1. Bio
2. Education
3. Introduction
4. MCQ Paper
5. Essay/Descriptive paper
6. Physical Test
7. Marksheet CAPF-2012
8. Civil Service?
9. Service Preference
10. Career Backup
11. Wisdom
12. Credit: Friends/family
13. Marketing Propaganda

Bio

Name	Mani Bharathi E
Rank in CAPF-2012	5
Roll No.	004565
Age	23
No. of previous attempts in CAPF	One
Home town/city	Neyveli
Work-experience if any	No
Details of other competitive exams, including success/failures	SSC CGL 2012 – Inspector (Central Excise).Cleared CSE 2012 prelims , didn’t clear mains
Details of coaching for any competitive exam (if taken)	No
Hobbies, Extra Curricular Activities, Achievements	Hockey , Athletics , Science
Do you have NCC certificate?	No

Education

% in class 10	94.80
% in class 12	95.92
Schooling (Medium)	English
Graduation course and %	BE Computer science / 68.40
Name of college and year of passing out	College of Engineering Guindy / 2011
PG	No
Any professional courses	No
Hobbies	Playing Hockey, Reading interesting science facts.

Introduction

Q. Tell us something about yourself. When and why did you enter in the competitive exam field?

I am from Neyveli in Cuddalore district of Tamil Nadu, did my graduation from College of Engineering Guindy, Anna University,Chennai. Uniformed services had always been my passion right from the school days. After getting into the college I came to know about the UPSC examinations for Civil Services and Central Police forces. I started preparing for the examinations after completing my graduation in 2011.

MCQ Paper

Q. List of Essential books and tips for success in the CAPF written exam?

1. TMH General studies Manual – For one stop source
2. Indian Polity- By Laxmikanth
3. NCERTs from 9^th onwards for geography
4. History either from NCERT or Bipan Chandra’s Struggle for freedom
5. NCERT from 8^th class for General Science
6. Current Affairs from The Hindu and websites such as PIB , gktoday etc..

Essay/Descriptive paper

Q. How did you prepare the Essay, grammar, précis and report writing?

I didn’t prepare specifically for essay paper since I prepared for civil services main exam in October 2012. Other than that reading editorials and articles in magazines improve our essay writing skills a lot.

Q. In CAPF-2012 Exam, Which essay did you write and what keypoints did you include in it?

I chose to write the essay on regional parties affecting federal structure of india. Incidentally I am from Tamil Nadu which is ruled by regional parties for the last 40 years. So I had more ideas regarding the effect on federal structure. Key points include hung parliament, impasse in legislation, instability of the government and consequent effects such as inconsistent public policies, incoherent cabinet etc.., state governments which have regional parties in power raise issues in NDC and other councils and complain of unequal treatment by centre, misuse of federal provisions in constitution.

Q. In CAPF-2012, they asked counter-arguments for following, in 75 words. Please provide your answer.

Argument	your counter argument
(i) FDI in retail in India is a bane for a small trader.	FDI in retail will encourage healthy competition, bring in new technologies and management practices , creates more employment opportunities via an improved supply chain management etc..
(ii)  Control of social media is an anti-democratic proposition.	Uncontrolled rights are not provided even in Part 3 of our constitution. The principle of  democracy is in itself supportive of the concept of greater good. So absolute freedom is always vulnerable.

Physical Test

Q. To pass Physical Efficiency Tests (PET), what preparation did you do at home? Where was your PET held? How was your experience, share some tips.

My PET was held in NISA, CISF, Hyderabad on 09/05/13.  I got approximately one month time after result declaration to prepare for PET. Since I was an athlete from school days PET was not difficult for me. 15 days would be sufficient to fit in the requirements for an average person. 800 m and long jump are the events in which most people fail. There are lot of tips in net for long jump.

Interview

Q. What specific preparation did you do for the interview? Who was the chairman? Provide the list of questions asked in CAPF Interview. How was the overall interview experience? And any tips for future aspirants.

I prepared about my home town (Neyveli Thermal Power Station), hobbies, graduation, Tamil Nadu affairs such as Cauvery river dispute and SC rulings, Caste violence , Kudankulam Nuclear plant issue, about the 5 CAPFs etc.The chairman of my interview panel was Smt.Alka Sirohi. Here is the list of questions asked in my interview which I could remember:

What is different about Pondicherry?

Actually I didn’t expect this question as my home town is Neyveli, but in the summary sheet only our birthplace will be there. I managed it by saying that it is a union territory, was under the control of French, administrative divisions( Mahe,Yanam,Karaikal) etc..

What is fuzzy logic?

I don’t know. She told that it is used in washing machines.

What do you mean by an agent of change? Give me examples.

Something which must improve or transform the society. Eg; Education, Inspirational leader

 Difference between inspiration and motivation.

Inspiration is getting attracted towards one’s way of living or achievement, motivation is improving the morale of someone who is feeling low. Inspiration doesn’t require communication but motivation does.

Difference between rogue state and failed state. Examples for both.

Rogue state is one which acts against the interests of world peace eg; north korea, failed state is one in which the government is not able to discharge it’s duties eg; Afghanistan, Somalia

Is it ethical to demand back the bharat ratna award? Your opinion?(Amartya sen issue)

No. Only based on solid evidence of incompetence in the relevant field of achievement it can be demanded back.

What is Pendleton act?

Don’t know.

What is the difference between LCD and LED Tvs?

I told about the viewing angle, brightness etc.. He expected something else.

What  are the chemical compounds used for producing different colour LEDs?

Don’t know.

Nearest star to our sun?

Proxima centuri.

Concept of time travel.

Don’t know.

Questions based on my leadership positions: How many persons can be served with 1 kg of rice?

(I was mess secretary in my college hostel) How do you ensure the right amount of nutrients in food for veg and non-veg students?

Approximately 5 to 6 can be served. By including pulses in a higher proportion to veg students.

Highest peacetime military awards and other military awards?

Ashok Chakra,PVC,VSM,PVSM,SM,AVSM etc..

What are the measures of dispersion(Statistics)?

Don’t know.

They asked many other questions based on my answers. Summary Sheet in DAF is very important. Around 60% of the questions are based on it.

Q. How was interview: normal, stress, mixed? Did they ask any uncomfortable questions, if yes how did you answer it?

My interview was mixed. They asked some uncomfortable questions, many questions were psychological questions, and some were easier ones. One thing I came to know is that you must honestly admit if u don’t know. Taking more time , beating around the bush etc.. won’t help.

Marksheet CAPF-2012

Paper I (MCQ): 157

Paper II (Descriptive): 96

Interview: 97

On an average, how many hours do you study?

On an average I study 4 hours a day and the time gets longer when the exams get nearer. 8 hours a day is more than enough for this exam.

Civil Service?

Q. Did you appear in Civil Service (Mains) 2012? If yes, share the experience, marks, what Essay did you write?

Yes I appeared in Civil Services Main exam 2012. I wrote the essay on working Indian women. As this is my first attempt, I gained a lot of experience. My marks were GS(192), Public Administration(179),Geography(195),Essay(94). Total marks 650.

Q. Are you appearing in Civil Service (Mains) 2013? If yes, how are you approaching/preparing the ethics, and other new topics of GS?

Yes I am appearing in 2013 Main exam. As ethics is a new topic I am trying to collect materials from various sources and coaching institutes.

Service Preference

Q. What was your service preference order (CRPF>CISF>SSB etc) and why did you pick up the particular order?

CISF>SSB>ITBP>CRPF>BSF. Service preference were based on the advice of peers and an AC in CRPF.

Career Backup

Q. If you were not selected, what was your career backup plan?

I would have joined in central excise dept and tried for civil services exam.

Wisdom

Q. Through this journey and success, what wisdom did you gain about competition and life? What is your message to the aspirants?

Working hard is the only way to success. The hard work I had done for the 2012 prelims, for Physical Test and Medical Examination brought me this success.

Credit: Friends/family

My parents were always with me in all my decisions which in itself is a moral boost for my preparations. My friends who were very supportive and crucial for my success are Prakash.S , Karthik.N , Sujitha.R , Manoj.S

Marketing Propaganda

Q. Did you use Mrunal.org for your preparation? ?  And you can even reply “No”. I’ll publish your answer as it is.

Yes.  I used mrunal.org for my preparation and it helped me a lot for my interview and general studies preparation.