Tyranny of a Babu
Babu working in the secretariat the latter has been left high and dry with his under- the-table machinations having stopped altogether. However, the Babu’s subordinates are bearing the brunt of his plight as they are being coerced into signing on the dotted lines on the files as per his diktats. Placed at the end of their tether, the hapless subordinates are begging to be transferred to other departments to get relief from the Babu dictating terms. They say that they are being forced to make noting on the files as per the sweet will of the Babu. Their logic is clear. They are supposed to make noting in line with the well-laid procedures. They say if their senior finds the noting faulty he can overrule it, given his discretionary power. But to coax them into making noting as per his whim is wrong. What they suspect is that the Babu is trying to ensnare them into a vicious trap so that they too would face consequences along with him in case a probe is ordered.
Flippancy and Reality
By way of an irony, the former Chief Minister Harish Rawat who used to wax eloquent on the ‘exemplary’ service being rendered by the Government Doon Medical College to the common men when he was heading the government was admitted to a private hospital when he was found suffering from blood clotting in his legs. Earlier, a noted singer was shifted to a five- star private facility at the instance of the chief minister himself after he was taken ill. The question is why the VIPs are shying away from the premier government facility which was inaugurated with much fanfare, arousing expectancy among the mass of the people. The fact is that before getting merged in the medical college, the district hospital was in a much better shape. People from across the Garhwal region thronged it and got the treatment they longed for. Now, things are grim despite the state government having built an imposing building and started MBBS course. An acute faculty crunch is dogging the facility as those left are not receiving salary on time. The crisis seemingly perennial, the facility is set to turn into a place of no return, a euphemism used for the burning ghats or graveyards.