It doesn’t take a genius to crack the Civils examination, the much-sought after IAS ranks need people with common sense, said Pravimal Abhishek, Assistant Collector of Puducherry, here on Saturday. The young civil servant was addressing an awareness programme on Civils examination, organised by The Hindu Civils Aspirants Forum in association with Dr. Lakshmaiah IAS Study Circle.
He, however, said a few key things were imperative and the aspirants must never lose sight of them. “You need to have clarity on what you want to do in life,” he insisted, explaining that he achieved it after his internship in an IT company while he was in IIT Madras.
“After returning to the institution, I questioned myself if this is what I really wanted to do,” he said, adding that it did not take very long for him to realise that public service was his top priority and interaction with some of his alumni helped him take the final call. “It is a long, taxing process which may drain your energy and make sure you are ready for it,” he said.
He said recognising the available opportunities and making good use of them was as important as it was to take risks. “Take risk in life without the fear of failure,” he emphasised.
Basic traits
The young IAS officer said it was very important for the aspirants to understand the exam. “Application of mind, strength of mind and communication ability are basic traits that play pivotal role in the examination and so they need to be kept intact,” he said. Sharing his experience of what kind of impact an IAS officer can create on the society, he explained how he cracked the whip on people behind an ‘ambulance mafia’ in Puducherry who would demand huge amounts of money from families of the deceased persons for shifting their bodies from hospitals to their home.
Panabaka Rachana, another young civil servant, selected as Deputy Collector in APPSC Group-I examinations, reiterated that Civils exam was not rocket science “but one must have proper guidance to navigate successfully in this journey,” she said.
P.V. Lakshmaiah, honorary chairman of Dr. Lakshmaiah IAS Study Circle, stressed the need to handle the examination in a smart and tactful way rather than plunging deep into everything that came one’s way. He said aspirants needed to adopt a comprehensive approach to taste success.
Chairman of AP Gazetted Officers JAC K.V. Krishnaiah, Managing Director of Kapu Corporation Shiva Shankar, ACP Varma and others were present.