Exploding Colour TVs
Karunanidhi -- whose focus at the moment is on Sri Lankan refugees in the 115 camps in 26 districts -- is inclined to give them all free colour TVs. One crore free colour TVs was part of the freebies he promised before he came back to power. Never mind that during their hasty visits, DMK ministers were told by refugees that they want better civic amenities, higher education for their kids and jobs. Nothing like entertainment to divert people from real issues!
Incidentally, with assembly elections about 18 months away, the Karunanidhi government has some more ground -- 40 lakh TVs -- to cover. Since the inception of the scheme on Anna’s birth anniversary on September 15, 2006, the government has given out TVs to 85,15, 343 families at a cost of Rs 2,036.69 crore. But the number of TVs already sanctioned is 1,04,42,500 at a cost of Rs 2267.87 crore.
Amidst this explosion of generosity, a free colour TV literally exploded in Manikudi panchayat near Kumbakonam and almost burnt down a hutment belonging to Sridhar family. Sripriya, Sridhar’s daughter, switched on their TV last Sunday. She had just settled down in her hut, when there was a muffled sound and smoke billowing out of the TV. The spark spread to the roof and threatened to burn the hut down, but neighbours rushed in to douse the flames. Thanjavur collector however denied it was a case of exploding TVs: “The source of the fire was a short circuit that spread through the wire to the TV.” Either way Sripirya lost both the TV and power as well.
The importance of being Azhagiri
M K Azhagiri might be the union minister for chemicals and fertilizers but word is that bureaucrats run his ministry, what with him not getting a handle on the subject. His comfort zone is TN where he is at home and can calls the shots instead of being stuck in Delhi where the culture and language is alien. His father CM Karunanidhi, who as a young man was part of the anti-Hindi agitation several decades ago, has much to answer for. So Azhagiri is a constant visitor to TN and was even a visitor (with his wife, Kanthi and producer-son “Durai” Dayanidhi) recently in Indonesia and Hong Kong. How the austerity drive announced by the PM gave him the leeway to travel and that too with an agenda that had nothing to do with chemicals or fertilizers is another matter. But it seems he was being the ambassador of his father, whose credentials as a protector of Tamils has lost its sheen. So Azhagiri and family spent time with Tamils in these countries during which Azhagiri spoke of Karunanidhi’s achievements and contributions to the Tamil community. He also invited investors promising “single window” clearance.
According to Kanthi, he told the gathering that he did not canvass with his father to be made minister. But since people, particularly bureaucrats “tend to respect you”, he had thrown his hat in the ring. Quite a spin when one hears that Azhagiri is the strongman of Madurai and the south, mind it! Incidentally on his return, his Malaysian Airlines flight got stuck on the Chennai runway for more than 15 minutes soon after landing because the nose wheel of the aircraft did not move, allegedly due to a hydraulic system failure.
Honesty is the best policy
The controversy surrounding the Chief Justice of the Karnataka high court P D Dinakaran refuses to go away. Among the revelations is a couched defence of him by the CM. Baldly put his argument is that if AIADMK’s Jayalalitha could grab land, it's okay for Justice Dinakaran to do it as well, and the only reason he’s picked on is because he’s a Dalit judge.
Amidst all these murky goings-on there are feel good events too. Take the case of another judge – Justice K Chandru, who was among 14 sworn in as permanent judges at the Madras high court this week – who created a buzz when he submitted a sealed envelope to Chief Justice H L Gokhale. “I want to create a convention of judges declaring their assets on the date of their swearing in,” he said. From a parochial viewpoint, it needs to be mentioned that the other Tamil judge, in fact the first judge to do so, was Justice K Kannan of the Punjab and Haryana High Court some weeks ago.
Then again even as a debate is raging over bureaucrats coming upfront about their assets, the collector of Namakkal U Sahayam has declared his assets. Incredibly they include a Rs nine lakh house in Madurai (jointly owned with his wife, Vimala), a bank balance of Rs 7,172 and a liability of a housing loan. “I believe and practice honesty from the day I joined the service and I want every staff in Namakkal collectorate to practice honesty. I feel every public servant should ensure transparency and maintain integrity.”
Wonder if former Jharkhand CM Madhu Koda, who is believed to have amassed Rs 4000 crores, is listening.
Have power, will use
After going through as much as 40 hours of no power on the week-end as it rained buckets in Chennai, city residents will be furious to know that Electricity Minister Arcot Veerawamy used 7,660 units of electricity in August and September at his Annanagar residence. And it was not even summer then. An RTI application by a local paper reveals that he has two domestic and one commercial connection at his residence. And another man who should have conserved, also splurged. The TNEB chairman consumed 1,640 units for the bi-monthly period ending August 2009. Last November when there was a state-wide furore over power cuts, Arcot Veeraswamy told the Tamil Nadu legislative assembly that the bi-monthly electricity bill for Jayalalitha’s Poes Garden residence was Rs 1,02,468. He claimed he was “reluctant” to out her electricity bill but he had no choice because she “had been unfair in making allegations that there was a 20 hour powercut when she herself consumed so much electricity.” He made it a point to emphasise that the CM’s power bill was only Rs 15,000.
The Red Light
Sometimes as information about the excesses of people in authority tumbles out through RTI applications, one wonders whether ignorance was bliss. V Madhav, an MCA graduate, and S Baskar, an engineering graduate, might be asking themselves the same question after being hauled into a Chennai police station because they were proactive. The two, riding on a bike, found a car with a revolving light. Since they had filed an RTI asking for details on cars with revolving beacons they chased the car and caught up with it at a traffic signal. The duo tapped on the driver’s glass and found him and another person who was a security officer in the front seat. While they were quizzing the duo, the man in the back seat – labour judge F Akbar rolled down his window and railed at them. The ‘do you know who I am?’ routine played before the judge made a complaint to the Triplicane police. The police, after finding out the purpose of the duo’s waylaying of the vehicle, let them off with a “warning.” But Madhav argues, “As per government rules, which I got in reply to my RTI query, only high court judges are eligible to have a red beacon light, which they can use when they are on official duty.” Minor transgression you say?
http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?262834
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