Not many would leave a job at the prestigious national space agency of India, ISRO, especially a scientist, to join civil service to work for the public. But that’s what Prabhjot Singh did! He left his scientist job at ISRO to become a civil servant. After working for six months in ISRO in Ahmedabad, he quit the job to join Civil Services. He cleared the exam in his third attempt with AIR 16 to join Indian Administrative Service.
Today, the 2010-batch IAS officer is Managing Director at the National Health Mission in Haryana. In an exclusive interview to Indian Masterminds, he shared about his UPSC journey and his decision to quit ISRO.
WHY CIVIL SERVICE
A topper throughout his academic years, IAS officer Prabhjot Singh completed his B.Tech in 2006. Soon after completing his graduation, he took a year break to prepare for the UPSC examination. He told Indian Masterminds that after B.Tech, he had to decide which sector he should choose for his career. “I was looking to work in a good job profile and that’s when I decided to prepare for UPSC CSE, as through this service, I could work for the betterment of society,” Mr. Singh said.
He further said that civil service is one career where government gives responsibility to the civil servants at a very young age, which one cannot get in another field. Talking about CSE, he said, “It’s India’s toughest and prestigious examination so, I had in my mind to clear this difficult exam and get a job which has such responsibilities. My family supported me throughout my preparation.” Side by side, he was also giving exams for PSUs and worked in the private sector.
QUITTING ISRO FOR IAS
He took a year break for his preparation but couldn’t clear the exam in his first attempt. He says that he wasted one year and felt so bad seeing his other classmates doing well in their fields. His optional subject was Physics in prelims but he devoted much time in preparing for his mains optional subject Chemistry as it has a vast syllabus and materials weren’t easily available. “This was the reason that I couldn’t prepare properly for my prelims and failed in first attempt,” he said.
He then took up a job offer in Vodafone and simultaneously prepared for the UPSC exam. “For one year, I prepared and managed to clear both prelims and mains examination. I left the job in Vodafone when I got a call for the interview round, but couldn’t make it to the final list,” he said.
He got such bouncer questions during the interview round that he didn’t answer any question correctly. “As I was working with Vodafone, the panel asked me to tell the name of the breed of the Vodafone dog. I wasn’t prepared for such bouncer questions and I got rejected,” he shared.
After his second attempt, Mr. Singh also went for an interview for an ISRO job, where he was asked which he will prefer if he gets selected in ISRO, for which he answered, “I will choose UPSC over ISRO, as it is my ultimate aim.”
In his third attempt, Mr. Singh changed his optional subject to Punjabi Literature. He prepared the subject for three months and took coaching for it. With physics and Punjabi literature, he gave the mains exam very well and was sure to get the interview call. By this time, he was already working with ISRO. And this third time, he cleared the exam with flying colours securing AIR 16 and left his job at ISRO.
YOUTUBE CHANNEL
Recently, Mr. Singh has started his YouTube Channel. He says he started it to help the rural kids of class 11and 12learn the concepts of physics, chemistry and mathematics in simple language.
“I have done my schooling in Punjabi medium, so after class 10,, it was very difficult for me to study physics, chemistry in English. I was fortunate enough to get good teachers but that phase was very difficult for me. So, I thought, why don’t I make it easy for other kids who are reading these subjects,” he said.
He also interviews people from different walks of life. He has interviewed IAS officers, authors, journalists, doctors, ISRO scientists and sports coaches to motivate and inspire students through their stories and journey.
PLAYS PIANO
Mr. Singh also plays the piano. When asked about a recent video of him playing the piano that made rounds in social media, he said that he is not a professional, but just a learner. “I learn on a basic piano from some of the good videos on YouTube. I purchased it 5 years back but during the field work I wasn’t able to play the instrument. Since last two years, as I am in the headquarter, I have been getting some time to practice it.”
