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Blind Indore girl cleared UPSC, gets railways job at PM’s behest:-

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Visually challenged woman who cleared the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) with distinction in 2008 but was denied posting got justice after a four-year battle and the intervention of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Purnima Jain, with about 75% visual disability, has been offered an Indian Railway Personnel Services (IRPS) posting under Group B of Class I.

lthough Purnima is willing to take up the new job, she isn’t satisfied with the posting as she says that her scores in the exams were level with those selected for IAS. “It’s a sort of double marginalisation: as a woman and then being physically challenged,” Purnima told ToI.

She cleared the UPSC 2008 exams with 1,123 marks and hoped to get into the IAS or IFS. But that was not to be as she was visually challenged. The person selected in the ’08 batch had got only 991 marks,” said Purnima, adding, “I got 210 marks out of 300 in the interview, which was equal to that year’s topper.”

When her order wasn’t issued, she moved the MP high court in which UPSC and DoPT raised “questions of maintainability”, stating that the court had no jurisdiction on such cases and asked her to approach Central Administrative Tribune (CAT), which he did.

“I approached CAT and finally the decision was in my favour,” said Purnima. But despite that, the government was not keen on implementing it. So, she approached Union minister V Narayanswami who assured her of action in two or three weeks.

“Following his intervention, UPSC recommended my name. Even then, the DoPT did not give me the offer letter. I then approached the Prime Minister with the help of CPM MP Brinda Karat. He assured me justice,” said Purnima. Soon, she got a letter from DoPT offering her a job in Indian Railways Personnel Service (IRPS) which she is going to take up next week. “I deserve more than what I am getting. But I am happy that I finally secured the position,” Purnima told ToI.

Daughter of Dr Prakash Jain, Purnima completed her BA, LLB jointly in which she scored nearly 80%. She then completed her masters in public administration in 2008 and qualified NET/JRF in 2009.

Govind Jaiswal IAS

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Govind Jaiswal IAS
Govind Jaiswal, 24 years old , the son of an uneducated rickshaw puller in Varanasi (UTTAR PRADES ), had  grown up with cruel taunts like ‘However much you study, you will still be a rickshaw puller.’He had studied with cotton stuffed in his ears to drown the noise of printing machines and generators below his window in a poor neighbourhood where small workshops existed cheek by jowl with tiny residential quarters.
He had given Math tuitions to supplement the paltry sum his father could afford to send him each month. His ailing father had sold a small plot of land to give Govind about Rs 40,000 so that he could move to Delhi which would provide him a better place to study.
Throughout his life, he had lived with only one dream — to become an officer of the Indian Administrative Service. For him that was the only way. And when he broke the news to his family, that he was ranked 48 among 474 successful candidates in his first attempt at the exam — it was the turn of his three sisters and father to weep with unbridled joy.
 I could not afford to have any other career goal. My life would have been absolutely futile had I not made it into the civil services,” says Govind, just back from his medicals in New Delhi, mandatory for the IAS.
“You must understand that my circumstances were such that besides the Civil Services, I had no option. I didn’t have much of a chance with lower government jobs because they are mostly fixed, neither could I start a business because I had no money. The only thing I could do was work hard at my studies.”
It was almost impossible for him to study in the one room he shared with his family. To add to his woes was the power cut that extended between 10 and 14 hours every day. The moment the lights went out, he had to shut the window to block out the deafening noise of generators in the many workshops around his home.
So in search for a quiet place to study, he briefly shared a friend’s room at the Banaras Hindu University. Since that did not help him much, he did what many civil services aspirants in northern India do — he moved to New Delhi.
Working for ten years at the government ration shop, Narayan earned a living by weighing goods at the store. One day when the shop shut down, he bought one rickshaw and hired it out. He added three more and at one time was prosperous enough to own about 36 rickshaws.
On his meager earnings, the uneducated rickshaw vendor with a hearing disability continued the education of his children. The girls were married after their graduation — Narayan sold two
pieces of land for the weddings, the last plot was sold to achieve his Govinda’s dream.
Narayan gave his son Rs 40,000 to prepare for his Civil Services exam in New Delhi and pursue his childhood dream of becoming an IAS officer. For the next three years, he sent his son between Rs 2,500 and Rs 3,000 every month, sometimes foregoing the expense of treating the septic wound in his foot that continues to nag him till today.
Outside his narrow lane, opposite the Varanasi City railway station, where Narayan Jaiswal parks his rickshaws and spends most of his waking hours, he still walks barefooted with a bandage, one end hanging loose and scraping the dirty road.
“Beyond this year, my father could not have afforded to send Govind any more money. It was getting very tough for him. Govind was earning Rs 1,500 from tuitions, I don’t know what he would
have done if he didn’t make it to the IAS this year. My father could not sleep for 10 days before the results came,” says Govind’s eldest sister Nirmala, whose son is almost the same age as
her brother.
Until now, courier delivery boys found his house with great difficulty but now even the fruit cart-wallah, one-and-a-half kilometres away, will tell you where the ‘IAS’ house is…
Hatsoff to you both!!

IAS Toppers — Ms. Rukmani Riar, IAS Topper 2011-12 (2nd Position)

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rukmani-riar-ias

IAS Toppers 2011-12 Talk To You General Studies Preparation Should Be Exhaustivenals In A Better Way — Ms. Rukmani Riar, IAS Topper 2011-12 (2nd Position)

How I Prepared For Civil Services Exam?

General Studies is very crucial to the success in the UPSC Civil Services Examination. It is important for all the three stages of the exam. I spent as much time on General Studies as I did for my Optional subjects. General Studies preparation should be exhaustive, as it will help a lot in attempting Essay and also the
Optional in a better way.

I had been reading the Hindu newspaper religiously for 2 years. For Polity, I read a
comprehensive book on Indian Polity by D.D. Basu. For History, NCERT books are very crucial to forming strong foundation. Geography can be done from NCERT books or other good books available in the market. For Economy, reading Economic Survey and one basic NCERT book to have the strong basics is a must. I recommend reading two magazines a month to equip oneself better for attempting the exam. For General Studies, revision is key to success.

How To Succeed In Civil Services Mains Exam?

Start preparing for the Main Examination soon after the Preliminary Examination. Be positive when you face the Interview.

• Work Hard.
• Revise again and again.
• Do choose Optionals wisely.
• Do essay writing practice.
• Do not ignore General Studies.
• Prepare both the Optionals at least once before the Preliminary Examination.
• Start preparing for the Main Exam soon after the Prelims.
• Be positive when you face the Interview

My Preparation Plan
The message I would like to give fellow Civil Services aspirants is that there is no Short Cut to Success.

Biggest Asset:
• Hard Work
• Determination
• Persistence
I did not let myself get let down by failure at any stage of my preparation. My consistency in preparation is the key to my success.
Also, the support of teachers, family and friends helped me to emerge successful in this exam.
The message I would like to give fellow Civil Services aspirants is that there is no shortcut to success.

Girl with Polio cracked IAS

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Girl with Polio cracked IAS
A handicapped OBC girl from a Haryana village has cleared her civil services.

Her name is Kranti, which means revolution. And true to her name, Kranti as brought a mini-revolution in her village in Haryana. She’s become the first women in her district to clear the Civil Services.

As the village elders come to congratulate her it’s her moment of vindication. They all said she couldn’t do it ——-– she’s from a village school, she’s a woman and to top it all she walks with a limp.

But Kranti soldiered on. “I never let that talk affect me. If I would have felt I’m handicapped or disadvantaged, I would have lost the battle,” said Kranti.

Kranti was afflicted with polio when she was only two years old. And for the daughter of a backward class farmer in Haryana, it meant that her parents would have to pay a hefty dowry.

But breaking set norms her mother insisted Kranti be sent to school. And the little girl who regularly got teased for her limp is today the pride of her school, an inspiration to all the girls around her. And her mother is no longer worried about getting her married.

“Times haven’t changed. Girls in my community still get married at the age of 18,” said Kranti’s mother Maya.

Kranti’s story is remarkable for another reason – she never got the opportunity to go to college so she completed her studies through correspondence But now her success has ensured that her sister goes to college.

She too wants to be an IAS officer one day. For those who think that their destiny is ruled by their circumstances, Kranti’s story is perhaps an eye-opener.

Where there is a will: How a tailor’s son cracked the hallowed grounds of IAS

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A poor youngster from the Bhind district of Madhya Pradesh, who overcame massive odds to emerge successful in the all-important Civil Services examinations, has proved that poverty is not an impediment to success.

Nirish Rajput (31), son of Virendra Rajput, a tailor, failed the civil service examination three times but never lost heart. The fourth time, he passed with a rank of 370 and has been selected for the Indian Administrative Service.

Nirish’s story is inspiring not because he did not lose heart but also because he comes from a very poor background. He lives in a 15 by 40 feet (300 square feet) house in village Mau in Gohad tehsil of the district and worked odd jobs – even as a newspaper hawker – to realize his dream of becoming an IAS officer.

Once, Nirish went with a considerably rich and respected family friend to Uttrakhand to help them set up a coaching institute with a promise they would help him by providing material to prepare for his Civil Services examinations. But two years later, after the coaching institute started paying rich dividends, he was insulted, disgraced and literally thrown out.

“What is your worth? You are good for nothing. We no longer want you”, that were the last words I heard from the members of that educated and rich family, said Nirish. “Next moment, I was jobless, homeless, penniless and remained hungry for a week, till help came to me”, he narrated.

> The incident changed the course of Nirish.

“I did not know how to become an IAS officer but I knew clearing the country’s top examinations can change my fortune”, he said, adding that poverty cannot be a hurdle if one has determination and is willing work hard.

One day Nirish left for Delhi to study. “In Delhi, I became friendly with Ankit, who was preparing for competitive exams. I started living with him at Delhi’s Mukherjee Nagar and studied 18 hours a day. I did not attend any coaching classes nor pay any hefty fees. I studied from the books and notes of Ankit,” he said.

He studied from a government school and a modest college in Gwalior. His father and two elder brothers, who are contractual teachers, started investing most of their savings, energy and courage to make Nirish’s dream come true.

“It has also proved the impression that students from public schools alone can do well in these exams is a myth,” he said.

> The House and family

Virendra’s (72) ramshackle house in a non-descript village in Bhind district has suddenly become the attraction of the entire neighborhood. Popularly known as ustaad in the village for his hand-to-hand combat style (aiming to hold the opponent down against the floor) in the Akharas, Virendra, a father of three sons and a daughter, had lived with only one dream – to give his children an education.

After the demise of Nirish’s mother, it is the father who is keeping the children’s spirit alive. “My father has told me not be dishearted and to reappear in the entrance exam in the next year”, he added.

“Even when my mother was alive, I never saw them disgusted and heard them grumbling for poverty that has stricken our family,” he said.