Civil Services Examination, undoubtedly, is one of the most aspired exams in India, and thus one of the toughest exams to crack as well. But when it comes to the motivation for cracking such tough exams, there is no looking back for the dedicated souls, who know what they are meant for! In this article, we shall discuss the real-life struggles faced by our present Civil Services Officers during their preparation journey as aspirants.

‘People usually remember the end success, but very rarely do they know the struggle, pain, frustration, patience and hard work that goes into one’s selection’ , said by Yognik Baghel (AIR 340, CSE 2017) while talking about how after successive attempts he did not let any negativity creep in, and worked his way out to achieve his sincere dreams.

1. Ramesh Gholap

If you are wondering what is it about Ramesh being a Polio patient, and his swearing to not return to his village, until he became an officer, allow us to tell you a brief story.

In the small village of Mahagoan in Barshi Taluka (Solapur, Maharashtra), there lived a little boy, fondly known as Ramu. Son to ‘meager earning’ parents, Ramu had to start working with his brother at his mother’s Bangles shop, at a very tender age. Soon, he lost his father to Alcohol and became the only supported to the family. Despite being a topper student throughout, lack of finances made him chose Diploma in Education, only to end up becoming a teacher. But deep down Ramu had bigger dreams.

With frequent visits to tehsildar’s office, for various issues of the Student’s union he was a part of, he had developed an urge to be at such an influential position. This gave him his life goals and Ramu set off on a journey, he had never heard off. After missing on cracking the cut off in his first attempt, Ramu, along with some local acquaintances, constituted a political party in his village and his mother was made to stand up for the position of Sarpanch. Results were declared, and Ramu recalls the date in his auto-biography ‘Ithe thambe Nahi’ (I will not stop here), as the biggest turning point of his life. That’s when he swore before the villagers.

Currently posted in Jharkhand as Joint Secretary in the Energy Department, Ramesh Gholap cracked CSE 2011 with All India Rank 287 and even topped MPSC 2012, scoring highest ever marks, without coaching.

Ramesh Gholap is dedicatedly working towards fulfilling his duties towards the society, and especially the needy, despite his own disability. What, do you think, gratifies you?

2. Ira Singhal

First physically challenged candidate to have stood first in the Civil Services Examination, Ira Singhal’s story is no pitiful. Diagnosed with Scoliosis since the very beginning of her life, Ira has been a fighter. Rather it will not be wrong to say, she has lived a normal life, like other children with no or minimal disabilities, and outshined in every aspect of her personal, educational & professional life. Before we move ahead, let us tell you that Scoliosis is a typical medical condition in which a person's spine is usually ‘S’ or ‘C’ shaped curved towards sideways. In Ira’s case this medical condition given her 62% locomotor disability, restricting her arm movement.

But as they say, ‘Real fighters always win’, Ira too never gave up on her efforts to living a worthful life! Forever topper Ira fought more battles with her IAS dream when despite her genuine efforts and cracking Civil Services Examination 2 times in a row (CSE 2010 & 2011), she had to move the court of Law for imparting her the justice with allowing her to be accepted in the Disability criterions set by the UPSC board. Not just that she won the case, she re-attempted the paper in 2013 & 2014 and was finally rewarded with IAS in her 4th attempt (CSE 2014).

Our Society had to accept Ira for her efforts and not with pity! What excuses do you have?

3. Ajay Arora

First in the visually challenged category of candidates, Ajay Arora (AIR 512, CSE 2015), has faced lots of challenges since his childhood due to his disability. Hailing from a small village of Sambhli in the town of Karnal, Ajay did not get admission in School until 7 years of age when his father admitted him into National Institute for the Visually Handicapped, Dehradun. Until then only a local lady, doing social service, in his hometown first taught him the basics of language and communication. After losing his father at a very tender age, his mother & elder brother supported him through all the turmoil of his life. After completing his Graduation, Ajay took technology to his advantage and prepared for Civil Services Examination with the help of Job Access with Speech (JAWS), a computer screen reader program. This program allows visually impaired & blind users to read the screen either by a refreshable Braille display or with the text-to-speech output.

IAS Ajay Arora is currently serving in the Punjab Cadre! Convinced enough?

If, even for a second, you have had this thought that these are the challenges faced by physically handicapped people, let us bring in front of you some real-life challenges, of absolutely normal & healthy people, aspiring for the mother of all exams in India – the Civil Services Exam.

4. Govind Jaiswal

Youngest in the family of 6, Govind is an epitome of dedication. Ardent son of a hard-working rickshaw-puller, Govind was once thrown out of the house of a rich friend, after being disgracefully insulted. This moment engraved a very strong impression in the mind of this young boy, who, right at that moment, decided to earn the respect for him and his family. There started the real struggles which life offered him at various stages in life. Initially, he saw his father toiling in day and night to get his children educated. Later it was his surroundings that were never apt to study for India’s most competitive Civil Services Exam. A doting father, Mr. Jaiswal sold off his only piece of land, to send Govind to Delhi to fulfill his IAS dream. Subsiding all the charm of the capital city, Govind never forgot the cruelties the same society had imparted his family with and used the feelings in his favor. He had a clear goal in his mind to become an IAS officer. Had he ever thought about giving up his dream, Govind would not be serving the Nation as an Indian Administrative Officer today.

5. Anu Kumari

Now this name needs no introduction. A working professional, wife, and daughter-in-law of a loving family, Anu Kumari is a doting mother of an adorable son too. Despite having a smooth career and responsibilities towards her family, especially towards the toddler, she sacrificed all the love and took forward a hard step towards her dreams. Her challenges cannot be paralleled with those of other aspirants, but she never let it come between her aspirations. After having worked in the corporate sector for almost a decade, her brother initiated her life towards Civil Services, which she couldn’t manage to crack in her first attempt. But the examination and the idea behind serving the society, immediately made her realize, that she was meant for it, and finally she successfully got all the fruits of her hard work in 2nd attempt when she got All India Rank 2 in CSE 2017.

She made her choices clear and made sure her family didn’t have to suffer long without her! Today, Anu Kumari is inspirations for many women, who complete dedicate themselves to their family, crushing their dreams and wishes. If Anu can crack India’s toughest Civil Services Examination, so can you!

Remember, No one is born with more or less potential, it’s all about how much passionate you are to achieve your desired goals. If this article and these heroes could motivate you, then there is no time to wait anymore, now. Get up and begin working towards your goal, NOW.