Every year, on the 21st of April, India celebrates Civil Services day, to commemorate the famous address by Sardar Patel to the first batch of civil servants of India. In the speech, he called them the Steel Frame, as a reference to an enduring structure meant to build and protect a young nation. “India observes National Civil Services… Read More »
The following is an interview with Shri Deepak Gupta about his new book, ‘The Steel Frame: A History of the IAS.’ Sir joined the Indian Administrative Service in 1974, and among his many accomplishments, he is known for his leadership role in driving the ambitious National Solar Mission. Besides his distinguished career in the IAS, he also served as the… Read More »
The last 30 days have been eventful. I have been posted as the Assistant Collector of Bhadradri-Kothagudem district (Telangana) on 24.05.2019, a day after India elected its new union government. As I completed one month in the district, I reflected on my stay here and asked myself: What has been my learning in the past one month? After… Read More »
When our group of 18 IAS trainees began our Bharat Darshan journey, I wondered if it was going to be a mere transit from place to place. After visiting 15 odd states and travelling 20,000 km, I couldn’t have been more wrong. Near the Sino-Indian border, staying with the Army made us witness the tough life of our… Read More »
I remember the day I became a fan of Roger Federer. It was the 3rd of July, 2005 and Federer was playing Andy Roddick in the Wimbledon final. I did not follow tennis back then, and my knowledge of the game was limited to collecting and memorising random facts for quizzes. I was aware that Sampras and Agassi… Read More »
How I picked my next book has always been a matter of impulse or accident. Sometimes I’d find myself at an airport with time to kill, so I buy a book. At times I see a lady at a coffee shop deeply engrossed in a novel and her accidental smile while reading it compels me to read it.… Read More »
As I look back on the year gone by, I can’t be thankful enough for 2018. Professionally and personally, it’s the best year I’ve had. In Dec 2017, if I were given a chance to script my 2018, I don’t think I’d have had it any better. What did you learn in 2018? Can you describe it in… Read More »
For as long as I can remember, I’ve always wanted to start a blog. Whenever I thought of it, I used to be gripped by a strange sense of timidity (and lethargy) to pen an article and put my thoughts in public. UPSC success finally gave me the readership and the motivation to overcome my reluctance. It was five… Read More »
Last week we had a parliamentary debate at our academy, LBSNAA. The motion of the debate was: Right to equality implies preferential treatment for the disadvantaged. It was a highly combustible topic, yet brilliantly argued by both sides based on logic, reason and evidence, and never ad-hominem. To watch the teams not pull any punches and mock, denigrate… Read More »