‘Plan B for UPSC aspirants is needed to help with mental health while preparing for exam’
Kolkata: Preparing for the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) can be a gruelling task, filled with hours of self-doubt and mental pressure pounding on the candidates. Anushka Sarkar with All India Rank (AIR) 426 was no stranger to the situation. For her, getting offer letters from academic institutions like Oxford and London School of Economics to pursue masters was a boost of confidence she needed after failing her second attempt.
Out of 15 to 16 candidates who made it to the final list of UPSC Civil Services Examination (CSE) 2023, seven candidates are from Satyendra Nath Tagore Civil Services Study Centre (SNTCSSC). Anushka is one of them. She completed her bachelor’s in Geography from Lady Brabourne College and masters in Development Studies from NIT Raurkela as Gold medalist.
“While preparing for the mains, mental health was a wreck. After failing twice, I had panic attacks and dealt with it alone. It took time but I calmed myself and decided to take a break after the CSE 2023 but ended up making it to the list. SNTCSSC staff really took care of the candidates and gave emotional support,” Sarkar said. Like Sarkar, Paramita Malakar of Khardah in North 24-Parganas, who scored 812 AIR, also believed that having a plan B was of immense help for her. With 11 years of working and in her sixth attempt, Paramita cracked the difficult competitive examination and finally made it to the list after five years of struggle. But while working hard towards her civil service goal, she kept progressing in her plan B career choice. She has been an employee with the Information and Cultural Affairs department for the past two years. “In a way it was relaxing,” Paramita said, while stating that she got rid of the engulfing anxiety with the relief that she had a secure plan B and did not waste her time. However, she also felt that she lagged behind as unlike other aspirants who give 12-13 hours for the examination, she could afford only two to three hours.
Former Chief Secretary H K Dwivedi while speaking at the inaugural session in 2022 at SNTCSSC had also stressed that aspirants should not put all their eggs in one basket. “My suggestion to aspirants is, apart from civil services, have something else as an alternative,” he had advised.
“It is important that candidates come with mental preparations because normally, it’s a long haul. Not many crack it in their first attempt. Perseverance is essential. There also needs to be support from family, peer group and teachers,” Centre’s chairman Surajit Kar Purkayastha, IPS (Retd.) told Millennium Post. He further stated having a plan
B is needed. Among seven others was Bratati Dutta who secured 346 all India rank. “Unlike others, this was not a passion from childhood,” she said. After various setbacks in academics, Dutta started her journey with civil services from 2021. In her second attempt, she made it to the final list. “For the last couple of days I was quite tense. No more plan B, just focusing on plan A,” she said.
