IRS officer Pradeep Singh tops civil services exam

Indian Revenue Service officer Pradeep Singh tops the list of 829 candidates who have qualified for the prestigious civil services, including the Indian Administrative Service, the Indian Police Service and the Indian Foreign Service, the Union Public Service Commission announced on Tuesday.

The top three rank holders -- Singh, Jatin Kishore and Pratibha Verma -- are serving officers.

Singh is a resident of Haryana, while Kishore hails from Delhi and Verma from Uttar Pradesh.

"It is like a dream come true. It is a pleasant surprise for me. I always wanted to be an IAS officer. I would like to work for the deprived sections of society," Singh told PTI on phone from his home in Sonipat.

Twenty-nine-year-old Singh, a 2019-batch Indian Revenue Service (customs and central excise) officer, is undergoing probation at the National Academy of Customs, Indirect Taxes and Narcotics in Faridabad.

He said his main emphasis would be on improving education and farm sectors as he has become part of the most sought-after Indian Administrative Service.

"I have opted for my home state Haryana as the preferred cadre state for the IAS. I am happy that I will now get the chance to work for my state,” said Singh, who had taken leave to prepare for the examination.

Second-rank holder Kishore is a 2018-batch officer of Indian Economic Service (IES) and currently posted as Assistant Director in the Ministry of Rural Development here.

“It was my second attempt in the civil services examination. I am happy to have got second rank,” he told PTI.

Kishore, aged 26, said education and environment would be his focused areas. He is a native of Delhi.

Verma, an officer of Indian Revenue Service (Income Tax), said she wanted to become an IAS officer since her childhood.

“I was inspired by the way IAS officers act as the first responder at the time of any crisis. They are always on the frontline at the time of difficult situation. That is why I decided to prepare again for the exam (after getting selected in the IRS),” she said.

Verma had got 489 rank in the civil services exam 2018.

“I would like to work for women empowerment and children-related issues, especially in my home state Uttar Pradesh,” she said.

Verma, who hails from Sultanpur in UP, said her parents played an important role in motivating her for the civil services.

A total of 829 candidates have been recommended for the Indian Administrative Service, the Indian Foreign Service and the Indian Police Service, among other civil services, the Union Public Service Commission said in a statement, announcing the results of the civil services examination 2019.

Of the total qualified candidates, 304 are from General category, 78 from Economically Weaker Section (EWS), 251 from Other Backward Classes (OBC), 129 from Scheduled Castes (SC) and 67 from Scheduled Tribes (ST) category, according to the UPSC.

A total of 182 other candidates have been put in the reserve list, it said.

The selection has been made against 927 vacancies reported by the government.

"The result of 11 candidates has been kept withheld,” the UPSC said.

The civil services examination is conducted annually in three phases -- preliminary, main and interview -- to select candidates for the country's premier civil services.

Lakhs of people appear for the prestigious examination.

Candidates can obtain any information/clarification regarding their examinations/recruitment on the working days between 10:00 hours and 17:00 hours in person or over telephone nos. 011- 23385271 / 23381125 / 23098543, the Commission said.

The UPSC has a facilitation counter near examination hall on its campus in New Delhi, it said.

Results will also be available on the UPSC's website i.e. http//www.upsc.gov.in.

“Marks will be available on the website within 15 days from the date of declaration of results,” it added.