[CAPF Lady Topper] Usha Kiran Rank 295: Kendriya Vidhaylaya, B.Sc Chemistry, Gurgaon

1. CAPF Topper Profile
2. Education
3. Introduction
4. Electronic Vs Paper material
5. Tempo and style
6. GS and Aptitude paper
7. Descriptive paper
8. Four Essays
9. Argument For-Against
10. Report writing?
11. CAPF Physical Efficiency Test
12. Interview by UPSC Panel
13. UPSC Interview Transcript
14. After the interview
15. CAPF Marksheet
16. Service preference
17. UPSC CSE-2013 experience
18. Career Backup
19. Wisdom
20. Credit: Friends/family
21. Bogus Marketing Propaganda

CAPF Topper Profile

Detail	Input
Name	Usha Kiran
Rank in CAPF-2013	295
Roll No.	224970
Age	25
No. of previous attempts in CAPF	1
Home town/city	Gurgaon
Work-experience if any	No professional experience  ( But worked as private tutor )
other competitive exams including success & failures	CSE 2013 (Not cleared) RAS Pre 2013 (Cleared but RPSC cancelled the exam, thanks to paper/nakal mafias!)
coaching/postal material (if used)	Not for written though joined Kabir sir’s 1 week interview program.
Hobbies Extra-Curricular Activities	Music, Dancing, Choreography, Cooking, Old movies (Though all seems bit odd for an AC) National Player of Athletics (Long Jump & Triple Jump) during school time. Scouts & Guides
Do you have NCC certificate?	No

Education

% in class 10	72
% in class 12	61
Schooling (Medium)	Kendriya Vidyalaya (English)
Graduation course & %	B.Sc Chemistry (Hons.) 76
College & batch-year	MDU 2009
Post-graduation	Yes
Any professional courses	No

Introduction

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

I am very fortunate to have come from a family where defense/security jobs are not profession but a tradition; we in our family have a tradition of serving the nation which started with my late grandfather who served in Indian Army and then CRPF. And after him it started flowing in the blood of coming generations. I am the third generation and 8^th member of my family (And if my relatives of similar profession are to be added then probably a complete battalion can be raised) who is going to join the Police force (First female member).  So the choice of entering the competitive field was obvious.  My family motivated and supported me at every stage of my life, specially my father who always pushed me to achieve my dream of becoming a Police officer.

Electronic Vs Paper material

Q. In recent times, there is spur in electronic material- blogs, sites, pdfs, RSS-feeds. Many aspirants feel bogged down by this information overload. So, how much do you rely on electronic material and how much on the paper material (Books, newspapers)? If possible narrate a typical day in your studylife. What is your style of preparation (e.g. I continue making notes no matter what I’m reading, I just read multiple times but don’t maintain notes, I make mindmaps on computer …or xyz style)

I really appreciate the effort of some websites which are providing some important and meaningful material to aspirants. But I don’t support overdependence on such materials/Information/websites etc.  I greatly rely on paper material with some useful inputs from websites like Mrunal.org, pib.nic.in . IDSA and sometimes Wikipedia as the problem with Wikipedia is, for a 5 min. topic you’ll surely spend atleast 30 min. due to numerous links given in between a topic. You’ll start with basic working of human eye and ‘ll end up mastering the technique of  lamellar sclerocyclochoroidectomy! (I’m not sure of the spelling!).  So the point is, a rigid control on your mouse is extremely important while studying on internet.

Yes, I do make short notes for quick revision during exam time like flows charts, tables, bullet points etc. it serves as handy material during exams time. Otherwise I just go on reading from my books with a highlighter in my hand. The most important thing during your preparation is revision; make sure you do revise all the core syllabus atleast 2 times before writing the exam.

Tempo and style

Q. People know what books and syllabus topics are to be prepared. But most of them lack consistency in their preparation. So, how did you keep study momentum going on? How do you fight against the mood swings and distractions?

There are broadly two situations when you don’t feel like studying anymore – one is out of laziness, Bahut padh liya yaar bas ab halat kharab ho gayi, thak gaye ab and all. And other when you somehow start losing hope, may be due to any previous failure, family tensions, Girlfriend/boyfriend getting married, friends/schoolmates posting so called selfies of FB with their husband/wife/bf/gf/new car/foreign trips blah! Blah! Blah! with captions “hwz it?” and you disinterestingly commenting with smilies! and you literally feel like a loser, you start saying to yourself ‘Ab humse na ho paega’.

I fight against both situations differently dushman alag to hathiyar alag.

When I have first situation I just try to free my mind for a while by simply wasting time on stupid things, listen to nonsense songs (like aashiqui te loan, chaar botal vodka ! ) or watch nonsense movies like No problem, khatta meetha etc. which literally have no sense. It makes me feel refreshed and tension free so that after the break I can study with more momentum.

Watching head shaking, heavy issue movies is not advisable during such mood swings as they will make your brain more occupied rather than refreshing it, for example- if after a serious analysis of Ukraine crises, Iraq problem, Gaza bombing  you take a break and watch Madras café then it may waste your 5 hrs minimum, 3 hrs on movies (You can’t laugh like a moron in b/w such movies) and other 2 hrs on assuming yourself in place of John Abraham as a RAW official and finding out what went wrong which led to Ex PM’s assassination! You may even end up finding a solution to problems of LTTE and lankan tamils! And in worst case you can be seen narrating operation vijay or India-Srilanka relations to your class 10^th cousin (Who is a yo yo honey singh fan and simply don’t give a damn to the crap you are saying!). It may sound good but the motive of refreshing and freeing your mind for some time from everything is not serving here. So I simply watch some nonsense movies/songs, flush them after THE END, and go back to study.

Now comes the second dushman, the himmat ki watt lagao dushman. It needs serious attention. When I have such problem/distraction I simply motivate myself by writing inspirational and motivational poems for me (Sounds stupid, but amazingly effective for me).  If you really want something then nothing can distract you at the first place, you start living with it (dream of wandering in naxalite areas in camouflage is very common for me, and I use to wake up in the morning more and more inspired and determined). But as we are humans so losing hope sometimes is only normal. Its ok to lose hope for a while, but not letting yourself to get up again and start working to achieve your goal is a sin, is a crime. I write poems, those who don’t, can read some inspirational poems/stories watch some inspirational movies or talk to their mother (mothers are always a source of inspiration).

GS and Aptitude paper

Q1. Please share the list of resources you used, your strategy and other tips for benefit of future aspirants.

Topic	Input
History Ancient	NCERTs
History Medieval	NCERTs
History Modern (Freedom Struggle)	NCERTs + Bipin Chandra
Culture society	NIOS Material
Polity (theory + current)	Laxmikanth + Hindu  + PIB + Mrunal
Economy (theory + current)	NCERTs + Ramesh Singh (selective) + Mrunal + Hindu
Science (theory + current)	I am from a science background but still prepared from NCERTs + GS Manuel + Hindu
Environment (theory + current)	Didn’t prepare much apart from Newspapers and some chapters from NCERTs science textbooks (Class 12th Biology book has some very important material for this section  + Chemistry books have chapters on pollution control etc.)
geography physical	NCERTs + GS Manuel
geography India	NCERTs + GS Manuel + Atlas
geography world	NCERTs + GS Manuel + Atlas
other national/international current affairs	Newspaper + Internet ( Mrunal basically )
Schemes, Policy & Filler Stuff	Newspaper + PIB + Mrunal
Maths	Didn’t prepared
Data interpretation	Didn’t prepared
Reasoning	Didn’t prepared

Q. What’s your overall experience with GS paper? (E.g. it was on expected lines as per my preparation, it was quite tougher than earlier years etc.)

Paper was good (Offcourse it was good if I’m through it!) It was on expected lines and difficulty level was similar to previous year. I just have one thing to say here, avoid rushing around to attempt too many questions (of which you are not sure) because that may result in deduction of huge marks from your legitimate answers. Use your head to analyze the difference between factual and general questions; avoid taking guesses in factual questions.

Descriptive paper

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

I didn’t prepare for the grammar, précis writing. For report writing and Essays I totally relied upon newspaper. For Essays I regularly follow the editorial section. One must keep in mind that unless he/she is stiff and mature enough to be carried away by any fancy ideas, don’t waste time on page long guest articles published beside the editorial section, because they are personal views of individuals (mostly of  critical nature) who are answerable to no one unlike the editorials which are well researched and unbiased.  So its always safe to go with the editorials.

Its good to be critical at some point of time but over criticizing each and every government policy or move won’t be a good idea, there are some awesome people who think that being anti-government and cursing government policies every now and then make you look intellectual and creates a think tank image of yours! One should save him/herself from any such fantasy, because that’s so not true.

I always try to create a balance between criticism and appreciation in my essays with some practical and acceptable solutions. (I derived this style of writing greatly from articles of Mrunal Sir, perfect blend of criticism, appreciation and solution.)

Four Essays

This time, UPSC required the candidates to write 4 out of 6 essays. Which of the following did you attempt? And what were your keypoints in them?

Topic	your key points
doctor-pharma nexus	Doctors recommending xyz medicine , companies’ favors doctors,  creates unnecessary big holes in patient’s pockets, increases unethical competition among pharma companies, threat to universal health coverage, generic medicines, need for laws, auditing of pharma companies, strict eye on the cost incurred on promotions, mass awareness etc.
interstate water dispute
social reformers in freedom struggle
falling rupee & Indian economy	tight cash inflow policies, Bad for imports, good for exports but we always have trade deficit so loss ultimately, Current account deficit, thirst of Indians for gold and petrol, High prices, commodity expensive, aam junta losing faith in economic machinery, need for reforms, RBI Policies etc.
China’s aggressive policy	China’s thirst for newer overseas avenues for strategic as well monetary ends (resources, markets, business), String of pearls, port in srilanka, encroachment in Maldives, India’s stakes, strategies, moves etc.
media publicity on terrorism	Unnecessary hike to terror outfits (which they want), Right to expression, Limitations of right to expressions, reporting on movement of security forces could be a threat , gave an incidence of 26/11, creating terror among people showing brutalities of terrorists, could make people reluctant in reporting any suspicious activity, information etc, some good points, keeping people informed, awareness and all. Government ruling, need for some control, ethics in journalism etc.

Argument For-Against

This time, UPSC required candidates to write both arguments for and against the given statements. so what were your keypoint in it?

Topic	Argument for	Against
casteless society becomes distant through issues raised by reservation	Already divided society, reservations making the turf even deeper, less chances of mingling.	Considering the historical aspects, taboo and deprivation attached with some castes its ok to give them some benefit so that they can also become a part of mainstream, when equality is achieved society will ultimately become casteless.
women empowerment is urban phenomenon	Gave example of nirbhaya case, whole of the country toppled to punish the perpetrators, compared with the plight of a minor rape victim from rajasthan of almost same brutality but no one came to help. Education, freedom to choose their life partner, awareness about their rights etc.	Rural urban areas have different aspects and pace of development, won’t be wise to compare urban women with a rural women, they are abused and deprived from centuries, will take more time to correct every wrong done to them, developmental institutions are reaching rural areas,  process is on, more girls into school, better livelihood to women, mentioned schemes like SABLA, Kishori Shakti etc.

Report writing?

Did you write report the same way you wrote essay? or did you apply any special format/structure here?

Topic	Keypoints
Uttarakhand tsunami & Military	Background of crisis, Extent of disaster, casualties, problems experienced in rescue works, active role of military etc.
Ethics crisis in cricket	Background of problem, money game, fixing, gambling, IPL, shreesanth, role of BCCI etc.

I just had one thing in mind while writing report, that I am writing this report to give Information and not for presenting arguments. You may or may not disagree with the given essay topic but you can never disagree with the topic of report.  Reports are meant to give information unlike essays which are open for debate.

Q. What is your overall experience with descriptive paper (e.g. too lengthy paper, grammar tougher than previous paper etc.)

Paper was too lengthy. But difficulty level was not that high. I managed to complete the whole paper on time somehow, but at the end I was literally writing with both of my hands.

Practice writing as much as you can.  Collect your ideas in mind before actually writing reports/essays/debates on paper.

CAPF Physical Efficiency Test

Q1. To pass Physical Efficiency Tests (PET), what preparation did you do at home?

I was a National level athletics player during my school time so didn’t had much problem in this area.

I started my preparations roughly 15 days before PET. I used to run a lot to regain the lost stamina. For my PET preparation I worked with my previous coach (the official coach of Haryana athletics team) at Devi Lal sports Complex Gurgaon and simply followed his instructions.

Q2. Where was your PET held?

23^rd May 2014, ITBP CAMP TIGRI DELHI.

Q3. Please narrate your actual experience PET test with readers.

Being a sports person I really enjoyed my PET.  I was the only female candidate at the time of my PET.

I ran both the races 100m and 800m with the male candidates it helped me to complete both the races well on time even way before required time (in 100m sprint even some of the male candidates were behind me J) . I cleared long jump easily in first attempt. Overall experience of PET was good except the heat,  I almost had a blackout after 800m, a male candidate even fainted due to scorching heat. But if you practice well before your PET then you can easily handle any such situations. We had normal laboratory tests after PET like Urine, Blood and X-ray. The officials were very cordial the commandant was even instructing and motivating candidates for every event. He was standing near the long jump pit and shouting like yes ! shabash aur  tez bhaag k aa! Shabash tu kar lega dnt worry !

Interview by UPSC Panel

Q1. How did you prepare for the interview? Particularly college graduation subjects related questions?

I joined 1 week interview program of Kabir sir’s Career quest. I attended two mock interviews there and this 1 week class really helped me. I didn’t jumped over all the books which I read preparing for written. I simply followed newspaper regularly for current updates and revised my chiller notes. I specifically focused on my DAF because there is no scope of getting away with wrong or arbitrary answers from DAF during interview. I prepared about my hometown history, geography, culture, economy, politics etc. About my college, school, about my name, If u have fancy names like Usha & Kiran in single name they may ask you the reason (Although this question should be asked to my parents! ), may ask you to explain the meaning or may ask about any famous personalities with similar name.

For graduation subjects I didn’t went onto dig out my dust laden graduation books. I simply prepared chapters on my subject given in GS Manuel, and kept an eye on newspaper for any recent innovation/development in that subject.  That’s more than sufficient.  I had a clear concept in my mind that if I’ve chemistry background then they are not going to ask the detailed mechanism of Hell Volhard Zelinsky reaction! Though they may ask about types of reaction like displacement, addition etc. and this much stuff is given in your GS Manuel. They just want to know a general understanding of yours about your subject.

Q2. Where did you stay for the interview? (Hotel / friend’s home …) and what books/material did you bring for the ‘revision before interview’?

I’m from Gurgaon so I commuted from my home only. I was only carrying that day’s newspaper with me. I didn’t got the chance to look at the newspaper at home so I read the newspaper in car (Don’t even think of doing it if u are to drive :p) . And this proved fruitful because the madam in the board started her question by giving reference of a naxalite story published in that day’s newspaper (on her question I started smiling like a kid inside saying ‘O teri! Yeh toh kamaal ho gaya yaar!’ J ). I didn’t read anything except 30^th june newspaper before interview.

Q3. Who was the chairman of you interview board?

H.C Gupta

Q4. How long was the interview?

35min approx

Q5. Why do you want to become an Assistant commandant? Why don’t you continue in your graduation field? [Since I don’t know whether they asked you this question or not. But if they had asked- what will be your reply?]

It was asked by the chairman, And I answered; the first inspiration and motivation to become a police officer came from my family especially my father. He wanted (still wants) me to become an IPS officer. He introduced me to UPSC CSE and he is the one who first introduced me to CAPF. After that I went onto find every single detail of UPSC CSE and CAPF and decided that I want to become an IPS (the struggle is still on), and if not IPS then AC, because I think the second best after IPS is AC. This answer satisfied the chairman.

I didn’t chose to continue with my graduation field because I’m simply not interested in that. And if I would have continued with my graduation field then I’m left with two options either become a teacher/lecturer, jisme mera iitu sa bhi interest nahi hai! Or to go into the research field for that I’ve to do Ph.D.  jisme again mera iitu sa bhi interest nahi hai! Plus there is no certainty that you will end up discovering 140^th element of periodic table even at the age of 80!

UPSC Interview Transcript

Q. Please narrate your entire interview- what questions did they ask and what did you reply and other pleasant or uncomfortable experiences during the interview. (Earlier some toppers only tell me their question but not their answer. I would appreciate if you give both Question + your original answers)

Chairman – So your name is Usha kiran and you are from Gurgaon.

Me – Yes sir.

Chairman –(Turning pages through my DAF) You did general B.Sc in graduation.

Me – No sir its an honors degree in chemistry.

Chairman – But you’ve mentioned botany, Zoology also in your subjects.

Me- Sir I studied botany & Zoology as subsidiary subjects till 2^nd year.

Chairman –  So Usha tell me why do you want to join Armed Police force?

Me- Answered above.

Chairman satisfied and passed the baton to M1 (Only female member of the board).

M1- Usha there is a news in today’s newspaper about the Human rights violation cases committed by CRPF personnel, Do you think that they are actually involved in human rights violation?

Me- Yes Madam, I read that story. But I don’t think that CRPF Personnel are involved in such brutal human rights violations cases, yes I agree there could be some exceptions. But it would be wrong to say that the all the CRPF Personnel are perpetrators of Human rights violations.

M1- But Usha you may have read that villagers said CRPF Personnel don’t value their lives and they kill them(villagers) for no reason. What you have to say over this?

Me- Madam I still don’t agree that CRPF personnel kill villagers for no reason. They are there risking their lives to protect local villagers. So we cannot say that they don’t value the life of villagers.

M1-Hmm! Ok! But the villagers also said that we can’t resist advances of naxalites for food or other supplies. We have to give them what they(naxals) want because they’ve got guns. And CRPF says that we are helping naxals, we are serving as their intelligence. And then they(CRPF) used to torture us.

Me- Yes madam I do agree that the local villagers cannot fight with naxals but they can help CRPF to fight against naxals, they can inform officials about any naxal activity or movement in their area, they can help CRPF to curb naxal raids in local villages, they can make naxals reluctant to raid their village if they cooperate with CRPF, Which they don’t. It should not be neglected that the views of villagers for CRPF Personnel are not unbiased, and are influenced by the naxalites. But yes I agree there could be exception so not even a single human rights violation complaint should be neglected, and proper enquiry mechanisms should be there and perpetrators should be punished according to laws.

M1- hmmm! (looked satisfied)

M1- So Usha you had botany and zoology as subsidiary subjects in your graduation so can I ask you a couple of question from zoology? (And gave me a smile as if saying to me beta aur likh DAF me tune kya subsidiary padha hai graduation mein!)

Me- Smiled confidently and said yes madam (though andar se drum bajne start ho gaye ki pata nai kya puchhne wale hain).

M1-Ok (smile) Do you know what is morphology?

Me- I’m sorry madam I don’t know .

M1- Ok (with the same smile). So Usha do you know what chordata is ?

Me- Yes Madam (with relief arre ye toh mujhe aata hai) Chordata is a major phylum of Kingdom animalia.

M1- Ok. What typical characteristics they have (the chordates) ?

Me- Madam, they have a vertebral column, and are also known as vertebrates.

M1- Ok Usha. So what do we call those without a vertebral column?

Me- Non Vertebrates or Non chordates.

M1- Hmmm! Correct. So Usha do you know about the kudnakulam problem?

Me- Yes Madam, Kundnakulam problem is about the agitation of local people against setting up of nuclear reactor plant in Kudnakulam, Tamil Nadu, due to health concern because of nuclear radiations.

M1- Usha do you think that people of local villages have knowledge about nuclear radiations or the health concerns arising out of them?

Me- No madam, except some educated villagers its difficult to say that they are aware of the nuclear health problems . NGOs played an active role here in fuelling local agitations.

M1- Smiled ! there you are Usha , do you think that NGOs are deliberately hampering the developmental activities?

Me- (hey bhagwan! ab kya bolun) Madam it would be wrong to say that all the NGOs are doing this but there could be some exceptions like the one we have seen recently.

M1- (Smiled horribly as if saying, do hell with your diplomatic answer) name the NGO of which you are talking.

Me- Madam its Green peace , it was in news after an IB report disclosed some anomaly in its funding.

M1- So Usha  forget about IB report what you think of this, the NGO funding (she basically wanted to know whether I’m with IB report or with the people of NGOs who are protesting against the report saying that government is taking away their right to protest by defaming  them)?

Me- Madam I think there could be some arbitrariness in their funding but cannot say anything with certainty without proper government enquires.

M1- So Usha do you agree with IB report?

Me- Yes madam, we cannot neglect an enquiry by one of the most efficient intelligence agency of our country and there is always an option for reassessment if government want the things to be more clear. (No matter how many bomb blasts IB failed to speculate and investigate you cannot doubt its efficiency! The boss is always right MIND IT..!!!)

(M1 satisfied, moved on the next question. I took a breath chalo peechha chhuta NGO se )

M1- Usha do you know about wikileaks ?

Me- Yes Madam, Its an online platform to share important news and information with the public.

M1- Hmm! Why this wikileaks was so much highlighted in news some time back?

Me- Madam, because wikileaks released some important and confidential US information cables on its website, which  US considered as a threat .

M1- Ok.! Usha do you know who founded the wikileaks ?

Me- Edward Snowden. (and very next moment realized that maine rayta phaila diya, its Julian assange par ab madam Edward snowden k bare mein bhi puchhengi !)

(M1 nodded and gave me a look from above her reading glasses, and before she would say anything I smiled and said I’m sorry madam, the founder is Julian Assange )

M1- (Smiled) Hmm right! (and as expected Julian Assange was thrown into dustbin) So Usha you just said Edward Snowden, do you know who is he and why was he in news?

Me- Yes Madam, Edward Snowden is a former US CIA official. And he was in news because he disclosed some confidential US security material which he acquired in his official capacity while being in CIA.

M1 Satisfied and threw Edward Snowden in dustbin but Julian Assange  was again taken out of dustbin,

M1- Usha do you know where is Julian Assange right now?

Me- Madam, he is living in Ecuador embassy in London after he took political refuge there facing rape charges by two former wikileaks officials.

M1 satisfied and again threw Julian Assange in dustbin with Edward Snowden and finally covered the lid.

Chairman passed the baton to M2 but before he could ask anything Chairman puts up his question

Chairman- Usha you have given CISF as your first preference, although your father is from CRPF. So why did you gave CISF as your first preference, do you think it’s a safe job?

Me- Sir, I have not given CISF as my first preference out of safety concerns but due to the varied nature and the scope of work of CISF. Its protecting the major industrial installations of our country, its serving equally in rural and urban areas so I may get a varied and vast exposure here. And Sir also I’m aware of the fact that these are just choices I can be asked to join any of the three forces viz. CISF, CRPF, BSF and I’m equally ready and excited to go in any of the three forces.

Chairman satisfied and smiled, again passed the baton to M2.

M2- (Was talking in Hindi) smiled !  Usha, aapki baat main samajh gaya par koi toh special reason hoga CISF chun ne ka, I mean safety concerns bilkul nahin hai?

Usha – smiled . Yes Sir, safety concerns k wajah se maine CISF first preference nahin rakha hai. Aisa nahin hai ki CISF sirf safer environments me operate karti hai. If I’m monitoring the security of Delhi Metro today then I may be protecting an Industrial installation in a naxalite area on my next posting.

M2 interrupted and said –Naxalite area?

Me- Yes Sir, CISF is at NMDC Chattisgarh also. One of the hardest hit naxalite area. And it was also attacked by naxalites killing several CISF personnel.

M2- Smiled ! oh yes yes! Ok ! continue.

Me- I mainly gave CISF first preference because of the varied exposure I may get due to its 360 degree approach, I may get to know each and every aspect of rural as well as urban India viz.geographical, cultural, economic, political.

M2 – Smiled Hmmm! Good. (Satisfied)

M2- (Continuing with the naxal story started by M1) Usha naxal areas mein log sarkar pe bharosa nahin karte unke man me sarkar ke liye bahut gussa hai. Uske liye aapke according kya kiya ja sakta hai?

Me- Sir iske liye ek all round integrated approach ki jarurat hai jiski or hamari government machinery teji se badh rahi hai. Us area ke logo k man me sarkar k liye gussa hai kyonki unhe lagta hai un k area me sarkar vikas nahi kar paa rahi hai aur unka shoshan kiya jar aha hai. Jabki unke area mein vikas na ho paane ki wajah naxalvad hi hai. Toh hume wahan ki suruksha ki or jyada se jyada dhyan dena hoga taki wahan developmental machinery pahunch paaye aur wahan jyada se jyada vikas karaya jaa sake jis se ultimately logo ko ye vishwas ho jaye ki sarkar unke sath hai. Aur unke vikas k liye bhi utni hi koshish kar rahi hai jitni baki rajyo k liye.

M2- Main aapki baat se agree karta hun usha. Par kya aapko nahin lagta ki wo shyad hamare development ke paradigm ko nahi samajh paa rahe hain? Jaisi development hume delhi mein dekhne ko milti hai waisi wahan nahi.

Me- Sir, hamare rajyo ke historical, geographical and cultural aspects ki diversity ko consider karte hue sabke liye vikas ki ek paribhasha dena galat hoga.Har ek rajya me uski jarurat ke anusar vikas karaya jana chahiye. Hum Delhi ki development ko agar chhatisgarh ke sath compare karenge toh ye galat hoga. Hum Chhattisgarh k junglon ko kaat ke wahan metro nahi chala sakte.

M2 loudly laughed with appreciation.

M2- Bahut badhiya Usha .

With this my confidence touched next level.

M2- Usha wahan k logo ka ye bhi kehna hai ki jaise wo chahein unke area mein waise vikas hona chahiye, wo log chahte hain ki unhe unke according cheeze karne deni chahiye sarkar ka koi interference unhe nahi chahiye, Aapko kya lagta hai , sarkar ko unki ye maang maan leni chahiye?

Me- Sir, sabhi states ko apne bare me sochne ka right hai Par unki har baat ko maan lena unity of India ke against jana hoga. Is se kahin na kahin separatist tendencies ko support milta hai. Dusre states se bhi fir is tarah ki maange uthne lag sakti hain.

M2- (Not satisfied) Toh aap ye keh rahin hain ki hume in gaonwallon ki baatein nahi sun ni chahiye? Fir humne panchaytein kyon banayi hain? Kya jarurat hai decentralized administration ki?

Confidence again at zero level. But managed to get a smile on my face and replied.

Me- Sir I’m sorry par main ye nahi kehna chah rahi ki hume decentralized administration ya panchayto ki jarurat nahi hai balki ye hamari aaj k samay me ek badi jarurat hai taaki bharat ke remotest corner aur har ek naagrik tak government policies ki pahunch ho. Par naxalite areas me panchayat ke through rakhi gayi maango ka multiple assessment bahut jaruri hai. Ye baat jahir hai ki wahan k logo ki soch naxalities ki soch se kafi prabhavit hai toh ye dekhna bahut jaruri hai ki panchayat k through sarkar k saamne rakhi gayi maange actually wahan k villagers ki genuine maange hain ya fir naxalites ki maango ko janta ki maange bata kar saamne rakha jaa raha hai. Uske liye panchayat system ko transparent banane ki jarurat hai.

M2- finally smiled. Hmmm! Good. satisfied

Confidence back on track

M2- Usha aap Irom sharmila ko to jaante hi honge?

Me- Yes Sir. The lady who is on fast from many years (was not sure how many years) to repeal the AFSPA.

M2- Kya hai ye AFSPA. Full form.

Me- Armed force special power act.

M2- Aapko kya lagta hai is act k bare mein, ye hona chahiye ya nahi hona chahiye?

Me –  Sir, waise toh India jaise democratic desh me is tarah k stringent acts nahi hone chahiye par hamare itne diverse security issues ko dekhte hue jarurat k according isse use kiya ja sakta hai and then it should be repealed from that area. It can’t be given as an ultimate power to Indian security forces.

M2 satisfied.

M2- Usha kuch logo ka ye kehna hai ki Irom sharmila ko jel me daal dena chahiye kyonki wo suicide karne ki koshish kar rahi hain, aapko kya lagta hai?

Me- Sir mujhe lagta hai aisa karna galat hoga, wo protest kar rahi hain ek issue ko lekar and peaceful protest kar rahi hai. Unhe jel me daal dena ek dictator step hoga. Protest karne ka right hai hamare desh k logon ko. (After saying this realized ki josh mein kuch jyada bol diya!)

M2- Smiled.! Hmm! Ok!

M2- Usha ye IPL ka culture aaj kal kaafi bloom kar raha hai, kya aapko lagta hai iski wajah se cricket commercialize ho gaya hai?

Me- (Really stopped watching IPL after some seasons but thanx to shreesanth and other fixing heroes to keep IPL on the pages of the hindu J) Sir,mujhe lagta hain ki IPL jaise events ki wajah se cricket kaafi had tak commercialize ho gaya hai. Aur iske wajah se match fixing, betting, gambling jaise un-ethical events ko kafi push mila hai. (wasn’t having  any other damn idea about it that time).

M2- Hmmm! (somehow bought it and moved to next question). There are some clubs in our country like _______ & _______ &______&_______

Chairman after reading a pause on my face told me that M2 is naming some of the oldest football clubs of our country. And I smiled and said I’m sorry sir I don’t know about them. (How would I know my favorite club is Chelsea J ).

M2- Its ok Usha, (smiled) Abhi football kafi chal raha hai so aise hi puchh liya maine.

Me- (smiled) Yes sir, Abhi brazil me FIFA chal raha hai but I am not following FIFA.

M2- Its fine Usha, Har cheez ko follow karna koi jaruri nahi hai.

Me- Smiled

M2- So Usha,(smiled) aapki hobbies toh badi interesting hain aapko dancing pasand hai choreography pasand hai, kya aap apni battalion me bhi aise cultural events organize karwaengi (and gave a big smile).

Me- Smiled .  Yes Sir, agar mujhe mauka mila toh main jarur chahungi ki is tarah ke cultural program organize kar saku so that officials mein jo stress and anxiety kafi baar develop ho jate hain given the 24*7 nature of job wo mitigate ho paye. It will certainly work as stress buster. (smiled)

Whole board started laughing over this.

M2- (laughing) that’s very well thought Usha.

Chairman passed the baton to third member.

M3- So, Usha its written here that you like watching news debates, so can you tell me about any heated debate airing on T.Vs presently?

Me- Sir, nowadays, DU’s four year program and tussle between DU and UGC is a topic frequently coming in discussions.
M3- Do you know about the godman’s issue raised a couple of days back?

Me- Sorry sir, I don’t know about that.

M3- Hmm ! Usha its written here that you like music. So what kind of music you like?

Me- Sir, I like old hindi songs.

M3- Usha you have given CISF as your first preference, why? because you think you will get postings at safer locations? If its so then you are wrong(in a strict tone). CISF is also serving in worst hit insurgent areas like Northeast and life of CISF personnel is full of tension, stress and anxiety there.

By the time he completed I was looking at him and smiling but damn confused from inside that you are asking me this question or scolding me for choosing CISF as first preference. But whatever it Is, its triple jeopardy. I was punished for the same sin thrice in 35 min.

Anyhow! When I was about to open my mouth to repeat the same story. M2 interrupted.

M2- No sir, She explained her reason. She has not given CISF as her first preference out of safety concerns.

(I looked at M2 and smiled with the expression Thanku sir meri jaan bachane ke liye, he smiled back).

After it I thought the interview is over. But M1 still got something to ask.

M1- Usha, You have been a national player. What was your sport?

Me- Madam, Athletics.

M1- Which events?

Me- Long Jump & Triple jump.

M1- You won bronze medal in national games in triple jump.

Me- Yes madam.

M1- You also won a bronze medal in 4*100m relay race.

Me- Yes madam.

M1- Very Good Usha.

Me- Thank you madam.

M1-For which state you participated in National games?

Me-Delhi.

M1-You were awarded with the best guide title? What is guide?

Me-Madam the girl’s wing of Scouts & Guides .

M1- o yes! Right right!

M1-for how many years you have been a guide?

Me- For 5 years.

M1- Hmmm! Good.

Chairman looked at every member to confirm if they are done with their questions.

And then smiled and said Ok Usha, thank you.

I thanked chairman and members and came out of room and Phewwwwwwww!!!! What a relief.

After the interview

Q1. Was your interview on the expected lines of what you had prepared or did they ask you totally unexpected questions?  Was it a stress interview, did they ask any uncomfortable questions? If yes, how did you handle it?

There wasn’t any unexpected questions. (Except the CISF preference wala question, I expected this question once but it was thrown on me thrice). It was not at all a stress interview I was having a 32 inch smile on my face throughout . But I found it quiet long. There was hell lot of questions. Board’s attitude was like the bar is open for just 35 min in their life and they gonna drink till they puke..! But the questions were easy. And the board was very cordial; a light and healthy environment was maintained throughout the interview. At some point of time I even started feeling like I am in a general group discussion and not in THE UPSC INTERVIEW.

No special strategy needed to face interview, just be yourself. (although if yourself is like yo yo honey singh! Then you can try to be atleast like daler mehndi but if not comfortable then just leave the damn mehndi and rap like yo yo honey singh!)

Q2. Any side details about technicalities like “make sure you bring xyz document or do xyz thing, or you’ll face problem”?

Nothing much, the staff was very cooperative, so if u forgets something they’ll take undertaking from you.  But take your 2 photographs along.

CAPF Marksheet

Will mail you later.

Service preference

Q1. What is your service preference order BSF,CRPF, CISF, ITBP?

CISF<CRPF<BSF

Q2. How/Why did you pickup that order?

CISF – For obvious reasons-  safer environment, posting at good locations more time to study etc. (Although if you are thinking of telling these reasons to board then leave this thought here only because they will then leave no stone unturned to make your life miserable during interview. As nothing sounds more stupid than an over concern for your safety while you are to become an officer in armed forces. )

CRPF – My father and every 2^nd member of my family is in CRPF.

BSF – No other option left.

UPSC CSE-2013 experience

If you had appeared in UPSC civil service exam 2013, please reply following

1. Your marksheet for prelims and mains
2. Your overall experience and words of wisdom about CSAT, GS, Aptitude, optional and essay

Nothing much to share here. Still struggling.

Career Backup

Q1. If you were not selected, what was your career backup plan?

I actually don’t have any clear cut backup plan but would go for state services if not selected and will prepare hard and hard for UPSC CSE (for which I’m still struggling)

Q2. When were you going to execute that backup plan (e.g. after third attempt, after dad retires, after girlfriend dumps me etc.)

I actually started executing it. I applied for RAS 2013, cleared it, started preparing for mains but meanwhile cleared CAPF (Although RPSC cancelled the exam, thanks to paper/nakal mafias, so if in worst case I don’t get an appointment in CAPF I will again appear for RAS Pre this year).

Q3. If you were to re-appear in CAPF-2014 then what modifications would you make in your studies?

First I’ll watch some more nonsense movies listen to more nonsense songs, will flush them, and then will start preparing by focusing more on descriptive paper, will try to improve my essay/debate writing skills.

Wisdom

Q1. Through this journey and success, what wisdom did you gain about life and competitive exams?  What is your message to new aspirants?

I came to learn that, No matter how many times you fail, if your efforts are genuine and concerted then you will get success for sure. It could be delayed but cannot be denied. (Unlike justice!) I just have one thing to say to new aspirants that if you really want this then forget about other things, girlfrnd ne dump kiya/ papa ne daanta/ maa is after marriage/mahesh ki shadi/ sursesh ka break up/ Ramesh ka chautha blah! Blah! Blah! Flush these things pull up your socks and get to study, and most importantly Follow mrunal.org as religion.

Q2. UPSC had cleared nearly 2500 candidates from CAPF-prelims. You’re selected but many others did not. They’re feeling dejected with this whole competitive exam business. What is your message to them?

I want to say that this dejection is temporary. I can totally understand what it feel like to be rejected, I too have faced this. I remember when I couldn’t make it I had to face multiple reactions. Friends/neighbors/relatives/dudhwale uncle/dukan wali aunty/laaltu ki mummy! everyone was behind my back with same question “Arre is baar bhi nahin hua tera, yuhin tym waste kiya, Abhi tak toh mastarni lag gayi hoti sarkari school mein”. There were dooooooooor k uncles, mamis, bhabhis who couldn’t sleep at night because of the tension that my parents are not marrying me off. And now they all are calling me to congratulate and ask about coaching institutes where they can send their kids so that they can also become a gazetted officer.  So do remember that this bullying, commenting, arrogance of people is momentary, its there only till you have not get it. The moment you are something, same people will start respecting you. Will even idealize you. I don’t know about those who have dekha jaega attitude, ki  chalo koi nai koi business kar lunga, kya hua nahi hua toh sahdi kar lungi pati toh job wala milega! Only god can help them. But those who are actually determined to get their goal can’t and will not give up. So friends, never forget we are fighters, no matter how many times we fall, we always have the courage to get up fight again. So just gather all your strength rise again and the show the world what you’ve have got.

I would like to share one of my recent poems which I wrote during CAPF preparations. I lost some hope when I sprained my ankles 3 days before my PET, but then a thought stroked my mind, that if I’m breathing I don’t  have the right to stop or to lose  hope.

क्योंकि हम जिन्दा हैं।

हम रोएंगे , हम हसेंगे ,

हम गिरेंगे , हम संभलेंगे ,

हम घायल होंगे , हम फिर चलेंगे

पर हम न रुकेंगे , हम न थमेंग

क्योंकि हम जिन्दा हैं।
हम जिंदगी को जिन्दा रखेंगे

क्योंकि हम जिन्दा हैं।

क्या हुआ जो कल हौसला टुटा हमारा ,

क्या हुआ जो कल स्वाभिमान दुःखा हमारा ,

हम आज फिर से शुरुआत करेंगे ,

हम आज फिर से उद्घोष करेंगे ,

हम हार को भी जीतना सीखा देंगे ,

हम जिंदगी को जिन्दा रखेंगे ,

क्योंकि हम जिन्दा हैं।

नदी के पथ पर अड़ जाये चट्टान कोई ,

वो तो बह जाती है कलकल करती चीर के उसका सीना ,

वो न रूकती है न मुड़ती है , उसका काम है अग्रसर बहना।
तो रुकावटों के आगे क्यों हार माने हम ,

बहेंगे वेग और उल्लास से नदी के ही जैसे हम ,

हम तो अड़ियल तूफ़ानो को भी मंज़िल का रास्ता दिखा देंगे ,

हम जिंदगी को जिन्दा रखेंगे ,

क्योंकि हम जिन्दा हैं।

क्यों लेट जाएं चिता पर मौत आने से पहले ,

क्यों न चख लें हर चुनौती को जान जाने से पहले ,

क्यों रोक लें अपनी आवाज़ को नब्ज़ जमने से पहले ,

क्यों समेट लें अपनी कोशिशों को सांस रुकने से पहले ,

हम तो कर्म से अपने रेगिस्तान में भी गुलशन खिला देंगे ,

हम जिंदगी को ही जिंदगी के मायने बता देंगे ,

क्योंकि हम जिन्दा हैं।
हम जिंदगी को जिन्दा रखेंगे ,

क्योंकि हम जिन्दा हैं।

Good Luck guyz.. !!

Credit: Friends/family

Q. Behind every topper are many people who stood by him/her during those uncertain times when he/she was merely an ‘aspirant’. Would you like to tell the world, who were those people in your case? Any specific incidence that you would like to share with the readers?

I owe this success totally to my family (yes to mrunal sir also J ) My mother Mrs. Rattan, My Father Mr. Vijay Singh, My bros, Kuldeep and Darshan,  they stood by me when everybody else was standing in front of me, commenting on me. My father is the actual reason behind this success; his dashing pictures in uniform truly created a fantasy in me for uniform and inspired me to become a police officer. On many occasions I have seen my mother having heated arguments with my relatives over me (Ladki ko itna padhaye jaa rahe ho shadi kyon nai kar dete iski, bahut ziddi hai ladki tumhari, control nahi hai tumhara ispe and all ). But now my mother proudly says uski zidd ko control nahi kiya isliye aaj wo ye kar payi..  Its their love, support and belief in my capabilities with me that I have made it. Besides them I would like to thank my uncle/friend/ mentor Mr. Satish Punia who genuinely helped me to achieve this. I remember he literally broke into tears when I called him after final result.

Bogus Marketing Propaganda

Q. You are well aware for the sacred rule. The last question in topper interview,  must be about self-marketing. So, Did you use Mrunal.org for your preparation and if yes, how did it help you?  And you can even reply “No”. I’ll publish your answer without tempering.

Yes I greatly used Mrunal.org for my preparations I still use it. It helped me in ways I can’t summarize in few words. It made it understand the hard core, mind boggling topics with ultimate ease, It improved my writing skills, current affairs section started recently is like an icing on the cake, Toppers interviews published by mrunal.org served as inspiration during low times. In nutshell Mrunal.org is an all-round, all-in-one package.  I would have asked you to include a go to top button. When I used to saw this question on toppers interview I thought that when I’ll be interviewed I’ll ask you to do this (silly me) ,  really felt screwed moving up with curser at times ,  but thats already done in new version. So , Nothing! You are infinitely awesome.