Mafia Attacks to Domestic Abuse: 5 Inspiring UPSC 2021 Rankers Who Beat The Odds

The Union Public Service Commission’s (UPSC) civil service examination result day is always an important time in the country. While lakhs of aspirants take the exam, only a few make the cut, bagging the goal of being assigned a post in the civil services. And every year, from among these few, we hear how hard some people tried to get into the list. Indeed, even tales of failure inspire upcoming aspirants.

Their struggle and dedication to achieve a dream they regarded so highly can be an inspiration for us all, no matter what we decide to pursue or if we are following our own similar IAS hopes.

Here are five among them whose stories are unique and different:

1. Shivangi Goyal

A mother to a seven-year-old daughter, Shivangi returned to live with her parents after facing domestic abuse at the hands of her in-laws. While her divorce proceeding was ongoing, she decided to pursue her childhood dream of becoming an IAS officer. And her hard work paid off, helping her bag AIR 177 in UPSC CSE 2021.

“I want to give a message to married women – if anything wrong happens at their in-laws’ house, they should not be afraid. Show them that you can stand on your own feet. Women can do anything they want. If you study well and work hard, you can become an IAS,” Shivangi told India Today while recalling her harrowing experience and how she overcame it.

2. Rinkoo Rahee

Rinkoo has been shot seven times by a mafia for exposing a Rs 100 crore scholarship scam. He is currently a Provincial Civil Service (PCS) officer.

Three of these bullets hit his face, leaving him disfigured, blind in one eye and impaired hearing in an ear. He decided to strengthen his own hands and crack the UPSC exam. He finally has, securing 683rd rank in UPSC CSE 2021.

“My grandfather died when my father was ten years old. My grandmother was thrown out of her in-laws’ house. To survive, she had to do every menial job, including cleaning toilets of other people’s homes. My father was good at studies but had to drop out to take care of the family. So I grew up listening to these stories of exploitation and thought that had government officials been honest, we could have benefitted from several schemes. This is what drove me all along,” Rinkoo told Economic Times.

3. Ayushi Jain

A visually impaired teacher from Delhi, Ayushi teaches history to senior classes in the Government Girls Senior Secondary School, Mubarakpur Dabas. The 29-year-old secured a place in the Top 50 with AIR 48. This was her fifth attempt, and she attributes her success to her mother, who took voluntary retirement as a senior nursing officer in 2010 to support her daughter.

“My dream has come true. It’s a surreal feeling to know that my name is on the list of the top 50. Everyone is happy for me. I feel blessed,” she told Hindustan Times.

4. Samyak Jain

Samyak’s story is similar to Ayushi’s as he is also visually impaired. His prelims were written with the help of his mother, and a friend wrote the Mains. This JNU alumnus belongs to Delhi, and bagged the AIR 7 rank. This was his second attempt. He couldn’t even make it to the Mains in the first one.

“I used to read books in digital format. I started preparation for the UPSC CSE during lockdown when there was a lot of time to study due to home isolation,” he said to DNA India.

5. Swapnil Pawar

Belonging to Nashik, Swapnil’s father is an auto-rickshaw driver. He bagged an AIR 632 Rank on the first attempt and was employed by the Indian Railways. But he really wanted the IAS role, so he tried again and got a better rank of AIR 418.

“Since my school days, I wanted to prepare for the UPSC and become an officer. But, in my first attempt, I could not score well and got a lower rank. So, I decided to prepare again, and with dedicated and consistent studies and my work, I achieved this success. I am happy for the success that I have got, and my parents have supported me a lot in this,” he said to India Times.

Sources:

“7-year-old’s mother who ranked 177 in UPSC results talks about facing domestic abuse”, published by India Today on June 1 2022.

“UP officer Rinkoo Singh Rahee; shot for exposing scam clears UPSC”, published by Economic Times on June 2 2022.

“Blind teacher from Delhi cracks UPSC Civil Services 2021, tops it with AIR 48” ,published by Times Now on June 1 2022.

“UPSC CSE 2021: Meet Samyak Jain, visually-impaired JNU alumnus who bagged AIR 7”, published by DNA India on May 30 2022.

“In Nashik, Son Of Rickshaw Driver Makes It To UPSC Final List, Gets AIR 418”, published by India Times on June 1 2022.

“How these UPSC toppers defied disability and poverty to achieve their dreams”, published by LiveMint on May 31 2022.

(Edited by Vinayak Hegde)

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