Darkness Descends At Income Tax… Event
Now, now… before your imagination runs riot, this has nothing to do with the proverbial darkness.
The auditorium was jam-packed. Over 600 officials from the Income Tax Department of Gujarat were attending a cultural event to celebrate 75 Years of Independence. As soon as the chief guest, Commissioner of Police Sanjay Srivastava, PCCIT Ravinder Kumar and Chief CIT-1 Satinder Singh Rana lit the lamp, the lights went off!
It seemed like the apocalyptic scenes from Hindi movies. In the darkness, mobile phone torches sprung and at the stage end of the auditorium, seen were silhouettes running helter-skelter trying. The lights returned after 20 minutes but… just as Amdavad’s CP took to the podium to share his speech…. the lights went out!! Now, amidst stifled sneers, panic also ran high. fuelled by suspicions of deliberate foul play.
This time around when the lights returned, it stayed on. CP Srivastava finally was able to deliver his speech and the cultural programme went underway.
The highlight however remains…. the beautiful cultural show. Of course!
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Ab ballebaazi cheez hi hai aisi…
How does one infer this? Die-hard sporting fans not allowed into a stadium for the IPL Finals or government officials and IPS officers having to face aam aadmi pangs because they “reportedly did not have the ticket.”
Pooh! Kya din aa gayen hain? So what if they did not have the tickets? Tch tch.. the poor becharas were harangued by security officers. Aadhar cards were wielded to show they were AMC officials and when that did not help either, calls were made. Chalo alls well that ends well. Some calls worked and the sporting buffs were let in. They were also allowed to partake in the dinner reserved post the match for high-profile guests. Khel khatam paisa hazam.
But our hearts go out to this poor IPS officer who turned his back the moment he was denied entry for not showing a valid ticket. His sharafat was of no use. He’s been ranting about how he had to fend his own dinner that day.
Suggested illustration: Stadium in the background. IPL Finals written somewhere. Security perspiring saying yeh nahin chalega… two/three fat officials saying… line laga… jugaad kar
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Swachta Abhiyan At Sachivalaya?
The backbone of official work lies in the General Administration Department. It is counted among the most important regulatory departments of the state government and looks after recruitment, training, career development, staff welfare and other portfolios.
However, while leaving no stone unturned in carrying out its duties, the department, housed across five floors, has turned a deaf ear to the call of…. nature.
Washrooms on each floor have been under renovation since a while now and the staff is forced to run to the adjoining departments to use washroom facilities. A justifiably annoyed woman staffer shared: “Senior IAS officer Rajiv Gupta and additional chief secretary AK Rakesh sit in this building. They have their personal washrooms. However, mid-level officials like us have to rush well in time to the other department. Often, the washroom is dirty from overuse, not to forget the long queues to get into it.”
To add to this, this department stands right opposite the state chief minister’s office in New Sachivalaya, Gandhinagar. GAD runs the show at the Sachivalaya.
But swachhta abhiyan must begin from home, right?
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Satya Ka Pujari
This big building in Gandhinagar is known to house offices of IPS names. One section also houses a federal agency known to conduct raids on liquor, gambling and racketeering. Such vices are known to be contagious and you know… addictive. It is human… you see it you want to give it a go.
Now in the midst of all this stands out an honest officer who does not yield to temptation. Remember: yielding is the sin, never the temptation.
The satyavaadi, realising that he cannot do much to change their ways and not wanting to step in the filth himself, has chosen to turn a blind eye. Some even say that the notorious officers of the Gujarat Police Force take advantage of him.
Ab chalo, at least he did not join them to beat them. Let’s hope some divine light shows the worldly-wise officers also the way.
