For former IAS officer and author Vivek Atray, Chandigarh is more than just a city. It is a formative force. Launching his sixth book — Not So Randomly Yours — at the UT guest house on Sunday, Atray reflected on the people, institutions and experiences that shaped him, alongside an audience that included former Army Chief Gen VP Malik, Haryana Chief Information Commissioner TVSN Prasad, Lt Gen KJS Dhillon (retd) and Neena Atray.
The new book brings together 120 articles from Atray’s newspaper column — Random Forays — written over the past five years. It spans subjects as varied as governance, relationships, spirituality, sports, leadership, artificial intelligence and everyday quirks of modern life.
Speaking to mediapersons, Atray spoke about his early years in the civil services. Recalling his stint as Director Public Relations in the early 2000s, he described how press notes were once sent out to media houses through autorickshaws — a far cry from the instant digital dissemination of today.
On governance, one of the book’s 10 themes, Atray said good governance ultimately depends on good officers, and spoke of the need to institutionalise memory within the administrative system.
Atray described his new book as motivational non-fiction, differing from his earlier works in its sharper focus on contemporary issues while retaining an informal, conversational tone. He said it was built around a recurring message — to seek inner peace, reduce overthinking, strengthen family bonds and maintain mental toughness. “True success is not external alone. It is deeply internal,” he said.
