success comes to those who persevere - story of young achievers

Dear (s)

The photo in a newspaper might not attract any - probably a ‘nothing unusual common scene’ - somebody on a cycle rickshaw unnaturally smiling. Quite often, one tends to complain about lack of opportunities, luck not being on  one’s side and host of other things – but successful have been those who have strived to look beyond and put in  unrelenting efforts  which have rewarded them.  Please read on to know about this rickshaw puller - Narayan Prasad Jaiswal from Varanasi.

Reading such stories not only raises one’s confidence but would inspire getting the best out of us.   IAS is the most coveted one.  As a career choice, the  decision is not surprising as the  IAS provides a competitive, challenging work environment, job security and a host of other attractive monetary and non-monetary benefits.  More importantly the power – administrative power to command.

It is stated that  the city-born and city-bred,  are apparently chasing IIMs, MNCs, foreign universities and a plethora of new-economy options &  are painting themselves out of the Civil Services. The easy availability of good jobs not requiring such hard work and preparation to get into, have probably  turned people from.  Still cracking the rigorous selection process is by no means easy.

But, first, you must crack the rigorous selection process.  This consists of a preliminary exam, a main exam and an interview conducted by the Union Public Service Commission;  ONLY the most intelligent, capable and responsible individuals make it through this gruelling process.  Here are two latest examples :

Narayan Prasad Jaiswal gives out rickshaws on contract, and does notknow what IAS means. His son Govind Jaiswal qualified for the civi lservices, coming 48th. It was difficult for his father to believe that ‘Govinda’ would become a “collector saheb”.  Living in a 12×8 sq ft rented room on the first floor of a house at Usmanpura, Varanasi, for the past 35 years, his father had been spending most of his earning on his son’s education. After graduatingfrom a local college in 2003, Govinda shifted to New Delhi to preparefor the civil services and has cracked it in his first attempt. In fact, he secured  48^th  rank in the  Civil Services Exam, 2006.   A great performance, indeed.   

He is not alone, there are some more who have succeeded in the face of adversity….  there is another – K Nandakumar son of a  lorry driver.  His parents do not think  topping a competitive exam is a freak show of sorts.   As this young lad  who was sure of  what he wanted, and went after it,  has surmounted obstacles as chance, and circumstance, threw them in his path.  

Nandakumar's academic curve is typical of the no-pain, no-gain formulation that increasingly defines the Indian student. Up until the 12th standard, he studied in the Namakkal Government South School, an institution where the medium of instruction was Tamil.  With 1,018 marks out of a possible 1,200 in his Higher Secondary exams, he went to the Pollachi Mahalingam College for an engineering degree.    Despite the economical challenges he faced, Nandakumar decided to quit his maiden job at an engineering firm to devote full-time for preparation. After clearing the UPSC in his second attempt last year, Nandakumar was offered Indian Railway Traffic System (IRTS), in which he is currently getting trained at Vadodara.   Persistence is one of the hallmarks of genius and today he is  ranked 30th all India; in his native Tamil Nadu, where he had taken the exam in his mother tongue, he topped the charts

With regards - S Sampathkumar.

Circulated through e-mail in May 2007 and posted on the blog now.

Govind Jaiswal rose to become the additional deputy commissioner at Zunheboto district  in Nagaland.