Gloves-on approach

Union Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss believes in making sure that what he preaches is put into practice. As part of his anti-smoking campaign, he has taken pains to ensure that the ‘No Smoking’ rule in Parliament is strictly adhered to. Diehard smokers have to confine themselves to a small smoking room in the corner. Ramadoss has now turned his attention to the hygiene standards of the food served to MPs in Parliament. He has even written to the railways, which is in charge of catering in Parliament House, instructing that waiters should wear gloves while serving. Of late, several waiters have been seen carrying gloves in Parliament’s Central Hall. But hardly any of them actually wear them; they are mostly stuffed in their pockets.

Left on his own

Prahlad K. Basu, the recently removed chairman of the Board for Reconstruction of Public Sector Enterprises, gave the media such an exaggerated notion of the importance of his post, that his successor Nitish Sen Gupta may feel rather let down. Actually the chairperson’s is a part-time job, and the only work is to preside over board meetings. There is no salary; there are no perks. Basu had claimed that his job was the equivalent of a minister of state and mentioned it proudly in letters he faxed to numerous universities across the world, soliciting lecture assignments. The board secretariat, however, did not receive any official intimation about the positioning of the chairperson in the government hierarchy. Nor was there any notification in the gazette to this effect.

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