Indian social media platform Koo, which had shot to prominence last year after several Union government functionaries and ministries threw their weight behind it amid the Centre’s disagreements with Twitter, has a prominent new patron – the Trinamool Congress. Last week, West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool supremo Mamata Banerjee opened an account in Koo, which issued a statement on the development. On Sunday, the party’s Rajya Sabha MP Derek O’Brien also announced his decision to join Koo. Incidentally, Trinamool national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee joined the platform, which also operates in Indian languages, last September.
Taking Turns
THE PERSONAL staff and other officers attached with Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh are having a tough time keeping up with him. In the past week, the minister travelled from Jammu to Delhi and back to a remote area in Kashmir, before heading south to Thiruvananthapuram. He followed that up with a visit to Uttar Pradesh and then back to Srinagar on Sunday — packing his schedule in between with some quick trips back to New Delhi to attend meetings. With six ministries under his belt, Singh has a large number of commitments. Unable to keep up with the pace of the minister’s schedule, his personal staff as well as other officers have now started taking turns in accompanying him on his trips.
Behind Schedule
WITH WEEKLY visits from the Housing and Urban Affairs Minister and visits almost daily by senior ministry officials, the government is trying to get the new Parliament building ready soon. Although the building was supposed to be completed in time for the Winter Session of Parliament, it now appears that it is likely to be ready only for the Budget Session next year. In the past week, workers at the site encountered hard rock while trying to place a structure, leaving officials with the task of finding a new spot for the installation. Officials say they have had to contend with many practical challenges in constructing the new Parliament building in two years.
