new delhi grapevine snippets

NEW DELHI GRAPEVINE SNIPPETS

embargoed for publication on Monday

February 14, 2011

Thanks
R Rajagopalan

Delhi

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Karunanidhi request to Dr Manmohan Singh is not being

attended to. That to appoint a close relative of DMK leader

who is an educationist, as Member of the Union Public Service

Commission.DMK is irritated over the delay by PMO. 

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Former Union Finance Minister Ashok Chawla, a Gujarat cadre
IAS officer who retired January-end, is tipped to become an
information commissioner in the Central Information Commission
constituted under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.
The Commission headed by Satyananda Mishra has five vacancies as the
Act provides for up to 10 commissioners but at present there are only
five, namely Annapurna Dixit (62), a former officer in the India
Country Office of the United Nations Children’s Fund, Shailesh Gandhi
(63), an entrepreneur activist, M L Sharma (61), former CBI special
director and Rajasthan cadre IPS, Deepak Sandhu (62), former PM's
media adviser and former Principal Information Officer, PIB, and
Sushma Singh (61), a former I&B Secretary and a retired IAS officer).

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Good news for 1978 and 1981 IAS officers. Process for their

promotions as Secretaries and Additional Secretaries have since

begun. Cabinet Secretary has constituted an Eminent Persons Group

to submit panel by July 2011. And the promotions will be approved

by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet by December 2011.

The empanelment drill takes atleast one year's time.

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T R Baalu was in and out of DMK general council meet

held recently in Chennai. This gave an impression to

many of the senior leaders that Baalu maintains a 

best liaison with UPA2 leadership and also with PMO.

But it turned out to be too personal. T R Baalu was 

talking to a Union Minister about the pending clearance

for his son's King Chemicals factory. DMK MPs are

upset, as the cat was out of the bag, when a Union Minister

shared this joke with the DMK MPs.

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Egypt commotions resulted in the cancellation of Oman Sultan Quabbas

visit to New Delhi to receive Jawaharlal Nehru International award.

Diplomats are serious over sudden cancellation and relate to

Oil diplomacy.

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ends