Among thousands of UPSC aspirants, there are many who cannot even afford coaching or pay rent in Delhi. Aspirants from low-income families have to overcome numerous hurdles to achieve their dreams.
Ultimately, those who persevere and fight against all odds fulfill their dream of becoming an IAS or IPS. The success story of Utkarsh Gaurav, from being a farmer’s son to cracking UPSC is a glaring example.
Hailing from Amargaon village in Bhagan Bigha in the Nalanda district of Bihar, Utkarsh Gaurav’s father is a farmer while his mother is a homemaker. After he completed his Class 12th, Utkarsh's father wanted him to become an engineer hoping that he would secure some job.
As per his father’s wish, Utkarsh shifted to Bengaluru to pursue his engineering. After completing his engineering, he made up his mind to begin his preparations for a government job and shifted to Delhi.
However, despite all the hard work, he faced three consecutive failures in the UPSC exam. Later, he had to shift back to his village in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, leading to a nationwide lockdown.
He had to endure the taunts from villagers as he was jobless after his engineering. However, his family encouraged him to work harder. Finally, Utkarsh’s perseverance paid off in 2022 when he achieved an amazing AIR-709 in the UPSC CSE exam.
“I had cut off social media presence in order to secure a government job and used YouTube to get ready for the UPSC exam while living in the village,” he was quoted as saying by News18.
He further revealed that success in competitive exams requires a combination of hard work and a certain element of luck.