“Ki Lehron Se Darkar Nauka Paar Nahi Hoti, Koshish Karne Walon Ki Kabhi Haar Nahin Hoti”, These lines by renowned poet Harivansh Rai Bachchan perfectly describes the journey of Rahul Srivastava who secured AIR 10 in UPSC CSE 2022. It was his fourth attempt and interestingly he couldn’t even clear prelims in the first three. However, neither did he lose hope nor quit hard work.
In an exclusive conversation with Indian Masterminds, Mr. Srivastava who resides in Patna, Bihar shared his journey of ups and downs – how this electrical engineer dodge campus selection to chase his civil services dream.
FAILURES DID HAMPER
Mr. Srivastava lives with his parents. His father is a retired banker and mother homemaker. After completing his class 10 from St. Karen’s and 12th from DAV Public School, he went to NIT, Tiruchirapalli (Tamil Nadu) for B.Tech in Electrical Engineering.
It was only after his graduation that Mr. Srivastava started preparing for UPSC CSE with Electrical Engineering as his optional. Speaking with Indian Masterminds he said, “I was fond of that subject so never thought twice before locking it as my optional. During my final year I had decided to be a civil servant so didn’t even take the campus selection.”
However, after not being able to clear prelims, he was disappointed. He says that he was fully prepared to write Mains but wasn’t getting the chance. The consecutive failures even hampered his preparation.
“My goal was clear. So, I couldn’t sit back and just be hopeless. I gathered myself and started with more enthusiasm,” said the topper. This year he was hopeful but AIR 10 was never expected. He is delighted with this result.
SPORTS HELPED
A volleyball, chess and cricket enthusiast, this sportsman during his tough going and preparations found solace in the games.
“I tried to study at least 5-6 hours daily. Sometime the hours could extend sometimes I couldn’t complete the set target. The one thing I made sure was that whatever I study, I should do it with full concentration,” says Mr. Srivastava who aspires to be an IAS officer. He says playing with my friends and neighbour helped me to do deal with my failures and remain positive.
CHANGED STRATEGY
During the initial days of preparation, he used to study from everywhere. He didn’t want to lose out on anything but the failures taught him that too much can be confusing. Learning from his mistake, he focused on basic books and kept revising them multiple times. The topper advises aspirants to follow the same and not be spoilt for choices.
