New Delhi, Nov 15 (IANS) Austerity is not a new mantra for Railway Minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, famous for her cotton jhola, crumpled cotton saris and trademark hawai chappals. But there is more to it than meets the eye.
Expounding on the virtues of minimalism, Mamata pointed out recently that it was the best weapon to destroy opponents, particularly political adversaries.

It is well known that Didi always leads by example, travelling economy class and even paying for snacks while at office. What is not known is that she owes her simple and sober way of life to former prime minister P.V. Narasimha Rao who had also given a similar call for austerity in 1992. At that time Mamata was the leader of the youth Congress.

The Trinamool Congress chief pointed out at a function hosted by her colleague, Mukul Roy, that the lessons learnt at that time had stood her in good stead all these years, including in the elections.

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American visiting cards - made in India

Delhi is a favourite place for US officials to zip off to during the winter months. And it is not just for the relatively pleasant weather or the rising profile of India in international affairs.

Besides the important meetings with officials at South Block and other government offices, many American diplomats have made it a point to include two other stops in their Indian itinerary - a visit to the tailor and the printer.

Yes, when US officials leave Delhi, their luggage is usually heavier with extra suits and high quality visiting cards - both of which are many times more expensive in their own country.

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Metro man is no media man

Delhi Metro chief E. Sreedharan has always held that certain metro developments are best kept away from the electronic media. Perhaps that explains why when the hike in fares was announced, cameras were strictly off limits at Metro Bhavan.

A day later he felt the heat when all media channel representatives sported black ribbons on their arms in protest at the opening of Delhi Metro’s Noida line. Some of the officials were red-faced and so were the ministers.

“Sreedharan sir, do we have your permission to switch on the cameras? We are well aware that we are not welcome by you,” quipped a cameraman. An embarrassed Sreedharan, however, put up a brave show and assured mediapersons that they could indeed cover the event.

He also tried to justify his decision not to call in the electronic media for the fare hike, as the print media was enough to get the information across to the public.

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One man-one post? Sonia in no hurry

Though many of her own general secretaries dislike the infringement of the one person-one post norm, Congress president Sonia Gandhi has shown no hurry to relieve ministers of their charge at the All India Congress Committee.

Ghulam Nabi Azad, Mukul Wasnik, Veerapa Moily, A.K. Antony, V. Narayanswamy and Prithviraj Chavan continue to be in charge of states even as they shoulder heavy ministerial responsibilities.

Some of the general secretaries looking after only organisational work have reservations over the current arrangement but they cannot express their views openly.

In private conversations, however, they say that the party leaders should emulate Rahul Gandhi who has chosen to stick to one task - that of general secretary - though he was offered a ministerial berth.

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Chidambaram’s pick: India’s ‘free air’

Home Minister P. Chidambaram has his own way of answering problematic questions. At a recent roundtable conference, comparisons were being drawn between China and India that would normally make policymakers uncomfortable. But not him.

“Yes, we find it difficult to add 12,000 MW additional capacity each year, when China adds 100,000 MW. Yes, we have problems in land acquisition. We have vigilant courts. We have public interest litigations. None of this is in China,” Chidambaram said, clearly hinting that the Chinese state ushered in reforms with a tough hand, not paying much heed to rights issues.

But he added quickly: “I am not saying we emulate China’s system. I am quite happy to breathe free air!”

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Why Azad eschews mobile phones

There are several tech savvy ministers in Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s cabinet, some who like to tweet with their BlackBerry while others are obsessed with their smart phones. But Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad is perhaps a rare minister who doesn’t even carry a mobile phone.

At a recent function, Azad made known his displeasure for the cellular phone and told scribes the best way to stay in touch with him was through his personal secretary. The buzz is that Azad suffers from “tech phobia”.

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Dikshit rules Congress charts

If the Congress had a pecking order of chief ministers, Sheila Dikshit may well be on top at the moment. Dikshit, who led the party to a spectacular hat-trick victory in last year’s Delhi assembly polls, is a sought after campaigner for the party.

She is the only chief minister to have been included in the 19-member organising committee to celebrate the 125th annivarsary of the party. Preparations are already under way for the quasquicentennial event and the party will be organising different programmes throughout 2010.

While Y.S. Rajshekahar Reddy, a chief minister with considerable clout at 10, Janpath, died in a helicopter crash in September this year, Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda has lost some favour with Congress president Sonia Gandhi because of the party’s less-than-expected performance in last month’s assembly polls. So Dikshit it is.

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India’s SPG moves with the times

India’s Special Protection Group (SPG) - the elite force that protects the prime minister, former prime ministers and their immediate kin - is going hi-tech. It is all set to acquire gizmos that can detect electronic circuits commonly found in IEDs and radio transmitters.

Tenders have already been invited for the procurement of 10 Non Linear Junction Detectors, a top-of-the-line device that costs over $350,000 each. The detector, which has a mounted antenna and a control unit, finds potential eavesdropping devices by flooding a suspect area or target with a spectrally pure microwave radio frequency signal.

Elite agencies like the US FBI and Britain’s MI 5 have this contraption and many within the government also felt that the SPG had to move with the times.

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Home minister’s hunger pangs

Hearing is obviously likely to take a hit when one addresses a press conference on an empty stomach and that too when it is past lunch time. Recently, when Home Minister P. Chidambaram was asked for more information about terror suspect David Coleman Headley, he started smiling.

“Idli, I heard you say idli. That’s why we should not meet before lunch,” he said, amid guffaws among the gathered scribes.

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