Dr. Shah Faesal, a MBBS Doctor, the first Kashmiri who had topped the Union Public Service Commission’s Civil Services Examination and the first candidate from Kashmir in several years to be selected to the Indian Administrative Service through open merit. Faesal has become very popular among Indian youth, a new role model and an icon for Kashmiri youth.
Faesal says, “Real glamour should be associated with people who have done something for the country. They deserve all the attention. But in India we are more fascinated by the brightness of the picture than by the brightness of the character.”
Family Background
Shah Faesal was born in a remote village Sogam, of Lolab Valley in Kupwara district of North Kashmir. His father Ghulam Rasool Shah, a government school teacher who was killed by militants and his mother Mubeena Shah who is also a government school teacher.
His home town is well known for the scenic beauty, Lolab Valley is famous for having been the birthplace of the great Islamic theologian.
Dr. Shah Faesal completed his graduation from Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Science, Srinagar. He was a Doctor by profession before clearing Civil Services Examination.
People call Faesal a career chameleon, as he kept looking for new challenges, and believe in himself, if there would have been a more difficult exam in India he would have appeared for that as well. But, when he started preparing for IAS, there was the motive of serving the country in his mind.
Optional Paper
Shah Faesal first went for Public Administration and Geography but later on he changed and opted for Public Admistration and Urdu Language as his optional paper.
He chooses Urdu as his optional paper because the intention was to dispel the myth about Urdu being a downtrodden and a neglected language. He wanted to prove that Urdu too can fetch you laurels.
Faesal Said, “if you are well prepared, success can be achieved with any subject combination”.
Faesal Shah cleared this prestigious exam in his very first attempt at the age of 27 year and topped the UPSC Examination in the year 2009.
Faesal says, Gandhiji had said the best way to determine the success of your actions is to think about the impact of that action on the poorest man in the country. If you will make plans and rules keeping that in mind, you will never go wrong.
Suggestions for Aspirants by Shah Faesal
Civil Services is not the end of the World.
Do not read for the examination read for the knowledge. And when you gain knowledge , any paper becomes easy to handle.
Be confident with the treasure of knowledge you are having within yourself.
Read as much as possible and complete the syllabus prescribed.
Read regularly newspaper and be updated with the current affairs and the happenings.
Prahlad Narayan Meena fulfilled the dream of his father and mother which they saw when Prahlad Narayan Meena was very young. He cracked the Civil Services Examination conducted by Union Public Service Commission in the year 2011 by securing All India Rank 615. His father was a watchman who had the responsibility to keep watch over an IAS/IPS Officers every day.
Prahlad Narayan Meena comes from a village Rampura. Prahlad’s father Kanaram was a watchman in the locality Gandhi Nagar on Tonk Road in Jaipur city. For various IAS Officers his father served there as a watchman for twenty years. He used to get influenced by the behaviour of these officers while doing his duty. Kanaram felt that he would make his son Prahlad Narayan Meena an IAS or IPS Officer one day by seeing these officers how they used to talk or behave with their own children. But fate had different plans. Kanaram died in 1995. His mother is a house maker and she kept the flame burning of the dream his father had seen for Prahlad Narayan Meena.
When Prahlad Narayan Meena was merely in 7th standard his father died. At such a young age, death of his father not only made him mature, but also made him return to his village Rampura. Her mother always used to keep reminding Prahlad of where he had to reach. Prahlad Narayan Meena had to get a job to earn some money by looking at the economic scenario of the house, which had an adverse influence on his studies. Consequently, he became very weak at studies. So much so that no one had any expectations from him when he filled the forms for the 8th standard.
At the Secretariat in Jaipur his relative used to work over there. For further studies he brought Prahlad Narayan Meena back to Jaipur. He took admission in a private school, because of his rural background his classmates used to make fun of Prahlad Narayan Meena. He was also lagging behind in his studies and he did not know much about the city, but slowly he started getting his share of attention. He knew in future he could pull his family out of their economic miseries if he will study hard. He started refining himself slowly but steadily and in the end Prahlad Narayan Meena topped that school in his 12th standard.
Prahlad Narayan Meena first did a B.A. and then a B.Ed. owing to their poor economic condition. He got a job as a Trained Graduate Teacher in English in Delhi in 2008 and this helped him with his economic condition as well.
Prahlad Narayan Meena sent his mother to various pilgrimage destinations which she always wanted to see. Other villagers seized his land because he was not in his village for so long. This made him very angry, but neither did he have the power nor the money to fight them. Thus, the desire to become an IAS or IPS Officer grew even stronger in him.
Prahlad Narayan Meena started preparing for the Civil Services after his graduation and when he had to travel because of his job or any other reasons he always kept studying at that time. In August 2011 he passed the UPSC Prelims and in May 2012 he also crossed the final barrier. He got an All India Rank of 615.
Ananya Das from Odisha clinched All India Rank 16th and emerged as the State topper in the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) Exam. This was her dream which came true only because of her hard work.
Ananya Das says, ” she was little sure to get this position in IAS Mains Examination and she wish to work for welfare of people specially girls and poor children besides her administrative duties”.
Marks Obtained
Total Marks
Marks Obtained
Total (Written)
1750
815
Interview
275
179
Total
2025
994 (49.09%)
Family Background
Ananya Das is an elder daughter of an RBI officer posted in Jaipur.
Educational Background
Ananya Das did her dual degree course in B.Tech in Computer Science and M.Sc in Economics from Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani.
Ananya Das worked with the Database Team of Oracle Server Technologies as a Software Engineer in Oracle India Pvt. Ltd for 8 months in Bengaluru. She was an Executive Intern in Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for 3 months in Jaipur. She worked on a paper on Financial Contagion and Regulatory Responses. This was later published in The Indian Banker.
Attempts
Ananya Das cracked Civil Services Exam in her very first attempt after quitting job of a software company.
Optional Paper
Ananya Das made a choice of Political Science and International Relations (PSIR) as an optional paper which was based solely on interest. Coming to Political Science preparation, she says she was an engineer by training and she have no background in political science. There may be many more sources to study from but she tried to restrict herself to a limited number due to paucity of time. She believes that it is most important part to practice answer writing for optional paper separately.
Ananya Das started reading basic stuff in 2012 end. She took coaching for Political Science at Vajiram. Some of the basic preparation strategy which Ananya Das followed are:
Please the Examiner
This one person holds the key to your success. It is not only fair but also logical for you to make your life as easy as possible. Remember that they are not doing you a favour by checking your answer-sheet. Its your job to generate their curiosity and then grasp their attention. Try and make your answer sheet the most pleasing one in the stack.
Keep points ready
Answer writing has two parts – first and the more critical one is the recollection and organization that takes place in our heads and the second part is pure execution of the same. The whole exercise of retention and retrieval of points in your mind are very very important. While writing one point, you should plan about your next ones. The faster you think, the faster you write.
Stick to your time schedule
Sticking to the time schedule is very important so that you can do justice to every question. Remember that attempting all questions well will fetch you much more marks than writing a thesis on 3-4 questions. Keep it in mind that your watch is your friend
Innovate and Interlink
Especially in a subject like Political Science where there are so many connections, linking events can fetch you more marks. Give examples to reinforce your points which will add weight to your answer, using key terms which you may have picked up from newspapers can help. Train your mind to form a web of information
Practice! Practice! Practice!
Needless to say, all of the above aspects can only be covered through study, planned revision and practice in answer writing. Do a little more when you think it is enough.
Tips for Young Aspirants
Self notes are useful if you think your material is not organised and needs to be consolidated. Its time taking but is often helpful.
Buy past years question papers of political science and try to write holistic, balanced answers.
Try to observe the pattern and focus areas, especially in the recent years.
With time, you should be able to plan an answer roughly before you put it on paper.
2015 batch IPS, Niharika Bhatt, has secured All India 146 rank, prior to this she has taken a tough decision of leaving her Job in US Government and fight for becoming a Civil Servant in India and she made though it well. She hails from Lucknow where she received most of her education.
Education
She graduated from Institute of Engineering and Technology, Lucknow in Electronics and instrumentation. She is also having an engineering degree from Michigan University, US which she earned after shifting to US.
Prior to joining the service she was researcher in Washington in Food and Drug Administration of the US government
Mains Score:
Interview marks
198/275
Total marks
746/ 1750
Total
944/ 2025
Niharika Bhatt shares her story of becoming IPS
I was in a situation in 2013. I was discussing the possibility of applying to PhD programs, continuing with my research job or give a cent percent attempt to UPSC.
This is what I did. I downloaded ncert books – class 6th to 12th – history, geography, polity pdfs.
Also I searched and discussed about optionals and sociology appealed to me. To test waters and make sure that I enjoy the subject I ordered Haralambos on amazon.
As fate would have it, October 2013 had US government shut down for 2 weeks that gave two weeks off from work and solid time to read this stuff.
So I went through this material. Just relaxed reading. No underlining, nothing.
If after “skimming” through basic chapters of optional, and ncert (at least Geo and polity) you can see yourself enjoying and studying for the next 1 year with the aim to clear this exam in one attempt. Then I would say go for it.!!!
If you want to discuss more, please drop me a PM and I will be happy to clear your doubts.
Also, be very clear in your head about why you want to pursue upsc. During prep, thoughts of “why the hell did I leave a comfortable life and get into this” will come to mind, it is human nature. Clarity of goal and thought is essential to maintain the momentum of studies.
May the force be with you!
Here is a full Interview
Tell us about your background relating to education and work experience?
I completed my schooling from Seth MR Jaipuria School Lucknow, after which I completed my engineering in electronics and instrumentation from Lucknow’s Institute of Engineering and Technology. To pursue M.Tech, I chose University of Michigan, USA. I then took up the job of a researcher in department of Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of the US government. Here, I worked for one-and-a-half year on how nano particles haven impacted human health.
While studying for engineering or in your school days, did you ever think of appearing for UPSC exams?
No, I never thought about it.
You were in USA working with a reputed organization like the FDA. What made you to leave that high-end profession and prepare for UPSC?
During my tenure with the US government service, I travelled to China. It was then I realised that the biggest impact I can make on the society is by being a part of the government machinery. And then it struck me, “Why US and not my own country?” In recent years, we as a nation have come up stronger in all the fields. We require people who have that determination to make a change and this will only happen when people like us will start contributing towards it. I always had a dream to serve my country.
You cracked the UPSC exam in your maiden attempt, while preparing did you had any plan to make it in the first go or it just happened?
First go was always the plan. I thought if I did not make it in the first attempt, I will either go back to the US or will plan for a research or a Ph.D in India.
Tell me about your study plan, i.e., schedule of your preparations etc., and what lead you to choose sociology in mains?
After coming back to India, I relocated to Rajendra Nagar in New Delhi which is also a UPSC preparation hub. I did not attend any coaching. I used to put in 10-12 hours of self-studies daily and made efficient use of internet to understand current issues. I made a list of basic books and revised them ‘n’ number of times. I was not in touch with any of my friends or family members except my parents who had my phone number. I only joined the mock tests to evaluate my personal preparation, which helped me immensely.
While deciding about the subject for mains, I looked up at the syllabus for all of the subjects which were of my interest and found sociology very interesting and it came to me very intuitively.
You being a global student, do you think others should follow your footsteps?
I feel US is a good place for higher education. After completing the course and getting some work experience, people should come back to serve the country.
What was the role of internet in your preparation?
I think Internet played a very important role. My day used to start by opening my laptop. I used to read about current affairs online. All government objectives were briefly explained on government websites which helped me in making my notes. I also used to make notes online and used to revise whenever needed. Google helped a lot as there were many topics which were easily available on a single click.
Whom (Who?) do you think of as your role model, apart from your parents?
I am inspired by T. N. Seshan & Vinod Rai. They have gained respect being public servants during their work tenure and have also brought about many reforms in their respective work areas. I even admire S.Y.Quraishi who was the Chief Election Commissioner. I used to follow him on twitter too.
When you decided to come back, what was your parent’s reaction?
My parents were amazingly supportive about my decision to come back and prepare for UPSC. My father told me if that’s what you want to do, you should go for it. (Niharika is the daughter of a doctor father and mother is a home-maker)
Do you think State governments should compete on the basis of development and what do you think we as a state lack currently?
Yes, development should be the key agenda for any government in power. I think Development and Law & Order are the two important aspects we as a state should mainly focus on, as, because of lack of infrastructure, industries do not want to settle their base in our state and that becomes a reason for the talent to move to either other states or abroad.
Tell me any three problems which India as a country is facing where bureaucracy can help solve it?
As per my view Education, Women safety (Law of Order) and Proper monitoring of Fund Flow are three main aspects where bureaucracy can help.
Education – Entire system should be properly monitored, lack of infrastructure like school buildings, necessary items needed should be given priority. Because of simple problems, attendance in schools drops down, which becomes the area for concern.
Women Safety – Which is part of Law & Order, should be the topmost priority for the administrative system. Digitization of police force should be incorporated to make them more advanced and help fight with challenges on a shorter notice.
Monitoring flow of funds- Strict monitoring of funds should be maintained and digital monitoring of funds should be done, ensuring that input and output remains the same which will also help us keeping an eye on corruption.
We at Lucknow Observer recognize Niharika Bhatt as an Inspirational Leader for our society. We wish her all the best for her future and appreciate the fact that she had the courage to follow her dreams!
The interview was given to Surabhi Mishra of Green Globe for Lucknow Observer.
Sharanya Ari hailing from Chennai, an IT engineer by profession has come out tops in Tamil Nadu in the UPSC Civil Services Examination 2015 and scored seventh at the all-India level. She is the lone candidate from Tamil Nadu to feature among the top 10 successful candidates at the national level. By her strong dedication and willpower to crack UPSC has made her achieve this position. Sharanya Ari is so inspirational as she teaches us to not give up on one’s dreams no matter how hard the paths.
Sharanya Ari UPSC Topper says, “Given a chance, I would want to do something for women and children which I believe is an area that really needs focus. Empowering a woman is equal to empowering a family and I would want to play a part in it” the State topper said.”
Sharanya Ari, a native of Thanjavur, has big hopes that she will get her first choice cadre — her home state. Her father M. Arivazhagan is a retired Air Force Officer, motivated her to serve the nation by joining the Indian Administrative Service. Her mother J. Sathya Priya is a teacher at Government Girls Higher Secondary School in East Tambaram.
“Though I had an opportunity to fly abroad, for future studies but my parents wanted me to join Civil Services,” said Ms. Sharanya Ari. She credits her success in the UPSC Civil Services Exam to her parents; she said that her parents are her inspiration and the driving force behind her achievement.
Sharanya Ari completed her schooling from Kendriya Vidyalaya at Tambaram and graduated with B.Tech degree in Information Technology from SRM University in 2011. Twenty-six-year-old Sharanya Ari could have easily been an IT professional like many engineering grads who pass out every year. But she chose not to. When she graduated from SRM University with a B Tech in Information Technology five years ago, she set her mind on becoming a Civil Servant and started preparing for the Civil Services Examination.
Sharanya Ari said she was inspired by Civil Servants whom she met during her college days and their work. She says that her belief in an examination could not purely judge her capacity is what made her take up the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) exam time and again before she finally aced it.
Optional Paper
Sharanya Ari opted for Sociology as her optional subject. Her mother, a social studies college professor assisted her in preparing for optional subject of Sociology. The UPSC Topper, who graduated from SRM University interestingly nurtures a passion for Sociology and Social Sciences which she says is due to her mother.
The Chennai girl Sharanya Ari bagged the 7th place and emerged as one of the UPSC Toppers in her fourth attempt in the all-India Civil Services Exam. “It is a long-time dream of my parents. After failure, picking yourself up and motivating yourself is the most challenging part in Civil Services Exam. Unless you have family support, you will not be successful,” said Ms. Sharanya Ari.
Her success comes after a determined pursuit of her dream. It was on her fourth attempt that she cleared the exam.
“This time, I was expecting to crack it but to find myself as the All India seventh rank holder is a pleasant surprise,” Sharanya Ari told.
Sharanya Ari says that she had an assurance that she would clear this 4th attempt of her’s but she was shocked to see the result and to know that she stood 7th in the whole of India. She says this is the pleasant news to her and she gives this full credit to her parents and friends and all her beloved one’s as they constantly kept motivating her through the journey of the UPSC and she also said that after the results she is constantly getting calls from many people who are congratulating her for such a great achievement .
Sharanya credits her family’s support as a big factor that enabled her success. “Everytime I was down, they encouraged me. Their words and support were a great source of hope for me.”
With her ranking so high, she will get her desired service which is the Indian Administrative Service.
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