13,000 followers and counting: PMO joins Twitter

A day after it was launched, the Twitter account of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh - or more specifically the Prime Minister's Office (PMO)- has amassed more than 13,000 followers.

A day after it was launched, the Twitter account of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh - or more specifically the Prime Minister's Office (PMO)- has amassed more than 13,000 followers. Not bad for a Twitter handle that has so far produced only five tweets, and has become a talking point thanks to what it doesn't say as opposed to what it does.

'The Prime Minister's Office is now on Twitter @PMOIndia. Thank you for your support,' Singh's newly-appointed communications advisor Pankaj Pachauri tweeted.

The account, which opened at a time when the Twitterverse is flooded with debate about author Salman Rushdie's absence from the Jaipur literature festival, features pictures of the PM interacting with bravery award winners, the foreign affairs minister of Myanmar and NCC cadets.

The account, which hopes to catch the attention of the younger generation, is yet to be verified. 'The Twitter account may help in sending out the information to larger, particularly young, audiences,' an aide said.

Many welcomed the PM, others took jibes at the tweets, or rather the lack of them.

While heads of several countries are on Twitter, US President Barack Obama has been the most successful, with 12 million followers.