Atul Vikas Kulkarni had secured the AIR 180 in UPSC Civil Services Exam in 2014 and was allocated to IPS (Indian Police Service).
Every year, when UPSC results are declared, tales of a few candidates from humble backgrounds making the cut by their sheer grit and determination, offer inspirations to many. Here is one such motivational story of Atul Vikas Kulkarni.
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Educational Background
Atul started his primary schooling in a small town named Gokak, Belgaum in Karnataka. Then at the age of 8 due to various difficulties faced by his family he had to move to Bangalore along with his family. There he joined Sudarshan Vidya Mandir School. He found it very difficult to learn English language as he was hailed from a remote town; however, his principal and teachers helped him and he overcame this difficulty with his dedication.
After completing his school education at Bangalore, Atul Kulkarni completed his engineering graduation in Computer Science from National Institute of Technology, Mysore.
Later on he joined as a software engineer in Mindtree Limited, Bangalore and after one year working experience he came to the conclusion that working in private sector isn’t interesting.
He decided to leave all other options and finally joined Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS ), Mumbai in 2010 in the course on Urban Policy and Governance for doing his Post Graduation. After completing his PG he worked in CRISIL limited, Mumbai as a consultant at Nasik Municipal Corporation. Healso took up a job in Arghyam, an NGO in the City.
Marks Obtained
| Total Marks | Marks Obtained | |
| Total (Written) | 1750 | 763 |
| Interview | 275 | 175 |
| Total | 2025 | 938 (46.32%) |
Optional Subject
Atul opted for Sociology as his optional subject as he was from a social science background in TISS.
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Study Strategy
Before starting the preparation, it is very important to have a complete understanding about syllabus and the exam process, its structure and the various aspects related to the preparation.
Interest
His interests are diverse, ranging from painting and classical music to making handicrafts and paper crafts.
Atul Vikas Kulkarni’s Journey and Achievements
Atul had several opportunities in TISS and he represented India in the 1st SAYC, 2011- South Asia Youth Conference(SAARC) held in IIM, Bangalore in 2011. He was a finalist in International Business Summit, IIM Calcutta, Antyodaya for a concept of “Environment Museum” on Sustainable development, selected for Tata Jagriti Yatra, 2010- is an ambitious train journey of discovery and transformation that took 400 of India’s highly motivated youth on an 18 day national odyssey. He was declared National winner of Mahindra’s “Spark The Rise” competition for project “Smart Sanitation and Solid Waste Management: A Holistic Approach”, “Water Ambassador” by World Bank in Water Hackaton event. He was also declared winner in Vodafone Mobiles for Good programme 2012, project titled “Locating and Rating of Public Restrooms in Indian Cities” and many more.
Atul did his thesis on lakes in Bangalore, titled: “Land, Water and Local People: A Case Study of Bangalore Mysore Infrastructure Corridor”which involved field visits to 10 villages around Bengaluru, mapping of the lakes in BMIC region, study of traditional water management, Water rights of lake users etc which won Best dissertation award in TISS, Mumbai and was published as a book in LAP LAMBERT Academic Publishing. This thesis won Best Dissertation award in TISS, 2012.
4 Cs for success
Atul’s 4 Cs for Success are Consistency, Clarity, Confidence and Character are the bottom line for cracking the Civil services Examination.
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