Abhirup Bhattacharjee, attained 6th Rank in his 1st attempt in West Bengal Civil Services Examination, 2017

” Balanced Combination of pure faith, 100% dedication, hard work and discipline are the secrets of my success.”                                                                                                                                                                                                      -Abhirup Bhattacharjee

        “Pratiyogita Darpan” arranged an exclusive interview with Shri Abhirup Bhattacharjee who has been selected in West Bengal Civil Services Examination, 2017. He deserves high appreciation and our heartiest congratulations on his glorious achievement. This important, thought-provoking and highly inspiring interview is being presented here in its original form.

 

PD—Achieving top slot in the CS Examination is no small feat; accept our heartiest congratulations on your splendid success.

Mr. Abhirup—I extend my heartfelt thanks and gratitude to the whole PD team. I must mention here that I was an avid follower of Pratiyogita Darpan Magazine and the subjectwise special issues.

PD—Were you confident of your success in this examination and how did you react to this news ?

Mr. Abhirup—I was extremely dedicated and hence devoted my 100 per cent while preparing for WBCS. My interview went very well and I was very confident of my success.

        I was extremely happy when I found my name in the result published by the Commission.

PD—What preferences in services have you opted for and any particular reason for that priority ?

Mr. Abhirup—WBCS (Executive Service) > WBCS Gr A (Revenue Service) > WBPS Gr B (Police Service)

PD—What was your optional subject ?

Mr. Abhirup—Optional Subject : Psychology.

PD—In how many attempts have you achieved this success ?

Mr. Abhirup—This was my first attempt.

PD—You must have read IAS toppers’ interviews in newspapers/ magazines; what inspired you the most ? Any particular success story which influenced your journey to this result ?

Mr. Abhirup—Yes, I have read IAS toppers’ interviews in newspapers/magazines.

        I found the interview of Anu Kumari, All India Rank–2 UPSC Civil Services Examination 2017 very motivating and inspiring.

PD—How did you manage to tackle the ‘Negative Marking’ in Prelims ?

Mr. Abhirup—The only way is to increase the ‘accuracy level’.

        The more you practice , the more you become habituated with answering the questions and your accuracy level increases automatically.

PD—The first step is the most difficult; how to prepare ? Which optional subjects to pick up ? What to read ? How much to read ? Many such questions come to your mind when you really get serious about Civil Services Examination ? From where did you get the right advice ?

Mr. Abhirup—The syllabus being huge , it is very important that we first get a bird’s eye view of the whole syllabus. While it is important to choose what to read, it becomes even more important what not to read.

        I strongly believe in taking guidance from only WBCS/IAS /IPS officers or very senior professors or respectable senior officers who know the process very well.

PD—While making final choice for optional subject, what’s important and what’s not ?

Mr. Abhirup—My optional was Psychology.

        But I am extremely thankful to few respected college professors who addressed all doubts and helped me in selecting the optional that suited me perfectly and I zeroed in on Psychology.

PD—Give the basis of selecting the optional subject ?

Mr. Abhirup—While choosing the optional, the following points become a sine qua non !

l     Reviewing Past Year’s Question Papers.

l     Your comfort lend with the subject matter.

l     Your overall aptitude and interest.

PD—What shift did you adopt in your strategy for Mains (Written)?

Mr. Abhirup—My focus was on writing good, balanced and to the point answers which addressed the CORE issue that the question demanded.

PD—‘Time-Management’ is a key factor while making preparations as well as in writing examination papers, be it Prelims or Main Examination. How did you manage things?

Mr. Abhirup—Time-management came gradually with practice. I used to write my answers keeping in mind the time limit that I can devote in a particular question.

Bio-data

Name—Abhirup Bhattacharjee Father’s Name—Mr. Saktidhar Bhattacharjee Mother’s Name—Mrs. Sadhana Bhattacharya Date of Birth—18 January, 1986 Educational Qualifications— 12th I.Sc.—2004, Council for the Indian School Certificate Exam., Don Bosco School, Park Circus, Kolkata (82·5%) B.Tech—2009, West Bengal Uni-versity of Technology, Heritage Institute of Technology, Kolkata (7·61)

PD—How did you prepare yourself for Interview ? When and which Board did you face ? How did your interview go on, how long did it last and what were the questions asked during the Interview ?

Mr. Abhirup—Facing the WBCS interview Board was itself an exciting experience. The Board was very cordial. It is not an interview but a test of your personality. The prospective future administrators and officers are tested on a plethora of parameters.

PD—Were you preparing for other career opportunities as well while preparing for your ultimate goal i.e., Career in Civil Services ?

Mr. Abhirup—No. I was 100 per cent dedicated towards having a career in Civil Services.

PD—While the changing economic environment offers immense lucrative career opportunities in various sectors, still what kept you motivated towards Civil Services ?

Mr. Abhirup—I had an uncanny knack of understanding people, their thoughts and emotions, so I would very easily and successfully motivate, lead and guide my co-workers and other people.

        So I chose to compete in Civil Services and turned down all other options. My determination in cracking the West Bengal Civil Services in first attempt itself was similar to Arjun’s Bird eye test by Dronacharya.

PD—In your opinion at which educational level should one start preparing for Civil Services and what should be the minimum period of time required to prepare for Civil Services Examinations ?

Mr. Abhirup—One should ideally start preparing during graduation. A dedicated preparation for about 2 to 2·5 years is necessary for clearing the Civil Services exam.

PD—What is your opinion regarding the general view that Science subjects have better chance to score than Humanities ?

Mr. Abhirup—The syllabus of the examination has a healthy balance of both Humanities and Science subjects. Both have equal scoring opportunities.

PD—What is the importance of medium of examination for exams like CSE ?

Mr. Abhirup—How well we articulate or express and represent the answers is important. There are both toppers coming from Regional languages and those from English medium.

PD—Finally, at what point of time did you make up your mind to make career in ‘Civil Services’ ?

Mr. Abhirup—I made up my mind, while I was working as an associate consultant at Wipro Technologies.

PD—Did you keep in mind some time-frame for the examination preparation and number of attempts ?

Mr. Abhirup—I planned to clear the State Civil Service exam in the first attempt itself.

PD—Was CSE your planned decision or your parents’ wish ?

Mr. Abhirup—It was a well thought and a planned decision.

PD—Does the educational, financial and demographic status of the family of an aspirant have any impact on the preparation ?

Mr. Abhirup—Only what matters here is hard work and dedication.

        It is important for each of us to remember that we must keep striving until we reach our true potential.

PD—In your opinion what role do the Competition Magazines play when you are preparing for an examination like Civil Services ?

Mr. Abhirup—Competition Magazines play a pivotal role in the preparation of Civil Services. Since the syllabus has a dynamic nature, such magazines become very important while covering those dynamic parts.

        Besides the static portion of the syllabus it can also be revised from special issues that come with the magazines.

Personal Qualities

Favourite Person— My Mother. Strong Point— I am extremely focused and disciplined. Also I tend to view things and situations with empathy. Weak Point—Can be a bit fastidious at times. Hobbies— Painting.

PD—How do you find Pratiyogita Darpan ? Do you find it close to your expectations ?

Mr. Abhirup—Pratiyogita Darpan played a pivotal role in my preparation.

PD—As a reader of PD, did you read IAS Preparation related articles published in it and did you find them constructive ?

Mr. Abhirup—Yes, I used to read most of the articles related to IAS preparation and found them very constructive.

PD—Please give your comments on the PD Extra Issues Series on ‘General Studies’ and a few Optional Subjects ?

Mr. Abhirup—I did refer to Pratiyogita Darpan (Special Edition) subjectwise. I found them extremely useful. It helped me in covering plethora of diverse topics within a very short time.

PD—Did you refer to Pratiyogita Darpan Year Book ? What is your opinion about the contents, size and the time of publishing ?

Mr. Abhirup—I did refer to PD Year Book. I found it extremely useful. It helped me in covering the current affairs part and their analysis within a very short time. The size and time of publishing are absolutely perfect !

PD—What is the secret of your success ?

Mr. Abhirup—The secret is in a balanced combination of pure faith, honesty, 100% dedication, hardwork and discipline.

PD—To whom would you like to give the credit for your success ?

Mr. Abhirup—To Almighty, my mother and my father who motivated me throughout my journey.

PD—Any suggestion/advice you would like to give to the future aspirants.

Mr. Abhirup—WBCS is not just an exam but it is a dream. To achieve this dream I have followed the three Ds–Dedication, Discipline and Determination.

        So many people fail to crack the civil service exam (State PSC/UPSC) not because they do not have the ability but because they do not have the heart to go through adversity.

PD—Thank you very much and wishing you all the best for your future endeavours.