Longing for weightage
An IAS officer, though holding an important position in the administration, is not given as much weight in the office as he should have been accorded. The office the Sahib is heading is very significant, but he is not getting any value there. It has happened, after a politician did not get good feedback on him. As he has already been posted in the office, he cannot be deprived of his position, but the politician has confined the officer only to the routine work of the office. The bureaucrat, too, is unhappy about his present position, because though the Sahib is senior, he is working under a principal secretary whom he has to report for duty. For the officer, doing this is like consuming a bowl of soup rendered inedible by its brininess. This Sahib is accustomed to work independently, but now, he has to sit in the office for a long time. So, he is paying attention to another department he has been assigned to.
Resorting to religion
A retired IAS officer, considering that he was about to be rehabilitated, has resorted to religion, as that did not happen. Following the footsteps of Sadguru Jaggi Vasudev, he set out on Narmada Parikrama, riding a motorcycle. He has become highly spiritual. He expected that the government would give him an important assignment after his retirement. He has always been on good terms with the higher-ups. So, everyone in the corridors of power believed that the officer would have no problem in getting a post-retirement job. As the officer was working on a project related to the Chief Minister’s home town, everyone thought he would be deployed in the Chief Minister’s Office in place of an officer who had passed away. His name was doing the rounds for another post, but as he was not rehabilitated, he is feeling done-up. Now, he has taken shelter in religion.
Flirty boss
There are chinwags about a flirty Principal Secretary (PS). About this officer it is said that he is close to female colleagues. His dalliance with women, however, has not got in the way of his working. Else, he would have been in trouble. Whenever a female officer enters his room, he continues to talk to her and does not let her get up. His male colleagues are worried, since the PS does not give them enough weight. He seems to be fond of a particular female officer. Because of her proximity with the PS, she has had a lot of say in the day-to-day functioning of the department. There has never been any dearth of such romantic officers and their lovey-dovey stories. The PS is gradually becoming one of them. Because of his closeness with female colleagues, other officers in the department are angry with him.
Officer’s popularity
A state service officer, elevated to the rank of IAS and posted to a district as collector, has become very popular. The collector has already got the Chief Minister’s appreciation, and now, a former chief minister has become an admirer of this officer. During his trip to the district, the former chief minister acclaimed the officer’s way of working. Nevertheless, such compliments have generated anger among other officers who say the collector works less and speaks more. This is the reason that the politicians are impressed by him. Despite the resentment of his colleagues, the government holds the collector in high esteem. Ergo, before the Election Commission puts the model code of conduct into operation, the Sahib may get an important district. During his career, the collector got field assignments many times, besides he held important positions in Mantralaya. Therefore, he knows how to handle any situation and how to project himself. This is the password of his success.
All eyes on Bhopal
Many bureaucrats are keeping an eye on the post of Bhopal collector. As the officer is set to be transferred before the assembly election, many are yearning to take over as collector of this important district. An officer, who was a collector of a district and recently transferred to a key position in the state capital, has set his eyes on the collectorship. Similarly, a woman officer is longing to become the first female collector of Bhopal. A collector of a district is also eager to come to Bhopal. Many officers have returned to Bhopal from the district where the Sahib is working as collector. The collector of another district has set his eyes on the administrative reshuffle which is likely to take place before the announcement of election dates. His hopes hinge on the higher-ups, with whose help, he has always got higher positions.
Boss’s man
A minister is on good terms with an officer after a long time. The minister, who has been in the cabinet for a long period, has had set-tos with more than a dozen officers. Nevertheless, an IPS officer, posted to the department, is on good terms with the minister. Similarly, the latter had a cordial relation with another IPS officer previously posted to the department. There had been many irregularities during the IPS officer’s posting. The retired IPS officer is still bearing the brunt of those irregularities. The officer, currently posted in the department, is working on a clear formula. He says one must follow one’s boss. According to him, if your boss says it is day, you ditto it: in the same way, if your boss says it is night, you don’t contradict him. The Sahib is maintaining a genial relation with his boss on this formula. As the officer has become a ‘yes man’ of his boss, nobody says anything against the Sahib. The department is organising several big events. Ergo, in the coming days, people in the corridors of power will come to know what makes the minister and the officer maintain warm relations.
