Born to Serve: Power Games in Bureaucracy

Success of the government depends on the dedication and satisfactory functioning of the bureaucracy since a bureaucrat is the representative of the government. Dr Yogendra Narain (retd IAS) focusses on functioning of the government and on certain issues of national importance and gives his own views on how those issues should be resolved. He served for 40 years holding key positions in the Government of India – District Magistrate to Defence Secretary – and after retirement as Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha. He states that administrators should also retain their academic interests throughout their careers as it motivates them to think and innovate. As District Magistrate of Muzaffarnagar (in western UP), he did a lot for the upliftment of Bawariya community. During Emergency, he was sent to Muzaffarnagar second time to resolve a crisis which had engulfed the district because of the Family Planning drive. His humane and compassionate attitude brought him love and respect of citizens, especially of minority community. He narrates how the Advanced Public Administration course he underwent in the Indian Institute of Public Administration (Delhi) enabled and influenced him when he was asked to set up the Greater Noida Industrial Authority and the National Highways Authority of India. As Secretary Defence, he has thrown light on how the Ministry functions, attack on Parliament by the militants and the aftermath, provides interesting reading. As Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha he has thrown light on the inner working of both the Secretariats as well as the functioning of Parliament. He made interesting revelations on the demolition of the Babri Masjid as he was in UP when the incident occurred. This book will serve as a beacon of light for the upcoming bureaucrats, politicians, students of public administration, social scientists and the like.