The book carefully discusses the civil services in India, USA and China and the key-role played by their respective civil services. During the Covid-19 pandemic, India could save its population despite much meager resources than the USA. The success could be attributed to the rare blending of the political will with the highly skilled and committed civil servants. Eminent civil servant Yogendra Narain politely points out that how in USA under the garb of defining the powers of the states and the federation, the national government's key role in protecting its citizens appeared to be under a seize during the pandemic.
The book is likely to trigger off the much-needed debate on the effective use of the civil services especially in a war situation or other emergencies. It also offers an insight on the issue whether a permanent civil service should be �committed� to a particular political ideology as being done in China, or it should function as an impartial instrument to serve the common people.