https://indianmasterminds.com

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

A Shepherd’s Journey to the IAS

A childhood story of goat grazing by 2018 batch IAS officer Ram Prakash has left people emotional on the social media. He cracked the toughest and prestigious UPSC exam in India in the sixth attempt with AIR-162. Recently, Ram Prakash has been transferred for the fifth time in his 30-months job.
Indian Masterminds Stories

A few days ago, a tweet by an IAS of Rajasthan cadre of 2018 batch went viral on social media. It said, “June 2003: We 5-6 people went to graze goats. We were swinging in a swing hanging from a mango tree branch. Suddenly the branch broke. No one was hurt, but we took away the tree branch to avoid getting thrashed. It would not be known whether the branch was ever broken.”

No one would have thought that a kid who herds goat will pass India’s toughest and most prestigious exam, UPSC and become an IAS one day. But his story is an example that a person can change his destiny with sheer hard work and dedication.

He cracked the IAS exam in his sixth attempt. Then he got AIR-162 rank. He is presently posted as Joint Secretary in PHP in Jaipur. Indian Masterminds interacted with IAS officer Ram Prakash and delve deep in his motivational journey.

The Beginning

Ram Prakash hails from Mirzapur district in Uttar Pradesh. His parents were small farmers in the village, so he had limited resource.  He did his early studies from Shraddhanand Saraswati Intermediate College in Rohaniya, Varanasi. He has 5 sisters & a brother. In spite of all the difficulties his parents always supported him in the studies. He had a hard life as he used to sell vegetables in the morning before going to school. He passed 12th examination in 2007.

Due to poor financial condition of the family, he had to feed goats along with studies. His brother is a loco pilot.

After completing schooling, he started his preparation for IIT JEE. He cleared the exam and graduated in Mechanical Engineering from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Gandhinagar in 2017. He worked with the Department of Urban Development, Government of Gujarat for one and a half year. He also prepared for the CSE simultaneously. Meanwhile, his father died but mother wanted her son to become a collector. So, he carried on with the preparation.

PRELIMS IN FOURTH ATTEMPT

He started his preparation in 2011 while doing an internship in Pune. He started with the NCERTs books and reading English newspapers. He gave his first attempt in 2012, but he did not clear the prelims. He only got 6 marks in GS1 paper.

He cleared the prelims in fourth attempt and same year cleared the mains as well. But he faltered in the interview because of lack of fluency in spoken English language & low confidence. But he worked on his mistakes & weaknesses. He attempted personality tests series. In his sixth attempt, he cleared the UPSC exam securing 162nd rank. His optional subject was Mathematics. He secured 1,041 out of 2,025 marks in this exams and 151 marks out of 275 in the interview.

Posting

After completing his training in Mussoorie, his first posting was as Assistant Collector in Banswara, where he stayed for 11 months. After this he was posted as SDO in Bhawani Mandi Jhalawar. After 7 months, he was transferred again and put him DSO in Beawar. He stayed in Beawar for only 9 months and on December 31, he was made the CEO of Pali Zilla Parishad. For about 3 months, he worked as the CEO of Pali Zilla Parishad but was transferred again on 25 April. Presently, IAS Ram Prakash is Joint Secretary in PHED (Public Health Engineering Department).

Work in Pali

As CEO, Pali Zilla Parishad, Mr. Ram Prakash took strict action against negligent employees. He suspended 10 Village Development Officers and 4 LDCs for wrongdoing in Mahatma Gandhi National Employment Scheme (MNREGA). Similarly, notices of were served to 23 Village Development Officers, 4 LDCs.

Message

The IAS officer has more than 75 thousand followers on Twitter. His twitter bio, written in Sanskrit, is very interesting and gives a message to all UPSC aspirants as well as other. It says that, you have the right only on the actions; never in the fruits of the action… so don’t work for the fruit.


Indian Masterminds Stories
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Related Stories
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
NEWS
Haryana Jungle Safari
Haryana’s Mega Jungle Safari Project Moves Closer to Reality; Phase-I Design Finalised
SBK Singh IPS CP
Delhi Police Commissioner S B K Singh Bans Aerial Platforms from August 2 to 16 for Security Reasons
IPS-logo-resized_new
10 Senior Cops Get New Roles In Bihar Police; DG Jitendra Kumar Gets Additional Charge of B-SAP
Indian Forest Services IFS officer
Jharkhand IFS Rajneesh Kumar Transferred Amid Ongoing Legal Proceedings - Details Inside
Uttar Pradesh UP Government
17 Review Officers Transferred in Uttar Pradesh Secretariat Administration Reshuffle - Details Inside
IFS-forest-resized
6 IFS Officers Transferred in Odisha to Strengthen Environmental Administration, Jagayandatt Pati Made RCCF, Koraput Circle
IAS Officers Indian Administrative Services IAS logo
4 Young IAS Officers Reshuffled in Uttarakhand, Rahul Anand Made Joint Magistrate, Dehradun
Odisha Government
Odisha Elevates Two Promising IFS Officers to Senior Time Scale, Strengthening Forest Leadership - Know More About Them
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Videos
IAS Karn Satyarthi
How IAS Karn Satyarthi Transformed Gumla Through Empathy and Innovation
Ananth Rupanagudi IRAS
IRAS Ananth Rupanagudi’s Take on Corruption, Reform, and Duty
WhatsApp Image 2025-07-26 at 13.16
What Most Indians Don't Know About Jim Corbett
ADVERTISEMENT
UPSC Stories
BPSC Bihar police
From Lantern Light to Police Uniform: How Praveen Kumar from a Small Bihar Village Cracked BPSC to Become SDPO
From a lantern-lit village in Bihar to becoming an SDPO, Praveen Kumar's journey is a testament to resilience,...
IAS Priyansha Garg
Why Mindset Matters: IAS Priyansha Garg’s Mental Health Mantra for UPSC
After two failed prelims, Priyansha Garg cracked UPSC with AIR 31 in her fourth attempt, proving how...
Ashish Akshat
From Setback to State Topper: How Ashish Akshat Topped JPSC While Working Full-Time
Ashish Akshat from Dhanbad topped JPSC 2023, proving that resilience, discipline, and family support...
Social Media
Mudumalai Tiger Reserve
Mudumalai Tiger Reserve: From India’s First Sanctuary to a Tiger Conservation Success Story | International Tiger Day Special
IAS Supriya Sahu Hails Mudumalai's Role in Tiger Conservation on Tiger Day. Declared in 1940, Now Among...
Mangroves
Mangroves: Nature’s Shield Against Disasters, Says Officer Parveen Kaswan on Mangroves Day - Watch His Post Here
Mangroves, with their dense, interlaced root systems, form a mesh-like structure that serves as a buffer...
Retired IPS Inderjit Singh Sidhu
Purpose Doesn’t Retire: How 88-Year-Old Retired DIG Becomes Chandigarh’s ‘Quiet Warrior’ of Cleanliness
Inderjit Singh Sidhu’s Dawn Patrol Earns Applause, Mahindra’s Praise for a Man Who Chose Action Over...
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Latest
Haryana Jungle Safari
Haryana’s Mega Jungle Safari Project Moves Closer to Reality; Phase-I Design Finalised
SBK Singh IPS CP
Delhi Police Commissioner S B K Singh Bans Aerial Platforms from August 2 to 16 for Security Reasons
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Videos
IAS Karn Satyarthi
Ananth Rupanagudi IRAS
WhatsApp Image 2025-07-26 at 13.16
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT