My modest effort does make an interesting story. I had wanted to do a PhD during my education phase but then I joined the IAS and was continuously engaged in important assignments In the IAS. I was lucky always in getting the best possible assignments, a Keralite cadre officer could have hoped. In each of the assignments, I tried to make a mark by launching innovative projects in the implementation of which I was intensively involved. Taking a Doctorate would have involved taking a three or four years study leave (which some IAS officers in India had done). So my Doctorate effort had to wait till my later political phase in which last four years I had no worthwhile political assignment. I chose BITS Pilani, because registering in Kerala University would open me to allegations of influence peddling (a normal cynical reaction of some Keralites) and also because BITS is a Technical University suited to my technical background in education.
