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No More a Civil Servant
No more a Civil Servant is the concluding part of the trilogy authored by a former civil servant who served for almost 38 years in various capacities in the government. His first two books are Not Just a Civil Servant and Ethical Dilemmas of a Civil Servant.
The first part of the book is a reflection on events that happened around the author during the last few years of his service, as he looks back on his interactions with the Prime Minister and the all-powerful Prime Minister’s Office. He also reflects on his association with his batch of 1981 in the Indian Administrative Service, recalling it as a wonderfully vibrant batch.
In the preface to the first book, No More a Civil Servant, he had written, “There was so much to be done, so much that one could do and so much excitement. I spent sleepless nights in the sheer excitement of the potential.” He feels now that not much seems to have changed even after retirement. The excitement is still there, with only one significant difference: that he is master of his own time. Life as no-more-a-civil-servant is turning out to be even better. The author discovered his true worth and those of many others as well. In the first segment he speaks with pride his association with friends, including those in the industry, for whom his being or not being in harness made no difference to their association with him.
The second segment of the book is devoted to the wonderful work being done by Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) and also talks about the people who were the triggers for making them effective. The author came to be associated with some of these people during his tenure as Secretary, School Education and Literacy, Government of India. They made him believe that a lot of good work can be done because it was already being done. The Nexus of Good Foundation emerged out of this belief. There are some remarkable stories of such CSOs that, in association with the respective state governments, have not only delivered but have provided many such models that have been scaled. All these stories give a lot of hope for the future.
Civil servants are more often than not at the receiving end of sharp criticism. What many of them are doing despite an adverse set of circumstances goes unnoticed. The last segment of the book contains a few such stories where civil servants have managed to deliver against all odds. This has been done with the objective of dispelling cynicism amongst both, the officers and the public at large, and to demonstrate to them that many civil servants are capable of brilliant achievements of great public value, even in the face of severe odds.
The first part of the book is a reflection on events that happened around the author during the last few years of his service, as he looks back on his interactions with the Prime Minister and the all-powerful Prime Minister’s Office. He also reflects on his association with his batch of 1981 in the Indian Administrative Service, recalling it as a wonderfully vibrant batch.
In the preface to the first book, No More a Civil Servant, he had written, “There was so much to be done, so much that one could do and so much excitement. I spent sleepless nights in the sheer excitement of the potential.” He feels now that not much seems to have changed even after retirement. The excitement is still there, with only one significant difference: that he is master of his own time. Life as no-more-a-civil-servant is turning out to be even better. The author discovered his true worth and those of many others as well. In the first segment he speaks with pride his association with friends, including those in the industry, for whom his being or not being in harness made no difference to their association with him.
The second segment of the book is devoted to the wonderful work being done by Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) and also talks about the people who were the triggers for making them effective. The author came to be associated with some of these people during his tenure as Secretary, School Education and Literacy, Government of India. They made him believe that a lot of good work can be done because it was already being done. The Nexus of Good Foundation emerged out of this belief. There are some remarkable stories of such CSOs that, in association with the respective state governments, have not only delivered but have provided many such models that have been scaled. All these stories give a lot of hope for the future.
Civil servants are more often than not at the receiving end of sharp criticism. What many of them are doing despite an adverse set of circumstances goes unnoticed. The last segment of the book contains a few such stories where civil servants have managed to deliver against all odds. This has been done with the objective of dispelling cynicism amongst both, the officers and the public at large, and to demonstrate to them that many civil servants are capable of brilliant achievements of great public value, even in the face of severe odds.
315 pages, Hardcover
Published May 2, 2022
2 people are currently reading
38 people want to read
About the author
Anil Swarup
3 books721 followersDuring his career spanning 38 years, Anil Swarup attempted to 'make it happen'. Born in Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, he earned his Master's Degree in Political Science from Allahabad University in 1978 where he was also awarded the Chancellor's Gold Medal for being the Best All Round Student. Before joining the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) in 1981; he served the Indian Police Service for a year. He won the Director's Gold Medal for the best Officer Trainee at the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration amongst the officers of his batch. As a civil servant, he held various assignments within both the State (Uttar Pradesh) and Central Government.
As a strategic thinker and an innovative leader, he won several awards and nominations, the prominent ones being: Nominated as one of the Policy Change Agent by The Economics Times during the years 2010, 2012, 2015 & 2016. He was selected as one of the 35 Action Heroes in India Today's 35th Annual Edition.
He is the Founder Chairman of Nexus of Good: an initiative towards recognising positive action and providing inspiration to the society at large to replicate them.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
July 28, 2024
A desperate attempt at what is called "IAS mutual admiration club" wherein IAS officers scratch each others butt and hype each others. Blowing your own trumpet would sound a little arrogant. And you want to sound modest, so you scratch somebody else's butt (and mediocrity too) and that IAS returns the favour by doing the same for you. Together both managed to market your mediocrity in the IAS, glossing over what was not done and pushing under the carpet what was undone.
And that is how ladies and gentlemen you sell the false notion of how the deadweight IAS are serving and contributing to nations' development.
And that is how ladies and gentlemen you sell the false notion of how the deadweight IAS are serving and contributing to nations' development.
September 20, 2022
Unable to go through the book beyond a point. The thread which ties the book is missing.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews