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(Success Story) UPSC 2021 TOPPER, AIR-3 GAMINI SINGLA Winning Strategy for Cracking IAS Exams

Gamini Singla has secured the 3rd rank in the UPSC Civil Services Examination, 2021. She is a native of Punjab. She has given the UPSC exam twice, in 2020 and 2021. In 2020, Gamini didn't crack the exam but she didn’t give up after her failure in the first attempt. She was self-studying and preparing at home from 2020 onwards. In 2021, she scored a total of 1045 marks and secured AIR 3rd in her second attempt. During an interview by PTI, She said about her success in the examination, "It is like a dream come true. I have opted for IAS and would like to work for the development of the country and welfare of people". She also credited her father for her achievement. Gamini says her father helped a lot in her studies as he understood what was exactly important for prelims and mains, which helped her save her time.

EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND

Gamini graduated from Punjab Engineering College, Chandigarh in 2019 with a B.Tech in Computer Science Engineering (CSE). She also received a placement offer but she declined because Gamini wants to pursue civil services. She started preparing for the UPSC exam after her graduation. She chooses Sociology as her optional subject.

GAMINI SINGLA’S UPSC PREPARATION STRATEGY

1. READING NCERT BOOKS

Gamini read all the NCERT books from class 6th to 12th. She believes that NCERT builds a strong base. These books should be read before other UPSC standard reference books. She also mentioned that nowadays questions are consistently asked directly or indirectly from NCERT books. NCERT books will help you and provide a clear pathway for your preparation.

2. RELYING MORE ON SELF STUDY

Mostly Gamini did self study for the UPSC Civil Services preparation. She used to study 9 to 10 hours a day. She believes that self study enables students to retain knowledge more naturally than coaching. When you can set up your own pace of study then you know your own strength and weakness better. She further mentioned that coaching may be beneficial in placing you in the right direction, but at the end of the day it is only self-study which can get closer to success.

3. ROBUST STUDY PLAN

When Gamini didn't crack the UPSC exam in her first attempt then she developed a study plan and prepared a unique strategy for her next attempt. Finally, she topped the UPSC exam with AIR 3rd in 2021. She mentioned that start your preparation in such a manner that both prelims and mains portions are covered. Aspirants must have a robust study plan in place with clarity on the syllabus and important subjects to be covered.

4. CURRENT AFFAIRS

Gamini reads the newspaper regularly and sticks to reading one monthly magazine. She believes that newspapers and monthly magazines play an important role in all 3 steps of UPSC examination: prelims, mains and interview.

5. NOTES MAKING

Gamini believes that making your own notes is the best way to prepare. In this way, you are able to evaluate yourself better. One cannot gain success in UPSC civil services examination without preparing their own notes and revising them regularly. She believes in 3 Rs, Read, Revise and Re-Revise.

6. PRACTICE MOCK TESTS

Gamini solved the previous year questions of UPSC exam to get an idea how the questions were asked and what's the pattern of the exam. For prelims she solves as many mock tests as she could, practicing mock tests helps her a lot in the actual UPSC exam.

For mains test series, her main motive was to answer writing practice regularly. Her optional was sociology.

7. USAGE OF ONLINE SOURCES

Gamini took the help of the internet when she didn't understand any topic of any subject, which she could not find in any standard books. She also mentioned that read only relevant study materials because bulks of study materials are available on the internet.

At last Gamini sharing her view with future aspirants

"Along with your hard work, the strategy also plays a very important role. So, reflect on your mistakes, as to why you have failed in the previous attempts. Carve out a unique strategy. You need not follow someone, just have a unique strategy and work hard. There is no substitute for hard work in this examination.”