Expected to qualify for civil service but getting second rank seemed far-fetched: Ankita Agarwal

Ankita completed her school education in Kolkata and earned her bachelor’s degree in economics from St Stephen’s College of Delhi University.

Her parents run a family business and her younger brother is a student. (Graphics by Abhishek Mitra)

Seeing her name at the second rank was no less than a surprise for Ankita Agrawal, who achieved the feat in the Union Public Service Commission’s (UPSC) civil services examinations 2021, results of which were declared on Monday.

A native of West Bengal, Ankita is currently training with Indian Revenue Services Customs and Indirect Taxes at Faridabad.

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Ankita completed her school education in Kolkata and earned her bachelor’s degree in economics from St Stephen’s College of Delhi University. She then worked with a corporate house before quitting the job to pursue her civil service dreams. “I was clear about my goal and therefore chose not to enrol for a postgraduate degree. I worked for a year and then jumped into UPSC preparation. I qualified in the exam in 2019 and got into the IRS but my goal was to join the Indian Administrative Services. So I reappeared in the exam in 2021. This was my third attempt,” Agarwal told indianexpress.com

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Talking about her preparation, Ankita said, “I prepared through self-study as well as coaching. I believe both play equally important roles in a candidate’s life. Apart from basic books, I kept myself updated with current affairs and read newspapers and monthly magazines.”

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Ankita chose political science and international relations as her optional subjects and believes that consistency and hard work are key to success.

Her parents run a family business and her younger brother is a student. “My family is elated with the success and I am planning to meet them soon,” she said.