Second thoughts, but too late?

Regime change is bound to be followed by a shake-up of the administration. That doesn’t mean officials who know they are not in the good books of so and so should become paranoid and seek voluntary retirement from service. In Andhra Pradesh, senior IAS officer Praveen Prakash, who had had run-ins with political bosses, did seek VRS (though he has more than seven years of service left) as soon as the TPD-led NDA came to power. With the date of his VRS just weeks away (September 30), he is now having second thoughts. A little bird told us that Praveen Prakash has approached the Chief Secretary to keep aside his papers and allow him to continue in service till his superannuation. He attributed his ‘hasty decision’ to ‘psychological pressure’. It appears that nothing positive has come his way from the government so far.