New Delhi, The whisper in the corridors of power in the capital is that the letter ‘A’ seems to have more currency in the top bureaucratic echelons compared to the other 25 letters.
More than half-a-dozen Union government secretaries in important departments seem to be on the right side of nomenclature with their names starting with the letter ‘A’. It may be a big coincidence or completely random set of events but it has certainly made government watchers sit up and take notice.
The letter ‘A’ dominates the frontline departments in the government. NITI Aayog vice chairman Amitabh Kant has been one of the most influential policymakers in both stints of the NDA government.
The departments of Home and Defence which have a fixed tenure for secretaries have incumbents in Ajay Bhalla and Ajay Kumar.
The Finance Ministry’s two most important functions of Economic Affairs and Revenue are headed by Atanu Chakraborty and Ajay Bhushan Pandey, who also holds charge of UIDAI as CEO.
Another nodal ministry, telecom is headed by Anshu Prakash while mines is headed by Anil Mukim. Another key economic ministry, commerce has Anup Wadhawan as the secretary.
It may be a complete coincidence that the top ministries are helmed by the ‘A’ listers, but it has become a source of awe and intrigue among government watchers.
