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At Random -Rambler Rural debt The average debt per rural labour household in the country has almost doubled. It has recorded an increase of 90.9 per cent over the level of debt of Rs 3,169 in 1993-94 to Rs 6,049 in 1999-2000, although the incidence of indebtedness among them has declined by more than 10 per cent. This has been revealed in a Report on Indebtedness among Rural Labour Households (1999-2000) released by the Labour Bureau of the Ministry of Labour and Employment. The incidence of indebtedness was higher among SC households at 25.3 per cent and the average debt per household was Rs 5,077 in 1999-2000. In ST labour households it was 22.9 per cent and Rs 4,781 and in the backward classes the average debt per household was Rs 7,731. An analysis of the data revealed that 98.1 per cent of the debt was contracted by households while a very small proportion of 1.9 per cent was inherited. A significant portion of the total debt was taken for unproductive purposes, such as for household consumption 27.6 per cent, 24 per cent marriages and other ceremonies and 1 per cent for repayment of debt. The debt for productive purposes constituted only 18.5 per cent. As usual, moneylenders continued to be a major cause of debt (31.7 per cent). Lalu's nod The important post of member (staff) and ex-officio Secretary to the Government of India, Ministry of Railways, is vacant after the retirement of S.M. Singla last month. The Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav's choice is Varshney, General Manager of Hajipur zone but ACC is understood to have rejected the proposal on the grounds that he has less than one year left for retirement. ACC has approved promotion of Jaruar, General Manager of Northern Railway for being posted as member. Will Lalu give in? Reshuffle Umesh C. Sarangi is being tipped to be Principal Secretary to the newly-sworn Maharashtra Chief Minister, Vilas Rao Deshmukh. He is a 1977 batch IAS officer. And a major reshuffle (IAS and IPS) within a week or two is on cards in the state. Governorship Extended agony is the reward for Narayan Dutt Tiwari, who had already expressed his wish to quit as Uttaranchal Chief Minister post. As he has stopped taking interest in administrative affairs, politicians and bureaucrats have already started to shift their loyalties to a safer bet. It is learnt that Tiwari has focussed his sights on the Mumbai Raj Bhavan, which is to be vacated by Mohammad Fazal later this month. Reorganisation awaited There is a grapevine in Delhi darbar that senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel is likely to succeed Moti Lal Vohra as treasurer of the Congress Party during the next reorganisation.

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