Building UP's image

The refurbished Uttar Pradesh secretariat in the heart of Lucknow never fails to impress visitors, not the least because it is quite out of sync with Uttar Pradesh’s image as an agrarian economy with a large population below the poverty line. The managing director of a growing Indian conglomerate was certainly impressed. After meeting senior bureaucrats on the fifth floor, where chief minister Mayawati’s office is also located, he said the decor and upkeep of the secretariat were better than a five-star hotel. He was impressed enough to suggest that the media “should write about the positive things happening in UP”.