New Delhi, Aug 23 - Skeletons are tumbling thick and fast out of the musty cupboards of the Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD). Apparently several millions of rupees were paid by individual private operators to secure deemed university status for their educational institutions, most of which had highly questionable academic credentials.

Over hundred such institutions around the country secured this status. The critical tag seemed to imply their recognition by the government as bona fide higher institutions of learning, which these institutions then blatantly advertised. This in turn encouraged thousands of students to part with substantial sums of money to gain admission, leading to vast profits for their promoters.

The current HRD dispensation has now revoked this deemed university status tag, and with it any official recognition it might have implied. Needless to say, some who managed to transform dodgy teaching shops into lucrative businesses by these means are far from amused.

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Slowly but surely, Krishna finds his feet

He seemed to be a reluctant foreign minister in the first few months after assuming charge, but S.M. Krishna is slowly getting into the groove, senior officials in the Ministry of External Affairs affirm.

Since the time when he had to perform on cue and avoid reporters' questions, he seems a little more self-assured and should come into his own by yearend if not earlier, say those who interact with him closely.

Krishna, say aides, never pretended that he understood the finer nuances of international diplomacy and is a keen learner, absorbing more, speaking less and asking endless questions in a business where every word or phrase is loaded with meaning and where inappropriate usage, either in speech or text, can lead to a diplomatic faux pas and political embarrassment.

The US-educated Krishna doesn't shy away so much from reporters now and is bringing to his job the immense weight of his experience as a state chief minister, governor and a man otherwise known to be worldly-wise.

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No more Posco for Handique

Who does one believe? South Korean steel major Posco, Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik or Mines Minister B.K. Handique on what is being touted as the biggest foreign project yet planned in the country.

First, Handique sprang a surprise a few days ago when he claimed that Posco officials had themselves told him they were looking at shifting their proposed $10.5 billion steel project out of Orissa because of difficulties in acquiring land. Patnaik then denied any such move and politely added that it was an unintentional error committed by the union minister.

But a strong statement from Posco is what seems to have caused a major embarrassment to the mines minister. 'It is a baseless report,' the South Korean giant said in a statement, mincing no words while saying that the project was staying in the state.

Now mention the name Posco to Handique and his hands vigorously gesture a no, saying: 'Sorry, no more questions.'

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Telugu, the 'official' language at RBI!

Former chief economic advisor in finance ministry Shankar Acharya made an interesting observation at a recent function when he said the official language at the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) could well be Telugu. His reason: The people on the dais were well-versed in the language.

He was referring to D. Subbarao, Y.V. Reddy, M. Narasimham and C. Rangarajan - the first being the incumbent governor of the central bank and the others being his predecessors.

When told that among them Rangarajan was not from Andhra Pradesh, and strictly not Telugu-speaking, Acharya was quick to pose a query in reply: 'Was he not the governor of Andhra Pradesh for five years?'

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Naveen's love for 'pakhal'

There was a time when Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik spoke no Oriya, was an urban sophisticate and was known for his trendy lifestyle in New York.