Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh):
Race for CS
It is a generally accepted truth, that all IAS officers crave for the post of Chief Secretary (CS) and that only one of them can hit the jackpot. This is the reason that there is always a fierce competition among them for this coveted post. Such a contest is again going on in the state. When the present CS completes his tenure on November 30, the assembly election will take place in the state, so the officers have begun to make efforts to get this position after the election. An Additional Chief Secretary-rank officer is reportedly trying his luck through a retired officer close to a former chief minister. He wants to see himself as CS, should the Congress form the next government. The ACS himself is on good terms with the former chief minister, and the former officer is also seen with him. The retired officer is helping the Congress to arrange funds for the election. Therefore, if the Congress forms the next government, he will enjoy a lot of power as he used to do, and this is the reason that the ACS is counting on him.
Love for MP
A former Chief Secretary (CS) plans to return to Bhopal and settle in the city. After his retirement, the former CS held an important position in MP, but he was removed from the post after the BJP returned to power. He felt so put down that he packed up his bag and baggage and left for his home state, but there, too, he is feeling like a fish out of water. Since he remained in MP throughout his career, most of his friends are in the state. Ergo, he is getting ready to bid goodbye to his home state and return to MP. It is heard that he will shift to Bhopal after the election. Because of his close contact with a powerful Congress leader, the former CS is waiting for the election outcome. Once he was close to the present Chief Minister, too, but because his relationship with the latter had soured, he left the state.
One crore!
The ‘rate card’ of a Principal Secretary (PS)-rank officer, holding an important position, is Rs 1 crore. The department, where Sahib is working, handles many key issues. Since many of those cases are connected to politicians, there is political pressure on the department. The minister also mounts pressure on the officials to get his work done. Similarly, there are senior politicians who force the officials to do their work. Despite all the pressures, the officer never gives up his share of the carrot. The officer has an aide, through whom he tells those who want to get some work done, that whatever one wants to give may do so, but Sahib will not accept any amount less than Rs 1 crore. If Sahib does not get his share of sweetener, he simply puts a remark in the file and, to get his word done, the person concerned moves from one place to another and, finally, parts with the dough that the officer demands. The officer is investing the money in his home state where he plans to set up a big project.
Feeling dejected
An officer looks dejected, though he has been given an important position in a recent administrative reshuffle before the assembly election. He pleaded for staying back in the city where he was posted. His first point was that he was out of the purview of the rule of posting at one place for three years before the election. He sent in his request to the higher-ups in the government, but nobody paid any heed to his alibis. Then he tried to get a posting in city. He wanted to swap his position with another officer holding the same post in the same city. He lobbied for it through a few powerful RSS leaders, but nobody listened to him, and the officer was posted in the state capital. Though he holds an important position, his being unhappy about leaving his town is evident on his countenance.
Down in the mouth
One cannot be both happy and sad after getting the collectorship of a district for the first time, but it has happened to an officer promoted to IAS cadre. The officer has been made collector of a district after the recent administrative reshuffle. Since the district is very far as well as unimportant, he is not very happy about his posting. He wanted to become the collector of a district near the state capital, and expected that the post of collector of one or two districts near the state capital would be vacant before the election. So, he yearned for getting the command of one such district. It has so far been the practice, that whosoever is posted in the Chief Minister’s secretariat, gets the command of any district near the state capital, but this norm was not followed in his case. So, he has been sent to a faraway district. He, however, believes that if the present government returns to power, he will be posted in a district near Bhopal.
Hot under the collar
The farewell party of three IPS officers has recently been in discussion. One of the three officers kept away from the party. Since he is angry with his colleagues as well as with the government, he gave a wide berth to the farewell party. Now, he is waiting for an opportune time to square with those who would harass him, but people in the corridors of power say the officer himself was responsible for what had come off him. His locking horns with a powerful IAS officer set off problems. Apart from that, there were talks over the absence of a close relative of the retired officer from the farewell party. The relative of the officer is well-behaved and seen in many functions organised by IPS officers, so his absence from the party has spawned debates.
