Interview of UPSC Civil Services 2015-16 Qualfier - Debotosh Chatterjee, AIR 406

Debotosh Chatterjee

With a degree in Chemical Engineering from the prestigious Jadavpur University, Mr Chatterjee cleared the arduous Civil Services aka IAS exams in one go ! 

He bagged an All India Rank of 406 & is expected to be in Indian Revenue Service. 

In Prelims 2015, he scored 113 in GS & 149 in CSAT respectively

In Mains, he swept the Essay with 135 and a grand total of 889

An avid blogger & contributor to websites, he had Political Science & Intl Rlns as his optional. 

He was with us through the MAINS Test Series & preparation towards Personality Test. 

1.       When did you start contemplating about Civil Services?

It was always a majestic dream since childhood. Was not fully aware of the nitty gritty of the exam during my school days, but nevertheless was inexorably drawn towards the charm of bureaucracy. 

With age and the increasing availability of internet, I slowly learned the various dimensions of this field and by early 2011(the year i joined college) had firmly made up my mind about taking Civil Services as soon as possible. 

Disillusionment with Chemical Engineering in college served as an appetizer for taking this exam right after graduation in 2015; so was preparing since December 2014 (final semester in college).

2.       Why did you want to become a civil servant despite so many career options and while being an engineer from a reputed University?

I never really became an “engineer” in the true sense of the word. But then again, I had chosen Chemical Engineering back in 2011 NOT because of passion, but because of lack of better options. And the entire culture of rote-learning in college did not help retain my confidence in a career in engineering. 

   By final year, when I HAD to take a call on my career, I decided not to waste time on jobs or degrees which did not really enthuse me. I was more concerned with my own priorities, and Civil Service was high up in that list ever since my school days.

3.       How long have you been seriously preparing for UPSC?

Formal preparation began in December 2014, roughly 8 months prior to Prelims in August 2015. However, studies were hampered quite badly during March-April-May 2015 due to the formalities which had to be completed in the final semester in college.

However, I must state that I had been blogging and doing freelance writing on a professional basis since 2011. My experience in this field gave a massive impetus to my CS aspirations, as it instilled in me the confidence to clear this exam in the very 1^st attempt.

4.       What was your optional and why?

Political Science and International Relations (PSIR). I have been very strongly attracted towards the beautiful subject of International Relations. 

   Plus I had a flair for writing, which carries significant weightage in a subject like PSIR. Choice of optional should be strictly based on interest and NOT on “popularity” or “scoring potential”.

5.       Do you think educational background plays any role in success in this exam?

To an extent, YES. But NO formal importance is attached to anyone’s educational background at any stage of the exam. However, it is your education that makes you who you are and in that sense it plays a very subtle role in success. Without strong character and mind (both of which are built by education), it is difficult to withstand the rigour of UPSC.

6.       Can you elaborate your study routine? This will help other aspirants.

I was a very undisciplined kid in college. Despite my career ambitions w.r.t UPSC, I had lost the ability to work hard with determination following two successive failures in IIT-JEE in 2010 and 2011. So, getting the discipline back into my life was a very important part of the preparation process.

The first 6 months of the prep was done while I was still in college. But since I rarely ever attended college in the final semester (Thank You JU), I had loads of time for the prep.

I did not have any time bound daily routine, since that sort of a thing always hindered by efficiency.

However, I used to make weekly (and at times daily) targets w.r.t. covering certain topics in the syllabus and tried to adhere to those as much as possible. This is very important, as otherwise there is always a chance of getting lost in the gigantic syllabus. 

Inspite of focussing on things like “routine” and “number of hours of study” I was more concerned about being disciplined in the long run. If I had planned to read/write something on a particular day, then I would stick to it at all costs.

7.       What needs to be the style of answer writing in Mains?

Depends on the individual. But I preferred using Point-Format for 99% of my GS answers and Paragraph format for Optional. 

Using points helped me think quicker and smarter while answering in Mains 2015.

8.       Did you practice answer writing? Did it help? Did you appear in any Test Series for Mains?

Perhaps the MOST IMPORTANT aspect of preparation for those who are very serious about clearing this exam is answer writing. The saying goes like this – “The more you sweat in training, the less you bleed in battle”. Answer writing must be practised with a no-nonsense approach, because it is the ONLY thing that is TOTALLY under our control in this uncertain UPSC journey.

I had taken both GS and Political Science Test Series and took both very seriously in the last two months before Mains.

9.       What should be the approach towards Prelims in the age of –ve marking & now with total stress back on GS I?

Practising as many MCQs as possible after covering the syllabus. In UPSC Prelims, hardly 30% of the questions have direct answers. The rest involve calculated guesses. Accuracy MUST be improved while solving such MCQs, and this can only achieved when one has a high degree of familiarity with the format.

10.   What is your opinion regarding the change in the MAINS Syllabus?

The present Mains syllabus and format is quite an improvement from the one UPSC used to have 10 or 20 years back. But I still feel that the optional subjects should be scrapped altogether and some alternative addition be made to an ALL-GS syllabus for the Mains exam. This can make it a level playing field.

11.    Was going through this journey a lone fight or did you find people around you?

I am introvert by nature, and had no issues in preparing for UPSC all by myself. It is difficult to find companions for an exam like this, especially here in Bengal. However, I had invaluable support from my parents and some of my relatives throughout the journey.

12.    Any other comments / thoughts you would like to share?

The best chance of clearing UPSC for any aspirant is when he is no longer afraid of failure. I had failed so many times in the last 6 years, that I did not fear it anymore. That said, the whole structure of Civil Service examination must appeal to you like nothing else. Only then can you entertain strong chances of getting into the Indian bureaucracy. 

Thank you very much Mr Chatterjee for conversing with us. We wish you all the best for your career in civil services