Anil Swarup was born in Allahabad (now called Prayagraj) in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India.
He is a post-graduate in Political Science from the University of Allahabad in 1978, where he was awarded Chancellor's gold medal for being the "best all-round student".
Before joining IAS, he worked as an Indian Police Service officer for one year.
Swarup joined IAS in 1981 and is the recipient of Director's gold medal for "best officer trainee" of his batch at the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA).
Swarup conducted coal auctions in a transparent manner, which was a huge success.