01891    a2200145   4500008004100000020001800041100002600059245008900085260004500174300001100219520139700230650003401627650004401661650004001705250225b        ii ||||| |||| 00| 0 mal d  a9789356997516  aBhattacherjee, Kallol  aNehru's first recruitsb: The Diplomats who built independent india's foreign policy  aHaryana: bHarperCollins India, c2024.   a349p.   aIndependent India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and his team faced the colossal task of building the infrastructure for a new state that was rising from the ashes of war, famine and communal strife. One of the first administrative innovations was the formation of the Indian Foreign Service (IFS). In 1958, once its posts were finally filled, it was decided that the names of the extraordinary men and women who were the first to represent Indian on the world stage would be published as the History of Services of Officers of the Indian Foreign Service (Branches A and B). That slim, 'restricted - for official use only' volume is the inspiration for Nehru's First Recruits.

bAmong others, author Kallol Bhattacherjee writes about Brajesh Mishra, who initiated dialogue with Beijing to restart relations disrupted in 1962; Mira Ishardas Malik, the first Indian woman diplomat to serve in China; Eric Gonsalves, who handled the biggest ever evacuation of Indians from a foreign crisis; K. Natwar Singh and Romesh Bhandari, who served for many years even after retiring from the IFS; Cyril John Stracey, who served with Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose; Harivansh Rai Bachchan, who was responsible for the name 'Videsh Mantralaya'; and Mirza Rashid Ali Baig, M.A. Jinnah's former private secretary who became a towering chief of protocol whose legacy resonates in South Block even today.  a Nehru, Jawaharlal, 1889-1964  aDiplomats--India--History--20th century  aIndia--Foreign relations--1947-1984