HYDERABAD: Varun Reddy Karnati’s story is of relentless hard work and determination—one that civil services aspirants can draw inspiration from. The 20-something assistant commissioner with the I-T department, and a native of Miryalguda in Nalgonda secured All India Rank 7 in the Union Public Service Commission examination whose results were announced on Friday.
Varun’s achievement has come after four unsuccessful attempts. So what clicked for him this time? “I replaced Geography with Maths, which is my strength, and I did well.
Also, the interview round got a boost after I had an idea to improve where I had faltered previously,” he said and added that cracking civils also has a factor of luck.
In his first two attempts, Varun had failed to clear the interviews but in his third attempt, he got 166th rank. Still dissatisfied, he gave it a shot the fourth time and ranked 225.
Finally, he clinched the 7th position all over the country and topped among the two Telugu states.
To prepare for the civil, Varun would study for 10-12 hours every day. “Civils is an exam for which you prepare the whole year and the day of result decides whether the efforts were fruitful or not,” he said. To overcome the concomitant anxiety, Varun ensured he jogged daily, read books, met and socialised with friends and went on hikes too.
An IIT Bombay graduate, Varun had wanted to pursue an MBA.
“I wanted to do something with administration and IIMs were a door to top MNCs But then I was also fascinated with the kind of work my parents did—that level of public engagement and subsequent satisfaction they received. I finally decided that civils was my calling,” he said. His father is an ophthalmologist and mother an assistant director with the Agriculture Department, have been his inspiration and driving force for the last six years.
Speaking about his current job with the Indian Revenue Services (IRS), he said that though it was good, he found it to lack the kind of connect with those at the grassroots level. “I knew IAS would give me this opportunity and this also what kept me going for the fourth attempt,” he said.
Varun who has given Telangana as his first preference for posting after a year-long training, says, as an IAS officer one needs to be approachable and empathetic. “You should be able to leave your office and meet and interact with locals to hear their issues. And finally, you should be able to create coordination between the 30-40 odd departments you will be in charge of,” he said.
Currently undergoing IRS training in Nagpur, Varun returned to his hometown soon after the results were declared to celebrate with his family. “My phone hasn’t stopped ringing since results were declared,” he said.