UPSC Civil Services Examination is one of the toughest examinations in India, which demands patience, hard work, and, also, the right guidance. And, what’s better than receiving guidance from the successful officers in civil service?
There are many civil servants who have initiated steps to help civil service aspirants through social media. While some share their notes and study plans directly on social media platforms, others have created communities or groups in WhatsApp or Telegram to help them.
One such initiative is ‘Being IFS’. In an exclusive interview to Indian Masterminds, 2019-batch IFS officer Ankit Kumar, who is the member of the core team of ‘Being IFS’, shares their vision and their plans.
WHY IT WAS LAUNCHED
IFS Ankit Kumar, who is currently posted at DCF CAMPA, Department of Environment and Forest, Arunachal Pradesh, launched an initiative named ‘Being IFS’. “While we were preparing for our UPSC examination, we always had to find some mentor who can guide us about what kind of books we need to refer to, mainly for our optional subjects,” said the officer.
‘Being IFS’ was launched in early 2019, as soon as the UPSC results were declared. It was initiated by four IFS officers including Mr. Kumar himself. Gradually, they convinced their entire batch of 2019 to be a part of this initiative.
His batchmates, the 2019-batch IFS officers, wanted to impart the knowledge that they gained during their preparation and, also, make aspirants aware about nature and forest. So, they formed a small group on WhatsApp and within a time span of 2-3 months, the idea was floated, and in December 2019, they started off with the initiative.
MAIN OBJCTIVE OF BEING IFS
The main objective of ‘Being IFS’ is to provide a one-to-one communication platform for the aspirants to ask queries. The other objective is to share preparation strategy and plans with the aspirants, and to provide information regarding new innovations and updates in the field of forest administration.
“Through our initiative, we share articles provided by our batchmates that include strategies of choosing books for optional subjects, motivational articles, and preparation strategies,” Mr. Kumar said.
It is a free voluntary service which is being funded by the officers themselves. According to Mr. Kumar, there are many myths related to IFS. One such is that the IFS officers always spend their time in forests. “So, we want to guide them by sharing the roles and responsibilities of the IFS officers, and how one can appear for the IFS exam with different strategies and plans,” informed Mr. Kumar.
The aspirants who are looking to join IFS can have guidance from these officers directly. They can message them and connect with them directly through social media.
Mr. Kumar says that they have passed this initiative on to the 2020 batch, and they have accepted it as a legacy. “Whichever batch comes next will be handed over the initiative so that they develop something new for the ‘Being IFS’ portal,” he said.
ROLE OF SOCIAL MEDIA
Talking about the role of social media in helping aspirants, the officer said, “Most of the time, aspirants get connected to me personally and even to ‘Being IFS’ through our Twitter handle. Whenever I personally organise a chat session, I post the link of ‘Being IFS’ so that aspirants get to know about it and reach out to us for any queries.”
There are separate groups of ‘Being IFS’ for Facebook, Telegram, and Twitter. The aspirants can connect with these IFS officers through all three mediums.
FUTURE PLANS
About future plans, Mr Kumar said, “We are looking forward to make a platform where the IFS aspirants and officers can connect with each other through an online medium. Through the online medium, we can share ideas which are related to environment preservation and wildlife protection, and, also, share the good work that are being done in the field.”
