[Topper’s Interview] Ganga Singh (Rank-33/CSE16): हिंदी माध्यम, Hindi Literature Optional, MA from JNU, hails from Rajasthan

1. Candidate Profile
2. Education
3. Introduction
4. Electronic Vs Paper material
5. Typical day in your Online life?
6. Style of Preparation and notes making
7. Prelims (CSAT) Paper-1: General studies
8. Prelims (CSAT): Paper-2: Aptitude
9. Prelim accuracy
10. Mains: Compulsory language paper
11. Mains: Essay
12. General Studies (Mains) paper 1
13. General studies (Mains) paper 2
14. General studies (Mains) Paper 3
15. General Studies 4: Ethics, Integrity, aptitude
16. Mains answer-writing?
17. Mains Optional Subject
18. Before the interview
19. During the interview
20. CSE-2016 Marksheet
21. Career Backup
22. Insecurity about profile
23. Internal Motivation
24. Grand wisdom
25. Credit: Friends/family
26. BOGUS Marketing Propaganda

Candidate Profile

Q.	Details
Name	GANGA SINGH
Rank in CSE-2016	33
Roll No.	78265
Age	23
Marital Status	Unmarried
Total attempts in CSE (including this one)	2
Optional Subject	HINDI LITERATURE
Schooling Medium	HINDI
College Medium	HINDI
Medium chosen for Mains answers	HINDI
Medium chosen for Interview	HINDI
Home town/city	VILLAGE – DANDALI, BARMER (RAJASTHAN)
Work-experience if any	No
Details of other competitive exams, including success/failures	Cleared  various written examinations of  RPSC,UPSC,SSC etc.
Details of coaching, mock tests, postal material for any competitive exam (if used)	Wrote some test series and few mocks at different platforms.
Service preferences (Top-5)	IAS, IPS,IFS,IRS(IT),IRS(C&CE)
state cadre preference (Top-5)	RAJASTHAN , GUJARAT , MP , HARYANA , MAHARASHTRA

Education

Education	fill the details here
% in class 10	76%
% in class 12	83%
Graduation course and %	B.Sc (PCM) , 76%
Name of college, city, passing out year	JAI NARAIN VYAS UNIVERSITY , JODHPUR ; 2014
Post-graduation	M.A. (HINDI LITERATURE) FROM JNU , NEW DELHI.
Any other professional courses	RSCIT (COMPUTER COURSE ) FROM RKCL , GOVT. OF RAJASTHAN.
Hobbies & Extracurricular achievements	PLAYING VOLLEYBALL AND LISTENING RAJASTHANI FOLK MUSIC SPECIALLY MANGANIYAR

Introduction

Q. Tell us something about yourself, your family, when and why did you enter in this field of competitive exams?
Hello friends !!!
I am GANGA SINGH. I come  from BARMER (RAJ.) , a district located at the heart of GREAT INDIAN DESERT. I have done my initial education at my village and topped the school in 10th standard. During that time my school teachers approached my parents  and advised them that I should pursue science stream for further studies. I completed 12th from Jalore and again topped the school with 6th position in the district. After that I came Jodhpur for B.Sc and it was this place from where my real journey started. During graduation days my parents (specially my grandfather) motivated me to choose civil services as a career option. During B.Sc final year I started reading NCERT books and followed the interviews of Civil Services toppers in Pratiyogita Darpan. By the final year of my graduation  I was fully aware that I must follow the Civil Services as it would provide me comprehensive platform to render my efforts.  One of the other reasons for joining this arena is that I have very much inspired by the good civil servants in this field. So,  this was the reason that I pursued the Civil Services.

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 do you balance this i.e. electronic material vs. paper material (Books, newspapers)
Mostly I was dependent on paper material because there is a limited , authentic and updated material available in HINDI medium. Although I am a regular follower of mrunal.org .Mainly my optional subject was very static so electronic way has limited scope to follow. I’m very keen of underlining the books again and again. Hence, I mostly (95%) followed paper materials.

Typical day in your Online life?

Online life	Answer
Daily hrs spent on online platforms for predicting cutoff / syllabus change / age-attempt limit change and other “peripheral-bolbachchan“ related to civil services.	—
Daily hrs spent on whatsapp and telegram studygroups	—
Daily hrs spent on online for exam prep.	Need base.
Primary Device for online study: desktop, laptop, tablet, mobile	Laptop

Style of Preparation and notes making

Q. What is your style of preparation and notes making? (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, I use xyz software etc.)
I usually made short notes of my optional subject . It was just synopsis-type.We should try to make notes only of the complicated topics. I revised more and more so that I could able to memorise the things. There are multifarious benefits of notes making such as easy to revise materials during examination periods, it helps in improving speed and handwriting. This is the reason I prepared short and hand notes of my materials.

Prelims (CSAT) Paper-1: General studies

Topic	strategy/booklist/comment
History Ancient	R S SHARMA
History Medieval	SATISHCHANDRA ( only 11th and 17th chapter)
History Modern (Freedom Struggle)	BIPINCHANDRA
Culture and society	NEW NCERTs of class 6,7,8,12
Polity (theory + current)	NCERT 11th and 12th classes , M.Laxmikanth
Economy (theory + current)	Notes of Rameshwar sir, videos on mrunal.org
Science (theory + current)	Notes of Spring Board coaching classes , vision ias current affairs magazine.
Environment (theory + current)	DRISHTI special edition
geography physical	NCERT 8-12
geography India	NCERT
geography world	NCERT
other national/international current affairs	Vision ias
Schemes, Policy & Filler Stuff	Vision ias

Q. Candidates are complaining that compared to earlier years, Prelim 2017 GS paper was very tougher, Tickmasters’ 90⁺ strategy (and its perverted & populist version known as Guessmaster-giri) and E-learning materials had limited utility. What are you views and wisdom on all these?
I think candidates should avoid HARD MENTALITY. There is no any thumb rule behind this.
Q. Suppose, If you had to prepare for Prelims-2018, then after going through this 2017 paper, what changes would you make in your preparation?
I will follow current affairs thoroughly and regularly.
I will revise all relevant NCERT books  again and again.
I will practice more mock question papers.

Prelims (CSAT): Paper-2: Aptitude

Topic	strategy / booklist
Maths	NCERT 6-8
Reasoning	Previous years question papers.
Comprehension	Previous years question papers.
Decision Making	Previous years question papers.

Q. In the recent two prelims (2016 and 2017), the comprehension portion becoming quite tough and lengthy. Candidates struggle even to finish the paper-II. Kindly provide some words of wisdom:

1. Read the whole passage twice and answer , don’t use your extra mind. If there is written that Agra is the capital of India and it is located at the bank of Sindhu river than accept it , there is no need to correct passage information. Answer on the ground of the  passage information only, not beyond this.
2. Try to attempt those questions which you have maximum clarity. Try to maintain the confidence level even though you are unable to solve the starting questions. Have patience and try to apply your rationality utmost.
3. Try to make a balance among mathematics, logical reasoning, and comprehension. Don’t leave any section blank entirely.

Prelim accuracy

Q1. Did you attend any ‘mock tests’? do you think they’re necessary for success?
Yes. I have solved around twenty mock test. It is not as effective but essential. At least one test series should be done by a candidate.
Q2. Approximate no. of attempted answers vs. correct answers. in Prelim-2016

	attempted Q.	correct (Expected)	Official score
GS	98	79	145.34
aptitude	55	—	111.68

Mains: Compulsory language paper

Compulsory language paper	Your preparation strategy / booklist?
English paper	Followed only previous  yrs papers
your regional language	—

Q. other observations / tips / comments on the length / difficulty level of compulsory language papers in CSE-2016
Nothing special.

Mains: Essay

Q1. How did you prepare for the essay paper?
I did practice 6-7 essays. I prepared a diary for collecting short-poems, short-stories, quotations , prerak-prasang, recent examples etc. to use in essay. Seniors and classmates at JNU helped me a lot to improve my writing skills.
Q2. Which two essays did you write and What key points did you include in it?
If development is not engendered, it is endangered.
Cyberspace and Internet: Blessing or curse to the human civilization in the long run?

General Studies (Mains) paper 1

Topic	How did you prepare?
Culture	I read some books for this section e.g; RS SHARMA , NITIN SINGHANIYA , NEW NCERTs of CLASS 6,7,8,12.
Indian history	Bipinchandra , Spectrum for Modern India
world history	NCERT OLD , Drishti Notes.
post-independence India	Ncert class 12 ( polity )
Indian society	Ncerts class 12 ( Indian society, Social Movements)
role of women, poverty etc.	—do—
globalization on Indian society	—do—
communalism, regionalism, secularism	—do—
world geo physical	NCERT OLD AND NEW BOTH OF CLASS 6 TO 12.
resource distribution	—do—
factors for industrial location	—do—
earthquake tsunami etc	—do—
impact on flora-fauna	—do—

General studies (Mains) paper 2

Topic	How Did You Prepare?
Indian Constitution, devolution, dispute redressal etc.	NCERTs 11 and 12th classes. ; M.laxmikanth
comparing Constitution with world	Not prepared well , I collected information about the constitutions of UK, USA and INDIA.
parliament, state Legislatures	NCERTs 11 and 12th classes. ; M.laxmikanth
executive-judiciary	—do—
ministries departments	VISION IAS (test series papers of 2015 and 2016)
pressure group, informal asso.	VISION IAS
Representation of people’s act	VISION IAS
various bodies: Constitutional, statutory..	NCERTs 11 and 12th classes. ; M.laxmikanth
NGO, SHG etc	VISION IAS
welfare schemes, bodies	VISION IAS
social sector, health, edu, HRD	VISION IAS
governance, transparency, accountability	2nd ARC summary
e-governance	—do—
role of civil service	—do—
India & neighbors	VISION IAS current affairs , Dainik jagaran Rashtriya sanskaran.
bilateral/global grouping	—do—
effect of foreign country policies on Indian interest	—do—
Diaspora	—do—
international bodies- structure mandate	—do—

General studies (Mains) Paper 3

Topic	How Did You Prepare?
Indian economy, resource mobilization	Ncert class 11 ,mrunal.org , Rameshwar sir class notes.
inclusive growth	—do—
Budgeting	—do—
major crops, irrigation	—do—
agro produce – storage, marketing	—do—
e-technology for famers	Kurukshetra journal
farm subsidies, MSP	Eco survey.
PDS, buffer, food security	Ncert class 11 ,mrunal.org , Rameshwar sir class notes.
technology mission	—do—
animal rearing economics	—do—
food processing	—do—
land reforms	—do—
Liberalization	—do—
Infra	—do—
investment models	—do—
science-tech day to day life	Vision IAS current affairs. I didn’t prepare junk.
Indian achievements in sci-tech	—do—
awareness in IT, space, biotech, nano, IPR	—do—
environmental impact assessment	—do—
Disaster Management	TMH Book by Ashok Kumar and Vipul.
non state actors, internal security	—do—
internal security – role of media, social networking site	—do—
cyber security	—do—
money laundering	—do—
border  Management	—do—
organized crime, terrorism	—do—
security agencies- structure mandate	—do—

General Studies 4: Ethics, Integrity, aptitude

Topic	How Did You Prepare?
ethics and interface, family, society and all the hathodaa topics	2nd ARC Report on Ethics in governance, ABHAY KUMAR SIR CLASS NOTES.
attitude, moral influence etc.	—do—
civil service: integrity, impartiality, tolerance to weak etc	—do—
emotional intelligence, its use in governance	—do—
moral thinkers of India and world	NCERTs OF POLITICAL SCIENCE.
ethics in pub.ad, accountability, laws, rules etc.	2nd ARC Report on Ethics in governance, ABHAY KUMAR SIR CLASS NOTES.
corporate governance	—do—
probity in governance, work culture	—do—
citizen charter, ethics code, work culture etc.	—do—
challenges of corruption	—do—
case studies on above topics	ONLY VISION IAS TEST SERIES PAPERS ARE MORE THAN SUFFICIENT.

Q. In ethics, they’re asking random definition and concepts out of the book. Most of the serious candidates (both topper and non-toppers) have received marks in similar ranges. What are your observations and tips for future aspirants regarding preparation of this paper?
Use daily life examples in your answers to verify itself.
If there is any scope of use diagrams, flow-charts, maps, recent examples ; than use it properly and maximise your marks.
Keep in mind the fundamentals of INDIAN CONSTITUTION. The theme of answer should be reflect the values of PREAMBLE of our constitution.

Mains answer-writing?

Please tell us how many marks worth attempt did you give? along with comments if any, in the following cells:

Paper	Best attempted	Average quality	namesake answer	Total attempt
GS1	15	4	1	20
GS2	13	4	3	20
GS3	17	3	—	20
GS4	14	4	2	20
Opt-P1	17	1	1	19
Opt-P2	16	—	2	18

Q. What was your approach in the exam (I wrote all, I only focused on the questions where I could answer perfectly, I just not to high quality points to reach the word limit etc.) Because the UPSC aspirant Community is divided over what counts as a ‘good’ paper. Some experts claim you should attempt all- even if it involves “making up” an answer with filler lines, some claim attempt only those questions you know perfectly. Where do you stand on this? [Based on your experience and of your seniors/buddies]
I wrote all answers because it is my thinking that it is better to answer all question rather than attempting least questions with adequate substance.
Q. How was your experience with the ‘fixed space’ answer sheet?
There is sufficient space to write the answers.
Q. Did you write answers in bullet points or in paragraphs? Some players (who cleared mains and got interview call letter) were claiming that they wrote entire paper in bullet points, so it doesn’t matter…. whether examiner is asking ‘examine, comment, discuss or xyz’….simply write in bullets and points.
My response was mixed. Sometime I wrote in bullet points and sometimes in paragraph.your response should be base on the structure of the question if there is a analytical question then write it in paragraphs and if you have any factual question then write in bullet points.

Q. Did you follow the “introduction-body-conclusion” format? because some mains-qualified candidates claim they simply wrote the points they could recall within the time, instead of bothering with proper introduction and conclusion.
Generally I followed “introduction-body-conclusion” structure. But it is not possible in each and every question.
I don’t like asking following rudimentary questions, but these are the most frequently asked questions by new aspirants.

Q5. Did you use highlighters / sketchpens in your answers?	No
Q6. Did you draw any diagram in any paper? (e.g. in GS1 Geography)	Yes I drew many diagrams. I used 5-6 diagrams , maps, flow charts etc.
Q7. If yes, Did you draw diagrams with pencil or pen?	Black pen
Q8. Did you use ruler to draw the lines in diagram? Or did you just make it by hand?	By hand.
Q9. You wrote the answer in blue pen or black pen?	Blue pen.

Mains Optional Subject

Q. What’s your optional subject and why did you chose it and not something else?
My optional subject is HINDI LITERATURE. I’m pursuing M.A.in this subject from JNU, so it was very easy to handle it.
All optional subjects are good. Material availability and  your interest in that subject should be the grounds to choose any optional subject.

Q. If a new player wants to pick your subject, would you advice for it or against it?
I would advice him/her to go with it as it is very interesting, short and scoring subject.
Q. First the essential book/resource list. (Also mention which one is the “Base book” for covering the theory? + Whatever comments you’ve for a particular book e.g. “my seniors said read xyz book but I found that ABC book was better”.  “xyz topic not given properly in this book, so prepare from xyz website or book…” OR and so on.)
For this anybody can reach at my facebook wall , here is link. I have already uploaded a complete strategy for Hindi Literature.
https://www.facebook.com/gangasingh.rajpurohit.90
Q. How much of internet-research / current affairs is necessary for this optional? OR can one simply rely on the books and be done with this subject?
Hindi literature is very static subject , there is no use of  internet to study it as number of reliable books are available. Yes , some videos on IGNOU platform are quite good.
Q. How many months did it take to finish the core optional syllabus?
Just around 3-4 months only.
Q. How many days/ weeks before the exam, you started answer writing practice?
I started answer writing practice just after prelims exam. I wrote 10 tests for optional subject.
Q. Do you maintain self-notes for revision of optional? In which format- electronic or paper?
I usually preferred to make hand notes and it was in paper format.
Q. Your observation about the difficultly level of 2016 mains vs previous papers. And what precautions / rectifications are necessary in the future strategy for given optional subject?
There was not much difference between them. Regardless of any particular strategy a candidate should follow there whole syllabus.

Before the interview

Q1. How did you prepare for the interview? – for college grad, hobbies, place of origin, current affairs at national and international level?
Mostly, I followed group studies in JNU especially with my senior fellow and classmates. I prepared DAF thoroughly and prepared current affairs properly.
Q2. Did you attend any mock interviews by coaching classes? How were they similar / different than official interview? Do you believe it is necessary to attend such mock interviews?
I attended some mock interviews in different coaching institutes out of them some were really good. Though, the UPSC and the coaching institutes interviews were completely different, but a candidate should go for at least one or two mock interviews.
Q3. Where did you stay for the interview? (Hotel / friend’s home …) and what books/material did you bring for the ‘revision before interview’?
I stayed at my Kaveri hostel, JNU.
Q5. Describe the formal-dress worn by you in interview.
I wore light blue shirt, dark black pant and tie.

During the interview

Q1. Who was the chairman of you interview board?
Shree Chhattar Singh ji.
Q2. How long was the interview?
It was around 25 minutes.
Q3. Why do you want to join civil service? Why don’t you continue in your graduation field? Social service can be done from private sector too.  [Since I don’t know whether they ask you this question or not. But if they had asked- what will be your reply?]
Interview board didn’t ask this question. But if they had asked , I will reply in very practical way . I come from rural background, I have been observing the working style of civil servants around my area , they can work at wide platform, they have adequate resources to change the adverse scenario. in this service,  there are many things to learn for good career. That’s why I would like to join civil services.
Q4. 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)
I had reached at UPSC building  with my classmates from JNU. There were many candidates to be interviewed. In our group , I was second one to go.
My interview was started just around 3 pm, it was the board of Mr. Chhatar singh ji.
As I entered in the hall before the board , all chairperson welcomed me and asked to have a seat.
CHAIRPERSON
Is this you Mr. Ganga Singh ( Showing my photo)
Me — Han ji sir .(That time I  forgot to reply “YES Sir.”)
2. So , Mr. GANGA SINGH you did B.Sc from jodhpur in 2014 , good ,you performed well .I think you should continue your field , why not applied for further studies ?
Me — Sir, now a days, I am pursuing M.A. in Hindi literature from JNU, New Delhi.
3. You stay at hostel , what kind of problems generally face by students there ? If you are warden ,  than how will you short out ?
Me — Sir, my hostel (kaveri) provided me better facilities during my 2 yrs stay. But , sometime there are some issues of misunderstandings among students., there is issue of sanitation. If I were the warden I would try to convince them by positivistic manner. And try better on my part to resolve them peacefully.But if further any issue arises again than I will take strict action .( Acche student badmashi nhi karte , aap inti achhi jagah padh rhe h ye aapka sobhagya h.fir bhi nhi mane to me further action leta.)
4. Which tourists sites around jodhpur are most popular around jodhpur ?
Me — sir, there are many popular tourist places such as Umaid palace , Mehran Garh fort , Sun Temple at Osian etc.
5. What is the distance from Jodhpur to Barmer ?
Me — sir , it is around 220 kms. ( actually it is 208 kms). ( This question was already prepared with my colleagues at JNU LIBRARY.)

6. What are the sources of income in your district ?
Me — sir Agriculture , Animal husbandry are main sources of income in our area. Yes, some  people are performing well at cities in service sector.
 1st member ( Lady Member )
What is the population of your Gram Panchayat ?
Me — Madam , it is just around 5500 people.
2. From where u inspired to become an IAS officer ?
Me — madam, in our area some district collectors performed very well at wide platform. Than I thought I should try for it , if would get through, it will be better to assist people directly at comprehensively by me.
3. How you qualified Mains exam in very young age ?
Me- I have topped the class from my schooling to college , so I thought if I prepare well with great enthusiasm than I can get it. Proper guidance , availability of  adequate study material , proper time management and positivistic approach, positive environment at  JNU  Library ,richness of friend circle etc. made me easy to qualify it at very young age still in Hindi medium.
4. What are the differences of the people and environment of JNVU Jodhpur  and JNU New Delhi ?
Me- at both place , people are committed to their duties. Ya, JNU is comparatively  more politically vibrant campus.
5.For which handicrafts are famous globally from Barmer ?
Me — There are various wood and textile handicrafts , such as  AJRAKH PRINT, Wood made toys etc.

2nd Member

How RBI control money circulation in market ?
Me —  there are various qualitative and quantitate approaches. For this RBI follows accordingly.
At present time what is CRR, SLR, WPI and CPI inflation rates
Me — sir, CRR is just around 4 %, SLR is just around 22 % ( that time actually it was 20.5%), WPI rate is around 5% and CPI rate is around 3%.( on this moment the member impressed because I answered very fast)
What is measurement of Bigha , acre, hq, ?
Me — sir,  actually I am not aware about bigha. But I think 100*100 meters is for hq, and 40*40 mtrs for acre. ( is samay thoda stress aa gya mere chehre pr lekin sambhal liya jald hi)

What is the present situation of Indian economy ? Is it performing well ?
Me-  sir, Indian economy is performing at an average level. Its not so good or bad but mixed. There are many challenges towards  it but some positive things ( biggest market, demographic dividend etc.) are here to combat adverse conditions.

3rd member
If you would be like to travel from Sri nagar to Kanyakumari than which states fall in this way of journey?
Me — sir, Jammu Kashmere, Punjab, rajasthan, madhya pradesh, andhrapradesh , tamilnaddu. ( I missed karnataka and this route was not exactly straight )
2.why Govt of India is focusing on Ganga river only ?( First question directly related to my Name )
Me — sir , I think govt is not only considering this river but also focusing on other rivers under Intergrated river development programme , yes , somewhere govt is focusing because Ganga is well connected with religious aspect and also its basin covers 40 % of the productive land area.
3. From your Barmer district many people use to join the Army , than why you have not ?
Me — sir, from my village last year 2-3 students recruited for Indian Army . I also have tried through NDA,CDS,AFCAT but I couldn’t get through .

4th member

If you will get IFS than where you want  to serve first.
Me- sir, Africa continent .
2.  No, In neighbouring countries where you want to serve ?
Me — sir , Pakistan.
3. Did you heared about racism in Africa , America and recently some incidents in India like bangalore , noida ? Is there any relativity in these incidents and what you know about this phenomena ?
Me-  sir , there are some historical reasons but as of now these incidents are results of narrow mentality

Chairperson again
Lets Ganga Singh  tell me is really this type of mentality (  related to previous member’s last question ) is present in Indian Society or in Indian culture ?
Me — yes sir , absolutely this type of mentality is present.
2. Chairperson intervened and said how you can  say this ? In India there is Democracy and our Indian constitution gives rights like Equality,Freedom ?
Me – sir, these all things are idealistic , but in reality the discrimination of colour ( kale and gore ka bhed ) is exist in  our society .
3. How can you say so ?
Me — sir , there are many examples which are present in our society even today as examples I can present them in front of the board .
4. So tell them ?
Me –  first example ; on Indian roads mostly  loading vehicles have a tagline  “ buri nazar vale tera munh kaala .( as I gave this example the entire board started laughing )
Second example ; in our Bollywood most of the songs are related to fair colour ( gora rang ) ( the lady member passed a smile on this moment.)
Chairman intervened and on this moment he was looking  totally convinced.
Chairman ; thank you Ganga Singh .
Me — thanked every member.
Q5. 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?
Maximum questions were as per expected but some were very factual and unexpected. There was no issue of stress or un-comfortability on my face . The board was very cordial and supportive.
Q6. Any side details about technicalities like “make sure you bring xyz document or do xyz thing, or you’ll face problem”?
No problem  , UPSC staffs were very supportive.
Q7. Any word of wisdom / observations about medical checkup?
Get up in the early morning and be punctual. Your attire should be casual (lower, T-Shirt and sleepers).

CSE-2016 Marksheet

Q1. Please provide both prelim and final mark sheet:

Prelim paper-1	145.34
Prelim paper-2	111.68
Mains	marks
Essay	157
Gs 1	119
Gs 2	83
Gs 3	107
Gs 4	108
Opt 1	156
Opt 2	159
Written total	889
Interview	172
Total	1061

Career Backup

Q1. If you were not selected, what was your career backup plan?
I would keep continue with other competitive examinations but I was totally committed towards UPSC.

Insecurity about profile

Q. Many candidates prepare sincerely but constantly live under fear about ‘profile insecurity’. I’m not from a big college, I’m not from English medium, and I don’t have work-experience. What if they ask some stressful questions in the interview about this? Did you suffer from such insecurities? What is your message to these candidates?
Your background is not the criteria for your success. Belief in what you have and transform that thing into a productive matter. Candidates from all background are gaining success in the UPSC examination.

Internal Motivation

Q. People know what books and syllabus points are to be prepared. But most of them lack consistency in their preparation. So, how do you keep study momentum going on? How do you fight against the mood swings and distractions?
For this, I followed CREATIVE DAILY SCHEDULE. Discussion with friends at JNU and participation in seminars and conferences in the campus , in this way, I kept myself motivated.

Grand wisdom

Q. Through this struggle and success, what have your learned? What is the wisdom of life and competition? What is your message to the new aspirants?
There is no any alternative of Hardwork. Recognize your internal power, belief in yourself and be positive.
Q. Many hardworking candidates have failed in Mains/Interview of CSE-2016 and scored quite low in Prelims-2017. They’re feeling cynical, hopeless and depressed- what is your message to them?
Mast rho vyast rho. Be positive and continue your journey , next time it will be your fingers here to type a message for beginners.when I failed in first mains than I thought apna bhi Samay aayega.

Credit: Friends/family

Q. Behind every topper are many people who stood by 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?
Credit of my success goes to my parents, teachers of JNVU and JNU and friends from Dandali (my village name ) to Delhi.

BOGUS Marketing Propaganda

Q. You are well aware of the sacred rule of conducting toppers interview- the last question 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 still publish your answer without tempering. 
mrunal.org is a very good platform for those candidates who don’t afford coaching and are from remote areas. I have been following this site since my graduation days. Specially reading topper’s interview was my source of motivation.