JK: UPSC rank holder Seerat Baji gets warm welcome in Rajouri

UPSC rank holder Seerat Baji was given a warm welcome at her home in Rajouri after securing an All India Rank (AIR) of 516 in the UPSC 2023 exams.

Baji, who hails from the remote village of Kanthol, about 70 km from Rajouri, passed the exam in her second attempt.

“A lot of girls are coming forward from here… They are performing very well in every field. In the last few years, it has been seen that every year whenever the list is released, it is expected that at least one girl will be from this area. This inspires other parents to pursue their daughters. This is how the environment changes. This will inspire more girls in the Kashmir valley to fulfill their dreams,” the UPSC rank holder told ANI.

“In future, more girls will crack UPSC with good marks. To achieve success in UPSC, hard work as well as dedication is required.

Seerat Baji’s father Mushtaq Baji expressed happiness and said, “We had been motivating her from the beginning to join IAS. Whenever she lost her courage, we used to encourage her. Many daughters in our community are talented… I would like to request that parents should let their daughters study instead of marrying them off. They should get opportunities and can reach their goals… daughters should be given proper education. Today every village has internet, school and college facilities…”

Union Public Service Commission declared the result of Civil Services Examination 2023 on 16 April. Aditya Srivastava secured the first position, followed by Animesh Pradhan and Donuru Ananya Reddy.

Others in the top 10 include PK Siddharth Ramkumar (4), Ruhani (5), Srishti Dabas (6) Anmol Rathod (7), Ashish Kumar (8), Nausheen (9) and Aishwaryam Prajapati (10).

Civil Services Examination is conducted annually by UPSC in three stages – preliminary, main and interview – to select officers including Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS), Indian Police Service (IPS) and others.