Shri Amit Pal who attained 17th Rank in Civil Services Examination 2015, conducted by Union Public Service Commission; in an exclusive thought provoking and highly inspiring interview attributes self motivation, determination, hard work, clear target & intelligent guidance to the secret of his success
On preference in services opted for and priority:
IAS, IPS, IRS as usual I have filled IAS so as to work at because level as every problem we face today has lack of development at its core.
On ‘Success is Sweet’ & reacting to the news of the Top Rank:
As usual no one expects top ranks CSE. I was at Indore airport coming directly from duty at Simhasth, Ujjain when my friend brought me this news and was over joyous.
On IAS toppers being icons & story that influenced:
Yes, I got influenced and motivated by my elder brother who is an IPS officer. The most important thing which I noticed was the social respect and recognition one gets from serving the society with all hard work and determination.
On exact moment of realizing importance of ‘Civil Services’:
As I said earlier I realized importance of civil services only when my brother entered into this admirable profession and his work became the biggest motivation for me.
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| Fruit of hard work dazzles mortal eyes – Amit Pal |
On the point of time of making up mind to make career in ‘Civil Services’:
On December 15, 2012 I sincerely started preparation for my first attempt whose prelims was on May 26, 2013.
On career in ‘Civil Services’ a planned decision or parents’ wish:
It was mix of both.
On time-frame for the examination preparations and number of attempts:
Yes. I was fully aware of the examination pattern, but regarding number of attempts it was least worrisome.
In first attempt I got IRTS (630 rank). In second attempt I got IPS (139 rank). And this was my third attempt.
I learnt from previous two attempts. In my first attempt I didn’t get good marks in essay and so I improved that.
On ‘Time Management’ being a key factor in preparations & writing Prelims or the Mains:
My strategy was to take up past years papers or any test series myself and solve paper in 30 minutes less than the time given for in exam. One needs to accustom to exam time as much as possible. Final stage is when you start learning your mistakes and then slowly and slowly you are raising your bar to desired level.
On choice & importance of optional subject:
Most important is your interest in the subject, command on subject, material available and persistence of its performance.
Optional Subject: Literature of Punjabi language.
On the First Step being the most difficult to prepare & getting the right advice:
I had guidance of all those available at my home.
On tackling ‘Negative Marking’ in Prelims:
There are three types of questions.
(1) Which you know for sure.
(2) For which you know 60-70% that you are right?
(3) Which you do not know?
Don’t answer third type of questions even though you have strong feeling for that and this will come with practicing again and again.
On approach towards Paper I (General Studies) during Preliminary Examination preparation:
Read as much as possible, revise as many times as possible, practice as much as possible.
| Bio-Data |
| Name—Amit Pal
Father’s Name—Shri Amarjit Pal Mother’s Name—Smt. Prem Sharma Date of Birth—September 4, 1991 Educational Qualifications— 10th—2006, PSEB, R.S. Model Sr. Sec. School, Shastri Nagar, Ludhiana (90%) 12th—2008, PSEB, R.S. Model Sr. Sec. School, Shastri Nagar, Ludhiana (87%) MBBS |
On any change in plan for General Studies & Paper II (Aptitude Test) after qualifying in Prelims:
Yes. Obviously, because of that I had not touched CSAT book in this attempt.
On adopting any shift in strategy for Main Examination (Written):
The most important pillar for my preparation was answer writing. As I said earlier I used to solve question papers every day in a proper time limit.
On special effort for effective preparation for ESSAY Paper & on pick up of topics:
For essay there is a proper framework one needs to follow.
On preparation for Interview, the Personality Test & facing it:
I made it a point to study newspaper regularly during my interview days. I faced Alka Sirohi Board and she asked me a lot of questions regarding railways, police, medicine, foreign affairs, my hobbies etc. It lasted for 35 minutes.
On preparing for other career opportunities as well while preparing for ultimate goal i.e. Career in Civil Services:
Being a doctor itself is a great support one can rely upon other than this I got selected in my first attempt too and things became quite easy for me afterwards.
On Motivation towards Civil Services despite other lucrative opportunities in changing economic environment:
Civil Service is a service while all others are jobs and there is a lot of difference between a service and a job.
On Educational Level to start & minimum time-frame for preparation for Civil Services Examinations:
I think during graduation one needs to make a decision and time required depends on a person concerned, but still 6 months are needed at least to start with single minded devotion to study.
On general view that Science subjects have better chance to score than Humanities:
I think it all depends on the candidate and his luck along with the way he or she attempts the paper.
On impact of educational, financial and demographic status of the family of an aspirant on preparation:
Aspirants have shown that these things don’t matter for a serious candidate, but still I believe having good educational opportunities in start make things easier.
On role the Competition Magazines play in preparing for an examination like Civil Services:
Magazines are more a sort of refreshers of current happenings and important topics.
On finding “Pratiyogita Darpan” close to expectations:
It is good, but its ambit is covering all types of exam. It can be made more specific to CSE.
On Secret of & Credit for Success:
Self motivation, determination, clear focus, support from family and to my family.
| Personal Qualities |
| Favourite Person—My elder brother Ajay Pal Sharma.
Strong Point—Clear focus. Weak Point—Trying to grab same topic from various sources even at last moment. Hobbies—Teaching, blogging, playing chess. |
On suggestions/advice to future aspirants:
Have faith in yourself and your abilities and never lose foc
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