Ministers to the rescue

A Facebook message sent to Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejaswi Yadav last Friday helped Krishna Kumar, a 22-year-old engineering student in Patna, get a Rs 9,820 scholarship earmarked for poor students. Kumar had been running from pillar to post the past three years to get the scholarship amount. A jubilant Kumar messaged Yadav on Facebook to thank him, claiming that he was proud to have the young leader as deputy CM. Now, more students who have scholarships pending, have messaged Yadav. The young Bihar leader is not the only politician to respond to such pleas on social media. Earlier this month, a group of school students and teachers on the Howrah-bound Kumbha Express had food delivered to their seats after they took to Twitter seeking succour and tagged Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu in their posts, when their train was delayed by seven hours. It seems people find it more convenient to use social media than seek a face-to-face appointment with their elected representatives.