Following in her father’s footsteps, Srijana Gummalla always aimed for the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). After she qualified in the APPSC examination for Group-I of state services, she was posted as administrative officer in the department of health and family welfare. Making her last attempt, she appeared for the UPSC Civils in 2012. “The feeling of having qualified is yet to sink in. I will surely opt for the Indian Administrative Service,” said Srijana who secured the 44th rank. Soon after the merit list of candidates who made it through the interview in March-April 2013 was displayed on the UPSC website, Srijana was flooded with calls for interviews and from well-wishers. “I would like to work in the rural development sector and in the field of education though I will join the service with an open mind,” says Srijana who did her post-graduation in political science at the University of Hyderabad and completed her Ph.D from Sri Venkateswara University, Tirupati. Though most of the aspirants find the interview round challenging, Srijana found it relatively easy. “The questions were opinionbased and focused chiefly on the subject,” said Srijana who opted for political science and philosophy as her optionals.
J Meghanatha Reddy, 56th Ranker
The 56th rank was bagged by J.Meghanatha Reddy of Proddatur who had secured 624th rank in the previous year. He did post-graduation in economics at the University of Hyderabad.
Y. Raghuvamshi, 139th Ranker
An engineer by training, Y.Raghuvamshi secured the 139th rank in the merit list. “My first choice will be IAS, followed by IFS,” says the engineering graduate from IIT-Kharagpur. Employed currently as a project manager, Raghuvamshi wants to serve society by working in the government. “I come from a lower middle-class family in Sangareddy in Medak district which was a small town when I was growing up. My teachers helped me see the potential in me,” says the son of a state government employee and a homemaker. The Narayana Sri Chaitanya IAS Academy’s list of successful candidates from the institution includes K.Shashanka who secured the 16th rank and Yogendra Singh who secured the 28th rank.