It never got better for central government employees. The government, in a bid to inculcate a spirit of adventure and risk-taking, has concocted a plan which will drain it of more funds in addition to the recommendations of the Seventh Pay Commission. The plan is to send employees on ski-trips, rock climbing, trekking, wind surfing, snorkeling and any other outdoor sporting activity that would force them to confront their worst fears. The two reasons cited for forcing babus out of their offices and into the open is the alarming stress levels and the sedentary lifestyle, which clearly isn't helping anyone. The bill for all this activity will be borne by the exchequer, which by extension is the common man who rarely gets the opportunity to go skiing in the sylvan surroundings of Gulmarg. There is no guarantee that all this outdoor fun will work for the government or the 1.27 billion people served by it. Fitness is the in thing and outdoor activity is a pleasant way of beating stress, but when the rest of India has to pay through their noses to stay fit and stress-free, why should babus get it free-of-cost? Perhaps, in government, there is something know as a 'free lunch'.
Loans from public money
Of late there is a focus on loans given by public banks and financial institutions who are custodians of public money. After a legal battle and lots of effort, SBI has managed to declare Vijay Mallya a willful defaulter. The road to recovery of the money is going to be even harder and longer. The barge owners who took loans in the good days of the mining boom are basically asking that their loans be forgotten.Some years back, we had approached SBI for an increase in our…
