Part - 3 Name: Divya Mittal Where: (born) . Work: Uttar Pradesh Besides the festivities, Navratri is an occasion to honour women's courage, determination and self-confidence. The nine forms of Goddess Durga inspire us to stand against injustice, confront challenges fearlessly and dedicate ourselves to the welfare of society. Against this spiritual backdrop, Divya Mittal, a daughter of Haryana, has drawn attention with her decision to enter Uttar Pradesh politics. A 2013-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, she announced her resignation in August this year, expressing her desire to explore a new avenue for public service through politics. Born on December 23, 1983, in Rewari, Haryana, and raised in Delhi, Divya Mittal graduated in Engineering Physics from IIT Delhi and pursued management studies at IIM Bangalore. After working with JPMorgan in London, she chose the civil services. She secured the 68th rank nationwide in the 2012 UPSC examination and joined the IAS. Her husband, Gagandeep Singh Dhillon, is also a former civil services officer. The couple has two daughters. Mittal began her administrative career as a Sub-Divisional Magistrate in Meerut before serving as Chief Development Officer in Gonda and District Magistrate in Sant Kabir Nagar, Mirzapur and Deoria. Her last assignment was as Special Secretary in the Uttar Pradesh government's Board of Revenue. Having gained considerable administrative experience, she now seeks to pursue change through greater public participation in politics. During her tenure as District Magistrate of Mirzapur, Mittal helped bring piped drinking water to Lahuria Dah, a remote village nestled among the district's hills. Its nearly 2,000 residents had long depended on water tankers, a damaged well and a distant reservoir. In August 2023, after decades of hardship, piped water reached 125 households. The achievement demonstrates how administrative sensitivity, combined with determination, can bring tangible improvements to ordinary people's lives. During Navratri, Mittal visited the Vindhyavasini Devi temple in Mirzapur. Rather than joining an established political party, she expressed her intention to build a new political platform with citizens. She invited teachers, doctors, farmers, labourers, students and ordinary people to join her initiative. Challenging the influence of money, muscle power and caste-religion calculations in electoral politics, she declared, “I do not want to spend that money; I want the road instead.” Her vision is to create a platform where people can speak freely, raise questions and participate without fear. Mittal’s initiative represents a possible convergence of women’s empowerment and public service. However, translating good intentions into popular support will require a strong organisation, clear policies and sustained public engagement. Her political journey, beginning amid prayers to Goddess Vindhyavasini, will be meaningful only if its ultimate purpose is not the pursuit of power but the welfare of society, especially its most vulnerable citizens. That, too, is a profound expression of the divine feminine celebrated during Navratri.
Comments