The evolution of democracy and society

July 13, 2022

When Yog becomes Yoga it gets to be recognized in the country of origin”. I had tweeted this some time ago to highlight the fact that we are so obsessed with western endorsements that we look for such certificates to validate our point of view or practice.This is true even now. We went hammer and tongs to...

Evolution of the IAS

July 5, 2022

Will it survive? It was unprecedented but it happened. The Prime Minister chose to vent his ire on the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and criticized the premier civil service in no uncertain terms. This was done in the Parliament. Only he can explain why he said what he said. Ironically...

Bharat Ratna moments

June 28, 2022

I had mentioned in my book ‘Ethical Dilemmas of a Civil Servant’ that “I love to look back upon the years gone by with utmost satisfaction. I loved every moment of it”. There is also an explanation in the book about the reason for this ‘enjoyment’. I have used the...

No more a civil servant

June 22, 2022

I superannuated as a civil servant on 30 June 2018. I had enjoyed every moment of my life as a Civil Servant (I wrote in Not Just a Civil Servant that if I were to be reborn, I would like to be an IAS officer) but what happened thereafter was...

Haloed Institutions?

June 13, 2022

Twitter surveys have serious limitations but the results still surprised me. It was a survey by me wherein the following question was asked: According to you, which of the following institutions is carrying out its responsibilities in the best possible manner? 1. Civil Servants 2. Judiciary 3. Politicians 4. Media...

Interface with Industrialists

June 1, 2022

In 1993, I got an assignment where I interacted with industry and industrialists. After the Kalyan Singh Government fell in 1992, consequent to the demolition of Babri Masjid, I was posted as Executive Director, Udyog Bandhu. The job was to promote industrialisation in a state recovering from the shocks of...

My brush with the PMO: Part 2

May 24, 2022

As I mention in my book, “Not Just A Civil Servant”, the real coal story wasn’t about the successful coal block auctions. It was about the record increase in coal production. In 2014, there were on an average more than 25 power plants that were declared critical daily for want...

My brush with the PMO: Part I

May 17, 2022

We were all happy when National Democratic Alliance (NDA) rode to power. The United Progressive Alliance (UPA) had really messed it. I was personally thrilled when I got to know that Mr Nripendra Mishra would be the Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister and would head the Prime Minister’s Office...

My understanding of the Cabinet Secretariat: II

May 10, 2022

It was 2013. Everything that could go wrong was going wrong for the UPA-II government. There were scams all around. Everyone, including civil servants, was on the run, with enforcement agencies in hot pursuit. Consequently, no one had the time or inclination to take decisions. Investment had come to a...

My Understanding of the Cabinet Secretariat (1)

May 4, 2022

Before I joined the Cabinet Secretariat in 2013 as Additional Secretary, I was in awe of it. There were not many occasions that I had visited this part of the Rashtrapati Bhavan. However, whenever I did, it was with much trepidation. However, both before 2013 and even after that, I...