Jabalpur: Daughter of a small transporter, Swati Sharma of Madhya Pradesh's Jabalpur has ranked 15th in the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) exam, the results of which were declared today.
This was Swati's third attempt. In her previous attempt, Swati had failed to clear the exam by only 12 marks. "I had always dreamt of seeing my name on the UPSC merit list and I worked towards fulfilling this dream. My parents have been my motivation and my father wanted to see me as an IAS officer," Swati said.
A resident of Dhanwantri Nagar area of Jabalpur, Swati completed her schooling from a private school in Sanjeevani Nagar in Jabalpur. Although her family's economic condition is not good, Swati always tried hard to achieve her goal and finally managed to crack the country's one of the toughest exams. Swati said that she has studied very hard for the UPSC.
"Practice is the most important aspect for achieving success in this exam. One has to practice a lot in order to clear all the three levels namely preliminary, mains and interview," Swati said. She used to get up at 5 am and studied in slots, ensuring that no portion was left out, she said.
Last time, when Swati attempted the exam, she was short of only 12 marks. "At that moment, I felt as if I would never be able to pass the UPSC. But, it was a momentary thought. I shook off all my doubts and decided not to give up. I started preparing harder for the third attempt. Finally, I appeared at the exam and cracked it," a jubilant Swati said.
Swati said she wants to work in the field of education and particularly against atrocities on women. "No one in our family is highly educated and I had never thought that a member of my house would be able to crack such a difficult exam. I brought up my daughter in the most ordinary manner. Swati has fulfilled my dream," said her mother, who is a homemaker.
