Though Hindustan Times shed the image of a 'Sarkari Akhbar' long ago, the new editor-in-chief appears to shake it up again to get the lethargy off the staff and bring a lot of changes (mostly internal and not visible to outsiders as yet).
Chaitanya Kalbag, who was earlier Reuter's Asia boss, had taken over as HT's Editor-in-Chief (Vir Sanghvi remains Editorial Director) recently and soon after joining the paper, he has stirred the hornet's nest by scolding the sleepy subs, rapping the reporters and giving earful to the editors all over the country (of various editions).
This is something new to HTians and no wonder many are complaining. What does sound strange to most staffers was his instructions of not availing any junket, no new recruitment and keeping cell phones on 24x7. 'Quote the person or at least give a hint about the source', is the direction to stop the 'planted' stories. Couchpotatoes who hadn't worked for ages appear shocked.
Some say that the changes are visible and mistakes are no longer tolerated. The UK English is back in vogue and sub-editors wary of consulting dictionaries are back to basics, learning the language. Initial days though a few months later we will be in a better position to comment.
