Nashik diary

Nashik diary

Sweet nothings...
Some politicians have the knack of saying something sweet just to play for the gallery, no matter how illogical it might seem. One such individual is MLC Nishigandha Mogal. At the foundation stone-laying ceremony of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited's LPG bottling plant at Sinnar, Mogal was the speaker who drew the best applause from the audience.

The reason was because she started explaining how LPG is close to the hearts of housewives and how they use the food cooked on LPG to please their husbands, reaching the heart via the stomach. Mogal then requested the Union Minister of Petroleum, Ram Naik, on the public address system to reduce the price of LPG cylinders. Her demand drew the best applause of the function.

However, Naik, in his speech, which was more down to earth and logical, ruled out the possibility of reducing the price of LPG on grounds that the price of LPG cylinders had been heavily subsidised and that the Government had decided to do away with subsidiestotally by 2002. Mogal listened to Naik's response with a sheepish smile beacause she was already aware about withdrawal of subsidies as Naik had earlier talked to the press about doing away with subsidies, in her presence.

Putting foot in mouth
Former State health minister, Dr Daulatrao Aher, might have to find a cure for his habit of putting his foot in his mouth.

At the same stone-laying ceremony at Sinnar, Dr Aher talked about how the Central and the state governments had always given a step-motherly treatment to Nashik and given preference to the development of cities like Pune.

Interrupting his speech, Ram Naik said that Dr Aher himself was a minister of the Maharashtra government for the past four-and-a-half years. What did he do then?

Bureaucratic arrogance
IT is not only the politicians, but bureaucrats also who indulge in loose talk.

In the general body meeting of the Nashik Municipal Corporation last week, a corporator, Meera Porje, lambasted the civic administrationfor dillydallying over developmental works in her constituency. The response of municipal commissioner Sujata Saunik was highly unbecoming of a responsible IAS official. Saunik snapped, "Do I have a press at my house to print currency notes?"

-- Rakshit Sonawane