FULL SUPPORT: Digvijay (centre) at the Congress workshop on secularism in Bhopal

When the moral police stopped filmmaker Deepa Mehta's Water and hounded her out of Varanasi, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijay Singh turned saviour, inviting her to his state to shoot the movie. Even though Water later evaporated, Mehta came to Madhya Pradesh and ended up among a host of Digvijay's admirers in intellectual circles-writers, artists, journalists, activists, Dalit leaders, economists and historians-for whom he has virtually become a patron saint.

Though all state governments seek inputs from the private sector, none has done it better than Digvijay. Experts advise him on a gamut of issues: economic reforms, the Dalit agenda, social development and the environment. "Recognised experts in each field generate trust in the issues by their presence," says R. Gopalakrishnan, head of the Rajiv Gandhi Mission. "The state has invited them all to be part of the development process." It cuts both ways: the state needs their input while they need a benefactor to demonstrate the utility of their ideas. In the process, Digvijay has generated immense goodwill. Three major all-India conferences-the Indian History Congress, the Bhopal Conference of Dalit Intellectuals, and a workshop for Congress members on secularism-for which Digvijay granted Government sponsorship confirmed his status as the darling of the intelligentsia.

"There are few leaders today who can claim to have a personal equation with so many experts," says Sandeep Dikshit, CEO of NGO Sanket. "The benefits, of course, have flowed both ways as they should." Neither side is complaining.

-Neeraj Mishra

TRAVEL
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GOLF: J.W. Marriott Phuket Resort and Spa, Thailand, is offering a golf Getaway Package for $580 (Rs 28,300). Includes airport transfers and two rounds of golf per person. Contact: mileage@vsnl.com

CRUISE: A one-time offer for a 12-night cruise on the Mediterranean on Queen Elizabeth 2 for a round trip from Southampton starts at $(a) 3,189 (Rs 88,265) per person. Starts on September 12. Contact: 11-6511287.

AIR SAHARA: Use its "Sixer" limited offer scheme to get six tickets to any six destinations for Rs 25,000. Valid till December 20, 2002.

THE GOLDEN PUMPKIN

AT ODDS WITH HIMSELF: Shourie

Is Arun Shourie a crusading journalist or a cabinet minister? His recent three-part article in The Indian Express highlighting the rot in India's public-sector units suggests he refuses to overcome his journalistic zeal, even if that is in conflict with his ministerial assignment.

As disinvestment minister, he has the unpopular job of selling public companies and demolishing the fiefdoms of many ministries. That requires him to be bold, diplomatic and subtle. Not loud and daring as his articles were. Already, some cabinet ministers have objected to his washing others' dirty linen in public. If they now refuse to cooperate, the future of privatisation-which he had only recently brightened-could be in jeopardy again. Then there is the issue of cabinet responsibility. As a minister, Shourie is privy to information that a journalist can never access. Should he use that to write in newspapers or to fight the battle for privatisation? Mr Shourie, make up your mind.