divya::a divya personality

Dear Divya,

For thirteen years you wore one of the most respected uniforms of public life in this country. You walked into dusty villages, sat with people who had waited decades for water, and treated every file as a human being. That kind of service does not end when a resignation letter is submitted. It only changes its form.

If you have chosen to leave the Indian Administrative Service, it cannot have been a light decision. Those of us who have served know how heavy that chair is, and how much courage it takes to stand up and walk away when the heart says the time has come.

Please do not let this chapter close your gift to society. The country still needs officers like you — not necessarily behind a government desk, but in classrooms, in books, in institutions, in the quiet work of building people. You have already shown that integrity and compassion can reach a hill village that waited seventy-five years for a tap. That same spirit can now reach many more lives, in whatever shape you choose.

May the next road you take be worthy of the blessing that old woman in Lahuria Dah placed on your head. May your daughters see that dignity is not a designation, and that service does not retire.

With respect and warm wishes for the journey ahead.

A fellow officer who remains an admirer of your work. 

Rudra Pratap Singh IAS retd