Third eye: Few takers for PM's pet initiative ‘Sankalp’

Problem of Plenty

The tourism ministry is grappling with a new problem of too many visitors at heritage sites. On December 25, over 2,000 tourists were turned away from Taj Mahal, while 4,000 had to be turned away from the Red Fort on January 1. Minister Mahesh Sharma is learnt to have been informed about the issues and has called for meetings with officials from both culture, tourism departments.

Big Brother is Watching

While only a select few among the BJP cadres are in government, it has not stopped some party functionaries from carrying their VIP status on their sleeves. BJP spokesperson Bizay Sonkar Shastri makes it loud and clear via his mobile caller tune that the dialing person is calling a “VIP number” and the call may be under “surveillance”. However, it doesn’t clarify the reason for the ‘surveillance’.

Inequality in the Capital

Having just vowed the audience at a recent Litfest in Mumbai, French economist Prof Thomas Piketty will later this month touch down the Capital, literally. On invitation from the ICSSR, Piketty will be delivering a lecture on January 21 at JNU. Piketty will hold forth on the subject ‘Reflections about Inequality and Capital in the 21st Century’.

Few Takers for ‘Sankalp’

With not many retiring employees opting for PM’s pet initiatives like ‘Sankalp’ and ‘Anubhav’ — the former involves signing up for voluntary work and latter leaving a note on one’s achievements in service — MoS in PMO Jitendra Singh has decided to hold a workshop next month at Vigyan Bhawan with employees who are retiring in next one year.