Lucknow, Sept. 10 -- The recent resignation of 2013-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer Divya Mittal has turned the spotlight on the larger question: why some bureaucrats, in the prime of their careers, put in their papers, whether the civil service is losing its charm for the new generation and whether disappointment in service or better opportunities make them change their career paths.

Mittal has not spelled out definite plans for the future yet. Before her, Rinku Singh Rahi, a 2022-batch Uttar Pradesh cadre IAS officer, resigned early this year, blaming a lack of meaningful work for a long time. Rahi changed his mind later and continues to be in service.

At least 12-15 officers resigned in recent years, many of them ex...