Line of duty

Ever since the new Bharatiya Janata Party regime's diktat for punctuality kicked in and some ministers started making the occasional surprise check, bureaucrats and secretarial staff have been rushing to make it to the office by 9 a m. But this insistence on clocking in and out on time has had an unintended consequence on the Central Secretariat metro station, which is located near most government offices. At 5.30 p m these days, the queues at the station are so long that they extend all the way outside, right up to the Krishi Bhavan gates. This was not the case three months ago when secretarial staff would ensure they made quiet home-bound exits from 4 p m onwards. Bereft of such easy options now, the hapless staff is forced to wait till the end of office hours before trooping out and then enduring a long wait after that.