No tug-of-war between IAS, IPS in Kerala: Chief Secretary Vishwas Mehta
Vishwas Mehta said he joined the IAS to serve people and not because he was attracted by power. If authority was what he had desired, he could have joined politics, he said.
Vishwas Mehta said he joined the IAS to serve people and not because he was attracted by power. If authority was what he had desired, he could have joined politics, he said.
Vishwas Mehta said he joined the IAS to serve people and not because he was attracted by power. If authority was what he had desired, he could have joined politics, he said.
Thiruvananthapuram: There is no tug-of-war between the Indian Administrative Service and the Indian Police Service, Kerala’s new chief secretary Vishwas Mehta said.
“I am working in Kerala, 3,000 km away from Rajasthan, to work and not to indulge in any war,” he added.
Mehta said he joined the IAS to serve people and not because he was attracted by power. If authority was what he had desired, he could have joined politics, he said. Many had even advised him to start a small shop in his native place rather than coming to Kerala, he said.
He said his first salary when he came to Kerala to work was just Rs2,300.
He had no house or land when he started working. He was able to build a house after 20 years of service, he said in an interview with Manorama News.
“I was born in a poor family in Rajasthan. My father studied under streetlights and became a teacher. I was the first IAS officer from my region which had a tribal majority,” he said.
“Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is behind the coordination and the effective fight against COVID-19 in the state. It is a big responsibility when you have to answer the chief minister when he asks you every day if the decisions taken the previous day have been implemented,” he said.
“People’s cooperation is key to fighting COVID. The government alone cannot ensure that all necessary steps to control the infection are being followed. People should take care of themselves and a majority, in fact, do. But there are some idiots who do not follow the restrictions and put the safety of the whole state under threat,” he said.
He said he busts work-related stress by singing. “At least once a week, I call friends home and we all sing. Surprisingly, my voice is similar to that of late Hindi playback singer Mukesh. He died when I was 16. I was heartbroken and I prayed that I should have a voice like him,” the chief secretary said.