With global economic growth said to be its lowest since World War II, India and China—go figure!—have emerged as the only sizeable economies likely to record growth rates of over 5 per cent. That’s the verdict of the IMF. Helping to buoy our economy are our inveterate shoppers. Delhi Whispers enjoyed a sun-dappled walk through the city’s swank Khan Market yesterday afternoon and saw gaggles of shoppers eagerly clutching their shopping bags. With almost every store on sale, the pickings were indeed good. Retailers will hope they return—again and again.

A sombre day in the capital yesterday. While the Prime Minister recovers from his cardiac surgery, India lost one of its former presidents R Venkataraman. The 98 year-old, who was often known as a copybook head of state, oversaw India’s the country’s first coalition government, headed by V P Singh. All official functions stand cancelled for a week. Meanwhile, other business went on as usual. One unsavoury highlight: newspapers reported that the government has proposed to more than double the funds allocation to MPs under the MP Local Area Development Scheme—the amount will go up from Rs 2 crore to Rs 5 crore. A great way to curry favour with legislators, what with elections around the corner….

It was a good Republic Day this year. The parade went off smoothly—in fact, there was a sense of gravitas and pride to the proceedings that have been missing for some time now. Perhaps the signs of a country banding together in a show of solidarity. Further, on the heels of 26/11, the Centre is expected to give the go ahead for the establishment of a Special Forces Command on the lines of crack anti-terrorist teams seen in countries like the US and Israel. We hope this is implemented, and soon. Finally, the icing on the cake (if the screaming headlines are anything to go by): US President Barack Obama’s assertion that India has no better friend than the US. But before we get all euphoric let’s just remember that he may say the same thing to Pakistan tomorrow.

Delhi ’s art fraternity is in a tizzy. A retrospective of S H Raza at Dhoomimal Gallery in Connaught Place-opened by the veteran artist himself-this past weekend ended up featuring a bunch of fakes. According to Raza, his signature has been photographed and made into stamp, which has been used on the fake canvases. With the artist openly expressing his dismay and anger in the media, the Gallery, one of the oldest and most reputed in the capital, has been left with egg on the face. This will keep the culturati buzzing-until the next scandal comes along.

The word is out that four Rajya Sabha seats from Jammu & Kashmir will be allotted in the next few days. Three are expected to go to Ghulam Nabi Azad, Saifuddin Soz and Faroukh Abdullah. And the fourth? Well, it has been committed to king of good times Vijay Mallya by the Abdullahs. In fact, Mallya has spent past week in Jammu and Srinagar lobbying his case. And to ensure a smooth passage, he’s also said to have sought the blessings of a karmic healer in South Delhi. An interesting sidelight: Omar Abdullah’s wife Payal has been the GSA of Jet Airways in Srinagar for years now. Is there a job shift in the offing?

The PM’s new wheels

The capital’s roads will soon see a brand new set of wheels—Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh’s new BMWs is reportedly being test-driven in secret by the SPG at Safdarjang Airport. The custom-made BMW X series, a 4,799 cc SUV with two engines and eight cylinders costs Rs 78.6 lakh in its most basic form—after customization the price tag goes up to a whopping Rs 15 crore! Highlights include the i-drive computer system that controls audio, climate, communication and navigation systems; secure phone; on-board monitor with TV function; hill-descent control; and rain sensors. Of course, the hatchback is bullet-proof, mine-proof and armour plated. Apparently, the government has ordered 15 of these vehicles. And here we are talking about a recession.

Another scandal-this time it's our judges fleecing the common man. Newspapers are reporting that provident fund savings of class III and class IV employees of the Ghaziabad courts were illegally spent on luxury items like furniture, crockery, mobiles, gadgets and laptops for district judges. The findings are the result of a CBI probe. The judges apparently even spent the money on photography and video-recording of their family functions. If our judicial system is so rotten, what can we expect from big business?

India's Enron has left the capital reeling. The biggest ever corporate fraud in Indian history, the Satyam scandal is a huge blow to the overseas image of India Inc and has brought into sharp focus the ethics behind corporate governance. For its part, the government has put the salvage of the company at the top of its agenda, with the PM meeting the SBI chief. Now it’s up to the official troubleshooters Deepak Parekh, Kiran Karnik and C Achuthan to untangle the mess. In this whole debacle lies a valuable lesson for big business: get your house in order. It’s the least you owe your stakeholders—and your country.

A meeting has been called to select the next Deputy Governor of RBI in the 1st week of January. The selection committee headed by RBI Governor Dr. D. Subbarao also constitutes the Cabinate Secretary, the Principal Secretary to PM, Finance Secretary Mr. Arun Ramanathan and DOPT Secretary. No guess on who the front runner is. Both South and North blocks are pushing for Mr. T.S. Narayanasami, Chairman Bank of India.