Banaras Hindu University's (BHU's) postgraduate Shakti Dubey and Haryana's Harshita Goyal have bagged the first and second rank, respectively, in the UPSC Civil Services Examination (CSE) 2024, with three women, including the topper, securing positions in the top four, according to the results announced on Tuesday.
Shah Margi Chirag is the third woman in the top four. She earned the fourth rank in the coveted exam. Maharashtra's Dongre Archit Parag achieved the third position, with Delhi's Aakash Garg finishing fifth. Women bagged the top four ranks in the civil services examination 2022, too.
As many as 1,009 candidates have cleared the civil services examination this year, the results of which were declared on Tuesday.
Speaking to PTI, topper Dubey said she used to study every day to prepare for the coveted examination.
"There was never a day when I did not study. There may be days when I have studied for four to five hours. But there was never a day when I did not study at all. So this has been a constant thing (of my preparations)," she said.
Twenty-eight-year-old Dubey said that there was a time that made her think not to prepare for the exam anymore, but because of her parents' continuous encouragement, she took the test.
"I took the interview last year, too. But, I could not find my name in the final results. At that time, I realised that I won't be able to do more than this. This is it! But for one last time, I mustered courage because of my parents encouragement and gave the 2024 prelims. With the grace of god, I made it," she said.
It was her fifth attempt at the examination.
Asked about how she used to motivate herself, Dubey said she used to write.
"I have a hobby to write. Also, I used to speak to my parents. After talking to them...I felt motivated and confident," said Dubey, who holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Biochemistry from the University of Allahabad.
She also has a Master of Science degree from Banaras Hindu University (BHU), Varanasi. Dubey cracked the examination with political science and international relations as her optional subject.
Second rank holder Goyal did her post-graduation in chartered accountancy. She also has a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda. Goyal (24) qualified the exam with political science and international relations as her optional subjects in her third attempt. She lives in Gujarat's Vadodara, and her home state is Haryana.
Parag, who secured the third rank, is a Bachelor of Technology graduate in electrical and electronics engineering from Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT), Tamil Nadu.
A native of Pune, 26-year-old Parag cleared the exam on his third attempt.
Chirag (26), who secured fourth rank, has a Bachelor of Engineering degree in computer engineering from the Gujarat Technological University, Ahmedabad. She cracked the examination on her fifth attempt.
Aakash Garg (24), a topper from Delhi, secured the fifth rank in his second attempt with sociology as his optional subject.
He has a Bachelor of Technology degree in computer science from the Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, Delhi.
"I believe in quality and not quantity in studies. I did targeted studies that helped me in cracking the examination. I do not believe in hourly studies," Garg told PTI.
The civil services examination is conducted annually in three stages -- preliminary, main and interview -- by the UPSC to select officers of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS) and Indian Police Service (IPS), among others.
The civil services (preliminary) examination 2024 was conducted on June 16 last year. A total of 9,92,599 candidates applied for this examination, out of which 5,83,213 candidates actually appeared in the test.
A total of 14,627 candidates qualified for appearance in the written (main) examination, which was held in September 2024. Out of these, 2,845 candidates qualified for the personality test or interview, which were held between January 7 and April 17 this year.
Of them, 1,009 candidates - 725 men and 284 women - have been recommended by the UPSC for appointment to various services.
Out of the total successful candidates, 335 are from the general category, 109 from the economically weaker sections, 318 from other backward classes, 160 from scheduled castes and 87 from scheduled tribes, according to a statement issued by the commission.
The government has reported 1,129 vacancies to be filled through the civil services examination 2024, it said.
The top 25 candidates comprise 11 women and 14 men. The recommended candidates also include 45 persons with benchmark disability, comprising 12 orthopedically handicapped, eight visually challenged, 16 hearing impaired, and nine with multiple disabilities, the statement said.
The candidature of 241 recommended candidates has been kept provisional, the UPSC said, adding that the result of one candidate has been withheld.
Another 230 successful candidates have been put on a reserve list, the commission said.
Women candidates had bagged the top four ranks in the civil services examination 2022, with Delhi University graduate Ishita Kishore securing the top slot. Garima Lohia, Uma Harathi N and Smriti Mishra had secured the second, third and fourth ranks, respectively, in the examination. Aditya Srivastava, a trainee IPS officer, had topped the civil services examination 2023.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
