NK'S POST

NK SINGH When Kamal Nath was appointed the minister of state for environment in 1991, one of his first acts was to quit smoking. "This is my contribution to environment," he told me then, with a smile. He had a hard time keeping up that promise at the age of 44. Travelling with him soon after that, I noticed him popping up nicotine-laced chewing gums to ward off the craving. But he never succumbed.  Nath is known to take up every task entrusted to him with single-minded pursuit.  Just imagine him landing in the wilderness of rural Chhindwara in 1980 a 33-year-old young man from a prosperous business family, an alumnus of the elite Doon School, a product of Delhi's upper class five-star culture, a buddy of Sanjay Gandhi, the most powerful man in the country.  When the Congress decided to field him from Chhindwara in 1980, Nath was a stark outsider. His detractors decried him as a Doon School crony of Sanjay Gandhi who had been thrust upon MP.  but the...

NK SINGH Perched atop Bhopal’s Shamla Hills, the CM House is indeed MP’s power centre. Just across the road, overlooking the picturesque Upper Lake, stands another colonial bungalow that has emerged as the state’s second power centre. Only a few feet of asphalt divide the two high profile neighbours. State Congress president Kamal Nath, the occupant of the other house, has pitched a make-shift tent in its sprawling campus. It is to accommodate the perennial stream of visitors. The campus resembles a mela ground. Those making a beeline to the house include political leaders, not necessarily from the Congress party, business tycoons and journalists. Some government officials are also in touch.  Brisk Efficiency Once you enter Nath’s private office, however, the atmosphere changes. The area is pulsating with efficiency. Visitors are ushered in, business is conducted briskly and before they realise it, the next appointee enters to take their place. Nath, 71, has...

His Master’s Choice N.K. SINGH It is a measure of the intriguing nature of the leadership struggle in the Congress(I) that nobody is talking about the plans and priorities of the new Chief Minister Digvijay Singh for Madhya Pradesh. Scant attention has been paid to his announcement to review all the controversial decisions of the BJP government. Or that he plans action against government employees who were involved with the activities of the VHP and Bajrang Dal and the demolition of the Babri Masjid.  Or that he has asked the chief secretary to formulate a government policy to fulfil the party's poll promises. Instead, questions keep recurring about the curious set of events that led to his surprise election as the leader of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP). Did Digvijay become the chief minister against the wishes of his mentor, Arjun Singh? Or, as the rival camp suggests, has the crafty Singh succeeded in his strategy of installing his protege in power...

नरेन्द्र कुमार सिंह मध्यप्रदेश के मुख्यमंत्री शिवराज सिंह चौहान को घोषणाएं करते रहना अच्छा लगता है। उनके राजनैतिक विरोधियों ने उन्हें " घोषणावीर " की उपाधि बख़्श रखी है। इस उपाधि से उनकी छवि कुछ कुछ डॉन क्विकजोट जैसी बनती है । चमचमाते जिरहबख्तर से लैस एक योद्धा, जो अपनी घोषणाओं का तम्बू तानकर अपनी रियाया को तमाम दुख तकलीफ से बचाने के लिए निकल पड़ा है। एक नमूना देख लीजिए। अपने कार्यकाल के पहले दस वर्षों में वे 8000 घोषणाएं कर चुके हैं। औसतन दो घोषणाएं रोज. अपनी गद्दी को जरा मजबूत पाकर पिछले तीन वर्षों में इधर उन्होंने अपनी रफ्तार थोड़ी धीमी कर दी है और इस दौरान महज़ 1500 घोषणाएं ही कीं। औसत प्रतिदिन १.3 घोषणा  का रहा। मुख्यमंत्री  महोदय जैसे ही किसी सार्वजनिक मंच की सीढ़ियां चढ़ते हैं, वल्लभ भवन में बैठे अधिकारियों के दिल की धड़कनें बढ़ जाती हैं। वे किसी भी अनहोनी के लिए अपनी कमर कसने लगते हैं। उन्हें सरकारी बजट की गम्भीर रूप से ऐसी तैसी करती हुई घोषणाएं अक्सर लाउडस्पीकर पर ही सुनाई जाती हैं। शिवराज जी को अपनी उद्घोषणाओं की लत लग चुकी है। वे उठते-बैठते, सोते-जागते भ...

MP Chief Minister rarely travels by road So they call him helicopter wale mamaji नरेन्द्र कुमार सिंह आओ बच्चो खेलें खेल चिड़िया उड़ , तोता उड़ , मामा उड़ ...... मध्यप्रदेश की सरकार ने हाल ही में 2 लाख 20 हज़ार रुपये प्रति घण्टे की दर से एक जेट हवाई जहाज एक साल के लिए किराये पर लेने का फैसला किया है। सरकार ने इस जहाज को हर महीने कम से कम 30 घण्टे की उड़ान भरने की गारंटी दी है । यानी सरकार जहाज के मालिक को 66 लाख रुपये हर महीने देगी , चाहे उस महीने उसका जहाज एक घण्टा भी हवा में उड़े न उड़े। हवाई उड़ान के मामलों में हमारे प्रदेश में 1999 में बने कानून कायदे कहते हैं कि आकस्मिक हालात में किसी भी प्राइवेट प्लेन को किराए पर लिया जा सकता है। नियमावली में ये आकस्मिक हालात साफ साफ दर्ज हैं। जैसे राज्य का अपना विमान उड़ने की हालत में न हो या अगले छह घण्टों तक उसके उपलब्ध हो पाने की संभावना न हो या फिर कोई प्राकृतिक आपदा के चलते इमरजेंसी आन खड़ी हो। यों सरकार के पास उसका अपना हवाई बेड़ा है। इसमें एक प्लेन और तीन हेलीकाप्टर शामिल हैं। हाजिर भाव में इन चारों की कीमत क...

Fasal Beema Par Jumlebbaazi Ka Kahar NK SINGH Published in Tehelka (Hindi) of 31 Oct 17 Email: nksexpress@gmail.com Tweets @nksexpress

Why every five hours a farmer commits suicide in MP? NK SINGH Madhya Pradesh was the first State in the country to implement NDA Government’s much-touted Prime Minister Crop Insurance Scheme. At the time of its launch last year, farmers were promised the moon. Politicians made them feel that if they buy this insurance, it will be panacea to all their problems. Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself came to MP to launch the scheme at a massive function organised in Sehore, the home district of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. Explaining salient features of the scheme to farmers Modi declared at Sehore: “It is a historic decision; Even if he happens to be the only farmer who has suffered losses (in that village), he will still get benefit of the insurance scheme.” It turned out to be just another jumlebazi. Buoyed by the Prime Minister’s promise, 36.40 lakh farmers bought insurance for their kharif crop last year. Their heightened expectations were crushed to gro...

MP CM thinks roads in his State are better than US NK SINGH Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan believes that roads in Madhya Pradesh are better than US. His statement is not a case of political rhetoric. The man who has ruled MP for 12 years seems to sincerely believe that. After declaring in Washington DC that roads in MP are better than US, he saw people at the meeting smiling. He grinned, "I am not saying it just for the sake of it” and went on to explain how his government had constructed 1.75 lakh km of roads in the State. His Bhakts also believe that MP roads are superior to US. As the CM’s statement triggered an avalanche of jibes on Twitter, his party and Government rose in spirited defence. A spokesman of MP BJP released a series to photographs to prove that roads in MP are indeed better. The state Government too released photographs to counter the ridicule. It contrasted the State's swanky looking roads with potholed roads in New York and Los Angeles. C...