The book attempts to chronicle the role of the higher civil services in India. Tracing its history from the British times, the book traces the different and difficult roles which the civil servants have had to play in the development of the country. It also mentions and brings out the contradiction in modern Indian democracy where the expectations from the civil services are too much and different when seen from the eyes of the common Indian citizen and when seen from the eyes of the ruling politicians. Consisting of bright people, chosen through a tough and rigorous selection process, the civil servant, according to the author, must be allowed to play its role in an atmosphere of transparency.
