The delay in holding elections to the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation is proving good for the city with the K Chandrasekhar Rao government leaving no stone unturned to woo voters. Potholed roads are being re-carpeted and everything’s getting spruced up. The State cabinet recently took a number of decisions that are people friendly, including waiving house tax dues. As a wag quipped, elections are for the people after all.

Not all on board

Though the first meeting of the Council for Trade Development and Promotion saw good participation by industry chambers, the absence of State ministers was noticed. Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said ministers from just 10 States attended the meeting; other States sent representatives. Heavy fog conditions delayed the arrival of some ministers, and some others were apparently busy with investment summits in their own States.

Hostess with the mostest?

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is known to be a good host, often dropping in at media centres to check the arrangements. At one event, Banerjee noticed that lunch had not been arranged for reporters. She pulled up the event managers, and government officials scurried to make up for the lapse. Result: an elaborate high tea and dinner for journalists.

Stealth is wealth

Online classified startup Quikr which bought real estate online aggregator, commonfloor, didn’t officially disclose at the press conference last week the amount of money it spent in buying the latter. Those who got to “know” from “sources” put the deal price either at $100 million or at $200 million. The acquisition was kept under wraps as well. Denials by Quikr founders that they were in talks with commonfloor as late as October last year didn't prevent media speculation. Apparently, in this business, stealth is wealth.

Take a bite of this

Vimal Raj, a farmer, went on dharna for a whole fortnight at the secretariat in Thiruvananthapuram to press for his demand: a cow. He wanted to meet the chief minister so that he could personally ask Oommen Chandy to allot government funds to help him buy a cow. When he didn’t succeed, he climbed a tree and threatened to commit suicide. The police tried to dissuade him, even as onlookers gathered in hundreds. Finally, it took the offer of a plate of beef and parotta to get him down. Can’t own a cow? Eat one instead.

Spirited fight

When people talk about the influence of liquor on elections, they are usually referring to electorally corrupt practices such as supplying booze in exchange for votes.

In Kerala, it has acquired a new meaning, where liquor is the subject of policy debates and used to score brownie points on rivals. In an Assembly election year, the major fronts are putting on a spirited fight.

The Congress-led United Democratic Front’s policy, which has proposed prohibition in phases, has won the the nod of the Supreme Court. And while Chief Minister Oommen Chandy is making much of this, his rivals in the CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front are charging him with over-interpreting the Supreme Court order which, they say, did nothing more than accept that the State government is empowered to frame its liquor policy. The LDF is now arguing that abstention as a better option than prohibition in order to tackle the liquor menace. And yes, its policy on liquor will find a place in its manifesto.

Lucky streak?

Are the stars favouring West Bengal for investments? We don’t know but since the presidents of the three apex industry chambers — Ficci, Assocham and CII — this year are all from West Bengal, there is a case for thinking so.

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