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Civil Services Examination

J&K-cadre IPS officer Utkarsh is city topper

CHANDIGARH: Utkarsh Duggal (28), serving as a J&K-cadre IPS officer, has secured the 17th rank in the Civil Services examination.

J&K-cadre IPS officer Utkarsh is city topper

108th Rank: Megha Arora, daughter of Punjab DGP Suresh Arora, who bagged the 108th rank, celebrates her success with her parents and grandmother at their house in Sector 7, Chandigarh. Pradeep Tewari



Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 27

Utkarsh Duggal (28), serving as a J&K-cadre IPS officer, has secured the 17th rank in the Civil Services examination. The results were declared on Friday.

A resident of Chandigarh, Utkarsh cracked the IRS in the third attempt, the IPS in the fourth attempt, again the IPS in the fifth attempt and after the last attempt this time, he is all set to get the IAS.

It was a double delight for the Duggals as Utkarsh’s brother Aniket (25) has secured the 261st rank.

Both have done engineering from Punjab Engineering College, Chandigarh. Both took sociology as a subject in the Civil Services.

Utkarsh did engineering in metallurgy and passed out in 2011, while Aniket was in the mechanical stream and passed out in 2014.

“My brother Utkarsh is my inspiration. He guided me towards the Civil Services. He has been brilliant right from the start. He will join the IAS,” said Aniket Duggal.

Their father Ramesh Kumar Duggal retired as an audit officer, while their mother Ranjana Duggal was a history teacher.

It was Aniket’s fourth attempt. He has also been pursuing law from Panjab University (PU).

“Right from passing out from PEC, the target of both of us was the Civil Services,” said Aniket. Both took coaching during their initial attempts and later resorted to self study.

Oxford-returned lawyer secures 48th rank

Vikramaditya Malik (29), a resident of the city, has secured the 48th rank. He is a son of Haryana IAS officer Yudhvir Singh Malik, who is serving in the Central Government as Secretary, Road, Transport and Highways.

Vikramaditya did his law from the National Academy of Legal Studies and Research (NALSAR), Hyderabad, in 2011. He did his masters from the University of Oxford in 2013. At present, he is working as a lawyer in Delhi.

“For the past two years, I have been preparing for the Civil Services exam,” he said.

His sister Surabhi Malik is a 2012 Punjab-cadre IAS officer. His mother Suchita Malik is an author.

“Working as a lawyer gave me satisfaction. However, I wanted to do public service. Then there was inspiration at home too,” he said.

It was his fourth attempt and his subject in the Civil Services was law.   

DGP’s daughter secures 108th rank    

Megha Arora (26), daughter of Punjab DGP Suresh Arora and resident of the city, has secured the 108th rank.

Megha did her BA from Emory University in International Relations. She did MA in Foreign Affairs from the University of London.

It was Megha’s third attempt. “My first preference is the Indian Foreign Service (IFS),” she said.

“When I was in the third year in BA, I got interested in international relations. Then I decided to go for the IFS,” she said. 

Her mother Sonali Arora is Chief Commissioner, Income Tax, at Shimla.

“I took only mock tests. I did not go for classroom coaching,” she said. Megha Arora had taken political science and international relations in the Civil Services as her subject.

‘My mother is my inspiration’   

It is in their family. Shruti Arora (25), daughter of Haryana IAS officer Keshani Anand Arora, a resident of the city, has secured the 118th rank.

Keshani Anand Arora’s two sisters — Meenakshi Anand Chaudhry and Urvashi Gulati — had served as the Chief Secretary of Haryana. Their father, Prof JC Anand, had served in the political science department of Panjab University (PU). Meenakshi Anand Chaudhry’s son Maneesh Chaudhry is a Haryana cadre IPS officer.

“For me, my mother is an inspiration,” said Shruti Arora.  Shruti has done engineering from the University Institute of Engineering and Technology (UIET), Panjab University (PU), from where she passed out in 2014. It was her third attempt. Her subject was sociology.

“I relied on self study. I didn’t take any coaching,” she said.

Her father, Dr Narinder Arora, is an orthopaedic surgeon and had served as the Director General, Health, in Haryana.  

Adhiraj Singh Rana (25) has secured the 164th rank. He passed out from Punjab Engineering College, Chandigarh, in the electronics stream in 2015.

It was his third attempt. “I am likely to get the IPS. I am yet to take a decision,” he said. His father, Dr Kamaljit Singh Rana, is a doctor at the GMSH, Sector 16, Chandigarh, while his mother, Kiran Rana, is a housewife.

He took coaching. His subject was political science in the Civil Services exam. “When I was in college, I started preparing for the exams,” he said.

Dr Deepak Siwach (31) secured the 233rd rank. At present, he is working as a doctor at Ambala with the Haryana Government.

He did his MBBS from the GMCH-32, Chandigarh, in 2010. This was his last chance and he managed it.

His father, Rajinder Singh, worked as a superintendent at the Haryana Civil Secretariat and his mother, Sharmila Devi, is a housewife. “I reached up to the interview stage in all six attempts, but was lagging marginally,” he said. His subject was public administration in the Civil Services. He took coaching in 2012 and later resorted to self study.

Double delight for the Duggals

A resident of Chandigarh, Utkarsh Duggal cracked the IRS in the third attempt, the IPS in the fourth attempt, again the IPS in the fifth attempt and after the last attempt this time, he is all set to get the IAS. It was a double delight for the Duggals as Utkarsh’s brother Aniket (25) has secured the 261st rank.

Coaching institutes make tall claims

Meanwhile, coaching institutes across the city made claims about successful candidates and a number of these provided a list of the same people. “This year, the result is quite encouraging. At our coaching centre, Abhimanu, we have secured seven selections among the top 100 from both online and offline courses across various centres,” said Parveen Bansal, managing director, Abhimanu. Meanwhile, a coaching centre, Brainy IAS, at Chandigarh has claimed that Sirsa resident Sachin Gupta, who has secured rank 3, took coaching from them. Gupta studied at Thapar University, Patiala, where he did engineering in the mechanical stream. He worked with Maruti Suzuki from July 1, 2013, to July 1, 2015, at Gurugram and is working in the Ministry of Corporate Affairs as an Assistant Director from December 11, 2017, onwards. “Many students have benefited from my online classes throughout the nation. Last year, we produced AIR 51 — Ila Tripathi — and many more. This year, more than 22 students have been selected in the IAS from our institute,” said G Rajput, director and mentor of Brainy IAS. “Chandigarh has become a hub of coaching for the IAS. As many as 17 of our students have cleared the Civil Services this year. As now there is just one subject, the engineers have benefited,” said Anil Kumar, Director, IAS Study Circle, Chandigarh. 

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