar, a 1975 batch UT cadre IAS who worked closely with Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh in 1991-93, may become India’s next finance secretary after incumbent Ashok Chawla retires on January 31. Khullar who is currently the commerce secretary of the country, is a doctorate in economics and is also armed with a degree in economics from Boston University.

One of the few senior Delhiite IAS officers now, Khullar managed to get strategic ministries during his 35 years career in bureaucracy. Khullar, who is turning 58 in April next, had worked with Delhi chief minister’s office in 1979-81, and had a long innings in PMO as deputy secretary and then director (1985 to 1990), largely coinciding with Rajiv Gandhi’s tenure as PM.

Between 1991 and 1993, Khullar was the private secretary to then finance minister Manmohan Singh before taking up an economist’s post in Manila-based Asian Development Bank. During the NDA regime, he took up various assignments in Delhi government, and then in May 2004, joined the Union commerce ministry as a joint secretary. For the last six and half years, Khullar remained in the commerce ministry expect a 5-month period in 2009 when he became disinvestment secretary.

Significantly, if Khullar is made the finance secretary on January 31, 2011, he will take charge when the Finmin would be readying to present the general budget in the last week of February. Even last year, another 1975 batch IAS, Sunil Mitra, was appointed as the revenue secretary in place of PV Bhide amid the high-voltage of Budget preparation.

Khullar’s high profile batch-mates include telecom secretary Rentala Chandrasekhar, urban development secretary Navin Kumar, animal husbandry secretary Rudhra Gangadharan, food processing secretary Ashok Sinha, school education secretary Anshu Vaish, department of Public Enterprises secretary Bhaskar Chatterjee, textile secretary Rita Menon, revenue secretary Sunil Mitra, and the last but not the least his wife Sindhushree Khullar, the country’s sports secretary.

Pak’s new economic team to chase IMF commitments; Boston-educated bureaucrat made finance secretary

PAKISTAN government has reshuffled its key economic team and made Waqar Masood Khan, a doctorate in economics from Boston University as the country’s finance secretary. Current finance secretary Salman Siddique has been appointed as the new Federal Board of Revenue chairman, a demotion in technical terms as the revenue department in Pakistan like that in India comes under the finance ministry.

The reshuffle of the nation’s elite economic team became necessary as Pakistan has been struggling to fulfill its commitments to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), according to Pakistan’s media report. The new team is likely to gear up for the imposition of the Reformed General Sales Tax (RGST) regime. Federal Board of Revenue chairman Sohail Ahmed has been posted as the federal planning and development secretary with immediate effect.

Boston-educated Waqar Masood Khan also holds an MA degree in economics and LLB from Karachi University. Currently, he has been working as special secretary to Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani. According to The Nation, the decision of the reshuffle was taken in a meeting attended by the country's President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani.

BS Lalli on his way out

President Pratibha Patil has reportedly signed the order for suspension of Prasar Bharti CEO BS Lalli, a 1971 batch retired IAS officer. According to the Prasar Bharati Act, the chairman or a member of Prasar Bharti can only be removed by an order of the President on the ground of misbehaviour after the Supreme Court holds an inquiry following a reference to it. Lalli has faced an allegation of irregularities in awarding the contract for broadcast of Commonwealth Games to a UK-based firm SIS Live. Lalli has so far denied any wrong doing.

Action and Appointments

a) Ajay  Kumar, a 1985 batch Kerala cadre IAS has been appointed as joint secretary in the department of information and technology in place of Rakesh Singh, a 1978 batch Punjab cadre IAS who has become additional secretary in the department of financial services.

b) Ms. Anjali Anand Srivastava, a 1982 batch IAAS has been appointed as joint secretary and financial adviser in the ministry of coal.

c) Praveen Kumar Tiwari, a 1985 batch IAAS has been appointed as Director, Financial Intelligence Unit--India at joint secretary level. He replaces Arun Goyal, a 1985 batch UT cadre IAS who has become Minister (E and C) at Embassy of India, Tokyo.

d) Nar Singh Dev a 1996 batch IIS, presently working as joint secretary (director level)

in the UPSC has been appointed as OSD to the minister of parliamentary affairs Pawan Kumar Bansal.

e) Ajay Kumar Singh, a 1989 batch Jharkhand cadre IPS has been appointed as director in the ministry of home affairs.

Canada may dole out iPads to its bureaucrats to save paper costs

iPads are yet to be officially launched in India, but governments of western countries wish to dole it out to their bureaucrats mainly to cut cost on paper and printings. After several American cities had given iPads to municipal officials to replace printed documents, the federal government of Canada is now mulling offering iPads to bureaucrats, Toronto Sun reported.

For the pilot project, about 20 treasury board workers in Canada have been using the high-tech device. Even in India, a number of Parliamentarians and businessmen have imported this device from the West. The iPad is the first tablet computer developed by Apple Inc, and it is part of a device category between a smart-phone and a laptop computer.

In Canada, the iPads, not laptops, were picked for the pilot project because they are lightweight and user-friendly in addition to having a long-lasting battery. It also allows the user for easy note-taking. It’s estimated that if Ottawa’s roughly 6,743 high-level bureaucrats are given this device, it would save the exchequer about $7 million, but the use of the iPad could save about $700 per person per year, said the Toronto Sun report.
Google is getting ready its own tablet computer to rival Apple’s iPads.

Action and Appointments

a) A Delhi Court refused to grant bail to suspended 1994 batch West Bengal cadre IAS officer Ravi Inder Singh who is accused of passing official information from MHA. He was a director in the home ministry when he was detained by police.

b) The Andhra Pradesh government’s move to select state senior officials for the promotion to the Indian Administrative Service may kick off a controversy as there are allegations that the selection process is not fair. The state government have reportedly finalized a list of 15 officers for three IAS posts.

Politicians, bureaucrats lose out to Katrina Kaif; rail babus get consolation

THE jury is out, and netas and babus are the combined losers. The netizens in India are not so excited about any politicians and bureaucrats though people in corridors of power are continuing to hog the limelight in electronic and print media across the country. According to annual list called “Zeitgeist 2010” based on the aggregation of billions of search queries people typed into Google this year, Lalit Modi, Katrina Kaif and Sachin Tendulkar are some of the fastest rising people in India whereas none of the bureaucrats or more so no politicians have figured in the list of top 10 fastest rising people or most popular keywords. The list brought out by Google captures the spirit of 2010 globally.

The only consolation prize, however, goes to the rail and tourism babus as the IRCTC (railway ticket booking) continues to top the charts of the year-on-year fastest rising keywords in India. The IRCTC is also one of the top 10 most popular keywords for Indian netizens alongside songs, gmail, google, nokia etc. The top five most popular brands in India, according to Zeitgeist 2010 list, are Nokia, Samsung, Airtel, Micromax

and Dell. In this season of scams, “how to bribe” has not figured in Top 10 most popular “how to”. Significantly, more Indians in 2010 googled “how to impress a girl” and “how to tie a tie” than “how to make money”.

Any clue about how many googled “babus”?

Action and Appointments

a) Indian Air Force (IAF) got a new batch of officers with 171 newly commissioned Flying Officers graduating from the Air Force Academy (AFA), at Dundigal near Hyderabad, on Saturday. Air Chief Marshal PV Naik reviewed the combined graduation parade and awarded President’s Commission to the graduating Flight Cadets that included 39 women Flight Cadets. Four Indian Navy officers and one Indian Coast Guard officer also received their flying brevet (Wings) at the graduation parade from the Air Chief.

b) A CID probe has been ordered to look into an alleged land-grab in Navi Mumbai by senior bureaucrats. A housing society that came into question has accommodated more than 20 IAS officers as members. According to the allegation, the bureaucrat-dominated housing society managed to get the piece of land just for Rs 4.43 crore against its market value of over Rs20 crore.

Canadian top auditor airs views in support of bureaucrats, what's in Rai's mind?

AS Comptroller and Auditor General of India Vinod Rai’s team is unearthing one corruption after another in Indian government, here is an interesting observation on bureaucrats by his Canadian counterpart. Auditor General of Canada Sheila Fraser recently commented that she had not found the kind of “inappropriate spending” by bureaucrats as Harper government tightened bureaucrat’s spending in hospitality, travel and conferences. During her decade long career as the top auditor, she has found only a few cases of bureaucrats living the high-life. “I personally don’t think there is a big problem in government with hospitality and travel. The government may want to reduce travel with more video conferences and that’s reasonable — but as for individual cases, they are the exception, not the rule,” she is quoted as saying by Ottawa Citizen. Woh! When can you expect India’s top auditor air such an observation?

Action and Appointments

a) Suspended 1994 batch West Bengal cadre IAS officer Ravi Inder Singh, who was recently suspended from home ministry for allegedly passing official information, recently sought bail from a Delhi court saying he was innocent and can account for all his assets.

b) Dr Alka Bhargava, a 1987 batch Assam cadre Indian Forest Service officer has been reappointed as director in the ministry of human resource development in New Delhi for a period up to June 10, 2012 against the existing vacancy of Saubhagya Ranjan Dhall in that ministry.

Cabinet secretary contender M Ramachandran poached by Mayawati

THE Centre’s loss is Mayawati’s gain. M Ramachandran, a 1972 batch retired IAS who just missed the coveted cabinet secretary’s post, has been poached by UP government led by BSP supremo Mayawati. Ramachandran who belonged to UP and then Uttarakhand cadre, has been appointed as adviser (infrastructure) with a mandate to accelerate infrastructure projects and development work in Uttar Pradesh. He will hold the rank of a cabinet minister in the state, and will be based out of Noida.The Centre has been dillydallying in giving him a suitable post after he missed the opportunity to become the country's top bureaucrat.  

Till third week of May this year, Ramachandran was the senior most bureaucrat to succeed KM Chandrasekhar, a 1970 batch IAS, as cabinet secretary. But Chandrasekhar’s extension in June, second in the row, dashed the hopes of Ramachandran and other contenders like PJ Thomas who was later made CVC. There were gossips in power corridors that Ramachandran would be made either the Election Commissioner or Delhi Metro chief. Whereas Andhra Pradesh cadre IAS Harishankar Brahma, a three-year junior to Ramachandran , was made the Election Commissioner, Delhi Metro chief E Sreedharan is given another year’s extension, forcing Ramachandran to look for other avenues. Even for CVC’s post, Ramachandran with an impeccable record was not empanelled, ensuring his one batch junior IAS, PJ Thomas sail through at ease.

For the record, Sudha Pillai, who was a contender for cabinet secretary’s post in June 2009, was given a suitable alternative post after being denied the top bureaucrat’s position. Sudha Pillai, a batch-mate of Ramachandran, and senior most bureaucrat when KM Chandrasekhar got the first extension in June 2009, was later made Member Secretary of Planning Commission with the rank of a minister of state.

Ramachandran who had served as chief secretary in Uttarakhand and later drove the Centre’s flagship programme JNNURM as Union urban development secretary, wears a tag of “infrastructure man”. His book, “An Alternative Approach to Project Planning in Public Works -- The Indian Context” is well appreciated in infrastructure circle. After retirement in June this year, he has written a comprehensive book on Indian Metro rail which is scheduled to hit the stand sometime in April, 2011. 

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Ramachandran with PM

Style and Babudom

Finmin officials play key role in placing India on global anti-money laundering platform

INDIA is set to play bigger role in global platforms of combating money laundering activities thanks to proactive actions of a few finance ministry officials under finmin secretary Ashok Chawla. India on Wednesday got membership of the Eurasian Group on Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (EAG) which till now has been dominated by Russia and China.

Apart from undertaking actions in fighting terror within the country, India will now perform a key role globally in adopting, enforcing and contributing to international best practices in anti-money laundering and combating financing of terrorism.

Indian delegation to the EAG Plenary meet currently underway in Moscow was led by Bimal Julka, a 1979 batch MP cadre IAS and additional secretary in DEA, Thomas Mathew, a 1983 batch Kerala cadre IAS and joint secretary in-charge of capital markets and AM Bajaj, director in external markets division. Thomas Mathew, for the record, has a PhD in security relations and published a number of papers including on defence offset policy, India-US relations under Obama, FDI in defence and another called, “Mighty Dragon In the Sea”.

Baijal saga cautions bureaucrats looking for grabbing post-retirement pvt jobs

As India’s top investigating agency CBI raided the Noida residence of 1966 batch MP cadre retired IAS, Pradip Baijal on Wednesday, many bureaucrats who are about to end their career in government are thinking twice before jumping into private bandwagon after retirement.

A former disinvestment secretary who pushed big-ticket strategic sale like BALCO and ITDC-run Centaur Hotel in Mumbai and Kanishka Hotel in New Delhi, Baijal later became the chairman of telecom regulator Trai before joining controversial lobbyist Niira Radia’s consultancy firm.

Those who know Baijal well say that this technocrat-turned bureaucrat is an extrovert, an avid golfer and has soft corner for Chinese food. Baijal is an engineer from Roorkee College of Engineering which got an IIT status a few ears ago.

In Japan, there have been a number of debates whether to continue age-old Amakudari, or “descent from heaven” under which Japanese senior bureaucrats take up high-profile positions in the private and public sectors after retirement. The practice is increasingly viewed as corrupt as former officials might have given preferential treatment to their would-be employers in securing key government contracts.

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Amakudari in Japan: Lessons for retired babus

Japan's corridor of power jammed by...

PM sets the tone for more pro-corporate actions by bureaucrats

AFTER Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh’s address to corporate India mainly to allay their fear of phone tapping incidents and restore confidence in the backdrop of negative news flow, more confidence building measures for corporate might taken up at the level of bureaucrats as well. While cabinet secretary KM Chandrasekhar has been asked by the PM to look into the issues of telephone tapping and report back to the Cabinet in one month, bureaucrats at the helm of investigating agencies may also go soft on the business community at least for now.

On the day PM spoke to captains of Indian industry, Income-Tax department issued a clarification that it is currently scrutinizing only a handful of cases relating to takeovers, mergers and acquisitions, and the department scrutinizes about 1 percent of its total taxpayer base --- ostensibly to allay fear of corporate India that I-T department has recently become hawks.

In addition to phone tapping and its selective leakage, India Inc has feared of a fund outflow thanks to an overdose of probes in multiple scams including ones related to Commonwealth Games, bribes-for-loan, 2G Spectrum scam etc.

While inaugurating India Corporate Week 2010 in New Delhi, Prime Minister, however, made it very clear that the government wishes to provide a level playing field for private businesses, free from fear or favour. “I am aware of the nervousness in some sections of the corporate sector arising out of the powers conferred upon governmental authorities to tap phones for protecting national security and preventing tax evasion and money laundering,” Prime Minister said.

Prime Minister further said that India has always been a nation of entrepreneurs. “The private sector now contributes significantly to all sectors of our economy, including infrastructure development, which until recently was an exclusive preserve of the public sector until a few years ago. In recent years, the private sector is also successfully engaged with the government in PPP projects…”, PM added.

Action and Appointments

a) Sayan Chattejee, a 1976 batch Kerala cadre IAS, presently director general of Sports Authority of India, as secretary in department of Aids Control, ministry of health and family welfare in the vacancy of K Chandramouli, a 1975 batch UP cadre IAS.

b) VB Pyarelal, a 1983 batch Assam cadre IAS has been appointed as joint secretary in the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts under the ministry of culture upto August 20, 2013 or until further orders. Pyarelal is presently working as joint secretary in the ministry of information and broadcasting.

c) Jharkhand’s vigilance department attached the house of a retired IAS official, Alakhdeo Prasad, in a corruption case. He has been absconding and his arrest warrant was pending for last few months, police said. 

Soft spoken retired IAS, Satyananda Mishra, set to become new CIC

1973 BATCH retired IAS of Madhya Pradesh cadre Satyananda Mishra is set to become the new RTI chief. A three-member high-level committee headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday zeroed in his candidature as the next Chief Information Commissioner in place of AN Tiwari who is retiring on December 16.

A soft-spoken bureaucrat who understands the nuances of government rules thanks to his long innings in the personnel ministry, Mishra is currently the senior most information commissioners. Two other members of the selection panel include law minister Veerappa Moily and leader of the Opposition Sushma Swaraj.

Hailing from Orissa, Mishra had earlier served as Establishment Officer and special secretary in department of personnel and training (DoPT), before being elevated as DoPT secretary in January, 2007. Current steel secretary and 1976 batch Uttar Pradesh cadre IAS PK Mishra was the Establishment Officer then.

At present, the other five Information Commissioners are Annapurna Dixit, Deepak Sandhu, Sushma Singh, ML Sharma and Shailesh Gandhi.

(In picture: Mishra, left, with first CIC Wajahat Habibullah)

Sebi to keep tab on bureaucrats investing in MF

A bureaucrat investing in mutual fund will now be recorded. Market watchdog Sebi is set to keep a tab on mutual fund investments made by bureaucrats and politicians. According to new rules effective from January 1, 2010, all the new and existing MF investors will have to disclose their actual identity. This would even apply to Member of Parliament, MLA or MLC.

Another Indian envoy asked to pat down in US airport

Hardeep Puri, 1974 batch Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer and Ambassador to the United Nations, was recently asked to remove his turban during an airport ‘pat-down’ search in the US. But he refused to oblige and instead opted for another procedure. Recently, Indian ambassador to US Meera Shankar was forced to pat down despite she showed her diplomatic credentials.

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Is Shankar’s Sari responsible?

IAS couple gets poorer by Rs 3 crore!

OVER 10 months after I-T sleuths recovered Rs 3.1 crore (about USD 0.7 million) in cash from 1979 batch Madhya Pradesh cadre IAS couple, Arvind Kumar Joshi and Tinoo Joshi, police attached to the office of the MP Lokayukta raided their home once more. According to media reports, Lokayukta’s special police establishment (SPE) team that conducted the raids recovered cash worth Rs 7 lakh at the residence of the power couple located at a posh locality in Bhopal. Also, Rs 12 lakh in their salary accounts and gold ornaments of 146 grams were also reportedly found. In pure arithmetic terms, the IAS couple became poorer by about Rs 3 crore in less than one year!

Lokayukta’s office has registered a case against the suspended IAS couple.

Meanwhile, Bihar government has begun the process of converting corrupt officials’ properties and converting those in schools. In the first of such case, the home of former motor vehicle inspector (MVI) Raghuvansh Kunwar at Chaira village in Samastipur district was confiscated and according to the announcement made by Bihar HRD minister PK Sahi, the property would be converted into a school.

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Who are Arvind and Tinoo Joshi?

Gujarat HC's direction on bureaucrats' assets

Gujarat high court has directed the Public Information Officers (PIO) to take into account of objections of the officers before passing orders about disclosure of property under the Right To Information (RTI) act. The ongoing case has huge significance whether bureaucrats including IAS, IPS and IFS will need to disclose their personal properties under the RTI Act. The Gujarat High Court has taken up the case in which RTI applicants sought annual property returns of officers. Arvind Agrawal, a 1984 batch Gujarat cadre IAS is fighting the case on behalf of bureaucrats.

Read

2 court cases on disclosure of bureaucrats’ assets

Doctor-turned IAS Prabhat Kumar gets applause in UP land scam judgement

IN THIS season of scams when bureaucrats along with their political masters are feeling the heat, here is a rare story of an IAS officer getting a virtual special jury award! Prabhat Kumar, a 1985 batch Uttar Pradesh cadre IAS and witness to Neera Yadav case was termed 'very important' in its judgement by the court. The CBI-designated court recently awarded four years jail terms to former UP chief secretary and 1967 batch retired IAS Neera Yadav and MD of Flex companies Ashok Chaturvedi.

Prabhat Kumar who served as deputy CEO at Noida Authority from January 1996 to April 1997, spotted faults in the corporate group housing scheme which was an open ended scheme with no ending date. Kumar got a special mention in the 73-page judgement passed by CBI special judge AK Singh at Ghaziabad recently.

A graduate in medicine surgery, Dr Kumar also received an MBA degree from an Australian University. Significantly, two of the MBBS-turned bureaucrats have become the newsmakers recently mainly because of wrong reasons. Whereas home ministry’s director and 1994 batch West Bengal cadre IAS Ravi Inder Singh was suspended recently for allegedly leaking sensitive information in lieu of favours, another MBBS Dr Ketan Shukla, a 1986-batch Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer had faced a case of sexual assault slapped by his 22-year old domestic help who stayed with him in Kenya where he had served as the deputy high commissioner.

Pat-Down: Was Ambassador Meera Shankar singled out for wearing a sari?

THE US might have expressed concerns over the patting down of Indian ambassador to US Meera Shankar after India’s external affairs minister SM Krishna showed his anguish over the incident, but the question remains – was the 1973 batch IFS singled out for her sari, not-so familiar dress in US. Ms Shankar who is a batch-mate of foreign secretary Nirupama Rao and one of the most high-profile Indian diplomats, was subjected to a “pat-down” in public view in an airport in Mississippi last week despite she presented her diplomatic credentials.

Media reports quoting eyewitnesses say that Shankar was the only passenger to be singled out for secondary screening among 30 odd in the line and her sari could be the reason for the alert. According to eyewitnesses observing her face, said that she felt humiliated when the “pat-down” was done in public view.

For the record, pat-down is an act of passing the hands over the body of a clothed person to detect concealed weapons, drugs, etc., but passengers who have undergone that process in US say it could at times be very humiliating.

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House of Shankars: Meera and Ajay

PM's salad bowl in Meera Shankar party

Action and Appointments

a) Dr Sharmila Mary Joseph K, a 1997 batch Kerala cadre IAS, presently working as deputy secretary in the department of higher education, has been appointed as deputy secretary i n the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) for the balance period of her central deputation tenure i.e. up to July 11, 2014).

b) Suresh Kunhi Mohammed, a 1992 batch Karnataka cadre IPS, who was recommended for Central deputation by the ministry of home affairs, has been selected for appointment as director in the ministry of health and family welfare, New Delhi.

c) Veena Tamta Bhatia, a 1988 batch IOFS, has been selected for appointment as director in the department of bio-technology under the ministry of science and technology.

d) The government has approved a proposal for discontinuation of the Managing Directors of SAIL Steel Plants at Durgapur, Rourkela, Bokar, Bhilai and IISCO from the SAIL Board and selection and appointments of plant Managing Directors by the SAIL Board as is in case for below Board level appointments. The Managing Directors would now be re-designated as Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of respective plants in the existing pay-scales.

RTI Fellowships

The government is looking for applications for 5 RTI Fellowships of Rs 2 lakh each. For details, log on to: www.jobcorridor.com 

CVC drafts national anti-corruption document recommending action by government, judiciary, media etc.

THE Central Vigilance Commission has formulated a draft anti-corruption strategy that will become a dynamic process with an in-built mechanism of an annual review. Named as National Anti Corruption Strategy or NACS, the policy document recommends a set of action to be taken by the government and a set of action by the political entities, judiciary, media, citizens, private sector and civil society organizations. The proposed policy aims at conscious reshaping of the country’s national integrity system.

Meanwhile, CVC is organizing a seminar in New Delhi on Thursday on “Empowering Citizens to Combat Corruption” on the occasion of the international anti-corruption day which is celebrated on December 9 every year. PJ Thomas, Central Vigilance Commissioner will deliver the inaugural address. On this occasion, the project “VIGEYE” will be launched which is a more user-friendly platform for interface between the CVC and those citizens who are harassed by corruption.

India has recently witnessed a series of scams including the Commonwealth Games scam and 2G Spectrum Scam. Supreme Court has also taken up a PIL challenging the appointment of PJ Thomas, the head of the anti-corruption watchdog CVC, as a two decades old case has been haunting him.

Action and Appointments

a) Government has nominated M Shashidhar Reddy, presently a member of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) as Vice Chairman of NDMA. Dr Muzaffar Ahmad, former Director, Health Services, Jammu and Kashmir has been appointed as a member of NDMA.

b) Eight envoys presented their credentials to the President of India Pratibha Devisingh Patil at a ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Wednesday. The envoys were Oleksandr D. Shevchenko, the ambassador of Ukraine, Dembo Badjie, the high commissioner of Gambia, Mrs Khadija Radman Mohamed Gahnem, the ambassador of Yemen, Stewart Beck, the high commissioner of Canada, Dr Ali Abd-al-Aziz al-Isawi, the ambassador of Libya, Dr Samuel Kaveto Mbambo, the high commissioner of Namibia, Peep Jahilo, the ambassador of Estonia and Lucio Amati, the ambassador of San Marino.

c) The government has disclosed grants-in-aid provided by Central Government to Sanskriti school. According to a reply to a Parliament question, grants-in-aid provided by Central Government was Rs 1.87 crore in 2007-08, whereas it was Rs 92.3 lakh in 2008-09. However, no grants were made in 2009-10 and during the first eight months of the current fiscal. In Sanskriti, 60 percent seats are reserved for the wards of civil services including the defence cadre and allied services, 15 percent for the wards of the economically weaker sections and 5 percent for the wards of the staff.

CBI raids residences of Behura, Chandolia and two other officials

INDIA'S top investigating agency CBI on Wednesday raided the residences of four bureaucrats in addition to Delhi and Chennai premises of former telecom minister A Raja in connection with the 2G spectrum scam.

The bureaucrats whose residences were raided in wee hours on Wednesday are Siddhartha Behura, former telecom secretary and 1973 batch retired IAS, RK Chandolia, a 1984 batch Indian Economic Service, K Sridhar, Member Telecom Commission and A K Srivastava, former Deputy Director General in the department of telecom, according to reports quoting CBI sources.

Behura, who is now working as chairman of C-DoT Alcatel-Lucent Research Centre based in Chennai post retirement, had claimed that when he joined office as telecom secretary on January 1, 2008, all decisions with regard to granting of licences were taken either verbally or on files. The licences were announced on January 8, 2008.

But Behura is considered to be in good books of A Raja even before he had joined telecom ministry. Behura was an additional secretary in environment ministry between 2005 and 2007 when A Raja was the environment minister.

RK Chandolia, who had served as private secretary to A Raja was later promoted as economic adviser in the department of telecommunications who had reportedly played a key role in appointments in the state-owned firms like Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL). Also, it’s alleged that he was reporting to the DoT secretary directly which many say is a clear proof of jumping the official structure.

Both Chandolia and A K Srivastava were shifted out of the DoT after Kapil Sibal was given charge as telecom minister.

The CBI raids is a part of an investigation of a Rs 22,000 crore telecom scam. The investigating agency had earlier registered a case on October 21, 2009 against unknown Department of Telecom officials and private persons and companies connected to the doling out of telecom licences.

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Action and Appointments

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the following appointments:

a) Ms Naini Jayaseelan, a 1980 batch UT cadre IAS as adviser, Planning Commission in the rank of additional secretary.

b) Arbind Prasad, a 1980 batch Bihar cadre IAS, presently joint secretary, ministry of social justice and empowerment as advisor, Planning Commission in the rank of additional secretary.

c) Shyam S.Agarwal, a 1980 batch Rajasthan cadre IAS, as additional secretary, department of commerce on in-situ basis, by temporarily upgrading the post.

d) Upendra Tripathy, a 1980 batch Karnataka cadre IAS, as additional secretary in cabinet secretariat, on in-situ basis, by temporarily upgrading the post.

e) Nandita Chatterjee, a 1980 batch West Bengal cadre IAS, as DDG, CAPART, under the Department of Rural Development, in the rank of additional secretary, on in-situ basis, by temporarily upgrading the post.

f) Satish Balram Agnihotri, a 1980 batch Orissa cadre IAS, as Director General of Shipping in the rank of additional secretary.