RAIPUR: Sanjay Dehariya, 37, a four-time cancer survivor from Chhattisgarh’s Mahasamund district, has secured the 946th rank in the UPSC 2025 examinations, overcoming years of illness, financial hardship and personal setbacks to achieve the feat.
Hailing from Mahasamund district, Sanjay grew up in difficult circumstances. His father is a small farmer and he is the youngest of four siblings. “There were times when there wasn't enough food for everyone,” Sanjay recalls. “My mother would ensure all four of us were fed, often staying hungry herself.”
Just as his dreams were taking flight, tragedy struck. After graduating from a college in Mahasamund district, during his final year of studies, Sanjay was diagnosed with cancer in the parotid glands, the largest pair of salivary glands located just behind the jaw.
For the next six years, from 2012 to 2018, he fought a recurring battle with the disease four separate times and underwent intensive treatment at the Tata Memorial Cancer Hospital. His parotid gland was eventually removed.
“In 2022, I felt now it's the time to reclaim the dream that cancer had tried to steal. I lost 8 precious years fighting the disease,” he told this newspaper.
It was in his third attempt that he finally cleared the UPSC examination. He hopes to secure a posting in the Indian Revenue Service among the allied services under the reserved Scheduled Caste category.
In conversation, Sanjay revealed that the spark which ignited his dream of joining the civil services came during his school days, when a visit by the Navodaya Vidyalaya Commissioner, a senior IAS officer, left a lasting impression on him.
After completing his Class 12 at the Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya in Raipur, an institution that provided him with access to quality education, he took up government jobs at different times to meet his expenses and avoid becoming a financial burden on his family while continuing his studies.
He began his UPSC preparation in a cramped 100 square foot room, spending long hours at the Nalanda Parisar library in Raipur. “My day began at 6 am and I devoted 10 to 12 hours daily preparing for the UPSC examination, spending most of the time in the library. I resigned from my government job in 2018,” he stated.
Now, with a rank of 946, Sanjay stands on the threshold of a new life. Owing to medical ground relaxation and reserved category rankings, he says an IRS posting is already a certainty, though he remains optimistic about being allotted the IAS or IPS.
Regardless of the specific service, his mission is clear: he intends to focus on the health and education sectors. Sanjay Dehariya has proven that success is not about the wings one is born with, but about the courage to fly through the storm.