Kanishak Kataria, 26, was at his Jaipur home with elder sister, Tanmaya, on Friday evening when he checked the result of Civil Services Examination. He jumped with joy and almost dropped his mobile phone when he found out that he had topped the examination. The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) announced the result on Friday in which 759 candidates (577 men and 182 women) have been recommended for appointment to various services such as IAS, IPS and IFS. Watch: ‘Inclusive growth’ is the aim of UPSC topper Kanishak Kataria Kanishak’s father, Sanwar Mal Verma, is an also an IAS officer and is posted as director in the social justice and empowerment department in Rajasthan. The UPSC topper’s uncle, KC Verma, is also an IAS and is divisional commissioner of Jaipur. His maternal grandfather, SL Bunkar, was in the state administrative service. Kanishak went to school in Kota because his father was posted there or in nearby district Jhalawar between 2004 and 2010. An alumnus of Kota’s St Paul’s School, Kanishak joined a coaching for engineering entrance examination and made it to the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, with 44 all-India rank. He did B.Tech. in computer science and engineering and went to South Korea to work in an electronic giant for one year and a half. Kanishak returned to India to work in a US startup at their Bengaluru office before shifting to Delhi in March 2017 to prepare for the civil services. It was during his work outside India that Kanishak got the idea of stepping into his father’s shoes. “I worked outside India for some time and realised India also needs good quality development. If I can help in inclusive growth and infrastructure development, it will be much more satisfying than earning big amount of money outside India,” he says. Did his father inspire him to get into administrative service? “My father has always been my role model. He has always inspired me but he never pushed me into civil services. It was a decision which I made on my own. I consulted him and my family. They were fully supportive of this decision,” he says. Kanishak says he will enjoy this for some time and let this feeling sink it before he goes for training in August. His sister is doing MS in ENT at SMS Medical College.<doc-sep>Basking in the new-found glory after Congress president Rahul Gandhi chose Wayanad as his second constituency, the north Kerala district notched up another distinction when Sreedhanya Suresh (25) became the first tribal woman from the state to crack the civil services examination. Hailing from Kurichya community, she secured 410 rank in the 2018 civil service examination. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and others congratulated Sreedhanya. “Sreedhanya fought the social backwardness and passed the civil services examination with flying colours. Her achievement will inspire other students in future,” he tweeted. Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala also congratulated the young achiever. Wayanad being Rahul Gandhi’s Kerala constituency, the Congress president took to Twitter to congratulate Shreedhanya Suresh. Ms Sreedhanya Suresh from Wayanad, is the first tribal girl from Kerala to be selected for the civil service. Sreedhanya’s hard work & dedication have helped make her dream come true. I congratulate Sreedhanya and her family and wish her great successs in her chosen career. — Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) April 6, 2019 A zoology student her optional subject for mains was Malayalam literature. She was born and brought up in a Kurichya hamlet near Kalpetta. Sreedhanya’s father is a daily wage farm labourer and mother is also a worker under MGNRAEGS. “ I am from the most backward district of the state. Even though there is a large tribal population in the district there are no IAS/IPS officers from here. I hope this will be an inspiration and motivation to the future generations,” she said. She cracked the examination in her third attempt. She completed her graduation from St Joseph Devagiri and post-graduation from Calicut University. Since her ranks is 410 she is unlikely to get IAS or IPS and she will choose revenue or railway services, her friends said. Other Keralites who got top ranks in the examination are Sreelakshmai (rank 29), Ranjana Mary Verghese (rank ranks 49) and Arjun Mohan (rank 66). Out of 759 cleared the examination 577 are male and 182 females. Twenty five from the state emerged victorious this time.<doc-sep>
First person from the Scheduled Tribes in the district to clear Civil Services exam Sreedhanya Suresh from the district has cleared the Civil Services Examination - 2019, becoming the first person from the Scheduled Tribes (ST) in the district to achieve the feat. Daughter of Suresh and Kamala of the Ambalakkolly tribal settlement at Achooranam, near Pozhuthana in the district, Sreedhanya secured 410th rank in the examination. She was born and brought up in a Kurichiya tribal hamlet. Her father is a daily wage worker and mother is a worker under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme. Sreedhanya is an an alumnus of Thariyodu Government Higher Secondary School. She did her postgraduation in Applied Zoology at the University of Calicut after graduating in Zoology from St. Joseph’s College, Devagiri, Kozhikode. Malayalam literature Her optional subject for Mains was Malayalam Literature. “Former Wayanad Subcollector Sreeram Sambasiva Rao, the current Kozhikode Collector, inspired me to attend the Civil Services Examination,” said Sreedhanya. She said her first preference was the Indian Administrative Service, adding that she still found the feat hard to believe. Sreedhanya received training from Fortune IAS Academy, Thiruvananthapuram. Staff Reporter writes from Thrissur: Sreelakshmi Ram of Kadungalloor, Aluva, got the 29th rank. “It was my fifth attempt at the Civil Services Examination. Mostly I prepared myself. I would like to tell the Civil Service aspirants that determination and perseverance will definitely bring success,” she said. A postgraduate in Economics, she prefers the IAS. Daughter of retired State Bank of India officers V.A. Ramachandran and Kaladevi, Sreelakshmi did her BA in Economics from Stella Maris College, Chennai. She did her postgraduation from the London School of Economics. She has worked with some NGOs too. Her elder sister Vidya is an Assistant Professor at Thunchath Ezhuthachan Malayalam University. Other winners Renjina Mary Varghese from Perdala, Kasaragod, bagged the 49th rank. Her optional subject was Sociology. Malayalis from the Kerala State Civil Service Academy who secured ranks include Jishnu J. Raju, 132, from Thiruvananthapuram; Nidhin Raj P., 210, from Kasaragod; and Vishnuraj P., 234, from Thrissur. Kanishak Kataria topped the examination. Srushti Jayant Deshmukh was the topper among women candidates, securing the fifth rank.