A winter's sun

A story that was often told shortly after Narendra Modi took over as prime minister was of his distaste for the laziness of Delhi babudom, formed over several winter-time trips to the capital when he was chief minister of Gujarat. As the CM's motorcade wound its way through the traffic circles and parks of Lutyens' Delhi, Modi noted that half of Delhi's minor bureaucrats seemed to be basking in the winter sun. As prime minister, Modi has cracked down on long lunch hours - but many expected additional strictures to stay in office once winter came. But one bureaucrat was overheard recently saying that, as usual, the prime minister was lucky. Winter in Delhi is so cold this year that few are venturing out to sun themselves.