20 October 2026
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

The Wizard of Bureaucracy

Mr Anil Swarup tells Indian Masterminds, how he survived in the service keeping both his spine and conscience intact. He also reveals the mantras for the current crop of civil servants..
Indian Masterminds Stories

The 1981-batch IAS, Mr. Anil Swarup, might have retired from the service two years ago, but he claims he is more active now. Considering he pioneered many ideas, championed several causes, and piloted a number of landmark schemes and projects, the statement raises the level of curiosity of even people who know him for decades.

From conceiving, formulating, and implementing universal health insurance for the 30 crore people living below the poverty line to netting lakhs of crores for the treasury by designing online auction of coal mines and reigniting stalled mega projects, Mr Swarup was always a doer.

Belonging to UP Cadre where there always a premium for plum postings and an average stay of a bureaucrat on a post is often in months if not in days, such sterling performance does need a thorough inspection. After all, everyone wants to know, how managed to keep his backbone intact and had his way with the political class as well.

Serving under Chief Ministers like Mulayam Singh Yadav, Kalyan Singh, and Mayawati doesn’t come easy. Similarly working under Prime Ministers like Atal Behari Vajpayee, Dr Manmohan Singh and Narendra Modi, must have been challenging. In this free-wheeling interview, he shares the challenges he faced during his service and how he overcame them.

He had already written two books on his experiences in the bureaucracy and in this interview he discloses the name and subject of his third book and when is it expected to be released.

For more details, please watch the full interview on clicking the link…


Indian Masterminds Stories
Join our WhatsApp Channel
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Related Stories
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
NEWS
Rajnath Singh SCO Meeting 2026
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh Calls for Unified Action to Dismantle Terrorism Ecosystem at 25th SCO Meeting 
MF Farooqui
Punjab Deploys 1,300 Personnel Ahead of Amit Shah’s Visit to Meet Drug Victims’ Families, Says DGP MF Farooqui 
J.S
Former Telecom Secretary J.S. Deepak Says IAS Failed to Guide Political Leadership on China’s Economic Model
Suicide
UPSC Aspirant from Andhra Pradesh Found Dead in Delhi’s Old Rajinder Nagar, Police Begin Probe 
Sudhakar Singh
RJD MP Sudhakar Singh Seeks Lok Sabha Speaker’s Intervention Over Defamation Notice by IPS Kundan Krishnan
IPS Tejaswini Gautam
Who Is IPS Tejaswini Gautam? Kota SP Wins Praise for Swift Action in Tiger Shroff Firing Case
NLC-INDIA-resized-neyvili
NLC India Limited Receives ‘CRISIL ESG 57’ Rating from CRISIL ESG Ratings & Analytics
Haryana Police Martyrs
Haryana Govt Transfers 28 IPS, HPS Officers; Noopur Bishnoi Gets Additional Charge of AIG Welfare 
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Videos
Dr Saket Badola IFS
Beyond Tigers and Safaris: How Corbett Literature Festival Wants to Change the Conservation Conversation
PK Jena
Why Technology Cannot Replace Human Connection in Governance: P.K. Jena
PK Jena
The IAS Officer Who Put People Before Paperwork: How PK Jena Challenged Corruption and Reformed Governance
ADVERTISEMENT
UPSC Stories
Bhikan Rojekar UPSC
He missed MBBS by 1 mark in 2016; Maharashtra’s Bhikan Rojekar secures UPSC AIR 812
Bhikan Rojekar secured AIR 812 in UPSC CSE 2025 in his third attempt. Read how the son of a farm labourer...
Umar Janj UPSC CAPF
15+ Failures Couldn’t Stop Him: Umar Janj Secures AIR 160 in UPSC CAPF 2025
After multiple SSB setbacks, a CAPF interview miss by 12 marks and more than 15 failures, Umar Janj secured...
Aayush Sharma
Three CDS Attempts, Five AFCAT Qualifications & Medical Setback: How Aayush Sharma Secured CAPF AIR 135
After three unsuccessful SSB attempts, five AFCAT qualifications and a medical setback, Aayush Sharma...
CSR NEWS
HPCL Gorakhpur cricket stadium
HPCL Commits ₹10 Crore Under CSR for International Cricket Stadium Development in Gorakhpur 
The CSR contribution aims to strengthen sports infrastructure, promote grassroots cricket, create employment...
nhpc csr
NHPC Tanakpur Power Station Provides Vehicles Worth ₹40 Lakh and Medical Equipment Worth ₹28 Lakh Under CSR
Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami Flags Off Three Vehicles for Forest Divisions and Inaugurates a Phacoemulsification...
NBCC India CSR Award 2026
NBCC India Wins Award for Excellence in CSR at 4th Fortune Leadership Awards 2026
The recognition honours NBCC’s community welfare initiatives and efforts to improve healthcare accessibility...
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Latest
Rajnath Singh SCO Meeting 2026
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh Calls for Unified Action to Dismantle Terrorism Ecosystem at 25th SCO Meeting 
MF Farooqui
Punjab Deploys 1,300 Personnel Ahead of Amit Shah’s Visit to Meet Drug Victims’ Families, Says DGP MF Farooqui 
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Videos
Dr Saket Badola IFS
PK Jena
PK Jena
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT