It's a dream come true, says civil services exam topper Ishita Kishore
New Delhi, May 23: Delhi University graduate and daughter of an Air Force officer, Ishita Kishore said achieving the first rank in the civil services examination is like a dream come true for her and she would work towards women empowerment after becoming an IAS officer.
Twenty-six-year-old Kishore cleared the prestigious examination on her third attempt.
"I am very happy over getting the first rank. It's a dream come true for me," Kishore told PTI.
She expressed gratitude towards her family for continuously encouraging her.
"I have a lot of gratitude for my family who stood with me when I could not clear the civil services examination in the first two attempts. They encouraged me a lot," she said.
Kishore, the younger of two siblings, said she used to study for at least eight to nine hours a day to prepare for the examination.
"The success is the result of my hard work," she said.
Kishore's father was an Air Force officer and her mother used to teach at a private school. Her elder brother is a lawyer.
"I have opted for the Indian Administrative Service. I have given my preference for Uttar Pradesh cadre," she said.
Kishore, who has also been a national-level football player, said she would work for women's empowerment and the upliftment of neglected people.
"I am a national-level football player. I participated in the Subroto Cup football tournament in 2012," she said.
Kishore, who lives in neighbouring Greater Noida, qualified for the examination with political science and international relations as her optional subject. She graduated in Economics (Hons.) from Shri Ram College of Commerce, University of Delhi.
As many as 933 candidates -- 613 men and 320 women -- have qualified for the civil services examination 2022, the results of which were announced on Tuesday by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).
The top 25 candidates comprise 14 women and 11 men, it said.
The civil services examination is conducted annually in three stages -- preliminary, main and interview -- by the UPSC to select officers of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS) and Indian Police Service (IPS) among others.
The first four rank holders are all women as Garima Lohia, Uma Harathi N and Smriti Mishra secured the second, third and fourth ranks in the examination.
"It is really heartening to see women getting the top four ranks," Kishore said.
Lohia and Mishra are graduates of the University of Delhi, while Harathi N is a B.Tech degree holder from IIT-Hyderabad.
This is the second year in a row that women candidates got the top three ranks in the prestigious exam.
Shruti Sharma, Ankita Agarwal and Gamini Singla had secured the first, second and third positions in the civil services examination 2021.
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Ajit Pawar rues Marathi-speaking areas of Karnataka still not part of Maharashtra
Mumbai, May 1 (PTI): Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Thursday said even 65 years after the formation of Maharashtra, there is one regret - that Belgaum and Karwar, parts of adjoining Karnataka, were still not merged with the western Marathi-speaking state.
Speaking at a party event organised on the occasion of Maharashtra Day, Pawar, who heads the ruling NCP, asserted his outfit will not abandon the ideology of legendary social reformers Shahu Maharaj, Mahatma Jyotirao Phule and B R Ambedkar.
Recalling the work of chief ministers of Maharashtra from the first CM Yashwantrao Chavan to the incumbent Devendra Fadnavis, Pawar said each one of them have contributed to development of the state since its formation in 1960.
"Maharashtra was formed out of struggle. Even if Maharashtra has completed 65 years of its existence, here is one regret in our hearts. Even today, the Marathi manoos (Marathi-speaking people) of Belgaum and Karwar are still not with us. The case is going on in the Supreme Court.
"The day they are merged with Maharashtra, we can confidently said Maharashtra is now complete," he said.
Maharashtra has been demanding that Marathi-speaking areas in Karnataka -- Belgaum, Karwar, Nipani -- be merged with the state, a stand strongly opposed by the southern state.
Pawar noted India's population in 1947 was 35 crore, but it has now multiplied four times to 140 crore. The population of the state has also increased accordingly, he said.
He emphasised that those in power now and in the past have been working to address the water woes of Maharashtra, but with a growing population, the sources have become limited.
The deputy CM said some people oppose the bullet train project in India, but China and Japan have progressed because of such high-speed transport modes.
The erstwhile Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government (November 2019-June 2022) had stopped the bullet train project connecting Mumbai to Ahmedabad which is currently under construction.
