Rai Mahimapat Ray

Senior Digital Development Specialist @worldbank #IAS2011. Agent of Good. Avid Reader. Eager 2 Learn. #LaMartiniereCollege @StStephensClg #JNU @UniofOxford

[Rai Mahimapat Ray @rmray]

An article I wrote in @livemint on a #PhoneDetox I did. Comments welcome :)

@sruthijith @OsamaManzar @sanjeevsanyal @nsitharaman @IASassociation
https://t.co/C67R2LPDfp

[Shailaja Chandra @over2shailaja]

WHEN THE ADRENALINE DRIES UP: AN IAS PERSPECTIVE

“What a fall was there, my countrymen!”

Prabhu Dayal's delightful account in The Sunday Statesman of an Ambassador's descent from diplomatic grandeur to the gridlock of Gurgaon made me smile. But in the eternal one-upmanship—and downmanship—of the civil services, I cannot let an IFS officer ten years my junior steal all the thunder!

Tehran, Rabat and Kuwait were privileged postings in a diplomatic fairyland which, alas, had to end. And retiring to Gurgaon's Golf Course Road is hardly exile to Siberia!

For the IAS, the descent is rather different.

The first decade after retirement may disappear into commissions, tribunals and advisory assignments. Some offer meaningful work. Others provide an office, a driver, a visiting card and precious little to do. The ultimate prize is often the government house that comes with the appointment.

“Ghar toh rahega na?” is the question batchmates ask with unconcealed interest. Retaining government accommodation is the ultimate badge of continued importance.

Eventually, most move to Gurgaon, NOIDA, Mayur Vihar, Vasant Kunj or DDA flats. Life isn't bad. There are helpful neighbours, old friends, lunches at the IIC and batch gatherings at the CSOI. A community that looks after its own, asks for help and usually gets it.

But what does an IAS officer really miss? Retirement is a certainty, not an option, however many extensions are granted along the way.

What does one miss? Not the bungalow, official car or personal staff who anticipated every need. One learns to buy vegetables from Safal, manage part-time help and occasionally take an Uber or auto when the driver doesn't show up. Everyone adjusts.

What is harder to surrender is the ability to get things done.

For decades, IAS officers have lived on the adrenaline of making things happen. Joining dots others don't see. Bringing institutions together. Cutting through obstacles, stopping nonsense, anticipating crises, planning something that might transform people's lives—and occasionally pulling it off magnificently.

Not every officer succeeds. Some barely try. But exercising authority intelligently, turning ideas into action, is what makes the job absorbing. When the political executive trusts you and gives you independence, it is exhilarating. Wonderful things happen. Embarrassments are foreseen and forestalled.

During the Vajpayee and Sheila Dikshit years, I saw political leadership set the direction while giving officers room to initiate, innovate and deliver and protect the government from criticism. It worked quite often- not always..From what one hears, nowadays officers perhaps implement decisions more often than spearhead reform.

But even that requires ability and acumen. Governments may centralise decisions, but not the thousands of actions needed to make them work. Policies don't implement themselves. Someone must anticipate problems, coordinate departments, manage resources, persuade reluctant institutions and deliver results. A capable civil service remains indispensable, whatever the political dispensation.

The IAS has glaring faults and itself needs reform. Twenty-two years after my own retirement, following several rewarding assignments, the distinction seems clearer than ever to me.

The real loss is not of status or privilege. It is of the opportunity to be useful.

An Ambassador may miss diplomatic grandeur and participation in transfirmative geopolitical negotiations. An IAS officer however misses something closer to his chest. It is the power to translate ideas into visible action.

And perhaps the greater irony is that a country which spends decades developing administrative experience allows so much of it to acquire an expiry date.

Irrelevance, not inconvenience, is retirement's most bitter medicine.

[Rai Mahimapat Ray @rmray]

What a gripping read. @colsonwhitehead thanks for writing this. So many things in history no one talks about!

[Rai Mahimapat Ray @rmray]

@GabbbarSingh Share the invite

[Rachel Karten @milkkarten]

The Norwegian Consumer Council made a video about enshittification and got 2.5M views and 168K likes on IG. (If the style feels familiar, it was created by NewsLab, the same advertising agency that made the brilliant Visit Oslo video from a few years back.)

[Rai Mahimapat Ray @rmray]

Watching the @Apple #iphone new add seems to be like watching the 2020 ad

[Microsoft Surface @surface]

The new Surface Duo. There’s a new way to get things done. Available today: https://t.co/c12L9wq24W #DoOneBetter

[PenPencilDraw @penpencildraw]

In the loop.

[Municipal Corporation of Delhi @MCD_Delhi]

MCD 🤝 World Bank

Global Expertise for a Swachh Delhi.

MCD Commissioner Shri Sanjeev Khirwar chaired a high-level meeting with World Bank experts to discuss ways to strengthen Delhi’s municipal waste-management system.

The meeting focused on waste-management practices followed in Tokyo, New York and Barcelona, including technology-based processing, efficient collection and transportation, recycling, segregation and citizen participation.

The discussions also included an overview of MCD’s existing and upcoming waste-processing facilities and the initiatives being undertaken to strengthen Delhi’s waste-management system.

MCD remains committed to building a cleaner and more sustainable Delhi through better planning, technology, efficient waste management and solutions suited to the city’s needs.

#MCD #MCDInAction #WorldBank #WasteManagement #SwachhDelhi #DelhiKoKoodeSeAzadi

[Rai Mahimapat Ray @rmray]

My Grandfather’s 1972 #OMEGA paired with a @Google FitBit Air

Finally saying bye to the @apple iWatch after 8 years

@omegawatches

[Rai Mahimapat Ray @rmray]

Happy to have been part of the start of something that will herald a new more livable #Delhi where our children can breathe clean air and not have to worry about study from home days.
In the project I will be designing the #AI #ML enabled decision support system for GoNCTD

[Manjinder Singh Sirsa @mssirsa]

World Bank और दिल्ली सरकार के पर्यावरण विभाग द्वारा आयोजित 'Swachh Hawa, Swasth Delhi – Delhi Clean Air Program' का आज माननीय मुख्यमंत्री श्रीमती @gupta_rekha जी ने शुभारंभ किया।

आदरणीय प्रधानमंत्री श्री @narendramodi जी के विज़न और नेतृत्व में शुरू हुआ ₹8,300 करोड़ का यह सात वर्षीय कार्यक्रम दिल्ली की हवा को स्वच्छ बनाने की दिशा में एक बड़ा कदम है। आधुनिक तकनीक, बेहतर निगरानी और सभी विभागों के बेहतर तालमेल से प्रदूषण पर और प्रभावी ढंग से काम किया जा सकेगा।

माननीय मुख्यमंत्री जी के नेतृत्व में हमारी सरकार स्वच्छ और स्वस्थ दिल्ली के लक्ष्य को लेकर लगातार आगे बढ़ रही है। नई EV Policy, 32,000 EV चार्जिंग पॉइंट, इलेक्ट्रिक बसों का विस्तार, 70 लाख पौधारोपण, धूल और खुले में कचरा जलाने पर सख्ती तथा यमुना के पुनर्जीवन जैसे कई ठोस कदम इसी दिशा में उठाए जा रहे हैं।

इस अवसर पर मेरे साथी कैबिनेट मंत्रीगण और वर्ल्ड बैंक के एक्टिंग कंट्री डायरेक्टर श्री पॉल प्रोसी जी भी उपस्थित रहे।

@p_sahibsingh
@ashishsood_bjp
@WorldBankGroup

[Rai Mahimapat Ray @rmray]

Happy to have been part of the start of something that will herald a new more livable #Delhi where our children can breathe clean air and not have to worry about study from home days.
Going forward I will be designing the #AI #ML enabled decision support system for GoNCTD

[CMO Delhi @CMODelhi]

Inaugurated the “Swachh Hawa, Swasth Delhi” (Delhi Clean Air Program) Orientation Workshop, organised by the World Bank and the Department of Environment.

Under the leadership of Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi , the ₹8,300 crore, seven-year Swachh Hawa, Swasth Delhi (Delhi Clean Air Program) marks a major step in Delhi’s fight against air pollution. With 65% of the programme supported by the World Bank and the remaining 35% by the Delhi Government, it will strengthen air quality monitoring, technology-driven enforcement, inter-departmental coordination and time-bound implementation.

The Delhi Government is driving a comprehensive clean air agenda through the new EV Policy, expansion of the electric bus fleet, 32,000 EV charging points, stricter control of dust and open waste burning, the 70 lakh plantation drive and the rejuvenation of the Yamuna.

Present on the occasion were Cabinet Ministers Shri Parvesh Sahib Singh, Shri Ashish Sood and Shri Manjinder Singh Sirsa, along with World Bank Acting Country Director Mr. Paul Procee.

@p_sahibsingh
@ashishsood_bjp
@mssirsa
@WorldBankGroup

[CMO Delhi @CMODelhi]

Inaugurated the “Swachh Hawa, Swasth Delhi” (Delhi Clean Air Program) Orientation Workshop, organised by the World Bank and the Department of Environment.

Under the leadership of Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi , the ₹8,300 crore, seven-year Swachh Hawa, Swasth Delhi (Delhi Clean Air Program) marks a major step in Delhi’s fight against air pollution. With 65% of the programme supported by the World Bank and the remaining 35% by the Delhi Government, it will strengthen air quality monitoring, technology-driven enforcement, inter-departmental coordination and time-bound implementation.

The Delhi Government is driving a comprehensive clean air agenda through the new EV Policy, expansion of the electric bus fleet, 32,000 EV charging points, stricter control of dust and open waste burning, the 70 lakh plantation drive and the rejuvenation of the Yamuna.

Present on the occasion were Cabinet Ministers Shri Parvesh Sahib Singh, Shri Ashish Sood and Shri Manjinder Singh Sirsa, along with World Bank Acting Country Director Mr. Paul Procee.

@p_sahibsingh
@ashishsood_bjp
@mssirsa
@WorldBankGroup

[Rai Mahimapat Ray @rmray]

@zeptocares @thevirdas @ZeptoNow Hi my question did you share your contact no @thevirdas
This cracked me up.

[Rai Mahimapat Ray @rmray]

@ritwikpavan The only one that lasts and can carry a suit. Briggs and Riley 22inch 4 wheels.

[Rai Mahimapat Ray @rmray]

Sadly this happens all the time.
Has happened to me 4 times in the past two months. @airindia reply is always the same. Have stopped tagging them. And also avoid late night flights with them now.
@ShekharGupta

[Shekhar Gupta @ShekharGupta]

Some day Air India @airindia will resolve its arrival issue at New Delhi. AI-2408 touched down 2145. All still locked in as buses aren’t available. Already 45 minutes added to travel time. Bad enough to be delayed at departure. To be delayed at arrival is so chaotic.

[Rai Mahimapat Ray @rmray]

@pratyush_r8 @ThineAI Thine AI

Quick questions on the privacy bit?
Also does it work with teams, watsapp and outlook?

[Mayank Agarwal 💡 @TheAIWorld22]

Anthropic just showed a 24-minute workshop on how to actually prompt Claude.

Taught by the people who built it.

Free. No signup. No paywall.

I've watched $300 courses that don't cover what they teach in the first 8 minutes.

[Harinarayanan p c @harinarayananpc]

Flipkart's new ad for its SASA LELE Sale features Kodinhi, a town in Kerala's Malappuram district.

Known as India's "Twin Town", it has a high twin birth rate, about 400 pairs among 2000 families.

Very creative, with genuinely good jokes. They hit a home run with this concept.

[DD News @DDNewslive]

A key finding from AIIMS New Delhi research highlights that increased screen time in children under one year of age is associated with a higher risk of autism by the age of three.

The study suggests that greater screen exposure may increase the likelihood of autism-related concerns. Experts recommend keeping children below 18 months away from screens.

Dr. Shefali Gulati, Professor, Department of Pediatrics, #AIIMS

#ChildHealth #ScreenTime #ParentingTips #AutismAwareness @aiims_newdelhi

[Ihtesham Ali @ihteshamali]

A mathematician who shared an office with Claude Shannon at Bell Labs gave one lecture in 1986 that explains why some people win Nobel Prizes and other equally smart people spend their whole lives doing forgettable work.

His name was Richard Hamming. He won the Turing Award. He invented error-correcting codes that made modern computing possible. And he spent 30 years at Bell Labs sitting in a cafeteria at lunch watching which scientists became legendary and which ones faded into nothing.

In March 1986, he walked into a Bellcore auditorium in front of 200 researchers and told them exactly what he had seen.

Here's the framework that has been quoted by every serious scientist for the last 40 years.

His opening line landed like a punch. He said most scientists he worked with at Bell Labs were just as smart as the Nobel Prize winners. Just as hardworking. Just as credentialed. And yet at the end of a 40-year career, one group had changed entire fields and the other group was forgotten by the time they retired.

He wanted to know what the difference actually was. And he said it wasn't luck. It wasn't IQ. It was a specific set of habits that almost nobody is willing to follow.

The first habit was the one that hurts the most to hear. He said most scientists deliberately avoid the most important problem in their field because the odds of failure are too high. They pick a safe adjacent problem, solve it cleanly, publish it, and move on. And because they never swing at the hard problem, they never hit it. He said if you do not work on an important problem, it is unlikely you will do important work. That is not a motivational line. That is a logical one.

The second habit was about doors. Literal doors. He noticed that the scientists at Bell Labs who kept their office doors closed got more done in the short term because they had no interruptions. But the scientists who kept their doors open got more done over a career. The open-door scientists were interrupted constantly. They also absorbed every new idea passing through the hallway. Ten years in, they were working on problems the closed-door scientists did not even know existed.

The third habit was inversion. When Bell Labs refused to give him the team of programmers he wanted, Hamming sat with the rejection for weeks. Then he flipped the question. Instead of asking for programmers to write the programs, he asked why machines could not write the programs themselves. That single inversion pushed him into the frontier of computer science. He said the pattern repeats everywhere. What looks like a defect, if you flip it correctly, becomes the exact thing that pushes you ahead of everyone else.

The fourth habit was the one that hit me the hardest. He said knowledge and productivity compound like interest. Someone who works 10 percent harder than you does not produce 10 percent more over a career. They produce twice as much. The gap doesn't add. It multiplies. And it compounds silently for years before anyone notices.

He finished the lecture with a line I have never been able to shake.

He said Pasteur's famous quote is right. Luck favors the prepared mind. But he meant it literally. You don't hope for luck. You engineer the conditions where luck can land on you. Open doors. Important problems. Inverted questions. Compounded hours. Those are not traits. Those are choices you make every single day.

The transcript has been sitting on the University of Virginia's computer science website for almost 30 years. The video is free on YouTube. Stripe Press reprinted the full lectures as a book in 2020 and Bret Victor wrote the foreword.

Hamming died in 1998. He gave his final lecture a few weeks before. He was 82.

The lecture that explains why some careers become legendary and others disappear is still free. Most people who could benefit from it will never open it.