THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: When the Kerala Administrative Service (KAS) results were declared on Friday, four of the top ranks in three streams were bagged by candidates from the state capital. They, include Nandana S Pillai, who secured the second rank in stream-I, K G Jayakrishnan, second rank winner in stream -II, L Parvathy Chandran, who was placed third in stream-II and Pramod G V, who bagged the third rank in stream-III.
Nandana S Pillai of Thamalam near Poojappura was on cloud nine after realising that she secured the second rank. The 27-year-old’s diligence and unwavering focus on her goal, which were greatly helped by the training provided by civil service coaching centres, reaped rich dividends. A master’s in English literature from Hyderabad University. Nandana decided to try her luck in UPSC and KAS after giving up her ambition to become a professor as she had also cleared the UGC-NET examination. Though she could not clear the Civil Services Examination conducted by the UPSC, she made it to the KAS.
“I underwent coaching in various academies here. In addition, I had focused on self-study. Unlike UPSC, KAS had three theory papers. So extensive learning was needed. During the interview, I was asked about current affairs. The interview was quite tricky as there were some analytical questions. However, I managed to answer all of them,” she said.
Nandana is the youngest daughter of S Murugan and R Sasikala. Murugan is a retired bank employee while Sasikala is a retired government servant. She has an elder sister Sumitha S Pillai and brother Anup S, both of whom are SBI officers. K G Jayakrishnan, 36, who secured the second rank in stream-II, is a senior grade assistant in finance department at the Secretariat. The Karakulam native’s dream of becoming an IAS officer prompted him to attempt the KAS examination.
“For the past two years, I have been preparing for various competitive exams. So, when notification for KAS examination was issued, I applied as there were provisions for government employees. Later, during the preparation of preliminary and main exams, I realised the examination pattern is different from that of the UPSC. It has an extensive syllabus,” he said. The youngest son of J Krishnan Nair and K Geethakumari. His wife is J S Indu.
For Pramod G V, a section officer of general administration department of the Secretariat, of Udiyankulangara, this is his 13th appointment in the government service. The 41-year-old secured the third rank in stream-III for gazetted officers. His first appointment in the state government service was as police constable in 2003, followed by that of an LD clerk in motor vehicles department in 2004. In 2006, he got an appointment as Secretariat assistant.
“I have cleared several competitive examinations. Though I thrice got appointments in Central government service, I decided to stay back in Kerala. It is my dream to become an IAS officer. But I could not clear the UPSC exam. Now, I can realise my cherished dream through KAS, “ he said. His wife Nithya Chandran is an assistant engineer in works department. L Parvathy Chandran from Vattiyoorkavu, who secured third rank in stream-II, is a senior grade assistant of general administration department.
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