Manasi Sahay Thakur comes from a family of bureaucrats. Her father was an Indian Forest Service officer, her grandfather was in IAS, and many of her relatives were also in civil services. Hence, she got the opportunity to closely observe their work and lifestyle, which inspired her and made her believe that by being in civil services, one can bring about changes in little ways. So, she decided to make at least one honest and earnest effort for UPSC CSE preparation.
With planned approach and focus, she was able to clear the exam with AIR 49 and was selected as an IAS officer of 2009 batch in Himachal Pradesh cadre. In her 15 years of service till now, she has served as Collector in Bilaspur, as Director of Women and Child Development, and was also the nodal officer for inter-state migration during the Covid-19 outbreak and lockdowns. She is currently serving as Labour commissioner cum Director of Employment and Director of Tourism in Himachal Pradesh.
Speaking to Indian Masterminds, Ms. Thakur who went to Harvard for her Masters in Public Administration gave an account of her UPSC journey and also advised aspirants to be time-bound and not waste precious years in this exam’s preparation.
NOT MANY YEARS
“My father was in Indian Forest Service and I used to be amazed to see how much innovations he could come up with, whether it was social forestry or conservation. That was the time I decided to try for UPSC because it gives so much opportunity to work for changes,” Ms. Thakur said. However, even though civil services was her dream, she never allowed her life to depend on it.
She did her mechanical engineering and worked in a private firm for some experience. When she started her UPSC preparation, she was sure that she did not want to waste too many years in it. “I decided to give 1-1.5 years for my preparation without losing focus. My strategy was to give my 100% without leaving room for any mistake. If I’d get in, then that would be huge for me, and if I don’t, then I’d do something else,” she said.
Even today, she firmly believes that UPSC gives you immense opportunities but it is not the only way. So, one shouldn’t waste too many years of their youth in preparation. The world is too big and there are other ways to help people and achieve your goal, she said.
THE STRATEGY
There were three major decisions she had to take before fully submerging herself in the preparation zone. First was to leave the job, then select the optional, and third was to decide if she should go to Delhi for coaching.
She left the job and selected Public Administration and Geography as her optional. She said, “Initially, I wanted to take Mechanical Engineering as my optional. Although I love the subject, I didn’t want to use too much time. So, I went with the subject that will help me in my work and which overlapped with the overall syllabus of the exam.”
Next, deciding whether to go to Delhi or not was tough. Eventually, she went for two and a half months for optional coaching and came back. According to her, one shouldn’t stay too long and get caught in the cycle of coaching.
Her mantra for success was to maximize the takeaway because ultimately it is the smart work that makes a difference. She used to study eight hours on a regular basis and sometimes 12 hours too, but she also took care to maintain a normal life. She went out and chatted with her friends in between her preparation.
THE RESULT DAY
It was the 4th of May 2019 when she went with her father to a nearby internet café to check her result. She opened and scrolled down to the end. Top ranks were not on her mind. She started looking from the end and when she saw her name at rank 49, she was amazed.
“I took a moment to internalise it and then told my father. There was a lot of laughter and some tears too. I can’t explain my feelings in words,” she said.
HAS THE GOAL BEEN ACHIEVED?
Today, she is counted among the best and most efficient officers in Himachal, and in the country too. While her tenures as DC Bilaspur was exceptional as she led the rescue operation for workers trapped in a tunnel in 2015. She also worked against female foeticide in the district. As Director, Women and Child Development she was instrumental in drafting the first legislation in India dealing with the sensitive issue of Early Childhood Care and Education.
As Director Energy, Manasi helped improve the State’s revenue realization through power sale, spearheaded efforts for energy efficiency and successfully worked on policies for revitalizing the dormant hydro sector. She has co-authored “The Power Tariff Case-A Tale of Two States” which is being used by the National Academy of Administration for training civil servants in Negotiation Strategy.
However, it was her work during Covid-19 lockdown that earned her praises from all over. As the nodal officer for inter-state migration, she was responsible for bringing back thousands of migrants to the state. As MD of state Civil Supplies Corporation, she also made sure that each individual, no matter how distant they were living in the rugged snow clad mountains, had adequate stock of necessary items. Atal Tunnel was not there at that time, but she managed to reach all items to the people on time.
When asked if she is satisfied with her work and believes that the goal of getting into civil services has been achieved, she said that her work has not ended, and there is so much more to do. “When I started the preparation for CSE, my goal was to work with people, help in whatever ways I can, and be a part of change in society. Now, when I look back, getting into civil services was just the inception. The journey still continues. I have a bouquet of experiences that is filled with successes, failures, learnings and un-learnings. I look forward to work with more and more people, learn from my mistakes, and keep getting better,” Ms. Thakur said in conclusion.
