Niyogi Books announces the publication of Of Giants and Windmills, an autobiography by former IAS officer Moosa Raza which also includes his first-hand account of the aftermath of the Babri Masjid demolition, in his capacity as Advisor to the Governor of Uttar Pradesh
For the author, writing this book was not only a jog down memory lane but a deep desire to highlight some of the personalities who impressed him and also was an opportunity to talk about some others who thought of themselves as giants but turned out to be only windmills, or rather windbags, on closer acquaintance. From the teachers who left a formative impression on him to the events that left a formative impression on our country’s socio-political fabric, from finding innovative solutions to issues faced by public servants to being blindsided by the innovative tricks of cunning criminals, Moosa Raza’s autobiography is an excavation of memories from a life spent in trying to maintain social order in a chaotic and unpredictable country.
Moosa Raza, the author of the book, says, ‘Looking back on my IAS career, I realise that the early officers in the service of independent India, had a unique experience. We were following in the footsteps of our British predecessors while trying to forge a new identity for the administration. Like Don Quixote, who was the inspiration for my autobiography, I encountered many giants, those who laid the foundation for an emerging nation and tilted at many windmills, who even today are dotted throughout our landscape, blocking out the sun of our nation’s success. This book is my homage to all the IAS officers like me, who might find themselves in the pages of my autobiography.’
On publishing the book Trisha De Niyogi, Director and COO, of Niyogi Books, says, ‘This is a significant work and is so much more than simply the memoirs of an IAS officer. Mr. Moosa Raza, in his long career, has dealt with famine, smugglers, riots, the Emergency, and the aftermath of the demolition of the Babri Masjid. Readers will find much thought-provoking material in this book, which provides many insights into the challenges and promises of modern India.’
ABOUT THE BOOK
During the early decades post India’s independence, Moosa Raza, a young IAS officer hailing from a small village in Tamil Nadu, was tasked with governing huge, diverse, and complex territories in the newly formed state of Gujarat. Raza had the distinction of heading four districts (today’s seven) as district magistrate and collector in Gujarat and rose to become principal secretary to the chief minister of Gujarat.
This book is an elaborately layered account of Raza’s experiences and encounters with maharajas, politicians, tribals, tigers, and a variety of other inhabitants of the country. With tongue-in-cheek humour, Raza details his head-on collisions with public figures, gold smugglers, and bureaucrats, and his attempts to deal with them with tact while trying to hold his own. Raza describes well-known figures, including C.V. Raman, Morarji Desai, Indira Gandhi, and others, with a lot of wit, honesty, and empathy—they live again on these pages.
Drawing on his experiences in the Indian public sector, Raza throws light on the workings of varied industries, such as fisheries, textiles, chemicals, and fertilizers. His first-hand account of the aftermath of the Babri Masjid demolition, in his capacity as Advisor to the Governor of Uttar Pradesh, reveals the travails of maintaining social order in a chaotic and unpredictable country.
Price: INR 650 / Format: Hardback / Pages: 304
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Moosa Raza was born and brought up in a village in Tamil Nadu that had no electricity, no running water, no flush system, and no doors to any house. During the first nine years of his life, he did not know the English alphabet and only learnt rudimentary Urdu. Today he writes poetry in English, Hindi, Urdu, Persian, and Arabic. He has already published five books, including two collections of Urdu poems.
An IAS officer of the 1960 cadre, he rose to become a chief secretary of the state of Jammu and Kashmir and secretary to the Government of India. After retirement, he heads a large educational trust with 10,000 students, and 600 academic and managerial staff and is the chairman of several private-sector enterprises in Mumbai. He continues to work and write even in his 80s and is deeply committed to the affairs of the nation.
ABOUT THE PUBLISHER
An internationally acclaimed publishing house, Niyogi Books, established in 2004, has more than 500 titles today. We not only specialize in textual context but also strive to give equal importance to visuals. We purvey a wide range of content on art, architecture, history, culture, spirituality, memoirs, and every aspect, which connects with our rich heritage. Under our umbrella, we have fiction and non-fiction that cover books on social science, cookery, and self-help as well as English Translations of modern classics from different Indian languages. Niyogi Books has recently launched four new Imprints: Olive Turtle (English fiction), Thornbird (English Translation), Paper Missile (English non-fiction), and Bahuvachan (Hindi Translation: Fiction & Non-Fiction). Also, we have co-published a number of critically acclaimed books with reputed institutions like the British Library, Rietberg Museum Zurich, IGNCA, National Gallery of Modern Art, Ministry of Culture (Govt. of India), National Manuscript Mission, Sahitya Akademi, among many others.
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