Politician, philosopher and philanthropist Karan Singh | Photo Credit: -

On March 9, two luminaries in India will celebrate their birthday — politician, philosopher and ex Maharaja of J&K Karan Singh turns 95; and politician and bibliophile Shashi Tharoor turns 75. At an event on Friday to launch a biography of Karan Singh, the two shared the stage and recounted some fascinating stories. Describing how he won from Udhampur four times but lost an election for the first time when he shifted his seat to Jammu leading him to renounce politics altogether, Singh told Tharoor: “You have now won four times from Thiruvananthapuram, but please, for god’s sake, don’t make the mistake I did and stick to your constituency!”

ChatGPT perils

A little bird has raised concerns over bureaucrats trying to prepare their notes using ChatGPT. Information on the AI platform is based on other information it taps from the web, and it could be dangerous. These platforms could be noting the IP address of the bureaucrat, and the Centre should issue an advisory asking them to refrain. Such efforts stop the bureaucrats from “critical thinking,” says the bird.

Not bowled over by cricket

The President of Finland, Alexander Stubb, ended his three day India visit with a fireside chat at a business summit in Mumbai. While most of the conversation was on pressing issues, of wars, tariffs and trade, it ended on a lighter note.

Asked if he watched cricket during his India trip, Stubb said he didn’t. “I know India beat England in the semi-final, and just to explain, for Finns there is nothing better than beating Sweden in ice-hockey and we just did it in Winter Olympics.”

Though he missed cricket, Stubb made it a point to watch the movie Dhurandhar before coming to India. “My son sent me a message, ‘you have to watch it’, and I did. I know there is a sequel coming,” Stubb said, drawing applause from the audience.

Filling a top post

The Ministry of Commerce has invited applications for the post of Director, Basmati Development Export Foundation (BDEF). Industry observers wonder whether the age limit has been set at 65 to accommodate retired IAS officers. They ask why there is this compulsion to engage retired officers.

Also, has this advertisement been placed because a couple of Basmati exporters’ associations have sought a separate board for Basmati? At the same time, the post of Director (Finance) in the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) has been vacant for over two-and-a-half years. Does this mean the APEDA Chairman wants to keep the financial powers, too?

Published on March 8, 2026