Lucknow :

In 29 years, Thursday was the one of the busiest and most exciting days of Prem Ranjan Singh. His cell phone kept ringing every minute and all he said was ‘thank you’. It was not his birthday, but an unforgettable day as he secured 62nd all India rank in the civil services examinations. Ecstatic, Lucknow-based Singh, who was currently undergoing training at National Police Academy, Hyderabad, said: “it’s a moment worth living for. After four years, my dream has come true.”

This was his second attempt for Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). While in first he couldn’t clear the interview, in the second and third round, he got selected in police services. A mechanical engineer from MNIT, Allahabad, Singh worked for four years in Ashok Leylands, Chennai. “I wanted to do MBA but took the civil services route to serve my country,” said he.

On why IAS, he said “being an administrator puts one in diversified roles. There are different domains where one can work. One gets experience working in different departments and can also specialise in a particular one. IPS was restricted to police.”

His father D N Singh is a retired railway employee, while his mother is a homemaker. One of his two brothers is also in the railways while the other is an IIM-Ahmedabad graduate working in Mumbai.

Holding AIR – 67, city boy Rituraj Raghuvanshi said “rigorous studies and being patient is key to success.” Rituraj is presently working in Indian Railway Traffic Services. It was his fourth attempt in civil services. In his last attempt, he secured AIR – 555.

A CMS student, Rituraj did BA LLB (hons) from Symbiosis School of Law and LLM from National Law University, Bangalore. His father Anil Kumar Singh is an IAS officer and presently special secretary, rural development department, UP. On his success, Rituraj said “my books always accompanied me while I was out of home.”

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Lucknow / TNN / June 13th, 2014