Congress picks up babu's 'Sandesh'

The Congress party spares no opportunity to tom-tom its achievements. And for it even gets public servants to do its bidding and that too in its official mouthpiece.
Pushing the Mahatma Gandhi NREGA (National Rural Employee Guarantee Act) in the Congress party mouth piece, Congress Sandesh, Rural Development secretary B K Sinha wrote extensively hard selling the UPA government’s flagship scheme.
In the article, ‘Enhancing the Bargaining Power of Rural Poor: Mahatma Gandhi NREGA’, Sinha wrote, “The premier flagship program of the UPA government has raised productivity, increased the purchasing power, reduced distress migration and helped in creation of durable assets in rural India.”
Congress Sandesh is the official mouth piece of the Congress party. It is published by Congress treasurer Motilal Vohra on behalf of Sandesh Trust, All India Congress Committee. The trust of the office is on 25 Akbar Road, the head office of the AICC. Among its editorial board, Minister of Water Resources and Minority Affairs Salman Khurshid and other AICC officials.
Apart from Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s messages, letters, photographs, the magazine write-ups include articles on history and historical personalities. It also pushes government schemes.
Sonia Gandhi has expressed her displeasure at the Congress Sandesh for carrying dull, unimaginative content. Since then there has been a consistent effort to improve the quality of the magazine and push its sales up. Every Congress worker has to officially buy the magazine, priced at Rs 10. However, not many end up purchasing it.
Sandesh Editor Anil Shastri admitted the lapse. “We picked up the article from the PIB website. There is nothing wrong. I will write to them (my staff).”
An IAS officer of 1975 batch, Sinha praises the scheme no end. Under the government rules, an officer working his official capacity cannot favour any particular publication. According to rules, it’s the job of Press Information Bureau under the Information and Broadcasting Ministry.
”Officials and specially secretaries should avoid writing in publications of political parties. The officer is writing as secretary to the government of India and not in his personal capacity. As per rules, this is not allowed,” remarked an Indian Information Service officer posted in the PIB.
However, even after more than a month’s publication, the Congress party nor the Congress Sandesh had corrected the mistake.
The Secretary refused to comment after his staff was briefed about his comments on MGNREGA.