https://indianmasterminds.com

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

At Times, You have to Fight Your Own to Reach No.1

Fighting a whole lot of demons, from family poverty to the medieval anti-women attitude of her relatives, Ms Sweta Agarwal and her immediate family fought on- and in the process she cleared UPSC not once but thrice!
Indian Masterminds Stories

We have read stories of grit and determination when one had to get over poverty, lack of resources and various other hurdles to prepare and clear UPSC examination and achieve their dream of getting into civil services. But today we’ll talk about the story of an IAS officer who even had to fight the narrow societal thinking of being born as a girl and her family’s oppression to emerge victorious in her journey.

Life wasn’t easy for IAS officer Ms. Sweta Agarwal of 2016 batch from the beginning, but she chose to be unfazed with whatever came her way and stuck to her goal, which eventually brought her success.

Ms. Sweta Agarwal

RELATIVES’ OPPRESSION

In the 21 st century, when one would think gender inequality has come to an end, Ms. Agarwal’s joint family of 28 members was extremely disappointed when she was born. They wished for a boy to “continue their family’s legacy”. Barring her parents, no one was happy and when the officer’s father decided to get her admitted into a good English medium school, all hell broke loose in the family.

“My parents had grown up with the inferiority complex of not being able to communicate in English, although I often told them it didn’t matter. They were adamant that I shouldn’t face the lack of opportunities they did. When the news that they wanted to admit me to a convent school spread within the family, they faced flak and had to fight back,” she says.

Her father worked as daily wage worker to collect money and pay for her school fees, and eventually started working at a grocer’s shop to earn for her studies, further. By the time she finished with her school, the family’s financial condition had improved but her relatives’ mentality had not. Ms. Agarwal wanted to study further and shifted to Delhi for graduation, a decision which was again opposed by the relatives but her parents stood for her.

With a first class degree in Economics from the prestigious St Xavier’s College, she moved on to complete her post-graduation, did an MBA and worked for an MNC. She was the first graduate in her house.

Ms. Agarwal being congratulated at a ceremony

CHILDHOOD DREAM

Ms. Agarwal was always fascinated by the khaki-donning officers. Since she was little, she wished to become a police officer so she could fight crime and put miscreants behind bars.

However, once on a visit to government office when she was young, she realized how the bureaucratic red tape was exhausting to the layman. Her file was transferred from one table to another with no respite and she swore to become DM one day to do away with this practice and laid back behavior of the authorities.

MARRIAGE PRESSURE

She quit her job, returned to her town and started preparing for UPSC examinations but the pressure to get her married started looming on her parents.

“I was in a terrible mental state. I couldn’t study. When I decided not to write the prelims, my parents encouraged me. They told me to give it a shot as it would give me an idea of how the paper works.”She shifted in a 1BHK flat in Kolkata and began with her preparation.

To those asking her to settle, she would say,“I can get married after 32, but I won’t be eligible to write this exam after 32.”

Ms. Agarwal during her IPS training

THREE SUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS

In her first attempt in 2014, Ms. Agarwal cracked the exam with AIR-497 which could get her Indian Revenue Service but she wanted to give another try.

Her second attempt in 2015 secured her AIR-141, which meant that she could fulfill her childhood dream of becoming an IPS officer and donning a khaki uniform. She was happy but had her eyes set on IAS. Therefore, she decided to give another attempt.

On 10 th May 2016, Ms. Agarwal was boarding a flight with her squad during her IPS training when she received a phone call, “All that my friend said was, ‘Sweta, AIR-19.’ I thought my heart would burst. After five years of struggling, I had attained my dream. I put him on hold, called my parents and mentors to give them the good news. I was the state topper of West Bengal. It was almost after a decade that a candidate from the state was among the top 20,” she said, beaming with pride.

Ms. Agarwal is one of those rare gems that greeted victory at every door she passed through. For her parents though, this was the moment they had waited for patiently.


Indian Masterminds Stories
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Related Stories
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
NEWS
Ministry of Defence
Defence Ministry Opens Missile and Ammunition Production to Private Sector, Boosts Aatmanirbhar Bharat
Delhi Police
Delhi Police Commissioner Satish Golchha Orders Formation of 3 Units for Contingency Action Plan Amid Nepal Protests
Rajasthan High Court
Rajasthan High Court Allows Prosecution of Retired IAS Officer in Rs 8 Crore Wheat Scam
Uttar Pradesh CM resized
Sacred Confluence, Modern Vision: Yogi Govt Approves Rs. 1 Crore to Develop Durvasa Ashram as Tourism Hub in Azamgarh
Aapki Punji
Every Penny Counts: Finance Minister Launches "Aapki Punji, Aapka Adhikar" Campaign to Return Unclaimed Assets to Citizens
NATPOLREX
NATPOLREX-X 2025: Indian Coast Guard Hosts Mega Marine Pollution Exercise with 32 Nations in Chennai
CM Vishnu Deo Singh
Chhattisgarh Unveils Its First National Highway Tunnel: A Landmark in India's Infrastructure Drive Built in Just 12 Months
bureaucracy news
Senior IRPS and IRS Officers Receive Key Postings: Repatriation and New Appointment in GST Council Secretariat
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Videos
Dr G K Goswami IPS
Everything you ever wanted to know about e-murder, e-dacoity and data safety
IFS Ravikant Meena UPSC IFS
Ravikant Meena on IFS Preparation, Optionals, and Life in Forest Service
Siddhartha Saxena UPSC CAPF
How Siddhartha Saxena Cracked UPSC CAPF AIR 326 Against All Odds
ADVERTISEMENT
UPSC Stories
Utkarsh Ujjwal IAS
IAS Utkarsh Ujjwal Shares Key Advice for UPSC Aspirants: Work Ethic, Failure, and Focus
Read the inspiring journey of IAS Utkarsh Ujjwal, 2023 batch, Gujarat cadre. From IIT Guwahati to clearing...
Sagar Datta Majumdar UPSC CSE 2024 AIR 317
“Don’t get trapped in the vicious cycle of self-doubt,” says UPSC Achiever Sagar Datta Majumdar
Discover how Sagar Datta Majumdar from Agartala, Tripura, cracked UPSC CSE 2024 with All India Rank 317....
UPSC Chairman Ajay Kumar Live Interaction
From Cut-off Dates to Coaching & Reforms: UPSC Chairman Ajay Kumar Assures Aspirants of Fairness, Transparency & a Future-Ready UPSC | UPSC@100
A Century of Service: The UPSC’s Landmark Year Begins. Chairman Ajay Kumar on UPSC’s Centennial: “Merit,...
Social Media
World Rhino Day India
On World Rhino Day, IFS Officer Parveen Kaswan Shares Rare Insights - India Now Hosts 80% of the World’s One-Horned Rhinos
September 22 Marks Global Call for Rhino Conservation; India Holds 80% of World’s Greater One-Horned...
Parag Madhukar Dhakate
Relentless Rains Wreak Havoc in Dehradun: IFS officer PM Dhakate Warns Citizens Amid Flash Floods
Cloudbursts in Dehradun triggered flash floods. IFS officer Dr. PM Dhakate warned citizens to stay indoors...
Forest Guard Tiger Encounter
Tigers Clash in the Wild as Forest Guards Capture Rare Footage , Retired IFS Mohan Pargaien Posts Viral Video
Retired IFS officer Mohan Pargaien shares viral video of three tigers brawling in Ramnagar, as forest...
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Latest
Utkarsh Ujjwal IAS
IAS Utkarsh Ujjwal Shares Key Advice for UPSC Aspirants: Work Ethic, Failure, and Focus
Ministry of Defence
Defence Ministry Opens Missile and Ammunition Production to Private Sector, Boosts Aatmanirbhar Bharat
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Videos
Dr G K Goswami IPS
IFS Ravikant Meena UPSC IFS
Siddhartha Saxena UPSC CAPF
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT