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3 hotlines will keep PM in touch even during surgery

Syed Firdaus Ashraf in Bombay

Not one, not two, but three hotlines will keep the prime minister linked to the world even while he goes on the operation table on Tuesday morning.

The first one is at Raj Bhavan, the second one is at the Sahyadri guesthouse and the third one is at the Breach Candy hospital, Bombay, where the prime minister was admitted on Monday. And interestingly, the prime minister also has a parallel line with direct access to all three hotlines near his hospital bed.

In fact, the prime minister will only be administered regional anaesthesia when his knee is operated upon by the New York-based Dr Chittaranjan S Ranawat. This will ensure he is in his senses while he undergoes the operation on Tuesday.

His personal secretary V Anandarajan will also be around him, besides two or three personal physicians.

Nearly 43 people have accompanied the prime minister from New Delhi. Principal Secretary to the prime minister and National Security Adviser Brajesh Mishra is at Raj Bhavan, the governor's home in Bombay.

Ashok Tandon, officer on special duty at the Prime Minister's Office, said the fact that these officials are in Bombay will not in any way hamper the PMO's functioning. He recalled the smooth manner in which the PMO functioned from Manali in Himachal Pradesh when Vajpayee was on a holiday recently.

"The same was the case when Vajpayeeji visited the United States last month. The PMO functioned smoothly," Tandon told rediff.com

PMO officials will meet Vajpayee regularly and brief him about various events when he is at the Breach Candy hospital. When he shifts to the Raj Bhavan so will the PMO.

"The PMO was working from New Delhi in the morning when he was there. As soon as we reached Bombay we started operating from this city in the evening," said Tandon. "After all, everyone knew about the PM's surgery. So, we started getting phone calls and faxes over here as soon as we reached."

The PM's surgery: The full coverage

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