Politicians are out of Karnataka's day-to-day administration. As the state witnessed its first day under President's rule, the bureaucrats have taken over.
State Governor Rameshwar Thakur who is the head of operations, now has a panel of advisors to assist him in the administration. The advisors have been delegated by the Centre.
The advisors, who are in the rank of chief secretary, usually belong to cadres of other states. The Centre, while appointing them, will ensure that they are not from the parent state for obvious reasons.
Maintaining law and order will be the top priority of the advisors, but they will not have the power to make decisions on policy matters. The advisors could, however, effect transfers only under certain conditions. The advisors could also appoint their own assistants from the available officers from the state.
The situation in Vidhan Soudha, the seat of power in Karnataka, was different. Without the usual buzz and activity, the staff did not have a clue as to what work to undertake.
Dinesh Babu, a second division assistant said, "Since the government fell, we had no work to do. However, it is not as though we are happy about it. The situation is gloomy. here. We are used to so much activity around here."
However, carpenters at the Vidhan Soudha were busy in removing the name plaques of the ministers. The plaques will be returned to respective ministers by the end of the day, said one of the officers, who inspected the work.