Aspirants preparing for UPSC exam, which is India’s toughest and most prestigious exam, always look for inspiration from people who have successfully cleared the exam. The success story of Satheesh V Menon from Kerala is for such aspirants. He is the son of a daily wage labourer and with his hard work and dedication, he passed the UPSC exam and became a civil services officer.
STUDIED IN LIBRARIES
Menon cracked UPSC-2014 without any coaching by securing 342 rank. This was his third attempt. Presently he is working as an IRS officer in Kochi, Kerala. He couldn’t complete his engineering due to lack of money. However, that didn’t stop him. He pursued his graduation in physics and took tuitions to cover his expenses. Many a times he couldn’t buy the books he needed, so he used to study for hours in libraries.
QUIT HIS CLERK JOB
Menon was also selected for three clerical posts in the state civil service of Kerala. His family wanted him to join these government jobs but he wanted to continue with UPSC preparation and didn’t want any distractions. He was confident that he would clear UPSC soon. Eventually the family also gave in to his wish and supported Menon’s decision to prepare for UPSC instead of taking up a job.
EARLY LIFE
Hailing from the Ernakulam district of Kerala, the southernmost state of India, Menon’s father was a daily wage labourer. While his mother is a homemaker and his elder sister is a school teacher. After 12th, Satish wanted to do engineering, but could not do it due to lack of funds. So while pursuing his further studies in Physics, he used to take tuitions during the day and study at night.
His father, Viswanathan Menon, had to sell his land for his daughter’s wedding and so they had to live in a rented house in rural Ernakulam. Menon used to get about 10 thousand rupees every month from tuition and from that, his family’s and his expenses were met, because his father did not get work every day.
UPSC PREPARATION
While living in a rented house, Menon did not have a internet connection and English newspapers or magazines. He would go to the library every week and study till late. He used to read newspapers and magazines and made notes out of it.
“Lack of internet connectivity was a big problem for me. I was dependent on cyber cafes and the daily supply of English dailies or magazines were not accessible to me. I often had to visit a public library in Ernakulam to get the books for preparation,” said Menon.
He also said that Initially it was very difficult for him to keep pace with his financial needs. “I had to feed my family and do my studies as well. That’s why I never took coaching classes. However, when the results came out, my struggle turned into a happy ending.”
HARD WORK KEY TO SUCCESS
Menon believes that the most important thing in the UPSC journey is not to lose hope. With continuous hard work, anyone can clear UPSC. “People still wonder that someone with a background like mine can clear UPSC. Whereas the truth is that anyone can clear UPSC, it’s just that one should have all the requirements that this exam needs.”
