- Topper Profile
- Education
- Electronic Vs Paper material
- Tempo and style
- Struggle of a Senior player
- Prelims (CSAT) General studies
- Prelims (CSAT) Aptitude
- Prelim accuracy
- Mains: Compulsory language paper
- Mains: Essay
- General Studies (Mains) paper 1
- General studies (Mains) paper 2
- General studies (Mains) Paper 3
- General Studies 4: Ethics, Integrity, aptitude
- GS4 Ethics case study answers in Mains 2013
- Mains answer-writing?
- Mains Optional Subject
- Before the interview
- During the interview
- CSE-2013 Marksheet
- Career Backup
- Views on UPSC reforms
- Insecurity about profile
- Wisdom
- Credit: Friends/family
- BOGUS Marketing Propaganda
Topper Profile
| Name | Gaurav Agrawal |
| Rank in CSE-2013 | 1 |
| Roll No. | 249085 |
| Age | 29 |
| Total attempts in CSE | 2 |
| Optional Subject | Economics |
| Medium chosen for Mains answers | English |
| Schooling medium | English |
| College medium | English |
| Home town/city | Jaipur |
| Work-experience if any | 3.5 years in Investment Banking. Presently in IPS. |
| Details of other competitive exams, including success/failures |
|
| Details of coaching, mock tests, postal material for any competitive exam (if used) |
|
| service preference #1, 2 and 3 | IAS > IPS > IRS |
| state cadre preference (top3) | Rajasthan > MP > Gujarat |
Education
| fill the details here | |
| % in class 10 | 88.2 |
| % in class 12 | 85.6 |
| Schooling (Medium) | English |
| Graduation course and % | Computer Sc. & Engg. 6.8/10. Multiple F’s and degree Extended. |
| Name of college, city, passing out year | IIT Kanpur, 2005 |
| Post-graduation | IIM Lucknow, MBA in Finance 9.25 / 10. Gold Medal |
| Any other professional courses | |
| Hobbies & Extra curricular |
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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)?
More than 60% of preparation today has to come from internet. Role of books is decreasing. Hindu is of prime importance now. No typical day. I maintain notes.
Tempo and style
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?
Inner strengths.
Struggle of a Senior player
Q1. What’re your words of wisdom to other senior players? If any specific inspirational incident(s), please share.
Only one thing. While preparing for the next attempt, don’t begin in blind and just repeat what you did earlier, because that obviously failed. Instead, sit down, analyze, find your weaknesses and work to improve those weaknesses mainly.
Q2. What went wrong in your previous attempt? What changes did you make in this current attempt?
I’ve written a detailed article about it. click me
Prelims (CSAT) General studies
| Topic | strategy/booklist/comment |
| History Ancient | I had history optional last year. |
| History Medieval | I had history optional last year. |
| History Modern (Freedom Struggle) | Shekhar Bandopadhyay and Bipin Chandra books |
| Culture society | I had history optional last year. |
| Polity (theory + current) | DD Basu |
| Economy (theory + current) | I had economics optional. |
| Science (theory + current) | 9th and 10th class NCERT and Vajiram notes. |
| Environment (theory + current) | Please read my blog post for this. click me |
| geography physical | 11th and 12th class NCERT, Goh Che Leong, Vajiram notes. |
| geography India | 11th and 12th class NCERT, Goh Che Leong, Vajiram notes. |
| geography world | 11th and 12th class NCERT, Goh Che Leong, Vajiram notes. |
| other national/international current affairs | Newspaper and internet. |
| Schemes, Policy & Filler Stuff | Newspaper and internet. |
Prelims (CSAT) Aptitude
| Topic | strategy / booklist |
|---|---|
| Maths | Didn’t prepare. |
| reasoning | Didn’t prepare. |
| comprehension | Didn’t prepare. |
| Decision Making | Didn’t prepare. |
Q. Any observation / comments / tips about GS Aptitude 2013 paper.
Can’t comment here as didn’t prepare for this.
Prelim accuracy
Q1. Did you attend any ‘mock tests’? do you think they’re necessary for success?
Yes. Yes absolutely necessary.
Q2. Approximate no. of attempted answers vs. correct answers. in CSAT-2013
Don’t remember as didn’t analyze this year’s paper after coming back.
Q3. Your score in prelim?
| General studies | 121.34 |
| aptitude | 182.50 |
| total | 304 |
Mains: Compulsory language paper
| Compulsory language paper | Your preparation strategy / booklist? |
| English paper | None |
| your regional language | None |
Q2.other observations / tips / comments on the length / difficulty level of compulsory language papers in CSE-2013
None
Mains: Essay
Q1. How did you prepare for the essay paper?
Analyzed my mistakes from previous year and improved upon them. Details can be found here. click me
Q2. Which among the following essay did you write? What key points did you include in it?
- Be the change you want to see in others (Gandhi)
- Is the Colonial mentality hindering India’s Success?
- GDP (Gross Domestic Product) along with GDH (Gross Domestic Happiness) would be the right indices for judging the wellbeing of a country
- Science and technology is the panacea for the growth and security of the nation.
Attempted the Essay on S&T. Key points can be found here. click me
General Studies (Mains) paper 1
Please note that while reading the coaching material, we will find that 90% of the topics are repetitive and useless if we have read the books. So skip those 90% and quickly read the remaining useful 10% only.
| Topic | How did you prepare? |
| culture | Multiple sources, mentioned here click me |
| Indian history | Shekhar Bandopadhyay – From Plassey to Partition, Bipin Chandra (both freedom struggle and since independence) |
| world history | Baliyan’s history optional classnotes. Also read Europe Since Napoleon for history optional last year. |
| post-independence India | Mentioned above. Most of the questions asked were common knowledge which we develop from school time via newspapers and stories. |
| Indian society | Everybody knows everything. Skipped. |
| role of women, poverty etc. | Everybody knows everything. Skipped. |
| globalization on Indian society | Everybody knows everything. Skipped. |
| communalism, regionalism, secularism | Everybody knows everything. Skipped. |
| world geo physical | Had some basic idea. Got some coaching notes of Baliyan and Vajiram. Read some topics from Savinder Singh’s book. Prepared cyclones from IMD website. |
| resource distribution | Skipped. |
| factors for industrial location | Skipped. Most of it is common sense. |
| earthquake tsunami etc | NCERT, Savinder Singh. |
| impact on flora-fauna | Skipped. |
General studies (Mains) paper 2
| Topic | How Did You Prepare? |
| Indian Constitution, devolution, dispute redressal etc. | DD Basu |
| comparing Constitution with world | Basic comparison everybody knows. So skipped. |
| parliament, state Legislatures | DD Basu, Puncchi Commission and 2nd ARC reports. |
| executive-judiciary | DD Basu and also current issues. |
| ministries departments | Skipped |
| pressure group, informal asso. | 2nd ARC report. But too general a topic, everybody knows everything. |
| Representation of people’s act | Current issues (SC rulings had come on this issue) |
| various bodies: Constitutional, statutory.. | Internet based study, Wikipedia, expert opinion. Basically find the composition etc. of the body. Powers, functions etc. mostly same. Weaknesses and strengths also mostly same. Refer to my notes here. |
| NGO, SHG etc | Everybody knows everything. Still studied 2nd ARC report for core issues. |
| welfare schemes, bodies | Vajiram came out with a public pdf analyzing various schemes. |
| social sector, health, edu, HRD | Follow current issues |
| governance, transparency, accountability | 2nd ARC report |
| e-governance | 2nd ARC report |
| role of civil service | 2nd ARC report |
| India & neighbors | Newspapers and internet |
| bilateral/global grouping | Newspapers and internet |
| effect of foreign country policies on Indian interest | Newspapers and internet |
| diaspora | Newspapers and internet |
| international bodies- structure mandate | Newspapers and internet |
General studies (Mains) Paper 3
| Topic | How Did You Prepare? |
| Indian economy, resource mobilization | Everything under the sun comes under it. What to prepare. |
| inclusive growth | Everybody knows everything. |
| budgeting | I read 2nd ARC report on Financial Management. But obviously question asked was from somewhere else and I had no idea. But still one should read it to cover basic stock issues in the topic like accrual budgeting, other types of budget etc. Additionally I think one should read the budget carefully and watch out for any interesting term in it. |
| major crops, irrigation | Report titled “State of Indian Agriculture” presented in parliament in March / April 2012. |
| agro produce – storage, marketing | APMC Acts, direct marketing, e-marketing initiatives, FDI in retail, schemes of the ministry, Mega food park scheme, National Food Processing Missin etc. All this can be found on internet. |
| e-technology for famers | Internet. |
| farm subsidies, MSP | From economics optional background. Understand what are the issues with farm subsidies and MSPs. See what leading economists are saying about these. Read a few papers from CACP website. |
| PDS, buffer, food security | CACP website, FSB, internet based study totally. |
| technology mission | Internet. |
| animal rearing economics | Couldn’t prepare except for whatever is given in State of Indian Agriculture Report, 2012. |
| food processing | Mentioned above in storage, marketing topic. |
| land reforms | Prepared it as a part of economics optional. You can see my notes. Bhoodan and Gramdan I saw from Mrunal. |
| liberalization | Internet, newspapers |
| Infra | Internet, newspapers |
| investment models | Internet, newspapers |
| science-tech day to day life | Coaching material, but all of it was useless. |
| Indian achievements in sci-tech | Skipped |
| awareness in IT, space, biotech, nano, IPR | Tried to follow current developments. For all effective purposes, skipped. |
| environmental impact assessment | Skipped. Everybody knows everything. |
| Disaster Management | 2nd ARC report. CAG report on the topic. |
| non state actors, internal security | 2nd ARC and Puncchi Commission reports covering tribal councils, 5th and 6th schedule issues, PESA, FRA etc. |
| internal security – role of media, social networking site | Too general, everybody knows everything. Just keep following current issues. |
| cyber security | Skipped. Everybody knows everything. |
| money laundering | Skipped. Everybody knows everything. |
| border Management | Skipped. Everybody knows everything. |
| organized crime, terrorism | Skipped mostly. Read some discussion on anti-terror law in 2nd ARC report. Everybody knows everything. |
| security agencies- structure mandate | Some Wikipedia based study, but mostly skipped. Everybody knows everything. |
General Studies 4: Ethics, Integrity, aptitude
| Topic | How Did You Prepare? |
| ethics and interface, family, society and all the hathodaa topics | Too general topics. Everybody knows everything about these topics. Most important question in this topic is what is the role of family / society in framing morality / ethics. |
| attitude, moral influence etc. | Sriram, Baliyan and Vajiram material available in photocopy shops for basic definitions. |
| civil service: integrity, impartiality, tolerance to weak etc | Vajiram and Baliyan material available in photocopy shops. Nolan committee report. 2nd ARC report. |
| emotional intelligence, its use in governance | Sriram material for basic definitions. Too general topic, everybody knows everything about it. One important question is role of EI in administration. |
| moral thinkers of India and world | How many thinkers did you prepare? Mostly skipped it. Tried to remember a few thinkers from Baliyan’s and Sriram’s notes but found it couldn’t be done. |
| ethics in pub.ad, accountability, laws, rules etc. | 2nd ARC report. Everybody knows everything. |
| corporate governance | Important topics I thought here were recent Company law, Sebi recommendations. But they didn’t ask these. Otherwise this is too general a topic and everybody knows everything. |
| probity in governance, work culture | Everybody knows everything. |
| citizen charter, ethics code, work culture etc. | 2nd ARC reports on ethics and governance. |
| challenges of corruption | 2nd ARC report on ethics. |
| case studies on above topics | Bring it on approach. |
Any other comments, word of wisdom after going through the mains-2013.
In case studies, I always tried to analyze each option from a theoretical perspective. I used to take an option and see what the 4-5 school of ethics say about it and then try to come to an acceptable ethical decision.
GS4 Ethics case study answers in Mains 2013
Q. in GS4 ethics papers, please give a sketchy overview of your case study answers:
Sorry don’t remember. But my vision ias mock tests where I attempted such case studies can be seen here… click me
| Case | your approach/ keypoints |
| 1: RTI: To hide or not to hide | |
| 2: Engineer: Bogus flyover vs deadline | |
| 3: Child Labourers in Sivakasi | |
| 4: Nepotism in Job recruitment | |
| 5: Leaking information | |
| 6: Narrate one incident in your life when you were faced with such crisis of conscience and how you resolved the same. |
Mains answer-writing?
Q. How was your experience with the ‘fixed space’ answer sheet?
It’s a trap. Don’t fall to the temptation of filling the entire space.
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.
Bullet points with proper headings, sub headings, underlining. And who says we can’t comment / discuss in points or while analyzing can’t present our thoughts in points. In comment / discuss / analyze kind of questions, simply give all positive points, then given all negative points and then give way forward. Or say take up an issue as a point sub heading, do its pros and cons analysis and then move on to next point sub heading. Bottom line is, use your own brain and communicate in a way you feel to be the best. Don’t rely blindly on coachingwallahs.
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.
Yes. I too wrote almost all my answers in points but still I gave a proper introduction, proper headings and sub-headings and then a conclusion. The main bulk of the answer was in points. I don’t think why the tradeoff mentioned in the second half of your question should arise.
Q. In GS papers, Since UPSC came with those 100 and 200 words questions. 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.)
Extremes in public life are mostly bad and one has to do a balancing act. Same applies to your question above. I would only say, have faith in your judgment, apply your mind, and rely on intuition on what to attempt and what not. Exam condition is so dynamic, can’t apply any rigid formula there. I simply attempted questions I ‘felt’ I should attempt.
Q. How many marks worth questions did you skip/couldn’t finish in the GS papers?
| GS (Mains paper) | Couldn’t finish /attempt |
|---|---|
| GS1 | 10 marks |
| GS2 | 10 marks |
| GS3 | 60 marks |
| GS4 | 10 marks |
Q5. Did you use highlighters / sketchpens in your answers?
No
Q6. Did you draw any diagram in any paper? (e.g. in GS1 Geography)
No, wanted to but couldn’t
Q7. If yes, Did you draw diagrams with pencil or pen?
NA
Q8. Did you use ruler to draw the lines in diagram? Or did you just make it by hand?
NA
Q9. You wrote the answer in blue pen or black pen?
Blue gel pen
(Mrunal – since readers keep mailing such queries, therefore I’m asking the topper to clear all the air haha.)
Mains Optional Subject
Q1. 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.)
Economics was my optional. Please read my blog post on this where I have covered this in great detail. click me
This is a list of reading material arrived after a lot of painstaking trial and errors.
There are many topics which required study of many research papers and internet articles. So obviously can’t mention a single source for them. But I used to take whatever I found useful from there and make my own notes which can be found here. click me
Q2. 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?
Paper 1 can be done mostly by books. Paper 2 is 80% internet based.
Q3. How many months did it take to finish the core optional syllabus?
3 months for the first time where I could study the other optional as well as GS along with Economics.
Q4. How many days/ weeks before the exam, you started answer writing practice?
Around 2 months.
Q5. Do you maintain self-notes for revision of optional? In which format- electronic or paper?
Yes, electronic. All uploaded on my blog.
Q6. Your observation about the difficultly level of 2013 mains vs previous papers. And what precautions / rectifications are necessary in the future strategy for given optional subject?
I think there was a quantum jump in the difficulty level from previous mains. There was a question in paper 1. I still can’t even understand to this day. But thankfully, the system of choices saved me. Precautions etc. I have mentioned in my blog post on economics.
Q7.How much did you skip OR couldn’t answer properly, in the optional paper?
| optional paper | Couldn’t finish __ mark |
|---|---|
| Paper I | Around 14 marks |
| paper II | Around 8 marks |
Before the interview
Q1. How did you prepare for the interview? Particularly college graduation subjects related questions?
First, would like to clarify the myth that UPSC interview is only of 275 marks i.e. 10-15%. The real weight of the interview is at least 40%. The reasons are: a) UPSC has developed a habit of giving very less marks in mains. This is a relative exam and only difference of marks between us and others matters. Naturally if low marks are given in written, then difference of marks from others which we can have by performing well in written will be less. b) Only candidates clearing mains can give interview. So whatever little difference in marks was there in mains gets reduced even further (as the difference in marks among the mains successful candidates would be less than the difference in the entire set). On the other hand, interview marks come only after this mains cutoff stage and there is a full range of marks given in interviews. So the difference in marks arising out of interview can be great leading to its increased effective weight.
So neglect interview only at your own peril! And also unlike what many say interview is not purely ‘luck’ based. Barring few exceptional cases, most of the interviews contain questions 90% of which can be predicted and prepared well in advance! Wait for my blog post on interviews.
– Subject: College graduation subject (Computer Sc.) didn’t have much relevance for me as I had done a lot of things after college. So I had done only very basic preparation of IT – current happenings and some theoretical aspects. My main field was economics which was running through my entire DAF (in hobby, job related to eco, optional eco, MBA done in finance – most people relate finance with economics). And economics is a subject where unless we meet an economist in the panel, the interview would be on current economic issues only. So decided to skip the theoretical portions and prepare only the current macroeconomic issues. We were facing high inflation and low growth, stalled projects, land acquisition issues etc. And a new government was there. So it was natural to expect questions on it and so I prepared these issues. Since economics was my main area, so I had to speak like an economist. Nothing less was expected. So remembered some key data related to IIP, WPI, CPI, GDP numbers etc. Developed mind maps containing 6-7 points on Why high inflation and Why low growth. The thing is in such issues everybody knows everything, but I had to speak like an economist. So from the first sentence itself, my understanding should be visible. This is possible only when we prepare these questions beforehand and not think about them for the first time in the interview itself. I have these mind maps on paper, so will upload scanned images on my blog post so that readers can get a clearer idea of what I am talking about.
– Home state: Had prepared it last year as well, so this year mostly revised it and prepared some current issues (like refinery, jaipur metro, drug trafficking, socio economic scenario). Mostly internet based study particularly Wikipedia. For Rajput and modern history, read a book used in RAS history optional apart from internet.
– Home district: I was brought up in Jaipur so prepared a few aspects of Jaipur (tourism places, economic activities, present problems etc.). But I was born in Bharatpur. In the summary sheet, only place of birth comes, so preparing place of birth is more important than preparing ‘home’ district. I prepared Bharatpur history, economy, tourism places, Keoladeo park, Salim Ali, ornithology etc. Mostly Wikipedia based study.
– Job: I was trading financial derivatives at Citi. Most important thing for me was naturally financial crisis. I know a great deal about financial crisis naturally having seen it from the middle of it all, but when it comes to explaining it in 2-3 sentences, prior preparation is needed. So I prepared it and it was asked in the beginning questions itself last year. Then I also prepared history of Citi and its mergers, Salomon Brothers, John Meriwether, LTCM etc. Some preparation related to Vikram Pandit and Corbatt.
– IPS: Had to study a lot about this topic this year as it was completely new. Prepared police reforms (studied all commissions setup since British era, watched Aamir Khan’s show, read many articles on internet) then prepared mind maps of 5-6 points to speak on various possible questions on police and bureaucracy reforms. Basically in such topics everybody knows everything. What matters is how we speak in first 2-3 sentences. However, they couldn’t find out I was already into IPS (as it was there in the DAF but not summary sheet from where they were asking), so no questions asked. Will upload the scanned copies of these mind maps in my blogpost.
– Why IAS after IPS, IIM, IIT, Investment Banking: Spent a lot of time preparing this. Prepared it from all possible angles I could think. Came up with realistic answers. In both interviews, this was the first question asked.
– Other DAF things: Prepared everything mentioned in the DAF. Will cover these in the blog post where I will upload my DAF and cover each issue.
– Current affairs: Current affairs preparation for interview is different from preparation for mains. Basically people who are taking our interview are not preparing themselves. So they will only remember ‘masala’ news and not the boring committees and legislations etc. So have to cover masala news for interview and develop our own opinion on all such news items.
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?
Yes. They were very helpful for me as I was cutout for private sector interviews, not UPSC interview. UPSC interview requires different kind of mannerisms and body language and this is what I learnt from mocks. Then I also got to know my weakness areas on which I worked. However, don’t rely blindly on whatever they say, apply your own mind before changing / preparing something.
Q3. What did you wear? Some experts say coat is must, some say tie is must, and some say black shoes must. What attire did you pick up?
The sole purpose of the attire should be that it doesn’t get noticed. I wore a shirt, trousers and a tie. Black shoes, clean shaved.
Q4. Where did you stay for the interview? (Hotel / friend’s home …) and what books/material did you bring for the ‘revision before interview’?
My friend’s place. Revised some of my online notes and mind maps.
During the interview
Q1. Who was the chairman of you interview board?
Dr. Kilemsungla
Q2. How long was the interview?
May be around 20-25 mins
Q3. 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)
click me for Full transcript of my interview by UPSC panel.
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?
Most of it was expected.
Q6. Any side details about technicalities like “make sure you bring xyz document or do xyz thing, or you’ll face problem”?
None
Q7. Any word of wisdom / observations about medical checkup?
None
CSE-2013 Marksheet
| SUBJECTS | MARKS |
|---|---|
| ESSAY (PAPER-I) | 135 |
| GENRAL STUDIES -I (PAPER-II) | 85 |
| GENRAL STUDIES -II (PAPER-III) | 63 |
| GENRAL STUDIES -III (PAPER-IV) | 88 |
| GENRAL STUDIES -IV (PAPER-V) | 102 |
| OPTIONAL-I (Economics) (PAPER-VI) | 134 |
| OPTIONAL-II (Economics) (PAPER-VII) | 162 |
| WRITTEN TOTAL | 769 |
| PERSONALITY TEST | 206 |
| FINAL TOTAL | 975 |
Q2. After looking at the marksheet, suppose you had to prepare again next time, what changes will you make in your studies?
Would sit down and try to figure out how to score more in GS. Would consult few more people, also join test series to seek feedback.
Career Backup
Q1. If you were not selected, what was your career backup plan?
Continued with IPS, Rajasthan cadre.
Q2. when were you going to “execute” that backup plan? (e.g. after __ failed attempts/ after I cross __ age/after dad retires/ etc.)
After the result.
Views on UPSC reforms
What are your views on following issues?
Q. Despite what UPSC has done in recent years, it has failed to curb the nuisance of Delhi’s coaching factories. In fact it’s increased under the new syllabus in 2013. Let’s face it, most toppers have relied on (authentic OR Xeroxed) coaching notes because there was hardly any time left to prepare so many topics in such short time. This system work against an individual preparing from far-away area, without any financial resources, high-speed internet or contacts in Delhi.
Don’t agree with this. Coachingwallahs thrive when question papers are static and same things are repeated year after year. UPSC, on the other hand, has made their paper very dynamic in last 2-3 years. Now the ‘bookish’ questions have reduced greatly and analyze types have increased. No longer are they asking questions where information is the key determinant (even in the prelims). What matters is one’s opinion and analysis. This cannot be found in any single place / book and internet has to be referred to. Most coachingwallahs are stagnant and old and are unwilling to change with times. Classroom coachings have become a waste of time. Only 10% of what they teach is perhaps relevant. Instead of attending their classes and wasting time on that 90% useless thing, better to just buy their notes from photocopy shops and study the 10%. Coachings take 6 months to teach what one can study in 2 months and are of inferior quality.
Mrunal comments: thanks, your reply will help clear the negative vibes among some new players that Delhi coaching is essential for success in UPSC.
Q. Optional subjects should be removed altogether. The present stalemate is helping no-one, except coaching-owners, book publishers.
I don’t subscribe to the so called ‘level playing field’ theory that removing optional ensures level playing field. How can it be a level playing field when you force an engineer to study history as well as a history student to study history? Is this level playing field or the scenario when everybody can study his/her strength?
Q. UPSC should disclose official prelim answerkey and cutoffs, immediately after prelim is over, instead of postponing it till interview phase is over.
Yes. In fact should also reveal individual’s marks along with his / her prelims result.
Q. UPSC should be conducted online like IBPS and CAT exam to shorten the duration of exam.
Invariably that is the direction one has to move in. But people are not ready for it presently.
Q. If you are made the UPSC chairman, what other reforms would you initiate for the civil service exam?
Transparency Related Matters
- Provide scanned copies of answer sheets.
- Release all marks of each candidate at each stage.
- Give a tentative window of result declaration beforehand.
Quality of Exam
Divide GS into more papers and ensure that only a historian is checking history answers, geographer is checking geography answers, foreign policy experts are checking IR answers and so on. In the present system, a single person is checking entire GS paper which has 3-4 subjects and this hampers quality of examination seriously.
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?
No such insecurities. On the other hand, I suffered from the insecurity that given my exceptional background, the interview board may take me as arrogant and confused even before the interview begins.
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?
Learnt that there are always conflicting perspectives of things and one has to appreciate both. Also life is not like sciences, but social sciences. 2 + 2 may not be equal to 4. One has to accept what it is and move on.
Q. Many hardworking candidates have failed in Mains/Interview of CSE-2013. They’re feeling dejected- what is your message to them?
Of course tighten your seat belts and get going. But don’t just blindly repeat what you did because obviously it didn’t work. See where your mistakes might have been and improve them.
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?
I dedicate this success to my family.
BOGUS Marketing Propaganda
Q. You are well aware of the sacred rule – 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, unlike those competitive magazines.
Yes, in fact question on Bhoodan movement I had read from your article only. But not a regular follower as its not a user friendly site. Please make it structured and easy to read. I have tried to read it many times but always find it difficult to see.
Mrunal comments: In 2014, I shifted to a new theme. But Yes, there are still lot of issue with the site, but as they say in Public Administration- routine activities taking away the time necessary to bring out long term reforms! Anyways, great interacting with you, especially the Delhi coaching factories part. Wish you the best for the long career ahead, keep in touch.
![[Topper’s Interview] Akarshi Jain (Rank-140/UPSC-2019): Law Optional, 4th Attempt, LLB from NLU-Jodhpur](https://mrunal.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Topper-CSE19-140-Akarshi-c-500x383.jpg)
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CONGRATS SIR,
VERY INSPIRING INTERVIEW
ESPECIALLY HOW TO WRITE IN POINTS AND HOW TO WORK FOR INTERVIEW AND I SAW U R CHECKED ESSAY THAT ALSO TAUGHT ME LOT ABOUT WRITING THE ESSAY ..THNX SIR
AND OUR MRUNAL SIR HEARTLY THANKING U FOR ALL UR HARD WORK
sir ur site is already a treasure store for upsc aspirants.ur hard work dedication and determination to help students community is clearly reflected in ur articles and posts.it is no doubt a user friendly site u don’t need to take worry about ur site user friendliness we can understand how much it takes to handle such a popular site as a ONE MAN ARMY.u deserve shat shat pranam mrunal jee .
@gaurav sir plz reply to my query mentioned above , meghna also commented something regarding coaching……….
reply to us
He did join them all but as he said he didn’t attend classes there. He had the money to do that so what’s the big deal. It’s his opinion and we should respect that and not negatively comment on it if doesn’t align with your views. (His opinion does carry more weight around though)
Anyway to the point, if you’re starting from scratch then pick up the basic books. The information is on this site (mrunal’s own advice and all the interviews). You can also google out other blogs. It’s all over the internet – how to get started etc etc.
If you still can’t figure out then reply here I’ll look for links for you.
I think joining or nt joining any coaching institute is nt going to determine one’ success..rather it is the clear concept that wud yield.
N today wen technology penetration is to such an extent it is nt necessary to join any coaching institute rather one’s choice to go fr it or not..
So I differ from other meghna stating above..
yes,very very very much motivating,as most of topics are known to every one but will every body get selected?
mrunal himself is taking classes at govt run coaching institute ie COACHING INSTITUTE . govt run institute may be good as mrunal himself is taking classes.but i have interacted with some people from other state’s GOVT RUN coaching institute.they are pathetic so for them FACTORIES ARE ONLY OPTION.MOREOVER IF BY READING AND STUDYING ONLY STD BOOKS,HINDU,EPW,OFFICIAL WEBSITES ONE CAN GET SELECTED THEN WHY THE EXISTENCE OF THIS VERY SITE.IT DOES THE FUNCTION OF AN INSTITUTE BY PROVIDING NOTES IN THE GUISE OF ARTICLES.
if u make a self note, you also serve urself as a coaching institute by ur concept.yes that what a coaching institute do they provide ready made notes….come on grow up dont make theories out of nothing.
if u make a self note, you also serve urself as a coaching institute by ur concept.yes thats what a coaching institute do they provide ready made notes….come on grow up dont make theories out of nothing.
I guess no benefit in discussing these things right now..we may discuss smthng fruitful..like m reading topics related to ”rights issues”..if sm body can suggest smthng on this topic or anything imp frm exam point of view..
Thnx
this site is for GUIDING (and NOT SPOON FEEDING like coaching factories) people like us from remote corners of the country. You have missed the very essence of the site.
mrunal himself is taking classes at govt run coaching institute ie COACHING INSTITUTE . govt run institute may be good as mrunal himself is taking classes.but i have interacted with some people from other state’s GOVT RUN coaching institute.they are pathetic so for them FACTORIES ARE ONLY OPTION.MOREOVER IF BY READING AND STUDYING ONLY STD BOOKS,HINDU,EPW,OFFICIAL WEBSITES ONE CAN GET SELECTED THEN WHY THE EXISTENCE OF THIS VERY SITE.IT DOES THE FUNCTION OF AN INSTITUTE BY PROVIDING NOTES IN THE GUISE OF ARTICLES.
Dear brother shiv,
Mr. gaurav will not reply to your queries. NEVER. So, don’t expect any reply from him.
Mrunal Sir has already done a lot of research and analysis of previous years papers and has given excellent suggestions.
It would be better if you yourself solve previous 3 years question papers first and then decide what to do. Because you know more about yourself than anybody else do.
I personally feel there is no need of coaching.
If you are confused then instead of wasting time in thinking, better join a coaching and you yourself will then come to know what to do.
If it suits you and fortunately if you find a real and committed guru(which is difficult now-a-days), then you should go with coaching.
If it doesn’t suits you then get a good internet plan and make the best possible use of internet.
However, in any case it is you who have to do the hard work.
So stop wasting time and right from this moment start your preparation.
In this field time passes very fast and very soon that day will come when you would give prelims(i assume you will appear next year), but still this year will pass very fast.
So now don’t think about it just do what comes to your mind and in real sense that only means starting from scratch.
Best of Luck
God Bless You
replied bhai.. my comments were not appearing earlier. this has been fixed now.
You will become a good DIPLOMAT for sure
Uninspiring….dont know why???….couldn’t feel him through his writing here or even on his own blog..Read comments in his blogs:”one even mentions aspirants not to copy him if they are fools”….And still “Everybody knows Everything”….I think this is what we should write in every answer.No explanation,just read out the Mantra to success,which is “Everyone knows…..”
Better post some AIR 1000 guy with an understanding to inspire a million lives, than a seemingly professional and conclusive one.
Most discouraging topper’s interview ever read….
agree…
hihiaia .. Dont be so jealous man ..
Why? why is it so discouraging for you?
why bcz he did nt recommend coaching classes ?
everybody knows everything…wat an attitude….an attitude can change your life…
Anyone please let me know what is mind mapping .what type of software it is and its importance??????????????????????????????????????????????
chk this for answers to ur queries
http://freemind.sourceforge.net/wiki/index.php/Main_Page
bhai mind mapping mein kuch nahi hai.. circles banane hote hain bus… replied in an earlier comment.
thanx bro!
Reading many comments above looks like need clarity on 2 things..
1. everybody knows everything and 2. i joined all coachings n still criticize them.
re coachings first…
a) haha, i didn’t paint everything in black… i said i found baliyan useful. and also mocks and test series are of immense help. I found vision ias and synergy test series so good that have personally recommended many to join them. but looks like followers of vajiram, sriram are so impatient and incensed, they simply refuse to see the difference. anyways, my best wishes for them also :-)
b) i made mistakes. i joined the first 3 coachings (vajiram, baliyan, lalwani) right after i came back from hong kong. and i joined coachings in the first place because my previous experience with coachings (in iit jee) had been very good (I still praise them till date). but ias coachings came as a rude shock to me and i was disappointed with the experience except for baliyan (in fact i liked him so much that i used to travel everyday from gurgaon to rajendranagar only to attend his class). i m simply saying this is what i felt, whats wrong? anyways, after prelims 2012, I saw the mains question papers of economics and history and I realized that in both subjects my preparation (which had been coaching based + some self study) was grossly inadequate. What had been taught was simply neither wide enough, nor deep enough to attempt the question paper to my satisfaction. Economics needed almost entirely fresh preparation and history too needed a lot more study (thats why I qualify my love for baliyan here with a statement that don’t rely solely on the classes). At that stage my preparation in both optionals was not even adequate enough to allow me to attempt even 50 marks paper decently. Thats when I scrambled around and found out all the books I read subsequently (which I mention in my blog links of which have been given here in appropriate places). What else do you expect me to say in such a case?
c) Not only did I use to make mistakes but I was also a fool. Next year when pattern was changed, I got lured by the coaching seduction again and this time joined Sriram (in the hope that itna naam hai to accha hoga). But within 3-4 classes I was brought back to reality again and then simply stopped going to Sriram. Now what else do you want me to say about that coaching?
Anyways we all make mistakes and sooner or later learn from them. Some like me foolishly fall repeatedly and then learn while others see others falling and learn from that. The second class of people are the sole hope behind sharing my mistakes on this forum – if they can learn from my mistake and avoid wasting time (and of course money).
sir
the start of your essay was simply a home run
Hi,
Thanks for all the information. I also joined the Axiom Institute for economics. Found it mostly useless after having attended 2-3 classes. He basically dictates everything and advocates his notes are the supreme entity over all the “rubbish” books and time should not be spent reading them! I was feeling guilty for not attending the classes in the past few weeks. Your article makes me feel better now ;)
Where is the LIKE button!!!! hahahaha
Secondly regarding everybody knows everything stuff :-)
Les pick the topics where I say everybody knows everything and see if really everybody knows everything?
a) Indian society, role of women, communalism, secularism, caste blah blah: seriously, don’t we all know india has unity in diversity? don’t we all know women are oppressed and need to be uplifted, communalism is bad, casteism is bad, india is divided along caste and communities etc. etc. what else is there to know on these topics? Still I fished around to study something more on these. I read vajiram notes bought a whole book on indian sociology by some eminent scholar. But after reading that I realised they too simply talked of things like “India has unity in diversity”. I found no value addition in reading them. If I have found nothing valuable to read here, why should I recommend crap to you? So I have not mentioned any reference source here.
Moreover, the kind of questions asked in these topics are so generic (say questions on social problems arising out of urbanization, men in women organization in cse 2013) that we all know most of the points. all we need to do is sit down in the exam, spend 2 minutes thinking and jotting down points in rough work and simply write an answer out of those points. In such answers, most of the people will have same general points and what really matters is how we structure and present our answer. Answer writing skills are more important here than preparation.
b) factors in industrial location: isn’t it common sense that weight losing industries have to be located near raw material, weight gaining near market and footloose anywhere? Isn’t it common sense that labor availability, particularly skilled labor is a very important determinant of industrial location? Isn’t it common sense that geographical and climatic conditions will have a lot of say in determining location of industries, particularly agro based? Similarly do you really need to preparation to know that export industries want to be located near ports and area with good connectivity? or that supply of power, govt policies, other infrastructure is important? What preparation do you need for all this? One just has to see the question and apply all this knowledge to it and come up with an answer. The questions asked on sugarcane and cotton industries location in cse 2013 were answerable just by common knowledge of geography, little bit history and all these principles mentioned earlier. What do you want me to recommend as a source of preparation here? This is not to say I didn’t try to find good material on it. I just couldn’t find any good material on it.
c) flora fauna: really couldn’t find anything here.
d) constitutional comparison: Basic comparison like we have parliament, us has presidential. Indo-US-Anglo judiciary comparison. Written constitution, status of fundamental rights blah blah every serious aspirant knows (just by a basic reading of DD basu). All that is trivial. The idea here was can I do anything extra? I found a thick, small font book in pdf having salient features of almost all constitutions in the world. From there I tried to remember advanced differences between India, canada, france, south africa, germany, russia, china. But realized that it was impossible for me to remember all these details. By the exam time, I had forgotten it all despite attempts at revision. What we can’t remember is futile because ultimately in exam we have to write from memory only. That is why I didn’t mention that futile resource.
d) inclusive growth: seriously, u tell me now what one can PREPARE on this topic. we all know for inclusive growth we should reduce poverty, increase employment, include marginalised people and women, revive handicrafts, educate people. And any serious aspirant by her exposure to newspapers, internet has studied so much by the exam time that she knows many govt schemes in such sectors. So I felt no special preparation is needed for this topic.
e) media, social networking, cyber security: these things are so much in newspapers or common sense. we have seen use and abuse of social media in bangalore, mumbai, arab spring haven’t we? what can one still prepare on it? we all know importance of media don’t we? media coverage of mumbai attacks. the way it handles communal issues – all this is common knowledge. answers have to be written out of these points only.. what can be studied here?
I will repeat – in such everybody knows everything topics, content is generic and limited. What matters is answer writing. How good an answer we frame. So focus on ans writing for such topics and not on prep.
Criticism, like rain, should be gentle enough to nourish a man’s growth without destroying his roots.
Gaurav, I see you have given much importance to answer writing.
Will you be able to give your opinions on answer writing practice tests? I am not sure where to post those for them to reach you but it will be of great help if the answers gets reviewed by seniors like you.
Do you have a better place where I should post answer writings ?
Thanks for your time !
Hi Gaurav sir,
Many congratulations to you on your grand success !!
I wanted to ask that what should be the approach to prepare GS-II to get a decent score. I ask this seeing the low scores of most of the candidates. Thanks.
questions on my personal life i will not answer. thats only my business.
sir,ur opinions r very honest nd genuine.vry helpful 4 all aspirants.thnx sir 4 such honest feedback,i read ur notes of history,nd they wr just awsm.
Dear Sir, ur entire interview is really very inspiring and motivating for all categories of aspirants like seniors who cudnt make shud replan theirstrategies,newcomers can go for coaching classes bt ultimately self study is going to help..its really nice to hear so honestly what u feel for such a exam in regarded as toughtest exam on earth..u r genuine talent n also u r down to earth by accepting that “sabko sab pata hai”
All the best n thank u sir
First of all, Hats off to you!
You the most generous topper, I have ever heard of.
I wrote mains this year solely based on self-study, missed getting recommended. By reading some of your answers, I could figure out why I got low marks in some papers.
Truly, the strategy followed by you is the best what you could do. If one is able to put in 15 hours of study daily, one may follow another one.
Regarding your opinion about Coaching, I feel that in order to understand a few technical concept we may require the help of someone. Be that a coaching, Youtube videos, Mrunal, peers or anything else. Further, we may reduce our Net searching time by accessing notes. Because it’s a general studies paper, we don’t need to be the master of something, I believe. So the topics not easily found anywhere may be prepared via notes of some coaching.
Going through some of the comments, it appears that a few bloggers lack a level of maturity required in order to hold the position of an administrator. They would be well-advised to stay focussed and confine their views to aspects related to preparation. UPSC yesterday uploaded the Marks of all the recommended candidates. One fact is clear that age, gender, marital status, being in job etc. do not matter at all while awarding marks (especially in personality test).
My considered belief and “free advice” for fellow candidates is that we need to learn from our mistakes rather than making assumptions about various prejudices. Everyone follows a strategy which is unique as well as overlapping with others. Toppers like Gaurav may reveal what they did, and what according to them were their probable mistakes. But at the end of the day, what matters is how do we channelize our own resources and energy and devise a strategy which can help us in achieving our goals.
Remember, nothing succeeds like success!
Good Luck everyone for their coming exams.
All the best, Gaurav! May you achieve exemplary success in the role of an administrator as well.
Wow agarwal ji. Brilliant. Highly impressed. And why would’ nt anyone be. Inspiration for thousands. But what stands apart is the you ” did not” prepare for the csat paper abd yet achieved marks that are a dream for many.
And this is why civil service is discriminating. While you can afford to not prepare and yet get those marks, there are many who toil and yet do not get half of it.
Well sir congratulations again. Yet you did not work hard for this. Taking the help of 21 coachings and what not. In fact your own ips group girl merin is a better achiever than you. At least she is not fake mr. Engineer.
Too much negativity man. Regardless of whatever you say what he has achieved is a huge deal. You shouldn’t be jealous about it. We’ll work hard and we’ll also do well.
Exam is discriminating because he scored well in paper 2? He clearly says mock tests are important and he did attend them. Don’t take his statements to heart. He has already clarified what “everyone knows everything” means, in the same manner I’m sure “didn’t prepare anything” doesn’t mean he just walked into the center without a clue. I also refuse to believe that after toiling properly a person can still only manage 90-100. Mrunal has done a brilliant job in explaining the concepts. Uske bavjood bhi nai ho raha toh phir bhaiya aur logon ko kyon gali de rahay ho?
Hey abhinav dude negativity nahi hai. And i am not undermining what he has achieved. I salute him man. I am already in railways. General. Thoda hi marks ka difference hai agarwal ji say. Jelousy kahan. Ho jaye ga hum sab ka bhi. The only point that i was trying to put forward was that when a man comes with an iit, iim baggage it does tilt the balance in his favor. Because surely he has already cleared an aptitude read cat exam. To unko pehle se adat hoti hai. And it takes years to build habits.
Anyway abhinav i appreciate your reply. Now let us both get back to studies. Taki hum bhi agle saal top 50 mein hon.
Whatever he got, he worked for it. So will we. Good luck man.
This is what irritates me … This is exam for job selection…. not a competition about who can work hard … certainly a construction labor can beat you in that (working hard)…
Gaurav has been selected because he is the right person for the job ….
No one is deemed to be deserved candidate if he/she is hard working …….
What matters is whether or not you have the aptitude/talent/x-factor for the job ….
and exam tries to choose such candidates…..
I don’t say that exam doesn’t need reforms, but students/candidates are not the right persons to chose what is the best selection procedure ….. They even don’t know well, what is needed for the job ….
He got 99.80 %ile in CAT, once you go through that kind of preparation I don’t think any special effort would be required for CSAT. Its very easy to label other peoples success a result of luck or privilege isn’t it?
bro. csat is basically a intelligence test ……a person with high IQ will score very high score(of course we have to practice a lot before our high IQ start producing high score)…..
gaurav ji,with all due respect should have mentioned how he must had prepared for his aptitude during his CAT prepration and his earlier attempt in civils…..
Is our personality judged only by what we just do before exam really .. guy has solved problems (probably hardest ones) in his 16’s for JEE then nearly same or even more of them during his CAT preparation (I don’t know whehter you realise 99.8 percentile is beyond “aukaat” many of candidates)
I seriously don’t get the “Yet you did not work hard for this”
this man managed with everybody knows everything and skipped to become topper coz of csat, had csat been not there many more would have given him tough competition
Mr KIKI your remarks on Gaurav is highly demeaning and don’t deserve to be there on this forum. How can we undermine success of such a high magnitude, and so far as your perception about the csat is concerned it is only because of those hypes created around the the advantage the students from technical background get in this test. I don’t know ur background but can only say that don’t be over concerned about csat. Questions in this paper r never tough. Gaurav deserves this success and we should draw inspiration from him.
dude , kiki or kaka or papa or chacha … listen up . csat is not the final interview . Respect others bro / nurse and appreciate their hardwork . nothing comes for free . even if he did clear his prelims on csat , he had to write 9 more papers and go through the scan of 10 red eyes . stop being rakhi sawant and dont create a hoax . the topper needs some respect mate . ki bolchi bhailog . badha mari vaat ne samjho cho ne . meri gaal tonu samajh mein aundi hai ?
dude , kiki or kaka or papa or chacha … listen up . csat is not the final interview . Respect others bro / nurse and appreciate their hardwork . nothing comes for free . even if he did clear his prelims on csat , he had to write 9 more papers and go through the scan of 10 red eyes . stop being rakhi sawant and dont create a hoax . the topper needs some respect mate .
half cooked preparation like gaurav can definitely give u success if u r lucky in eliminating half of your competitors in prelims cast only
i mean what if a paper on human anatomy medicine casualty is inserted , then definitely doctors will also have an edge, that is also important for an ias officer to manage medical emergency, y only mental aptitude that too in equal weightage, well , doctors can bear that brunt also and will definitely come out with flying colors
Brother, this is precisely the difference between you and me… attitude… If a paper on human anatomy and medicine is included, I am gonna work hard and try to score more than the aiims topper herself / himself. instead of sitting and crying and cribbing and blaming almost everybody else for no reason like you.
Inspirational and motivational ,attitude matters
1% aptitude +99% attitude=success!
VERY TRUE
first of all thanks for sharing your strategy but i don’t think u should answer to every critic of you because our present Indians even criticize Gandhiji and find loopholes in his character so u no need to answer them by the way i have downloaded your notes from your blog and it is immensely helpful to me as u made short notes of all standard BOOKS and if u have time can u help me in one thing in ur blog u uploaded about a toppers history optional notes and thanks for it but it contains only world history and i know that u have taken history optional in your first attempt so u may be knowing the other toppers notes which is good in Ancient, Medieval and modern history if u can give me information about this i will be immensely thankful to you and sorry for asking more but i forced to do because i am preparing from my home which is 2000 kms away from delhi coaching centers and far away from from my financial status.
Heartiest congratulations Sir.
Gaurav your attitude is highly inspirational. It would be so kind of u if you can suggest on which material to follow to do well in ‘ethics and integrity’ paper in mains.
Gaurav thanks bro for such an inspiring line..YES ATTITUDE MATTERS AND NOTHING ELSE
even if shahrukh is ridiculed but if someone will get to interact with him he will b overwhelmed only, thanx for taking my comment generously, please do tell me if you prepared the newspapers thoroughly of just one year or 2 3 years before the csat, and if you read magazines like economist time for IR and epw or not??????
Mr. Kiki….as a frnd am telling u to change ur mindset nd attitude…..even if u clear prelims ,with the attitude u have u wont be able to clear mains especially the paper on ethics and integrity…dont expect wonders to come on last days…work on ur attitude…start thinking positively..dont be a cribber for each n every thing…u can take it as a positive comment nd work upon it or take it negatively…it doesnt matter..and for gods sake appreciate that persons hardwork nd take the positive things out instead of posting negative comments.
aisa nahi hai dost bahut se iit iim wale exam dete hai sab topper nahi bante….kuch to alag hai….mano mat mano
Dear Kiki,
Ever thought what made Gaurav the topper and you prepare for the next year Prelims? It’ The ATTITUDE. Though he is an Engineer and MBA Grad, he din’t take either Engineering or Management Optionals rather took Economics (and History earlier) which are out and out Humanities ones. He worked hard to earn the top position and believe me if he din’t clear this time he would not waste his time in crying and cribbing like you but rather prepares well for the next attempt. Go get a life and stop criticising others.
Congrats sir u are truly a inspiration for me..
I think this is as genuine an interview as I have ever read. I wrote the Mains this year without studying for a single day (and I am being absolutely honest!). I missed the final cutoff after interview by 4 marks. I can testify that his comments regarding Paper 1 and 2 are spot on. If you cannot write on women’s empowerment, casteism, communalism or other topics that have been covered ad nauseum in popular media without specifically preparing, then I am sorry it does not reflect too well on your general awareness.
I have a question for Mr Agrawal though. I hope it is not considered too intrusive. For many aspirants, a possibility to reach the top-most echelons of the bureaucracy is an attractive feature of this job. Since you are joining at the age of 30, you will have a hard time making it beyond the Addl Secretary level. Did that ever demotivate you? Or was the whole question of career advancement irrelevant to you when you decided to attempt the CSE?
i don’t think rising to the apex is the sole aim of every aspirant, it is the dynamic nature of this job which attracts , and this is what gaurav sir has earlier said in the DD news interview,
Guys Mrunal sir works harder and post interviews for our inspiration, don’t create it a battle place and place for removal of your frustration. If you find anything useful in these interviews take it otherwise leave it. Everybody has his own strategy and planning that May not be suitable to others. Plz stop useless discussions here and concentrate on your goal.
I am extremely sorry if my words hurt anybody but my point is that take everything useful from anywhere and do not indulge in timepass……
congrats sir! you are a true inspiration and guiding light for.. at the outset i want to congratulate you for ur great success…you truely deserve it and i m very sure that country has got a very abled IAS officer and u wd bring more and more laurels to it. your interview on DD channel is is heart warming and the way you hv explained your vision of india of ur dream was marvelous(the highway wala thing)..i also liked ur bent of mind for academics and relentless effort to guide future aspirants through blogs … a big salute to you ..not only for being UPSC 2013 topper but for being such a great human being..
sir ji o question ka ans dijiye odd number wala any five odd no.
i read the interview and i observe there is nothing substantial.i think the respected topper is quite confused. he does not prefer any coaching but he likes there study materials. it could have been better if he would have given more insights about the preparation, particularly presentation of the answeers. what he shared ie about facts of the exam. thanks.
MRUNAL,
I applied for mains answer sheets photocopies via RTI but got the following reply:
“Dear Applicant,
With reference to your online RTI application, it is informed that Public Authority is of the considered view that the evaluation of evaluated answer sheets of Civil Services (Main) Examination comes under the core functioning of their working. Hence Section 8(1)(d) of the RTI Act, 2005 is invoked to deny your evaluated answer sheets of Civil Services (Main) Examination, 2013, Public Authority being the affected third party.”
So we cant get the answers’ copies.
Great sir….Understood why i was wrong in my views of your ideas of “Everyone knows Everything”…
Had never thought this way…By this way now i can answer some of the questions.
I had a false perception that cse exams require a great book-oriented knowledge with continuous mugging activity.
That was the reason why my thought process for answering questions became limited.I was always trying hard to link the words given in every question to the same read in books, news, etc and then forcing hard to remember those bookish knowledge….
Now it wont be too hard ………………Thanks sir…….Really u can inspire a million lives…
This is really hard to admit :”Feeling guilty for criticizing u. I want to remove my earlier comment…”
gaurav great :-)
Mrunal sir’s blog is awesome ……also thanks to Gaurav sir for giving valuable guidance to us ..Thanks a lot
I was really waiting for gaurav’s interview on mruna.org but it is bad experience to read a topper interview. He told nothing on important questions. He seems in full ego.Mrunal sir you are unbeatable, you invests your full effort to guide us. Thanks
Sir i want to know about upsc cse rule.. sir when i am 18th year age.. i filled the upsc form in year 2011. gives pre but not qualified.. but i noticed today in upsc notification that +++++++++ Candidates should also note that
once a Date of Birth has been claimed
by them and entered in the records of
the Commission for the purpose of
admission to an examination, no change
will be allowed subsequently (or at any
other examination of the Commission)
on any grounds whatsoever.
what should i do sir.. prepare or not/// please sir.. help me..
If any friends know about it.. please help me
thank u very much sir
very inspirational interview sir.. salute
Thanks for the information and i am also civil service aspirant, i was confused about the syllabus, but after seeing the detailed interview of Mr.Gaurav agarwal, my confusion about the syallbus has gone, thank you once again for Mrunal