Clearing UPSC is no doubt challenging, but life as a civil servant is even more so. The current Secretary of Finance, Government of Telangana, Mr. Ronald Rose, says that clearing UPSC civil services exam is definitely a high point in life, but the real challenge starts from the point you join as an officer.
So, civil service is not the end of a journey, but it is a starting point to a much more meaningful and equally exhausting journey.
Indian Masterminds shares the inspiring journey of this 2006-batch IAS officer.
NOT A CHILDHOOD DREAM
Mr. Rose specialises in rural livelihoods and poverty alleviation and has worked in many tribal areas for the welfare of tribes. He hails from Andhra Pradesh and worked as DC in three districts of Telangana.
Civil service was never a childhood dream for him. “My childhood dream was becoming a doctor like almost everybody else. Now, the children are much aware and might have other dreams but at our point, 60% of class wanted to become a doctor or an engineer. I was introduced to civil services very late in my life but still I got into it. So, I can say that it doesn’t need to be your childhood dream. You can start from any point of time.”
BECOMING IAS OFFICER
Mr. Rose was just 17 years old when he took a job in Railways by clearing the Vocational Courses for Railway Commercial Exam. For seven years, he was in that job. “I was sent to a God forsaken station in Tamil Nadu called Kadalhood. I literally lived on station, bathed there, slept there and ate there. I don’t consider it my struggling days, instead it was a great learning experience. I got to interact with public on daily basis and learnt many things which are not taught in books.”
The 1999 Orissa floods pushed him towards the civil services. He along with 10 of his colleagues had gone there for relief work and after returning they realised that they are just wasting their life and need to do something more. Recalling that period, he says, “I hadn’t seen anything like that. I was not a very conscious and aware person before, but I changed. During the discussion with my friends, I first learnt about civil services and started preparing for it. One might not believe but I opted for graduation after I decided to appear for the exam.”
NEED NOT BE TOPPER
Mr. Rose believes that it is a myth that one needs to be a topper of his class or go to a top college. “I tried hard to become the topper, but my classmates didn’t let me! You don’t need to be topper of your batch or class or university. Even if you’re an average or below average student, you can crack the exam. You just need to prepare sincerely. I did my graduation and masters with distance learning and through an open university, so I won’t say that one needs to go to a top college to clear this exam.”
He also says that nobody can study for 16-18 hours a day. “Most people run away before preparation because somebody told them that civil services exam requires 16-18 hours of study. It is not true. Nobody can concentrate for that many hours. Three to four hours of quality preparation is enough if you’re consistent.”
END GOAL SHOULDN’T BE UPSC
According to Mr. Rose, one learns patience and perseverance in the preparation journey. The UPSC has designed the exam in that way because they need people with those qualities. “After clearing UPSC, many believes that they have reached the top, but real journey starts after that. If one feels UPSC is the end goal, then he is mistaken. It is just an entry point. If UPSC is your goal, then the journey after you enter the field is going to tire you. For me, UPSC is just an entry point to accomplish the goals which can’t be done any other way.”
