It pays to be good in Telugu journalism!

KSR quits Andhra Jyothy, more to follow

Kommineni Srinivasa Rao is said to be quitting Andhra Jyothy. Arguably the ablest bureau chief in AP media, KSR has been a cornerstone of the newspaper ever since its resuscitation in 2002 by Vemuri Radhakrishna. The man who captained the paper’s Political and General bureaus (in a way City too) is said to be joining Chowdhary’s soon-to-be launched NTV.

In the backdrop of a handful of channels and newspapers planned for launch in the first half of 2007, KSR’s move would prove to be the beginning of a major shake-up in the Telugu media.

Andhra Jyothi is on the verge of declaring 5-lakh circulation, a remarkable feat for a newspaper that was revived just four years ago and considering the fact that Ramoji’s Eenadu is the only Telugu paper to have scaled the 500K mark in AP’s history. KSR’s exit at a time when the newspaper is growing by leaps and bounds is bound to jolt the management.

And the ace reporter would not go alone! We learn more would follow him, including some big guns. (Good news, Eenadu!)

Hailed as “a walking mine of information”, KSR boasts of an enviable track record – 25 years of work experience at Eenadu and one-time Man Friday of Ramoji. KSR, a bulldozer of man, never minces words and was known for being outspoken and assertive even when working in the regimented Eenadu.

Surprisingly, there are no obvious reasons for KSR’s exit. He is both respected and feared at Andhra Jyothi (his signature on a press release is considered as a “must” order by reporters, even when he scribbles his initials absent-mindedly!)

Salaries & new slant: AJ journos guess that NTV must have offered hefty salary to KSR. Possible. Andhra Jyothy, the only newspaper that can boast of being an ‘editorial success’, unlike the marketing successes of Eenadu and English dailies in AP, is a bad pay master. Many journalists work for a pittance of Rs 2000 – 3000 per month! Aware of the growing resentment over the woefully low salaries, Vemuri did promise hikes, but seems to be in no hurry to act on it.

In recent months, AJ staff is also taken aback by the sudden love the paper has developed for the YSR-led Congress government. In the absence of any explanation from the top, they smell a rat in this bonhomie. Amidst the hushed talk that other seniors would also quit, the staff is in a quandary and that’s an alarm signal for Vemuri.

Please write to us at: vikram.apmedia@gmail.com

When's being Alone Lonely

Revised

Definitely Chilling!

A leader always attracts attention, is always sought after and ever in great demand. That's what we justifiably presume about leaders. However, the paradox of the leader being the most feared and first to be shunned prevails in the media, in our AP Media!

Despite enjoying unchallenged leadership position for years now, the largest circulated English daily in mana Andhra Pradesh, is the least preferred work place for journalists. The attrition rates bring this fact to the fore. The Definitely Chilling (DC) paper tops the charts, with its attrition rate being far higher than that of the others.

That’s not all. The scene gets even more chilling when we look at the replacements -- either don’t happen or are invariably filled up by upstarts. The resulting knowledge deficiency in the organisation manifests itself in the overall content and the quality of the newspaper.

Media, especially the print, is no more an attractive career option for today’s young and inflow of fresh talent is fast drying up. There is a genuine dearth of talent in the media marketplace, forcing media houses to focus on talent retention and poaching. Neither happens at our DC! We find too many walkouts and too few walk-ins, unlike any other paper in town.

Indian Express, plagued by indifferent management and cash crunch, should, logically speaking, find it hard to recruit quality people. However, that’s not the case. Vikram Sharma returns from The Hindu. Naga Sridhar is back from PTI. Couple of seniors returned to the profession and the paper from other companies. Undoubtedly, there is something about Express!

What about the leader? We only find desk and reporting personnel deserting it to join competitors like Indian Express, Times of India, The Hindu (oh yes, DNA too) but none joining it from them. Most recent quitters include Mir Ayub Ali to ToI, Sai Gopal to The Hindu and Srini Reddy, who left the Indian shores.

We discussed the replacements in our debut post and nothing has changed since then. The chilling scenario is not limited to Hyderabad. In Vizag, for instance, a good 25 people came in and left in the last three years, where reporting team doesn’t exceed three at a time!

Low and discriminatory salaries, back-breaking work load, unnerving pressure, some ignorant and yet demanding seniors made worse by appalling employee treatment are cited as the common reasons for the exodus. The recent so-called employee friendly measures (like providing them with cars) neither arrested the exodus nor lured talent from competition.

The prevailing predicament is an outcome of long history of ill-treating and humiliating employees. It’s not uncommon to hear comments that the horses in the owner’s stable are better treated and looked after than editorial staff!

No wonder then that none from the existing talent pool evinced interest when the newspaper ran recruitment ads, almost daily. Eventually, when the newspaper proactively solicited a few, they demanded fancy deals – double salary plus promotion – their way of saying “no, thanks”! Further, some reportedly remained cold even when the demands were met!

Those stuck inside seek several ways to distract themselves from the pains at work. One source of guaranteed humour is the response to recruitment ads. Everybody except working English journalists applied; these included software professionals on the bench, customer care employees, college pass outs and, retired employees!
There are several delightful nuggets from their applications. Ask your friends and have yourself in splits!

Share your thoughts; mail us at apmedia@rediffmail.com

The Wages of War

Our last Telugu report on Ramoji Rao's house at RFC (The Monarch's Mansion) has been a big hit, for it gave a peek into the Rs 60-crore highly protected hill top castle. One dotcom ran a translated version of the report which is now a hotly forwarded email on the Internet. Good to know that, though the dotcommers did not mention the source. We will soon have a revised report on the Monarch's mansion as we now have more details on hand.

Ham honge kamyaab

We have detected that an attempt was made to hack into our blogsite and emails.
Our blockers detected this intrusion and denied access to the hacker.

During the course of the last three months, we have exposed the illegal activities of many people, among them the high and mighty.

This hacking is an affront to the freedom of speech and an attempt to throttle an emerging independent medium. We will expose the people who are behind this act, and urge our friends in the media to highlight the attempt to muzzle what is the finest news and views blogsite in the state of Andhra Pradesh.

We request the support of our colleauges in print, television and radio to highlight this flagrant attempt to muzzle us. We will not be cowed down.

Sar Kata Sakte Hain Lekin, Sar Jhuka Sakte Nahin.

DIPR, a den of vice

When in Opposition, YSR raised a hue and cry over CM Babu's publicity spend. As CM, YSR is allowing crores of rupees to be swindled by the DIPR officials. We take a look at how some Kings are making a Fortune at DIPR

Corruption in India is nothing new. We are at the top of the index when it comes to the most corrupt countries in the world. Our state has been no better and ACB raids have become a part of our daily staple of news.
But there is one department that bakes the cake, takes it, eats it and then sometimes develops an upset stomach. The institution that we are talking about is the Directorate of Information and Public Relations or DIPR for short.

Over the years this building located near JNTU on the Lakdikapul - Masab Tank road has become a fountainhead of corruption. The rot set in quite a long time ago, and if one can jog the memory it was the likes of men like the now dead, self-proclaimed Ghazal Gandharva, IAS officer Muralikrishna who laid the ground rules. He was known for promoting himself over low profile CMs of those days (early 90s).
Anyone willing to feature him any media was given a handsome baksheesh. But dead men tell no tales.

The sorry state of affairs continued but it really peaked during the tenure of the CBN. Exorbitant amounts were spent on publicity of pet programmes like Janmabhoomi. YSR and his team during the day in Opposition alleged that CBN spent over Rs 300 crore for self- publicity.
While that figure is an exaggeration, money was no doubt poured into different modes of publicity from Janmabhoomi caps, posters and short films (produced by favourites like midas man Raghavendra Rao) and of course ads in newspapers and spots on television channels.

DIPR is a much sought after place for AP state service cadre officers who pay a fortune to the mandarins at the Secretariat to make it there. One can gauge the level of corruption by assessing the properties held by these people in their name and benami. One such man whom we can identify as an ex Andhra Jyothi employee, is the 'King' Babu. He was the right hand man of many I&PR ministers, but he made his real kill during the tenure of ministers like Tammineni Sitaram and Chandramohan Reddy. This man came up the hard way by working out as a hotel boy in Vijayawada before finding a job as typist in a newspaper there. Using the gift of the gab, he moved up to land up in Hyderabad.

Tales abound in the money that was made in how he used to order lakhs of Janmabhoomi caps, of which only a small fraction was actually delivered to those who were supposed to wear it. The district level information and public relations officer were instructed to sign off for non-existent caps. Ditto was the case with lakhs of posters, while in reality only a few thousands were printed.

The big printing houses, which incidentally are located near DIPR office made crores of rupees in this affair. Eighteen rounds of Janmabhoomi proved to be a windfall for many of these officers.
Police once caught the 'King' Babu during a random nakabandi near Lakdikapul while he was couriering a huge amount of cash to his minister. A few phone calls later, cops were asked to let the man go, and forget about the incident.
He managed to get a land in the Journalist's colony during his tenure at AJ and later did up the house in a royal manner thanks to the 'income' he made at DIPR. Like other officers in the government he has invested huge amounts of money in land and jewellery.

Another man in the money-making business at DIPR was 'Fortune' Kumar. This man was a charmer who managed to keep his job despite numerous memos and show cause notices that he managed to accumulate during his tenure. His mode of making money was in getting the payments released for a consideration. Short films, which cost a few thousands to make were billed at lakhs. Bills for Republic Day floats in Delhi were often cleared after the money was paid to the DIPR pointsman at Andhra Bhavan in New Delhi.

Did the IAS officers who manned the department turn a blind eye to all these happenings? There were some who tried to clean up the Augean stables, but were stumped by the 'powerful' connections of these officers. B P Acharya did his bit by bringing in some transparency to the department. So did J C Mohanty, who has since quit IAS tried his best to keep these characters under check, and was roundly hated by DIPR staff. S Balasubramanyam made himself scarce, while Ramanachary was busy promoting himself as a filmstar in the making.

At DIPR, everyone right from the top people like directors to the office boys have to be bribed to secure business and get payments. If you don't pay, then advertisements are not released and bills of publications or television channels that don't pay go missing or are held back.
It's the decision to release advertisements that often results in 'cash for ads' scam. During CBNs time, over 140 publications in the state were handed out ads at one single go on a single day, many times over. 140 newspapers in AP? That's only on paper. Most of them are dummy ones, which print 50 copies of their rag, which many land up in the offices of the CM, Ministers and DIPR. Nobody reads them and these so called newspapers used by visitors to fan themselves while they wait for their turn to meet the biggies.

The cake is taken by over twenty-five odd Urdu publications all of which claim that they are printed from Hyderabad. In fact all these so called Urdu publications are printed in the same press. A closer look at the bills from these newspapers will reveal that the layout is same, and only the masthead is changed. For sheer ingenuity, it's a scam that beats other scams hollow.

YSR on assumption, promised to change all that was happening at DIPR, but nothing much has changed. The new dispensation led by Minister Shabbir Ali is turning a blind eye on the happenings in his own backyard. The Minister too has fallen for the lucre, and has issued 'special' orders that the 'Urdu' newspapers have to get advertisements on a 'regular' basis. All they have to make sure is to flash the minister's picture on their front pages.
It's a case of you scratch by back, I will scratch yours. The thumb rule that only publications with certificates given by Audit Bureau of Circulation are to be considered for releasing of ads has been often given a go by. This suits the team at DIPR fine as they can decide on
publications based on the level of greasing of their palms. Small time newspapers, which survive on a hand to mouth existence will go to any extent to get business.

There are many other corrupt officials whom we have ignored for now. But they will not be able to hide for long. We will also bring them to book, with documented proof. Remember, you guys at DIPR can run, but you cannot hide. We will smoke you out.

Will things change at DIPR? Highly unlikely, say those in the media industry. Unless those on the present dispensation are sacked or transferred, and a professional system of working is inculcated, DIPR will continue to be a den of vice.

PS: To get the actual names of some of the people mentioned above, just substitute the English words in their names with the Urdu or Hindi equivalents. QED

When editors sell adspace

Editors are supposed to be like Caesar’s wife, above suspicion. Or that is how it was meant to be. In reality, over the years, the person who presides over the words and deeds of a newspaper has become something of a manipulator.

In some cases the owners of the newspaper use their editors for their personal agendas, while in others the editors become a law unto themselves. It is the transgression of the fine line that makes the editor no less than the exalted position of a blackmailer.

Indian newspaper history has been replete with many instances where the editor had become a law unto himself (or herself). The situation in the twin cities is no radically different, with each newspaper owner having his own axe to grind. Which is fine, one would infer considering that newspapers have their own agendas. Some good, others bad.

The late Ramnath Goenka was one newspaper owner who doubled in as an editor. Fighting the establishment had become a habit for the redoubtable man, who had in a way become a colossus in the publishing industry. But others have not had such a chequered track record.

Some editors spend more time pursuing other hobbies other than what they are supposed to be doing best – staying put in the office. A few months ago the editor of one of Hyderabad’s leading (no, make that fastest growing) English newspaper was appointed as the head of a souvenir committee for a community get together.

Not strictly his job, one would say. But then, no one would notice thought the old man. The organisers who were looking for funds to bankroll the community’s festival celebrations, knew that if someone could pull in the advertisements for the souvenir, it had to be the editorji. Smart move.

But in his eagerness to attain immortality among the community members and brand himself as a superstar, our old man went overboard. The editorji called up all the leading corporates of the city and demanded that they part with advertisements for the souvenir. The big bosses of the companies had no choice, for they knew the price for non-compliance.

A no would have meant that the company misdeeds would get front-page coverage. A load of advertisements would have the opposite effect. Press notes claiming anything and everything about the company would get a pride of place. No wonder many big names of the industry in the twin cities followed suit by releasing advertisements in the souvenir.

One such company, which followed the editor’s directive and released an advertisement was founded by a man who is now a MP from Vijayawada. The PR guys from the company nowadays walk into the editor’s cabin with unfailing regularity. Sometimes it’s to present the editor with toys from Kondapalli (did you get the company’s name by now) or a big box of dry fruits and sweets from Vijayawada (where else?). But more often than not the PR guys walk in (without even tapping the door) and hand in press notes to the editorji on how well the original promoter, their MD and everyone else in the company is doing.

And the dictum from the editor to the desk guys is simple – take the press release as top priority. What’s next, wonder the correspondents at the business desk of this newspaper?

Take Tuesday’s business page of this newspaper and there is a glorified repot on how this Hyderabad-based group has won the bid for a power project in Madhya Pradesh. Even a back of the envelope calculation will show that this project is doomed to fail at the high cost that was quoted just to win a bid. But nowhere in the article is that matter spoken about. Industry experts say that the group’s absurdly high bid was just meant to prop up its shares that were recently listed after an IPO. Bad luck, they did not factor Tuesday’s 340-point crash that followed.

The old man in the meanwhile is in a glum mood, with news dribbling in that someone has sent in a dossier of his misdeeds to the bosses at Bahadurshah ZafarMarg. Poor guy, what else can he do but stare in lost thoughts, counting his last days in office. Not that the cremation ground, which can be seen from his cabin, gives any confidence.

Sometimes too much of a thing can be bad for health. It’s better to be honest than a crook. Poor old man, we wish some one could tell him this.

PS : Want to know who all advertised in the souvenir? Check with the Samiti members Opp Indira Park and the school in Secunderabad Aaj ki taaza khabar. Bechne gaya tha par bechara bik gaya.

The Monarch's Mansion

It's just not cricket, Ram

N Ram is a strange political animal.

Though a pucca Tamil Brahmin of Iyengar stock, he is also a thoroughbred, dyed in the wool Communist. A cloak and dagger personality, he moved into the executive editor’s slot, thanks to being a part of the Kasturi family that owns The Hindu.

For long, the family kept this maverick away and in the early 80s, our man was posted as the Washington Correspondent of The Hindu. He came back only to find that there was no slot for him in the main newspaper. So he hung around, saddled with the task of managing Frontline, Sportstar and Business Line.

Finally, he played his cards right and moved into the editor’s chair at Hindu. His move coincided with a significant shift in Hindu’s editorial slant. From being a known right wing newspaper, Ram laboured to tilt the slant to the left, keeping his leanings in mind. Mr Ram began by burying the ghost of Bofors, and then indulged in rambling eight column articles, which nobody reads. In 2003, he raised the hackles of the then Chief Minister, J Jayalaithaa by launching a tirade against her. The Poes Garden Madam did not take that lightly. She got the Assembly’s privileges committee to send in the cops to Anna Salai and they snooped around trying to ferret out as to who was behind the insidious piece of writing.

Ram was worked up and he launched a blistering attack on Amma. “The day's events showed not just intolerance, but crude authoritarianism of the worst kind. ... This is not the first time that Tamil Nadu is witnessing an assault on the freedom of the press, but this is the worst.”

Now he is on the attack mode again, this time the turf is Andhra Pradesh. Rattled by an all out assault on Ramoji Rao by the YSR government, the editor in chief of The Hindu has come out in open support of his good old friend. At a function last week, Ram said that Eenadu was being hounded in a political witch-hunt. Fine Mr Ram, we agree there is a political element in the Ramoji Rao case, but tell us how did your newspaper get an exclusive access to an RBI report giving a halo of respectability to Margadarsi. (See Wednesday’s Hindu front page anchor story).

Did you lobby with Mr Chidambaram and get the report that no other newspaper or television channel could lay their hands on?

Mr Ram, what is that makes you run to the aid of a man who has shown no such respect for others in his fraternity. Why did you not protest when employees of ETVs regional channels were treated like bonded labourers and then threatened with dire consequences when they dared to quit. Is there any other ulterior motive behind this bonhomie?

We need answers to back up your actions.

To quote Mr N Ram from an interview “There will be no room for opinions or comments in a news report. The job of a reporter or a correspondent is to write news. Then there will be objectivity and integrity in journalism.” And pray Mr Ram, what does Eenadu do? Please enlighten us.

For a man who played for Tamil Nadu in Ranji Trophy, it’s time we tell Mr Ram about what he is doing. ‘It’s just not cricket.’

Sting Op backfires!

Ramoji's chopper did not take permissions. Cases likely against King of Good Times, Adikesavulu, (SAAP) Prasad, Kesavulu

Going up in a chopper for the sting operation in Kadapa might land Ramoji in a morass. After some quick back end checking, Congress leaders traced the trail of Ramoji's Operation Kadapa. Chittoor MP Adikesavulu Naidu arranged the chopper that belonged to the King of Good Times. Telugu Desam leader and former SAAP Chairman Prasad flew in it along with paparazzi Kesavulu. The sting operators have not informed the aviation authorities and did not secure permissions to fly in the zone, a serious crime. YSR is likely to ensure that Union government files cases against the airline operator, crew and passengers. So Operation Kadapa is going to backfire! Like land surrender gesture boomeranged on YSR! By the way, what did the great operation achieve? Except the watch tower, did they find or disclose anything new? Was the operation worth it. It only exposed Ramoji's desperation to save himself by undercutting YSR. The operation would attract legal action as it violated laws as blatantly as Margadarsi HUF did in mobilising public deposits. Ramoji will have no escape route from this tactical blunder. (Eenadu team who faulted us and pointed out precedents of Speaker chiding media would do well to do some reading in RRG and enlighten the readers on what sections of law the sting Op violated and what is the minimum punishment for it!)

Ram in Ramoji Parivar

As friend Ramoji got desperate in his attack on YSR, N Ram thought it's about time to make bones to Kam-red Ramoji! Despite drawing flak for foolishly rushing to the defence of Ramoji, Ram continues to support him and in the process erode the credibility of his own paper. The Hindu, like never before, had a 4-column Page One story on the "impecaable record" of Margadarsi. The content was all stale and had no context. So, Ram's the Singhal of Ramoji Parivar -- rabid and of great nuisance value. Senior journalists recall what Ram did that forced Chitra, who broke the Bofors report, out of The Hindu. More recently, the reporter who filed the story on Jayalalithaa too was forced to quit. We will have all those details later.

TD MP arranges chopper for Ramoji

Telugu Desam's Chittoor MP Adikesavulu Naidu helped Ramoji with a private helicopter to take the photographs of the CM’s estate. That’s how Eenadu managed to get clear pictures of the estate in Kadapa (Raja Kota Rahasyam, Dec 18) unlike the blurred satellite pictures of the ORR, Congress leaders tell us. Kesavulu is the paparazzi.
Remember, this grand old photographers spelled doom for the Congress in the Eighties when he captured the young Rajiv Gandhi publicly ill-treating CM Anjaiah, which Eenadu splashed all over Page One. That set the stage for NTR to galvanize people against Congress raising the Telugu Aatma Gauravam slogan. The same Kesavulu accompanied NTR all through his campaign, but that’s another story.
What this concerted effort tells us is the strong nexus between the Yell-ow brigade and Eenadu. The bond is as umbilical as the BJP’s to the RSS. So, it won’t be inappropriate to call the Eenadu-TDP combine as the Ramoji Parivar (wherein Ramoji and Chandrababu are the likes of RSS’ Sudershan and BJP’s Advani).
Ramoji is said to have boasted that YSR would be no match to him. “I will bulldoze him. Don’t forget I gave the jitters to Indira Gandhi, Chenna Reddy, Vengal Rao…YSR is a bachcha," he told his close aides. But frustration grew when the underdog YSR proved to be a tough nut to crack and the heights of desperation is reflected in the heights he is sending his team (paparazzi in the air) and the depths he is stooping to in his editorial content. For the first time ever, the Speaker of Lok Sabha had to admonish a newspaper for putting words in his mouth! Eenadu did not even have the honesty and character to apologize for its unpardonable professional blunder. It just expressed regrets.
So much for its “nippu laanti nijaayithi”!

PS: What do you guys think on the vertical split within the media on ‘la affaire Ramoji? N Ram (remember we clubbed Ramoji and Ram – communists-turned-capitalists and excel in exploitation and double-stnadards). N Ram, we hear, had to cut a sorry figure after some reporters pinned him down for explanation on his open support to Ramoji on a legal matter. The gentleman-editor K Ram of Andhra Jyothy made a scathing attack on N Ram. His editorial "Ram ka Dua" is a must read. What’s your take? Post comments or write to apmedia@rediffmail.com.

Maran bakes, takes and eats the cake

Call it the case of history repeating itself. As someone said when history re-visits for the first time it’s a tragedy and when it gets repeated again, its comedy.

When Murasoli Maran was the union industry minister, he drove away with a clutch of automobile projects to Tamil Nadu. Today, his son Dayanidhi Maran is doing the same by hijacking big ticket telecom investments to his home state. And what do we in Andhra Pradesh get? Crumbs!

Maran had made his intentions very clear right from the start. But he was bogged down by a doughty Jayalalithaa, who made sure that none his projects saw the light of the day. Once madam went back to Poes Garden, and Dr Kalaignar took over at Fort St George, life was a lot more easy. Land was there for the asking and so were the incentives. But the biggest draw was not land or doles. It was an unwritten commitment that those who invested in Tamil Nadu would be taken care of by Maran & Co. For sure, Maran is a man who can decide on huge tenders floated by BSNL and MTNL.

Maran & Co have handsomely rewarded many of the biggies who have made Sriperambadur their home base with huge contracts from these two public sector telecom entities. These include LG, Samsung, Erricson and many others. And what do ‘our’ ministers and MPs do? Nothing! For they are busy doing nothing.

With a brute majority in the Lok Sabha, our state MPs should have fought every project that was spirited away by Maran & Co. They did not, and just let it go. No questions have been asked in Parliament about it, and for sure it will never be asked. Even the semi conductor policy, which will benefit our state has been held up in game of political volleyball between Maran and Chidambaram. Many say that the policy delay is deliberate and is aimed at killing the Sem India project in Hyderabad.

Not that the state government has made any serious effort. YSR has been bogged down between Botsa and Bidi (and now Ramoji and excess land issue). Our dear chief minister has had hardly anytime to look at industrial development in the state. When media queried him about Volks shift to Pune, the Doctor was magnanimous. “Let them go, others will come”. The problem is that there are no more car companies waiting to set their units in India. Most of them are here, and are expanding their facilities in all states, except mana Andhra Pradesh. Except for Lokeswara Rao's car project, which is still on the drawing board!

Hardware major Dell, after raising hopes of setting up manufacturing unit in our hardware park, recently opened its unit in Chennai! The Tamilian city is already home to Nokia, Flextronics and Foxconn.

Even the likes of Apache footwear are thinking of shutting their Nellore unit and moving Tamil Nadu. Maran’s men are sitting in Chennai and fishing in troubled waters of Nellore. To add to this, the recent move by Nike to move to Chennai has been prompted by a verbal directive of the US government to companies from US of A to slow down investments in AP, post the IMG fiasco. The hasty Ordinance taking over IMG land will in all probability be quashed by the High Court. It will not only result in a loss of face for the state, but also cost them billions of dollars in arbitration.

Companies investing here will think twice. If Naidu comes to power two years from now, will he cancel all of YSR’s projects? The lack of sanctity for a government document as in the case of IMG will make things worse for us and life will be a lot easier for Maran & Co.

Are our MPs and Union Ministers and the state government listening ?

PS: Recently, telecom major Motorola moved the Delhi High Court, seeking to restrain the state-run BSNL from awarding the order for the installation of the proposed 45-million GSM lines to Ericsson and Nokia, the two companies short-listed by BSNL. Read my lips - both Ericcson and Noika have their units in Tamil Nadu. Quid pro quo?
Share your views, mail at to apmedia@rediffmail.com

Holding a country to ransom

A few years ago, the communists in Kerala decided to call for a bandh on some trivial issue. Everything was decided, a press conference was held, posters were printed, wall paintings announced the day when Kerala would come to a halt. The cadres were mobilised, and everyone was ready to go. Then, the bandh was suddenly postponed. No reason was given, nor was one asked.
Later the truth came to the fore. The ‘original’ day of bandh coincided with the marriage of the daughter of a senior communist party leader. The man panicked when he realised that even crows are not allowed to fly during a bandh in Kerala. Why did I pick this ‘real’ story? It has to do with the umpteenth bandh called today by the communist party leaders, which was thankfully effective in their two pocket boroughs, West Bengal and Kerala.

What was the strike for? Well no one cares, least the communist party leaders. Banks stayed shut, schools were closed, taxis remained parked, post offices did not open, just about everybody stayed at home. A few enterprising young boys used the empty streets to play cricket. Who lost? The common man, like you and me.
After protesting for a few hours, shouting slogans, the communist leaders trooped back into the air conditioned comforts of the houses, had a sumptuous lunch and had a good sleep. What Prakash Karat and his comrades did not know was that hundreds of poor people in Kerala and West Bengal went without food on the bandh day.

The autorickshaw driver did not venture out due to fear and so his family stayed hungry. The hamali did not get to carry any goods so his wife and kids did not have anything to eat. And what do our comrades have to say. “The bandh was successful and we thank the people of the country for wholeheartedly supporting it,” My (left) foot.

Every strike or bandh results in only misery for the common people. The bank officer or the public sector unit worker may at the best lose a day’s earnings. But they will still live a good life. The porter at Howrah station, nor the contract sweeper at a bank in Chennai will be that lucky. They will have to tell their family that just because Mr Karat and his team called the strike, all problems in India will disappear from tomorrow. That’s the utopian world being marketed by our communist parties.
For the Indian communist leaders, the USA is the devil, but Karat & Co will still fly by planes built by Boeing. No, they will not undertake a 24-hour nerve rattling train journey, in the company of dirty bathrooms and beggars. That is only for people like you and me.

All the big talk of concern for the common man is only for the journalists and the television cameras. The moment the media fades away, one gets to see the true colours of these leaders. The double standards of the communist party leaders are so brazen, that even a kid can find out that they are liars.
A few years ago, the Kerala High Court banned bandhs and so the politicians changed the nomenclature and called it hartal. The communists went up to the Supreme Court, which tragically without any concern for the common man stayed the Kerala High Court order. That gave the licence to these leaders to do what they want.

Do communist party leaders know how many crores are lost in production in companies affected by the bandh? Do they care about the lakhs of people who are stranded in railway stations and bus terminals without anything to eat? Do they care for the patient whose ambulance is held up because of the bandh? Do they know the trouble the students have to undergo in studying for their exams which were postponed? Do they care for anything?

The answer is NO. These political leaders only care for their own self and are hypocrites. They care a damn for the common man.

It’s time we, the people of India rise up against this organised goondaism and stop them, once and for all. We should ask for compensation from the bandh organizers and demand that they stop this hooliganism forever. Otherwise you cannot take your mother to the hospital, nor get your son or daughter married. Because the communists will think of calling a bandh that day – to protest against the policies of the government towards the common man.

PS: Asianet, a Malayalam news channel today reported a story of a young kid suffering from blood cancer stuck up at Kozhikode railway station on her return from treatment from the Regional Cancer Centre at Tiruvananthapuram. The child and her mother did not have money for food and autorickshaw drivers were demanding 450 rupees to get them home.

Fortunately, Kerala DGP Raman Srivastava heard about it, and asked the Kozhikode Police Commissioner to arrange a police jeep to transport them. But there would have been lakhs of such people whose story the DGP would not have heard about.

Are you listening, Mr Karat? Do you ‘really’ care for the common man? Ask them, and what they will tell you will be unprintable.

Alone and lonely at the top

Some readers have expressed strong objection to our comment on Mr Suman's stay in the hospital in this article.Yes, we agree, we should have been more sensitive and sensible. We are sorry.

We also wish to correct ourselves. The article mentions about the 10% mandatory annual increase in copies for Eenadu agents. We now learn that this method was done away with after several complaints and a new incentive-based, agent- friendly system introduced in its place. So, please ignore that comment.

Why Naxalism thrives in Andhra Pradesh?

My friends from Mumbai and Delhi have often asked me this question and I must admit that I could never give them a straight answer. Why is that Naxals do not blast railway stations, burn buses or even try and knock of a politician or two in other states, as much as they do here. I don’t have a straight answer for that. It was then that some one told me the answer to the riddle – if you want to know why Naxalism came to Andhra Pradesh then drive around Jubilee Hills.
First, the reasoning didn’t seem to have any logic. But one drive around starting out from somewhere near LV Prasad eye hospital, up the TDP office on to the Check Post and then Road no.36, and I was enlightened. Palatial houses, which must have cost crores abound, as do poor patients and their attendants who sleep on the pavements outside LV Prasad eye hospital.

Each of the palatial houses has an army of servants most of whom have been ‘bought’ at a price and then bonded for life. The ban on child labour does not seem to have any effect on the modern day ‘zamindars’. Servants are treated like dogs by their doras, and with it comes the resentment at what is now a familiar story of exploitation in Andhra Pradesh.
For one thing, there is nothing called a middle class in the villages of Andhra Pradesh. Either the folks are stinking rich or they are dirt poor. Land was the key, and it still is. Which is funny when you consider that politicians are suddenly discovering that they own hundreds of acres of what was assigned lands - ones which legally belong to the poor and downtrodden, specially among the scheduled castes and tribes.
Those who have made a fortune out of these very lands are now ‘donating’ it back to the government. And pray, what about filing cases against them? The reasoning given is obvious. Since the land has been surrendered there can be no case. Using the same logic, all petty thieves lodged in Cherlapalli jail should be freed, since the police have already recovered the loot.

West Bengal has been one state in the country that has been exception in land reforms. The communist party leaders have over decades distributed land to the needy, and with it built up an impregnable voter base in the state. The state is home to Naxalbari, from where the fight began. But it has not seen any major naxal activities in the recent past.
Andhra Pradesh on the other hand failed, and failed miserably. The zamindari system may have gone, but their modern day equivalents are around. Land is only with a select few in this state, and huge numbers of poor are left to kill themselves or take up the gun. I am not advocating the naxal cause, far from it. I think the annalu have made a mess of their cause. Every revolution has a reason, and the naxals in the state lost their moral high ground with mindless killings of so called class enemies.

Which brings us to the hue and cry that has been on for the past two days. How does it matter if Ramoji Rao or Girish Sanghi gobbled up hundreds of acres of land? What have the other doras done? Are their hands clean? True these two big media men are guilty. Punish them. And punish the other big crooks too.

In the name of the poor we know how political leaders have grabbed lands even in the twin cities. Walk around Addagutta in Secunderabad or Bibi ka maktha near the Hussain Sagar Lake. What was once government land, was grabbed by politicians and sold to the unsuspecting poor in the form of pattas. In the rural areas, grabbing is more rampant and brazen, which is what led to all this uproar now.
Close to six decades after Independence, we are a failed state. Despite all the talk of snazzy software companies and glossy pubs, we have not been able to provide a meal a day for millions of our countrymen.
Trust me, just draw you car window down as you drive along Jubilee Hills. Prosperity lives cheek in jowl with poverty — brightly lit Pizza joints to people sleeping on the road outside LV Prasad. There are lots more places in the city where I can give you a conducted tour on what it means to be poor. But then I will sound like Satyajit Ray trying to sell poverty to the West.

Because as someone once sang out, “the whole thing is that bhaiyya, sabse bada rupaiyya.”

Has YSR's move backfired

As the battle to land the rivals into trouble intensifies, more parties are entering the ring and identifying newer targtes. The latest target is a Hyderabad-based realtor-turned-hotelier whose fancy photographs we cannot help seeing everyday while on the city roads! Here's is a download on the untold behind-the-scenes developments.

It was supposed to be the master stroke of it all, but like a boomerang it has come home to torment the man who threw it. Raking up the land holding issue of Ramoji Rao is proving costly for politicians of the two main parties, Congress and TDP.

Assigned lands, which is at the centre of the row has become a hot topic of discussion in the political lobbies. Reports say that the Intelligence bosses tipped off YSR that Ramoji’s scribes were ferreting out information from his own backyard. A panicky YSR immediately acknowledged that his family had indeed violated the law of the land by buying not just assigned lands, but has been occupying government land as well. For the record, and to keep his slate clean, he said that he was returning the land back to the Andhra Pradesh government.

YSR’s unilateral move, coming a day before the Ranga Reddy district collector sent out notices to Ramoji Rao and his bete noire the Sanghis, has stumped many a political observer. Was YSR not aware of the fact that RR and team would dig into the CM’s family background and come up with all the dirt? Was he given bad advice to start with? Only time will tell. Predictably, the opposition parties have gone hammer and tongs at YSR, which in turn has led to the Congress opening up another flank at RR’s land holdings.

The problem is two fold for YSR. The district collector of Kadapa has to issue a notice to the man who is technically his indirect boss, asking him to explain why he should not be prosecuted. Knowing the quality of IAS officers that we have, it is unlikely that such a move will ever be contemplated. YSR did explain that some of the land was bought and registered in a family concern’s name by his father. The rest came in bits and pieces. But that is not the only problem.

Sources say that the BJP is now at work, digging out the assets of YSR’s son Jagan in Karnataka. In question is the sources of funding for the Rs 400-crore power project which was incidentally built by L&T, which the Congress had once accused of being hand in glove with Chandrababu Naidu.

Using its ministerial clout in the Kumaraswamy government, the saffron brigade is said to be looking into the role of a disgraced real estate baron turned club owner turned hotelier who has acquired assets worth crores not just in Karnataka but other states as well. The man in question was responsible for the collapse of two urban banks in Andhra Pradesh, and was lying low till YSR came back to power.

After having worked out a one-time settlement with the banks, the man who calls himself as YSR’s brother is said to be fronting for someone. He has been opening clubs all over the country from Chandigarh to Kovalam, at a break neck speed. How did he come to acquire these assets when he had declared himself as broke before the court of law? The BJP top brass is said to have put senior leader and Dy CM, B SYediyurappa to collate all the evidence. Now, that is a concern for the YSR family, which has been trying to distance himself from the publicity crazy man, who stares out to all and sundry from hoardings all over Hyderabad and Secunderabad.

This is not the last word in this battle of the lands. Watch this space. Tomorrow it may be the turn of Ramoji Rao to face the music.
PS: Real estate barons in and around Hyderabad who had bought hundreds of acres of assigned lands and sold them to unsuspecting buyers for crores are running scared. If the law is implemented in letter and spirit, the lands from Timmapur to Vikarabadand from Ibrahimpatnam to Shamirpet will revert back to the government. And with it will go bust the artificial land rates in and around twin cities. That will be blessing for the middle class citizens of the twin cities who wish to own a piece of land.

Cars Marx

The Left dichotomy: Buddha in Bengal is firing on all cylinders for Tatas' car project but closer home Raghavulu sees red over land offer to Lokesh Motors' car project. We take a look at the party's double standards.

The visit of the Chinese President Hu Jintao to India seems to have helped shake the Indian Communists out of their mothballed existence. During his visit to Mumbai, the Chinese leader made a terse statement, which was more of a dictum than an advise to the leaders of the Indian Communist parties, specially the CPM: “Change your approach to business or you will be out of business.”
At Writers building in faraway Kolkata, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee seems to have got the message. A few months ago, the West Bengal Chief Minister signed an agreement with the Tatas to set up a small car project at Singur, close to Kolkata.
Buddha would have put the project up in north Bengal, but YSR from AP was dangling a juicy carrot in front of Ratan Tata. With the YSR scare, the CPM honcho decided to act fast and bring the project closer home to Kolkata, at Singur.
As the Tatas nodded, Buddha smiled, but Mamta didi was frowning. How could comrade give away land belonging to farmers on a platter to Ratan Tata, so that he could make his one-lakh rupee car? An angry didi promptly marched on to Singur, only to be bundled into a waiting police van and dumped into a lock up.

Subsequently, all hell broke loose in the West Bengal Assembly and Trinamul MLAs showed that they could beat their UP counterparts hollow when it comes to dismantling furniture. Buddha saw an opportunity and converted the Assembly into a makeshift museum, by inviting people of Kolkata to have a look at the collateral damage. Trust the communists to spot a business opportunity!
Despite all the hungama, Buddha was unrelenting, stating that 997 acres of land required for the project will be acquired, and handed over to the Tatas. Mamta or no Mamta. Fast or Feast. Fair enough, we are proud that the CPM in West Bengal stood up for what is essentially a sound business logic.
But double standards is what the Communists need to be wary of. Closer home, comrade Raghavulu is doing just what didi is doing in Singur. He marched along with hundreds of pensive farmers of Mahabubnagar district, declaring that the Andhra Pradesh government cannot acquire land from farmers for the proposed car project of BVR Subbu and Lokeswara Rao. Did we hear you right comrade? Land for car project cannot be taken from farmers in Andhra Pradesh, while it is okay in West Bengal. Come on, Mr Raghavulu, we are not fools.
Communist leaders are generally a good lot, despite their head-in-the-sand attitude. They seem to have been caught in a time warp. For them, Leonid Brezhnev is still ruling USSR and the Castro is still ready to slam his missiles into the US of A.
But the world has changed, and someone needs to tell the Communist friends in our State about that. Sadly, our AP comrades don’t seem to understand business as much as Buddhadeb does.
That’s the tragedy of a party that talks left and then goes right!

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PS : Rumours abound that vested car companies who are likely to be hit hard by the one lakh rupee car of the Tatas are behind the agitation at Singur. It does make sense, say those in the automobile business. What's your view? Write at apmedia@rediffmail.com

Politics killing Indian sport

File Photo: Members of Indian rowing team during a practice session at the Hussain Sagar lake in Hyderabad. They won medals against all odds.

Two, rather three stark things stood out for the Indian contingent in the on-going Asian Games at Doha. First was the three-gold haul by Jaspal Rana, then a double silver and a bronze sweep by the Indian rowing team. And the third was elimination of the Indian hockey team.

Jaspal Rana won not because of his Federation, but out of his sheer determination by overcoming illness and obstacles that were put in his way by our own countrymen. A bitter Rana, who did not land up with a single medal at the Busan Asiad, minced no words when he spoke out after his hat-trick at Doha. His bosses in the Federation did everything that they could to prevent the shooting star from winning at Doha. They refused him services of his Australian coach Tibor Gonczol and also spiked his ammunition.

All this, to make sure that anyone who spoke out against the powers-that-be will be silenced forever. Why were the services of the coach refused? Well government rules say a shooting coach cannot be above 70 years. What about politicians, why cannot the same rules apply to them? Forget the medals, damn the nation! That seems to be the motto of our self-seeking politicians. Now that Rana is also getting into politics, he can extract a sweet revenge!

Politics has been integrated into sports from a long time in our country. Suresh Kalmadi, Om Prakash Chautala, Vijay Kumar Malhotra, KP Singh Deo, Lalu Prasad Yadav, Sharad Pawar have all claimed to represent the interests of Indian sport. The truth was that politicians used their sports titles to further their personal ambitions. Kalmadi for example has dabbled at everything, from the Pune Marathon to pitching for Olympics.

What’s in sports that attract politicians in hordes? It’s money, as simple as that. To add to that are foreign junkets to ‘watch’ international events like World Cup football, Olympics along with their family members. There are more non-officials in the Indian team than athletes and coaches. What about athletes who need international training? Forget it.

Opening and closing ceremonies cost a bomb, and contracts like the ones held in Hyderabad during the Afro-Asian games run into crores of rupees. No bids are called for such extravaganzas and so the cronies can have the contracts provided they pay the politicians a cut. It’s time we learn from the Chinese, not just in setting up SEZs, but also producing world champions.

The worst sufferers in the recent times have been Indian Hockey, which has fallen into an abyss from the hey days of Dhyan Chand. KPS Gill whose only claim to fame was the quelling of Punjab insurgency, found himself unemployed and promptly pitched in as the big boss of Indian Hockey Federation. The results are there to see, with the Indian hockey team going down the tube, losing tournament after tournament. India has played with five different teams in the recent past with equally disastrous results.

Olympian Viren Rasquinha was dropped from the Doha Asiad squad at the last minute, despite being selected earlier. Dilip Tirkey, who was ignored for the Melbourne tournament, made a return to the Doha games, and that too as captain! The mercurial Dhanraj Pillay was often the victim of Gill’s mood swings, and so was our own Mukesh Kumar, who was dumped for apparent lack of fitness.

Even the coaches were made to run around in a game of musical chairs. In Doha squad, Baskaran who was sacked earlier as the Indian hockey coach replaced Rajinder Singh jr, who was coach at the Melbourne games. After the Doha debacle, are there any guesses who the next coach will be?

Nobody has gone to the root cause of the problem, which incidentally lies at the sub junior level. If Indian hockey has to regain its glory all over gain, then the IHF has to pay attention to youngsters playing at the school level. It’s from the bottom of this pyramid that the talent at the senior level will emerge to the top. Chopping and changing seniors will not help. The latest news that the International Hockey Federation has prepared a blueprint for the revival of Indian hockey is an insult to us Indians. We taught the world to play hockey, and now they are coming back to teach us. Gill and Co - chullubhar pani mein doob maro.

Cricket, our national religion has seen the messiest of all scrambles. For a long time, a marwari businessman from Kolkata, Jagmohan Dalmiya ran it like a proprietorship company. His was the final word, and no one dared to dissent. He decided who would play where, who will be the players, who will telecast the matches and so on… Contracts for telecast of cricket matches particularly one-day internationals run into billions and are the hub of corrupt politicos. With no known system of transparency, the BCCI goes about things their own way.

Even captaincy of the Indian team comes in the form of a dialogue. Remember Raj Singh Dungarpurkar’s famous question to Mohd Azharuddin, “Captain banoge miya ? ”. Azhar must have said something to the effect of “yes”, and in an instant he became the Indian skipper. It’s as easy as that. Ask Saurav Ganguly, who was made and unmade from hero to zero in no time. The cricket boards of Australia, England & Wales, South Africa and even Zimbabwe have appointed full-time Chief Executive Officers to run their cricket boards in a professional manner. We still have Sharad Pawar and company to run cricket here.

But there is some good news among the doom. For months on end, a group of rowers were hard at work in the Hussain Sagar lake, which straddles the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad. One must have often noticed these men silhouetted in the early morning mist of the lake, as they pulled back their rows and moved steadily forward. Not many would have given them a second look. After all they are not the members of the Indian cricket team. They were just a bunch of rowers who went about their practice sessions with little or no support from anyone, except the Rowing Federation of India.

Led from the front the never-say-die by Col C P Singh Deo, the Federation does not even have annual funding equaling that of a Ranji Trophy cricket match. For days on end, Col Singh, his trainers and the boys went about their training in the putrid waters of the Hussain Sagar lake. Not many gave them a chance, but the boys had it in them.

Never before had India won silver in rowing at the Asian Games, and the performance at Doha Asiad has been their best ever. Bajrang Lal Takhar won silver in the men's single sculls, while the men's fours team of Dharmesh Sangwan, Jenil Krishnan, Satish Joshi and Sukhjeet Singh bagged another silver. Brijender and Yalamanchi Kiran won the double sculls bronze.

For Secretary of the Indian Rowing Federation, Col Deo, it was a sweet revenge, as he thumbed cock-a-snook at some people who managed to get the government to pull the funding plug for rowing team during the last two months. Despite this, the Indian Rowing Federation kept the camp going with funds from its own pocket. Backing him to the hilt was Ismail Baig, a Dronacharya awardee who put into place a professional training system, which produced rewarding results at Doha.

The rousing welcome the rowing team got at the Begumpet airport on their return from Doha, must have puzzled them. The rowing team now has its eyes set on the world championships and an Olympic qualification.

Many of us, who are ardent cricket fans, will be saddened by the lack of support for other disciplines like Rowing and Shooting. It's time we all put in our individual efforts and raise funds to provide quality equipment and training for these boys so that they can one day bring home a Olympic medal. We are proud of you boys, you have made us Hyderabadis hold our heads higher. Mera Bharat Mahan.
Please join us in congratulating the Indian rowing team. Comment or write to apmedia@rediffmail.com

Of Topiwalas and Cheddiwalas!

Now that KCR has won Karimnagar, it is natural that YSR plays his trump card/s. As Sushma Swaraj awaits the Presidential assent for her private members bill on the separate state, political jockeying in the state has begun in the right earnest. The first move by YSR has been cast - to persuade Majlis-ettehadul-Muselmeen not accept the statehood for Telangana with Hyderabad as the capital.

Assauddin Owaissi made the noises to this effect about three months ago, when he said that he would never allow Cheddiwalas to rule in Telangana. His fear is understandable, in that the BJP will wrest a tie up with TRS in return for the private member’s bill passage in Parliament. And the new state will see a Karnataka like tie-up with BJP arm-twisting KCR to part with crucial ministries including the crucial one, home portfolio.

The Congress on the other hand will play along with Majlis, demanding that Hyderabad should become a union territory within the state of Telangana. For KCR, the new state without the capital is like an emperor without a crown. For BJP, the twin cities is their backyard and they want to wrest back Secunderabad Lok Sabha seat and get some Assembly segments like Maharajgunj, Malakpet and Karwan as well. That would mean making a substantial dent in the Topiwala territory.

Losing Hyderabad for TRS will be like trading off one of its crown jewels. All that KCR will have in terms of cash cow will be Singareni Collieries. Hyderabad accounts for a substantial portion of the state’s sales and excise collections and without it KCR’s Telangana will be broke before it begins.

YSR made the first move when in a unscheduled visit, announced a Rs 800-crore underground sewerage project for the Old City. In tow with Assauddin Owaissi he announced a slew of projects many of which are old wine in a new bottle. The fate of the Quli Qutub Shah Development Authority, which was floated during NTR’s regime is still fresh in the minds of the people of the Old City. YSR is said to have put district minister in charge, Shabbir Ali to take the process forward.

With the State High Court all set to clear the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation, the outer fringes of Hyderabad will stretch all the way till Medak, Nalgonda and Mahabubnagar. That’s almost the size of Himachal Pradesh. YSR’s hurry in getting GHMC is understandable, for with it he gets to kill two birds with one stone. Assauddin Owaissi and Janardhan Reddy, two of the vociferous opponents will be forced to accept the concept of Greater Hyderabad. And KCR will be left with a hole in the Telangana map.

The (BJP) private member’s bill can only be passed in both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha with Congress support, as the Communists are likely to walk out or vote against the bill. Pushed to wall, KCR may have no choice but to accept the obvious. What the BJP does in that scenario will be interesting to watch. Will it go along and accept Hyderabad as a UT? Or will the BJP stick with TRS and let the bill fail in both the houses. The second step will mean an uncertain wait while the first will be a half-baked cake.

In the tussle for Telangana, the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad will be the key, which holds the riches to Aladdin’s cave.

Comment briefly or mail to apmedia@rediffmail.com

The Making of Page Three News

Madhur Bhandarkar brought the aspect of Page 3 in his brilliant film of the same name. Not that it helped. Page Three folks are like traffic lights. You may not like them, but they will be around. These people are the scums of the earth, eking out their existence on crumbs of publicity generated by some third rate P3s of some newspapers.
The Page Three animals are easy to spot. They hang around to be invariably invited for every small party that is ‘thrown’ for no obscure reason by the so-called filthy rich. Word goes around pretty fast about how Mrs so-and-so is planning a do. The ability to wangle an invite depends on your standing in the society. If you are the IAS, IPS or a minister’s son, then the pub guys will invite you (for sure) for their celebration. But if it’s a private do, then the organizers make sure that the two leading lights (read that as the lady editors) of the two biggies (DC and Times) are invited.

Don’t bother about inviting The Hindu and Indian Express staffers. For them P3 is Jurassic, it does not exist. Fair enough, we appreciate their honesty. But DC and Times are a must. The editor of the DC tabloid is an ex Times, while the Times P3 editor is an ex DC staffer. Coincidence? Not really.
So, it makes sense to invite both. Even if one of them makes it to the ‘do’, the two editors will share notes what happened there. Just like photographers of newspapers ‘share’ pictures. So don’t be surprised if the same story may appear in both DC and Times. DC first, Times later. The Times Page 3 editor is always accommodating, holding on to her stories till Onnu, Onnu, Onnu pips them to the post and publishes it first. (Those who go to Malakpet can make sense of that)
For a Page 3 party, the invite is the starting point. It can be a personalized one or an exotic one. Send in a few ‘foreign’ chocolates along with the invite to the editor. A bottle of wine will also be a big draw and the editor will be under obligation to at least make a mention of your ‘great’ party.
Don’t send the ‘invite’ to the office. It’s foolish. The editor’s colleagues will notice how loads of gifts are being carted into madam’s cabin and then into her car. So, don’t embarrass the P3 editors. Send it to the editor’s home, even if your driver runs the risk of being bitten by the editor’s dog. You see, the philosophy is simple - Love me, love my dog.

Who will get a mention in P3 depends on how ‘close’ they are to the two lady editors. If you had sent cake on the editor’s birthday, then your picture and name will find its way into the P3. (Five star hotel GMs are very good at that). If the GM made sure that the editor’s kids got free swimming lessons at the five star hotel's pool, then the hotel will get a creeping mention somewhere. Also make sure that you send gifts to the editors during Diwali and New Year. A holiday trip for the editor and her family to an exotic locale will be a clincher. (free, of course).

There will be a lot of bitching at the party, but then that is only to be expected. The party will get rowdier once the liquor starts to flow. Make sure you have bottles of ‘desi foreign’ liquor stocked up. Black Label is passé, Try Chivas Regal, re-filled in with McDowells no1. None of these so-called P3 crowd knows the difference between Teachers and Royal Stag. Daru, thoh daru hai.
Make sure that the editor is constantly reminded at the party about the write up in next day’s paper. Say things like “Should I send you the pictures?”. Otherwise, how the hell will the world know that you invited a certain B_nt_ B_j_j or a P_ _ky R_d_y to your party. Most of the invitees to P3 ‘do’ are freeloaders, ever willing to throttle the host and the other guests. Behind the plastic smiles and peck on the cheeks are men and women who having a roving eye to spot the camera guy and make sure that he had them in the frame.
Make sure you treat the editor like the queen of the party, or else you risk running your reputation to the ground. Please smile, say words like “You look gorgeous” (even if madam looks groggy). You have lost a lot of weight” (even when the editor looks like Karnam Malleswari). Also add in a few goodies like “That article you wrote on live-in relationships was fabulous” (It’s another matter that the article appeared in a rival newspaper.)

Sexy, oomph, beauty, a great host are some of the words that make rounds in the P3 edits. An old lady who hangs along with one of the ex-wives of the ex-Nizam’s is described by the editor of a P3, as one of the most endearing hosts in Hyderabad. How? Nobody can hazard a guess. Does it have to do with a flat in Banjara Hills, which the editor had purchased at a substantial ‘discount’?
Our sources say that a couple of boutique owners have also complained to the top management of (we leave you to guess which one it was) that their P3 editor accompanied by another lady correspondent walked off with designer dresses without paying for them. The owners were told that the dresses would be reviewed and written about. Six months since, neither the review appeared nor were the dresses returned. Khallas!
But then there are ways to get around the editor and get yourselves seen on P3. Times has a division called Medianet, where one can (legally) pay and get written about in Hyderabad Times. So if P3 socialites want their party to be written and seen by all - they just need to pay as per the medianet rate card to the Times (and not the editor). Talk about cutting out the middlemen (and women)! The Jains are smart and know their business well. Why bribe the editor? Pay us and we will write about it, the Jains would say. Smart move - Paisa pheko,Tamasha dekho.
DC has another strategy. Those who want coverage in the P3 tabloid will have to buy a substantial number of copies of DC (say around 5000 copies and upwards). The DC circulation guys will account for that number of copies as increase in circulation or better sell the entire lot in raddi. Indeed, there are a number of ways to get written in P3 and these are just a couple of them.

After the party, make sure you have a wonderful parting gift, or have the editor dropped home in your Mercedes. (No, she will not write about the free ride home).
Page Three is all about “You scratch my bare back, and I will reciprocate.” And just like the ‘reel’ P3, the ‘real’ P3 is all khokla. That’s the sad story of P3 journalism, if you can call that journalism!

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Foot note : We asked for comments preceding the posting of a story on P3 and here are snippets of what we got :
P3 is all about a sumptuous meal at a star hotel and a hot party in a happening watering hole. Remember Madhur's movie dialogue? "We create celebrities and destruct them" or something similar…
About ten miserable scribes, two hapless lensmen… The sinister lady's strange whims and fancies! A despot! That's what HT is all about… A third rate of a fashion show at a five star hotel is a unique event for them… because the organizer is very generous! A national celeb's visit is nothing worth talking about. A city girl who made it to the AXN English series is an unknown figure and not worth coverage whereas a Heena Srivastava or a Rohit Reddy is something very hot and happening! God bless P3 journalists.

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Happy weekend! Badger your P3 team and get yourselves some invites. Else, mull and mail ideas for next story on the blog. Cheers!

Jayanth acts on Sayesekhar

It's not often that earthshaking events happen at the sedate Hindu. Today was an exception. Sayesekhar, the Vijayawada Bureau Chief, has been transferred to Hyderabad and reportedly given the BJP beat. And everyone is talking about it, mostly happy at the development. Sayesekhar joined the Hindu as a Star Reporter from Deccan Chronicle and had a meteoric rise in Hindu. He got a double promotion for himself and ensured better hikes and promotions to his team, reason why many envied him. (Remember the invidious HR practices we discussed in "Parochial Ways of India's National Newspaper"?). The team, however, was unhappy at his way of treating them and were relieved when Jayanth promised "light at the end of tunnel" to them after his visit to Vijayawada to conduct an enquiry. Jayanth has kept his promise now. Interestingly, Srimali, with about five years of experience and considered close to chiefs in Hyderabad, will take charge at Vijayawada. Good luck to him. Hope his rise will not make him the envied. Will Saye come to Hyderabad and work with the chief with whom his relationship is anything but cordial? Let's see.

Yell-ow Brigade's whimper!

Ayyo.. Ayyo.. Ayyayyo…!
Chandrababu is out. United Andhra slogan has been rejected in both Andhras! The TD’s single digit strength in Lok Sabha has been further pruned. For TD, Losing Bobbili is a big blow — their assessment of anti-incumbency wave has been belied; their personal attacks on Botsa, ably backed up by once kingmaker and present kingpin in Margadarsi’s misdeeds Ramoji’s Eenadu, failed to wash. The combined campaign only washed out the sympathy for the son of late Desam leader!
The Karimnagar result indicates the signs of Desam’s resurgence seen in the panchayat polls have vanished. It was the strength of the local candidates then and the weakness of the party leader now that made the difference! So, the cycle is punctured in both the tyres. Strange, but TD’s fortunes seem to be in synch with Ramoji’s Eenadu. Once invincible, both establishments have taken a severe beating and are groping for light in the tunnel. Nothing seems to go right, no strategy seems to work and problems aplenty appear on the horizon!
Despite this both Ramoji and Naidu are stubbornly sticking to their guns. Naidu, even after his yelling foul failed, continues to insult voters’ intelligence – Mandu (liquor) and money impacted result in Bobbili, he theorized! Ramoji continues to believe he can upset YSR’s applecart by prolonging the tirade in Eenadu/ETV. We will stick to the same editorial policy till 2009 Assembly polls, he tells his staff, after the results!
In “Whose in the fray?” post, we said Ramoji has taken the polls personally, vowing to defeat YSR. YSR gained in Bobbili and lost nothing in Karimanagar. So, whose smiling?
KCR showed that theatrics can win elections. The drama artist has effectively silenced all his critics, those dissenting MLAs importantly. Let’s see how our colleagues, the political reporters, analyse the result. An analysis on the real estate impact would be a must, we suppose?

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Sastry's self-deception

Undemocratic Naidu undermines institutions

In 'The Kamma-Reddy dogfight' post, we said the Margadarsi episode is set to be a decisive battle in the war between the two castes and that a weakened Ramoji would mark the end of Chandrababu Naidu and his party. Indeed, Naidu has heard the crack of doom! Panicked by RBI's whip on Margadarsi, Naidu charged the RBI of being partisan and sought to attribute motives to it.

This is the second time that Naidu has faulted institutions of democracy because their actions were detrimental to his ends! In the 90s, soon after he usurped power from dad-in-law NTR, Naidu fumed over the unimpeachable CEC T N Seshan's directive to political parties to hold internal elections. On that occasion, Naidu had Shiv Senas's Bal Thackeray for company. This time around, he is a loner. After initial show of solidarity with Ramoji, all the Raghavulu-s, Venkiah Naidu-s and the like realised their folly and understood that silence is gold. Even Ramoji's brainchild Lok Satta's JP had to eat humble pie. But Naidu has only become more aggressive in supporting hot potato Ramoji. Is that a wise move? Looks like Naidu is too lost in the battle for survival to weigh the merits of his moves.

Wages of copy editing!

When the going gets tough, the tough find a scapegoat! Poor people, those Eenadu employees… till the other day they were an envied lot among Telugu journalists… Big organization, higher salaries.. paid promptly, least exploited, better working environs, and more! (at least they thinks so). Today, they are dazed and apprehensive! The Undavalli bombshell denied them a Ramoji B-Day Bonus and worse, the recent rapid chain of events has them in jitters. What if Eenadu is sold?… What if the organization retrenches people..? and many more what ifs…? None is happy over the current uncertainty and the desk guys have found a couple to blame for all the trouble… the two young copy-editors who embellished the Peddala-Gaddala story. When it appeared, the story was the single most explosive media report in recent years and everyone patted the duo. Today, Peaddala — Gaddala is seen to be the report that landed the Group in dire straits. And all are blaming the duo for being too good at their job!

Rajiv lessons for Ramoji

Rajiv Gandhi, the youngest Prime Minister India ever had, was born great. He achieved popularity and gamely accepted power that was thrust upon him. Sadly, cruel fate had him leave the task of defending his honour to his family. Therein lies the lesson for Ramoji Rao. Here is how:

The Bofors scandal showed how an ill-advised greenhorn politician could entangle himself in an inescapable mess. Rajiv’s response to allegations of kickbacks in the gun purchase deal was a strategic blunder, underlined by a series of vehement denials and hasty retreats. Initially, Rajiv categorically denied all allegations. No middlemen were involved in the deal, he declared. Evidence showed otherwise. Rajiv retracted but declared that no kickbacks were made. Media reported bank account numbers and transaction details. Rajiv retracted but stated that none from his party or Cabinet were paid. Fresh evidence (incriminating Arun Nehru) proved him wrong, forcing him to retract and avow that none from his family benefited from the deal! (Prompting a wicked joke: See Foot Note)

A decade after his assassination, during the NDA regime, Rajiv’s family and followers had to fight to have his name deleted from the charge sheet filed in courts relating to the Bofors kickbacks.

Ramoji’s life is at a turning point. His actions in the present would decide how the world would remember him in the future. The present holds out an opportunity to him — to come clean and thus gracefully preserve at least a part of the clean image and reputation that he has built for himself. Waiting for evidence to admit guilt would be disastrous and would vilify him for now and forever! And, like in the case of Rajiv, it would leave his family entangled in protracted legal wrangles.

The Union Finance Ministry’s stop order on Margadarsi has already exposed how untenable Ramoji’s claim on the non-application of RBI laws to his HUF is. Ramoji is now on the verge of making his first retreat: The date of stopping acceptance of deposits by Margadarshi Financiers. Evidently, there is a contradiction between what we read and heard from his media wings and what he informed the RBI. He would also have to explain why the group’s net worth is informed differently for the RBI and the common man, Rs 500-odd crore and Rs 10,000 crore! That’s just the beginning. There is a lot more he would have to do before he can consider Margadarsi, RFC lands issues as over and buried.

Ramoji had made several fabulously grandiose statements: No law has been violated in mobilizing deposits for Margadarsi; Not a single acre of land encroached or any bit of assigned lands bought to build RFC. All allegations are a product of politcal vendetta;

He also despised those that questioned him: Vundavalli is a small fry. His daughter-in-law went a step further, calling him a liar and charging that he would be responsible if the company sinks.

Now, there is scope for honourable discharge for Ramoji, if he acts wise: Stop giving ‘technical’ excuses and admit all wrongdoings; Everyone and my wife knows RFC is built on encroached and assigned lands. Technically, Ramoji is right in RFC case too — he had the lands purchased first by his team before he bought them. The team includes his personal bodyguard!! Instead of an outright denial, it would be better for him to seek a settlement from the government to save the architectural wonder, as the shameless Red friend Narayana described it.

Ramoji, thanks to his astuteness and the monopoly of his paper, has scripted the fate of many a politician and bureaucrat. Time has come for him to decide his own fate and decide for himself what his epitaph would be!

(Joke: If Rajiv were alive for longer, probably his next denial and retreat would have been: Maybe my family was involved but I promise I am not the beneficiary!)
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