UPSC Success story: You must have heard this sentence “Where there is a will, there is a way”, but this sentence reflects the life story of Manoj Kumar Rai. Today we are going to tell you about such a candidate of UPSC exam, who had succeeded in the exam with 870th rank in the fourth attempt. His journey was not easy at all. Let us know about Manoj's story.
Manoj Rai was born and brought up in a small village called Supaul in Bihar. His parents were poor and the financial condition of the family was also not good. In such a situation, his childhood was spent struggling with difficulties and poverty.
It is said that the children of a house whose financial condition is not good grow up before their age. To meet household expenses, Manoj came to Delhi in search of a job.
When Manoj first came to Delhi from a small village, it took time for him to adjust to the big city. He was gradually understanding the everyday life here. After coming here, he applied for jobs at many places, but could not get many good jobs. Due to failure after continuously trying for a job, he opened an egg and vegetable stall. Along with this, he also cleaned the floors of many offices for money.
After this, he worked as a delivery man. As a delivery man, he used to supply many items to Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Delhi. Little did Manoj know that the job of a delivery man would change his life. Here a turning point came in his life and he met university students who told and guided him about the UPSC examination.
In an interview, Manoj had told that “JNU students advised me to complete my studies. I thought that getting a degree would help me find a good job. So I joined Sri Aurobindo College (Evening) and got my Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in 2000 while selling eggs and vegetables.”
After completing his graduation, he started his UPSC preparation in the year 2001. Let us tell you, somewhere in his mind he had a desire to do a government job, but due to his financial condition he never applied for a government job. When he started preparing for UPSC, he had decided that he would work day and night to succeed in the examination.
Manoj prepared for UPSC for three years and gave his first attempt in the year 2005. To earn money during preparation, he started taking private coaching for school students and also joined UPSC coaching. When he appeared for the UPSC exam for the first time, he was not selected. He had failed in the first attempt.
For the second time, English language had emerged as a major obstacle in the UPSC exam. “In UPSC, it is mandatory to pass English and a regional language paper.
So if no one passes it, other papers like General Studies and Optional Subject are not evaluated. Language papers are like qualifying papers whose marks are not evaluated in the final mark sheet. Let us tell you, Manoj failed to pass the English paper in the second attempt and all his hard work was wasted.
Even in his third attempt, he was successful in the prelims exam, but failed to clear the mains and interview. However, he did not give up and gave his fourth attempt at the age of 30. This time, to succeed in the examination, he had paid a lot of attention to his writing skills.
During the fourth attempt, he changed his preparation strategy and instead of studying for Prelims first, he completed the Mains syllabus. Completed.
Let us tell you, in the year 2010, he finally passed the UPSC exam with 870th rank. His first posting was as an administrative officer at Rajgir Ordinance Factory in Nalanda, Bihar.