There is no better example of grit and determination than Bala Nagendran’s life story. Although he is visually impaired, he never let his disability come in the way of his dream and remained focused and steadfast till he achieved his goal. He cleared UPSC Civil Services Exam, and that too in his 9th attempt. Exhibiting exemplary patience, he kept on trying till he overcame all hurdles and made his dream come true. It is said hope springs eternal in the human mind. Bala Nagendran proved it true by his rare feat.
BACKGROUND
Hailing from Tamil Nadu, Bala Nagendran is blind since birth. He did his schooling from Little Flower Convent and Rama Krishna Mission School. After his schooling, he graduated in B.com from Loyola College, Chennai. He says that he was inspired by his teachers in school, who always motivated him to go for Indian Administrative Service. His father is a taxi driver and his mother is a house maker.
NINE ATTEMPTS
Bala Nagendran started preparing for UPSC in the year 2011. However, in his first four attempts, he could not clear the exam as his preparations were not up to the mark.
The other thing that was a hurdle was his language. He did his schooling in Tamil language and that is why it was not easy for him to attempt the exam in English. However, he took up the challenge and learned English.
“From year 2011 to 2015, I failed at least four times, but I didn’t give up,” he said.
In 2016, Bala cleared CSE with rank 927 and was offered Group-A services. However, he didn’t take up the job and decided to sit again for the exam. He took this decision as he was determined to become an IAS officer.
In 2017, he tried again, but couldn’t clear the exam because of only 1 mark. Later, he went on to make two more unsuccessful attempts. However, this did not deter him. If anything, these failures made him even more determined and focused on his goal. Finally, in the year 2019, he bagged AIR 659 and secured a place in IAS.
NEVER GIVE UP ATTITUDE
Though he is visually impaired since birth, Bala never resigned himself to fate. He never considered loss of vision as a disability. Rather he considered every obstacle that he faced as a challenge to be overcome with hard work and persistence. And he did it with a smile! It is this positive attitude that kept him going strong till he reached his goal of becoming an IAS officer.
“I never consider my blindness as a weakness but consider it as my personal strength. My blindness has helped me in understanding people in a much better way and it has also made me realise my inner version,” he said.
Bala’s hopes to work for the welfare of children and end child abuses. He also wants to improvise the education system of our country. “To eradicate poverty, unemployment and all the other social plagues, quality education is the only solution. I would definitely want to work in the department and bring inclusiveness in education,” he had told media soon after his final UPSC result.
His success proved beyond any doubt how the right kind of attitude and persistent hard work can make a person achieve anything he desires and take him to dizzying heights.
