Jagrati Awasthi (UPSC Topper 2020)

Some Lesser Known Facts About Jagrati Awasthi

• Jagrati Awasthi is an All India Rank 2 holder in the Union Public Service Commission Civil Services Examination held in 2020. She is the female topper at the examinations.

• During her school days, Jagrati Awasthi was a very active student who used to participate in various events including declamation and debate competitions and won several prizes in them.

  

• Jagrati Awasthi studied electrical engineering during her higher studies. In 2016, she appeared for the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering examination and secured the 41st position in all India ranking.

• After clearing the GATE examination, Jagrati joined Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) as a technical officer and worked there for almost two years. Even after getting a job in her desired field of engineering, she continued to pursue her dream of becoming a civil servant and started preparing for the CSE.

• While working at BHEL, in 2019, she made her first attempt for the Union Public Service Commission Civil Services Examination but was not able to clear it on the first go. It was then that she decided to quit her job and fully dedicate her time to the UPSC examination for which she moved to Delhi to take up physical preparation classes there, but due to the Covid-19 breakout, she moved back to her hometown, Bundelkhand, and resumed the preparations with online study material at her home.
• Jagrati Awasthi made her second attempt for the UPSC examination in 2020 and cleared the examination by acquiring 2nd position in all India ranking (AIR). She also became the topper among the female candidates who clear the exam. Jagrati scored a total of 1052 (859 in the written test and 193 in the personality test), counting to a total of 51.95% in the examination. Awasthi gave the exam by choosing sociology as an optional subject. Jagrati Awasthi was selected for the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), the administrative arm of the All India Services of the Government of India. She follows a dream to work for rural development and concentrate on children and women welfare.

  

• After the Union Public Service Commission Civil Services Examination results were declared on 24 September 2021, and Jagrati Awasthi topped the examination, she was flooded with the congratulatory messages, and several media houses interviewed the new IAS officer.

• During an interview, Jagrati Awasthi narrated her preparation pattern as,
  

  During Covid times, coaching centres were all closed, yet maintaining motivation at home was really crucial. Initially, I studied for 8 to 10 hours. Eventually, I increased it to 10 to 12 hours and about two months before the exam, I further pushed it to 12 to 14 hours.”

• While preparing for the UPSC examination during the Covid pandemic, Jagrati was also concerned about her physical as well as mental health for which she also followed a fitness routine.

• Jagrati Awasthi credits her success in the UPSC examination to her parents and brother. During an interview, she said,
  

  My parents didn’t watch TV for the past four years as firstly my parents wanted my brother to clear NEET and later for my studies. Even they used to talk over the phone outside the house and hardly used to share any personal news. My mother was a school teacher but she left her job for helping us in studies.”

  She further added,

  When I was not selected in my first attempt, I was a little depressed but my mother said don’t curse your luck but do more hard work. She was right, I finally got success.”

• Talking about Jagrati’s passion to serve the country as a civil servant, her mother said,
  

  In 2016, Jagrati promised to me that if I would leave my job and support her full time, she would surely get a rank in GATE (Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering). I asked her to give that to me in writing; she signed the note and got 51st rank. Giving up the offers for IOCL and ONGC, for which she got first options, she joined BHEL in Bhopal as technical officer to be with her brother Suyash who was then preparing for NEET (medical entrance test).