Mobile phones are considered both a boon and a bane these days. While most parents quite naturally worry about the unrestricted and unlimited availability of the internet at the tap of a finger, for some students, the handset is a blessing as it provides them with access to a wide range of study materials, which otherwise they could have never managed to lay their hands on. Resources which, otherwise, can be had only by joining coaching institutes or by buying books that would burn a hole in the pocket, are now readily available on the net.
Sreenath K falls in the later category. For this Kerala boy, the mobile phone became the foundation stone for the building of his civil services career. No wonder he invested his hard-earned meagre savings on a smart phone. This phone became his only resource for his preparation for the tough exam.
His journey to UPSC and, thereafter, into civil services is no less than a wonder! A railway porter who toils hard for his living makes use of whatever little free time he gets, to use free wifi in the railway platform on his smart phone, for online classes for CSE preparation. And, in this way, he managed to crack the prestigious exam!
Today, Indian Masterminds presents the awe-inspiring true-life story of this wonder boy from Kerala.
COOLIE NO 343
His real-life story runs like a reel-life one, all at once both unbelievable and fascinating. Sreenath K is a resident of Munnar and worked as a coolie (railway porter)in Ernakulam, Kerala. He lived in Ernakulam with his family. A middle-class family, and he the sole bread earner. He became an authorized porter -Coolie No. 343 – after passing the essential physical test and was at this job for five years. His was a tough job and he had a tough life. But then, he was a tough man and that is why he set his eyes on India’s toughest exam – UPSC CSE.
HOW UPSC DREAM WAS BORN
In 2018, at the age of 27, he realised that to support his family, he would need to earn more. He did not wish the same problems he faced as a child on his one-year-old daughter. So, to give her a good childhood, he decided to do something that would bring more earnings. He started doing night shifts to earn extra than the Rs 400-500 that he was earning per day.
When even working through the night could not bring in sufficient money, he started thinking on totally different lines and changed his track. He now started aiming higher and began nursing ambitious thoughts. Cracking UPSC Civil Services exam was one of them. He finally zeroed in on CSE and looked for ways to give wings to his dream.
GIVING WINGS TO THE DREAM
He had invested in a smart phone, he had free WiFi connection in the railway platform, and most importantly, he had a very strong will to achieve his goal. He decided to make the best use of all of them. In the meantime, he had changed base to Mumbai. In January 2016, the government provided free WiFi service in Mumbai Central railway station, where he was working as a porter now. This came as a big and timely help for Sreenath to prepare for the UPSC exam. He started studying with the help of online classes.
CSE SUCCESS
While preparing for UPSC, Sreenath appeared for and cracked the written exam of Kerala Public Service Exam, KPSC. After that, it took him four attempts to clear the UPSC Civil Services exam. All the while, he worked hard and never gave up. He did not give up his porter job either! It was not an option for him at all to leave the job of a porter as he had a family to take care of. Finally, he cleared CSE in his 4th attempt.
KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM HIS STORY
Sreenath K’s inspiring UPSC journey can teach all aspirants two things: firstly, they should never give up and keep on trying until success comes to them, and secondly, how they can take advantage of the little things around them and achieve their goals.
But the most important lesson of all is to never ever give up on one’s dreams, howsoever unattainable they may seem. The trick is to keep on taking one baby step after another till the goalpost is just a step away.
Moral of the story: Success always befriends the one who is willing to strive hard for it, because every hard work gets paid sooner or later.
