There was a time when Deepak Lakhara entered a BSF campus not as an officer, but as a young boy delivering milk.
The campus was almost an extension of his childhood. His family was involved in dairy farming and supplied milk to the BSF campus in Jodhpur. Their house stood close to the BSF Frontier campus, which meant that the men in uniform were not distant figures from television screens or newspaper reports. They were part of the world he saw every day.
As a child, Lakhara would watch the personnel train, march and go about their disciplined routines. When he went to deliver milk, constables would sometimes stop him at the gate because he did not have permission to enter. On other occasions, he tried sneaking into the campus while playing and ended up being caught and punished.
But among these ordinary childhood memories was one moment that would quietly shape his future.
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The “Jai Hind” Moment That Changed Everything
One day, Lakhara arrived at the campus wearing a white dress to deliver milk. At the same time, a group of recruits was returning from training.
As they walked past him, something unexpected happened.
They greeted him with, “Jai Hind, Sir.”
For a few seconds, he was stunned. He was just a boy delivering milk, yet the recruits had addressed him as “Sir”. The moment planted an idea that stayed with him for years.
“One day, I want to become an officer and lead these very people,” he thought.
Years later, that childhood thought has brought him to the doorstep of the force he grew up watching. Lakhara has cleared the UPSC CAPF 2025 examination with All India Rank 106, and has kept the BSF as his first preference.
“I do not just want to join the BSF; I want to serve the force that I have seen so closely since my childhood. From delivering milk to aspiring to lead the same force as an officer, this has been much more than a career journey for me. It has been a dream of my family,” Lakhara shared in an exclusive conversation with Indian Masterminds.
From Dairy Farming to the Armed Forces Dream
Lakhara is from Jodhpur district, Rajasthan, and holds a BSc in Computer Science. But even during college, his ambitions were pointed towards the armed forces.
He prepared for Air Force Group X/Y entries and Army recruitment, hoping to find his place in uniform. Then, in 2019, family responsibilities took precedence.
He began helping his family with their dairy business, taking care of everything from milking and handling milk to collecting payments from customers. For nearly two years, dairy farming became an important part of his everyday life.
By 2020, however, he realised that he also needed financial stability. He knew about the UPSC-conducted CAPF examination and saw in it an opportunity to become an officer, particularly in the BSF, the force he had known since childhood.
He decided to give the examination his full attention and moved to Delhi for dedicated preparation, spending a year there.
The road, however, was far from straightforward.
Three Attempts, Several Setbacks and a Change in Strategy
In 2023, Lakhara cleared Paper I and reached the interview stage after qualifying the merit. But his Paper II score was not good enough, and he eventually missed the final merit list.
The following year brought another setback. The result had arrived barely a month before the next examination, and Lakhara admits that he became personally attached to the outcome. It affected his ability to focus properly on the next attempt. He appeared for the examination, cleared Paper I, but once again could not clear Paper II.
Instead of allowing the setbacks to define his preparation, he began examining where he was going wrong.
By 2025, his approach had changed significantly.
He had also written State PCS Mains and UPSC Mains, experiences that strengthened his answer-writing ability. More importantly, he turned Paper II, once his weak point, into a strength. He practised extensively and scored 100 marks in Paper II in his successful attempt, while clearing the Paper I cutoff as well.
For the interview, he travelled to Delhi again for preparation and mock interviews. This time, the result was different.
AIR 106!
The Dairy Farmer Who Faced a Question No Coaching Could Prepare
Perhaps the most unusual part of Lakhara’s UPSC CAPF interview was the very experience that might have seemed unrelated to a conventional officer profile: his dairy work.
The chairman began by asking him about his dairy business: what work he did, how he managed it and why he had entered the field.
Then came a question he had not expected.
Was there any unethical practice he had refused to allow in his dairy business? Lakhara spoke about the use of hormonal injections by some farmers to increase milk production and explained that he had never allowed such practices on his farm.
His practical experience had suddenly become an answer no textbook could have supplied.
The interview also covered cattle breeds, agriculture and rainfall in Jodhpur, his hometown, as well as current affairs and developments in countries such as the Netherlands.
Fitness Was Never a Separate Preparation
For Lakhara, physical preparation did not begin with CAPF. Long-distance running had been his hobby since completing Class 12. He had also appeared for physical tests for Air Force and state sub-inspector examinations, making running and fitness a regular part of his life.
As a result, he did not need to make a separate fitness routine for CAPF. The physical requirements such as running, sprinting and long jump, were activities he was already accustomed to.
Supporting the Family While Chasing the Uniform
Behind the examination preparation was another responsibility: helping his family.
As the elder son, Lakhara understood that preparing for competitive examinations could not come at the cost of his family’s needs. During periods when examinations did not work out, he took home tuition and also taught a few lectures at coaching institutes to manage his own expenses.
When setbacks came, he sought guidance from seniors, followed toppers’ strategies and studied how successful candidates approached the examination.
Eventually, he reached a simple conclusion: preparation could not be built entirely around coaching notes and online material.
According to him, aspirants often underestimate the importance of understanding subjects deeply and building their preparation around basic resources. He relied heavily on books and NCERTs and never joined a specific coaching institute.
The Next Dream: A Sword, a Team and J&K
Clearing the examination has not ended Lakhara’s ambitions. It has simply moved the goalpost. As he waits to begin training, one of his immediate goals is to earn a sword of honour during training. He is looking forward to leading his team, participating in parades and experiencing the many aspects of academy life.
But beyond training lies another dream; one he has carried since childhood. Jammu and Kashmir. The stories of soldiers who have sacrificed their lives there have deeply influenced him. If given the opportunity after training, he wants to serve in J&K.
For someone whose relationship with the BSF began at a campus gate, while carrying milk for delivery, the journey has come remarkably close to completing a circle.
The boy who once tried to enter the campus and was stopped by constables is now preparing to enter the force as an officer.
And somewhere between those childhood “Jai Hind” greetings and AIR 106, a dream that once seemed distant has finally found its uniform.
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