VGA my friends at IRI. I had a dream last night which revolved round 2 momentous but otherwise unrelated events. EVENT 1 was that one of our admins, a guy named Zahaib, had joined Govt. service. However this was not something which merited even a cursory reference leave alone a BREAKING NEWS item in the TV channels. However EVENT 2 became the staple diet of all the national media as it triggered off a raging national debate on a major innovation by the govt. The recommendation by Mclusky, a US-based world major in the field of CONSULTANCY SERVICES, for CLIENTS WHO KNOW EXACTLY WHAT IS TO BE DONE WHEN & WHERE, BUT WANT SOMEBODY ELSE TO TELL THEM THAT FOR AN ASTRONOMICAL FEE, had just been submitted. The recommendations were however of less relevance to the media in comparison to the consultancy charges, which popularly acquired the sobriquets of CONSULTANTGATE or...
more... FEESCAM . A focal point of the discussion on all panels was the service terms and conditions and CTC of the new recruit at the consultant’s Corporate Office in New York. She, an otherwise UNDESERVING candidate would have remained unnoticed but for the fact that she was the daughter of the Minister for Administrative Reforms, whose dept had engaged the services of Mclusky. But woh kissa phir kabhi.
Now be that as it may, one of the GRANDIOSE changes initiated by the govt. following the recommendations, was the INTRODUCTION of the HUMAN RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT(HRD) CULTURE in its offices, in terms of which it was now CUSTOMARY, NAY, MANDATORY, for HODs to greet employees on their BIRTHDAYS. While the HRD concept was kickstarted by the Honble Minister through a series of inaugurals in 5-star hotels all over the country, in the departments where it really mattered, it was by way of an OFFICE MEMORANDUM, which read thus “ It has been decided at the instance of the Hon’ble President, that the HRD CULTURE will be introduced in all departments of the govt. with immediate effect. All departmental heads and employees serving under them are instructed to take note of the salient features of the scheme and ensure meticulous compliance with the letter and spirit of these guidelines. Any instance of contravention of the said directives, will be dealt with strictly in accordance with the penal provisions of the relevant service rules applicable to the transgressor concerned”. That the language, tone and tenor of the memorandum was the very ANTITHESIS of the HRD CONCEPT had apparently escaped everyone’s attention. (To be continued)
PS. 1) I have sought the necessary prior permission from Zahaib to use his name in this post of mine and he has graciously consented to my request.
2) This post has no reference to the Govt. of India and/or persons holding offices in it. As a matter of fact I have just used the word Govt. and not India anywhere.
3) This is an attempt at creative writing and lateral thinking and does not purport to target anyone in or outside IRI.
4) This post is MEANT PRIMARILY FOR THOSE WITH A SENSE OF HUMOUR AND AN ABILITY TO TAKE THINGS IN A LIGHTER VEIN.
