Author: PC Parakh
My Rating: 2/5
You know what the problem with former bureaucrats writing their memoirs is? Even though they have immense knowledge about the system, they know things only a privileged few know but they only know how to write notes on the files which move with that red flap around them, oh, red tape i meant! They do not know how to make the most of their experiences. They do not even consider that good language and word jugglery can give them added benefits and launch their second innings as a writer.
Whatever lets move on! So, this one presents the typical life of a bureaucrat in India. He enters the service with high hopes of overhauling the whole system but eventually is frustrated by the ubiquitous cob-webs of corruption. Then comes a phase in his life when he thinks of himself as an alien and the archaic virtue of integrity that he oh proudly displays. He feels lonely. He wants to break away from the shackles of this self-aggrandizing bureaucracy. But it would not let him go off so easily.
Parakh describes his various encounters with the corrupt throughout his postings and literally everywhere he goes. The good thing is he creates little chapters and avoids dragging them for long. But then at the end you feel like you are rather reading a collection of newspaper clippings about corruption ranging over a couple of decades. The language is mediocre and so is the presentation. And after a while you get that feeling that this is all the book would offer and the motivation to hang along diminishes after every page.
Looking at the positives, although not many i can see, the book offers a reality check to the civil service aspirants who think they would just walk in there and change the way things are going on. It would make them aware of the challenges that lie ahead of them. It will make you realize that only by reading all the ARC reports, you would not be able to reform the whole administrative system. Only by remembering the principles of Henry Fayol, one would not be able to resolve the real time dilemmas of the bureaucracy. The book also offers an insight into the details of the coal ministry which ultimately lead to the much acclaimed Coalgate. Towards the end it also offers some details about the much sought after code of ethics for bureaucrats and politicians. All and all, civil service aspirants can pick this up to get a reality check. Not useful for others!
Quotes from the book...
"How can they be expected to stop corruption in their organization if they have to pay hefty bribes before their own appointment orders can be issued?"
"It was customary to make the most resourceful, and this the most corrupt, officer as the Tahsildar at the headquarters so that the desired quality of hospitality could be extended to the visiting VIPs."
"If the CAG is not to comment on the loss caused to the exchequer, then whose business is it in a parliamentary democracy?"
"Who said civil servants were rigid and inflexible? When their own interests are involved they can put a chameleon to shame."
My Rating: 2/5
You know what the problem with former bureaucrats writing their memoirs is? Even though they have immense knowledge about the system, they know things only a privileged few know but they only know how to write notes on the files which move with that red flap around them, oh, red tape i meant! They do not know how to make the most of their experiences. They do not even consider that good language and word jugglery can give them added benefits and launch their second innings as a writer.
Whatever lets move on! So, this one presents the typical life of a bureaucrat in India. He enters the service with high hopes of overhauling the whole system but eventually is frustrated by the ubiquitous cob-webs of corruption. Then comes a phase in his life when he thinks of himself as an alien and the archaic virtue of integrity that he oh proudly displays. He feels lonely. He wants to break away from the shackles of this self-aggrandizing bureaucracy. But it would not let him go off so easily.
Parakh describes his various encounters with the corrupt throughout his postings and literally everywhere he goes. The good thing is he creates little chapters and avoids dragging them for long. But then at the end you feel like you are rather reading a collection of newspaper clippings about corruption ranging over a couple of decades. The language is mediocre and so is the presentation. And after a while you get that feeling that this is all the book would offer and the motivation to hang along diminishes after every page.
Looking at the positives, although not many i can see, the book offers a reality check to the civil service aspirants who think they would just walk in there and change the way things are going on. It would make them aware of the challenges that lie ahead of them. It will make you realize that only by reading all the ARC reports, you would not be able to reform the whole administrative system. Only by remembering the principles of Henry Fayol, one would not be able to resolve the real time dilemmas of the bureaucracy. The book also offers an insight into the details of the coal ministry which ultimately lead to the much acclaimed Coalgate. Towards the end it also offers some details about the much sought after code of ethics for bureaucrats and politicians. All and all, civil service aspirants can pick this up to get a reality check. Not useful for others!
Quotes from the book...
"How can they be expected to stop corruption in their organization if they have to pay hefty bribes before their own appointment orders can be issued?"
"It was customary to make the most resourceful, and this the most corrupt, officer as the Tahsildar at the headquarters so that the desired quality of hospitality could be extended to the visiting VIPs."
"If the CAG is not to comment on the loss caused to the exchequer, then whose business is it in a parliamentary democracy?"
"Who said civil servants were rigid and inflexible? When their own interests are involved they can put a chameleon to shame."
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