The chair meant for him on the dais remained vacant till one official ushered in Khare there. The reticent Khare left his seat among his old tribe with some reluctance.

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To be or not to be Rajya Sabha MP

Aveek babu - as Kolkata media baron Aveek Sarkar is popularly known - has turned down an invitation to be MP on the so-called presidential quota. He was to replace journalist Chandan Mitra, who was nominated by the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government and whose term runs out in August.

Last heard, Sarkar, after some deep cogitation, decided against taking up the offer as he did not want to be identified with the ruling establishment that sends its recommendations to the president.

It is not yet known which mediaperson the Congress will invite to take up the Rajya Sabha slot. Mitra, meanwhile, is said to be trying hard to seek an extension but H.K. Dua, the editor-in-chief of the Chandigarh-based newspaper The Tribune, could give him a run for his money.

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Divestment yes, empty vessels no, says Pranab

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee evidently believes in getting things done without trumpeting them. Although his union budget did not go hard at divestment of state-run companies, he has not given up on the idea.

He is learnt to have told people in parliament's Central Hall that in India things often get done quietly, and he criticised the noise made on the issue by Arun Shourie and Arun Jaitley, ministers in the NDA government that finally could not get any big-ticket divestment through.

Only, Mukherjee says the public-sector character of these companies will remain unchanged with the government still holding a 51 percent majority.

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No more 'flying high' for Air India employees

For the employees of Air India, it's a touch of ground reality. Having always maintained they are a cut above their colleagues at the erstwhile Indian Airlines, the feeling continued even after the two carriers were merged last year.

But after a 15-day delay in salaries, the staff of international operations may now have to move out of the large Air India office in New Delhi's central business district of Connaught Place, for which the carrier is reportedly paying an annual rent of Rs.4 crore.

What is perhaps embarrassing them most is the prospect of moving into Airline House, the headquarters of the former Indian Airlines. The strict warning by Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel has quietened them a bit though.