One of the most sought after email IDs these days is that of Ratan Tata. Ever since he has invested in a series of startups, word has got around that all it takes to get Tata’s money is to send him an email.

This newspaper’s reporters have got at least five calls from emerging entrepreneurs last week asking for Tata’s email ID. While the former Tata Group chief has invested in over 10 different ventures until now, he would perhaps soon require a startup to come up with an application that filters his email inbox from being spammed by wannabe entrepreneurs.

The ₹30 friendship!

It is not often that bureaucrats from the same IAS batch are appointed as successive chief secretaries in a State. But this happened in Gujarat on May 31, when the outgoing Chief Secretary DJ Pandian was succeeded by his batchmate Gangaram Aloria, both of the 1981 batch, Gujarat Cadre.

When the new CS took over, Pandian narrated an interesting tale. While they were trainees, Aloria had once loaned ₹30 to his friend Pandian who unsuccessfully tried all through his career to ‘repay’ the debt. “But he always refused; I owe him those ₹30 as a mark of our enduring friendship,” said Pandian, in a lighter vein at a farewell party.

Communication and calamity

Communication networks get severely hit after natural calamities such as floods and earthquakes. But in North India state-run BSNL has been quick to bring its network back online, often, even ahead of private operators.

BSNL has been fast in deploying alternate routes to restore communication in the affected areas. While acknowledging this feat, a senior telecom ministry official wondered why BSNL can’t show the same efficiency in running its network and addressing consumer complaints during normal times.

Dial S for snake-catchers

Having an emergency number of a snake-catcher is handy in Mangaluru, where snakes in the backyard or inside homes are not unusual. But what if a mobile app by the police provides you this number?

This is one of the features of the mobile app of the Mangaluru City Police, along with other features such as traffic updates and FIR status. Mangaluru City Police’s mobile app has five numbers of snake catchers in the city, along with other emergency numbers such as ambulance, fire, old-age, women and child help lines.

Rating system

The Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee in its report card on the performance of the Chandrababu Naidu government gave him 200 marks out of 100 for alleged corruption and zero in implementation of various schemes and promises made during the hectic campaigning in 2014. The report card is said to be an assessment of Naidu’s one year of office as AP’s CM. Never mind that it was the same Congress that drew a blank in the state, losing all the 175 seats it contested. Its score: 0 out of 175.

Taking a stand

Reporters in West Bengal were recently asked to leave the Legislative Assembly after they refused to stand up on arrival of the Speaker. However, the decision was immediately reversed following intervention and protests by the Left Front MLAs.

According to the Speaker Biman Banerjee it was not a ruling; it’s only that he wanted journalists to respect the proceedings of the State Assembly.

Novel protest

Officials of a public sector bank staged a unique protest recently against a loan defaulter. About 100 employees of the bank staged a dharna in front of a hospital in Bengaluru for non-repayment of a ₹100 crore loan.

As soon as the protest started, they were rounded off by the police who claimed that they were causing disturbance to the patients. The bank now wants to seal the hospital itself.

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