Chemistry Works: Why Narendra Modi showers praise on Ajit K Seth for his "creative effort"

Cabinet Secretariat Corridors

AS Ajit K Seth ended his extended 4-year-term term as India’s cabinet secretary on Saturday, prime minister Narendra Modi posted three tweets to praise one of Seth's initiatives in cabinet secretariat called “Art in Steps” before wishing him for the “new phase in his life”. For the low-profile bureaucrat who studied chemistry in St Stephen’s college in early 1970s and served two prime ministers -- Manmohan Singh and Narendra Modi -- as their cabinet secretary, it was mainly the art of good chemistry that worked in his favour. First, let’s read what Modi had to say for Seth on Saturday…

Ex-IAS VS Gopalakrishnan continues his passion for singing, blogging, painting...

Comforting, a Gopalakrishnan painting

FORGET for a moment the high-voltage 24X7 drama at Raisina Hills. Instead, meet this 1962 batch former IAS officer VS Gopalakrishnan. To give a perspective of his age and time, he is 12 years senior to India’s senior-most bureaucrat, cabinet secretary AK Seth. Yes, the GenNext of Twitter, Blogging and You Tube was not even born when this veteran Maharashtra cadre IAS spent his prime time at corridors of power.

But just do a search of VS Gopalakrishnan in YouTube. You will spot hundreds of Rafi, Mukesh and Talat songs sung by him. And you will be surprised to know he is a regular blogger too. That’s not all. The babu of yesteryears continues his passion for paintings and creates masterpieces like Tabla Player, Marathi Woman, Mohenjodaro Man and Marilyn Monroe. Armed with an American diploma in cartooning 50 years ago, Gopalakrishnan is also a distinguished cartoonist and has so far published five cartoon books.

Tabla Player

Masters in physics, Gopalakrishnan took voluntary retirement from IAS in 1995, and joined Mumbai’s World Trade Centre as Director General. And don’t think he forgot his serious prose amid painting, cartooning and singing. After all, Gopalakrishnan is the author of the much acclaimed book: “WTO and India: My insights”.

babu blogger’s request: No one knows how babu blogger looks like. Nor has anyone guessed his age or sex. Dear VS Gopalakrishnan, would you kindly do a cartoon of anonymous babu blogger who has penned over 1,000 action-packed stories of hits and misses in India's corridors of power.

Action and Appointment

a) RC Mishra, a 1978 batch Manipur-Tripura cadre IAS and additional secretary, ministry of urban development, has been appointed as Central Provident Fund Commissioner under the ministry of labour and employment in the rank and pay of additional secretary in place of 1976 batch Assam cadre IAS Samirendra Chatterjee. Mishra’s central deputation tenure has also been extended till he retires on November 30, 2012.