Journey of Hawker’s son: Here's how this Bihari hawker’s son secured 45th rank in UPSC

UPSC Topper 2020: Anil Basak first broke free of the chains by entering IIT-Delhi in 2014. On Friday, he again made his family proud by clinching rank 45 in the civil services exam.

UPSC topper 2020: It was in 2014 when Anil Basak, for the first time, surprised his family and relatives by entering the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi. But this was just the first stage of his leap to success. Back in the day when he traveled from Bihar to Delhi, Basak had no idea that a few years down the line he would be amongst the top 50 to crack the elite civil service examination.

The boy from Bihar’s Kisanganj couldn’t clear the prelims of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) in 2018 in his first attempt. The results broke his heart. “I had put a lot of effort and energy between 2016 and 2018. And yet I couldn’t clear the prelims. Possibly because my strategy was wrong and I had become arrogant that if I can clear IIT-Delhi and I can get through any exam,” that's how he summarised the preparation and eventual result of his first attempt.