THIRD EYE: Twirls at Culture Ministry

Noted Mohiniattam danseuse Bharati Shivaji has often graced the stage in India and abroad but of late she is frequenting Shastri Bhawan, which houses Ministry of Culture. Reason: while she staged a series of performances last year in Japan for the Festival of India, she hasn’t been paid the amount that was agreed upon. The frequent babu-reshuffles in the ministry mean that Bharathi has had to go explain to the ministry repeatedly on how she has been paid less than her due.

In Tune with Environment

The Environment ministry may often be at the receiving end for the alleged doling out of green clearances but the official at the helm, Secretary Ashok Lavasa, is quite a nature-lover himself. An avid photographer, images of stunning landscapes and wildlife that he has captured on his personal cameras are displayed across his office. While the insides of his office carry smaller images from a digital camera, the high-resolution works outside were snapped on professional SLRs.

Traffic Cops at Odds

Before the odd-even vehicle number formula was launched on Delhi roads on January 1, Delhi Traffic Police personnel were given a crash course in mathematics. They had to be explained the concept of odd and even numbers. A senior police official revealed that most of the personnel were not aware of the primary-level concept and had to be equipped with the knowledge before they could challan offenders.

MyGov Greetings on eWay

Over 17 lakh e-greetings on various occasions have been sent by government servants and citizens over the last one year using crowd-sourced card templates on the Prime Minister’s MyGov platform. MyGov on the last count had nearly 450+ cards available in 40 categories of greetings. One can add an audio message, a customised text message or even one of PM’s slogans on the e-greeting and schedule its sending too in advance.