Happy New Year, 2013: 5 things you may expect in corridors of power

NOTHING is predictable in today’s corridors of power. Maybe, the regular appointments of the empaneled officials could be the only exception. Yet, BoI presents 5 things that you may expect in corridors of power during the New Year, 2013.
1) The “policy paralysis” will not entirely disappear, but files should move faster in 2013 than in 2012. It’s not a prediction of any kind but usage of a simple logic. With the general elections round the corner, the ruling political class will turn restless and cajole rather than dictate bureaucrats to act on files with a sense of urgency.
2) Social ministries like health, rural development etc. will gain prominence. After all, the real action in the run-up to the elections will be seen in those ministries. The satisfaction level of bureaucrats working in those “second-rung” ministries will improve dramatically.
3) The level of corruption at the Centre may come down marginally. The bureaucrats at the Centre with long-term career ambitions in mind will continue to be cautious of any major wrong-doing. But the real challenge in tackling corruption will remain at the states.
4) More and more bureaucrats will join the bandwagon of Twitter and FB this year. With the Central government finding it difficult to take on social media any more, it may silently field its officials as private individuals to act as pro-government “activists”.
5) With high-profile posts such as defence and home secretaries falling vacant during summer of 2013, the first half of the year will witness intense speculations of who will get what. Though cabinet secretary Ajit K Seth is likely to get one year extension, DoPT secretary PK Misra could be a surprise candidate to replace Seth in June, 2013.