UPSC 2017 topper wants to work for women's empowerment: All you need to know about Nandini KR

Nandini KR, a trainee Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer, topped the Civil Services Examination 2016 the result of which was announced on Wednesday. This is the third time in a row a woman has topped the prestigious exam. In 2014, Andhra Pradesh’s Ira Singhal had topped the exam and in 2015 the first position went to Tina Dabbi of Delhi. Nandini is from Karnataka’s Kolar district and is presently undergoing training for IRS at the National Academy of Customs, Excise and Narcotics in Faridabad. [caption id=“attachment_3504495” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] A colleague offers sweets to Nandini K R in Faridabad. PTI[/caption] Previous attempts A civil engineering graduate from the MS Ramaiah Institute of Technology, Bengaluru, Nandini had cleared the exam in her second attempt in 2014 and was selected for IRS. However, Nandini had kept her eyes on Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and reappeared for the exam in 2015 but couldn’t clear the preliminary exams due to illness. In a report in The Times of India, Nandini said that while her preparation was not up to the mark in the initial attempt, her efforts to get a rank that would upgrade her to IAS came a cropper when she was diagnosed with dengue ahead of her third attempt in the preliminary exams. A year later, Nandini again sat for the civil services examination in 2016 despite undergoing training for IRS and secured the first position. Daughter of government school teacher The daughter of a government school teacher, Nandini had chosen Kannada literature as her optional subject. She belongs to the Other Backward Class (OBC) category. Apart from studies, Nandini spends her time reading literature and playing volleyball. After becoming an IAS officer, Nandini wants to work in the areas of women empowerment and education. Nandini is followed by Anmol Sher Singh Bedi and Gopalakrishna Ronanki who hold second and third positions at the exam which is conducted by Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). As per final results announced on Wednesday, 1,099 candidates — 846 men and 253 women — were recommended by UPSC for IAS (180), IPS (150), IFS (45) and other Group A and B central services (834). While 500 of the successful candidates belong to the general category, 347 are OBCs, 163 SCs and 89 STs, reported The Times of India. Of the top 25 successful candidates, 18 are men and seven women. Also, 44 are physically challenged, including 22 orthopaedically challenged, seven visually challenged and 15 hearing impaired. The UPSC examination is conducted by the government in three stages – preliminary, main and personal interview – after which officers for various government services like Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Police Service (IPS) and Indian Foreign Service (IFS) are selected.