21/05/2019
This journey Will Inspire You!
“After slogging for three long years, without a source of income, living off my parent’s money, in my gloomy room, and not doing anything productive as such, I feel I have internal mental satisfaction. Yes, I am at peace with myself”, writes Akand Sitra in the viral post that made him a Quora celebrity.
by Ananya Barua
19 hours ago
“An exam is just a qualifier, not a judge of your merit or the measure of your dreams”- is what my father used to tell me just before an important examination.
A few years down the line, and I found the same lines echo through the life of this 27-year-old, who has inspired thousands with his missed attempts to crack the Civil Services Exam (CSE).
Meet Akand Sitra, an Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IITM) alumnus who managed to establish his career in the government services, despite missing the mark in UPSC exams by a thin margin. Today, he is a Quora celebrity, who has been guiding and inspiring thousands of CSE aspirants in their path to serving the nation.
“I have taken many exams in the past few years. Much like life, you pass in some and fail in others. But, there is always something to learn. For me, it was the realisation that the objective is not to crack the test as it is just the first step-a qualifier. The main aim is to achieve what’s beyond it, a passion and a career milestone. So the focus should be there, as it’s not necessary that only one path would lead to it. There are many other ways,” says Akand, in conversation with The Better India (TBI).
He took the CSE in 2013, 2014, and in 2015 and although he missed these by a few marks, he ended up finding himself working with the Ministry of Home Affairs, only a couple of months later, in 2016.
A long, hard and fulfilling uphill trek
After graduating with a BTech in Biotechnology from IIT-M, Akand found a place in a prominent software company in Bengaluru. However, for him, this was far from an achievement for which he was aiming. He wanted more.
“Even after placement, I couldn’t go back to “relax mode”. I knew it was somehow not something I truly wanted to do. I wanted to help people in a “policy-making” way. This was somehow not a fit,” said Akand, who continued his quest for self-discovery, even after joining work in 2013.
With his heart elsewhere, he decided to apply for CSE again and after a few months of preparation, managed to clear the prelims.
“I somehow realised that this journey of going back to the old subjects like geography, history, politics, etc. was fascinating to me. I enjoyed learning, much more than the hours I spent at work or on travel. So, I took the hard decision, and quit my job to dedicate myself entirely for the preparation,” adds Akand.
With the support of his parents and an overarching passion for learning, Akand managed to give the Mains successfully.
“I was waiting for my results and wanted to use the free time fruitfully. That is when I came across Quora, which was slowly becoming popular. So, I thought the platform to be a good way to share the knowledge gained during my preparations while continuing my practice of writing and opining about vital issues,” he shares.
Akand continued to write on an array of topics like the education sector, politics, and the oil industry, among others. Fortunately, at that time, there were more readers than writers from India, and his answers gained popularity, and within six months, he gained about 1000 followers.
But, in April 2014, after the CSE Interview, the results arrived, and Akand could not make the cut by just 10-15 marks.
Refusing to give up, he decided to give another attempt, while continuing his practice on Quora.
“I was so close, but missed it. I knew I had to try again. But, I was losing confidence. I had wasted one whole year and was without a job. I felt emotionally weak. Yet, I was determined. All I told myself was this was just one way. And, picking up the pieces from there, I started to explore options of other competitive exams that would allow me to work for the country,” said Akand, who, in 2015, sat for the Reserve Bank of India Exam and also took the test to join the Intelligence Bureau of India.
Once again, he cleared the UPSC Prelims and Mains as well as the RBI exam but saw failure again in the CSE Interview. But, life had something else in store for him, as he cracked the Intelligence Bureau (IB) recruitment with flying colours, landing himself the position of an Assistant Central Intelligence Officer (ACIO).
