Meet man who cracked, IIT, IIM, CAT, left high-paying job in Hong Kong to crack UPSC exam twice, became IPS then IAS officer with AIR...

Some of the toughest exams in India include UPSC, IIT-JEE, IIM, and CAT. Despite the difficulty, millions of students attempt them each year. One remarkable person who has cleared all of them is Gaurav Agarwal, who is now an IAS officer.

Gaurav Agarwal hails from Jaipur. In 2001, he cracked the IIT JEE, securing an All India Rank (AIR) of 45, and completed his graduation in Computer Science from IIT Kanpur. However, his degree was delayed as he failed one subject in his sixth semester. Despite this setback, he cleared the CAT exam in 2005 and pursued an MBA in Finance at IIM Lucknow.

After completing his MBA, Gaurav worked as an investment banker in Hong Kong for over three years. Later, he decided to leave his high-paying job to prepare for the UPSC exam. In his first attempt, he qualified as an IPS officer and underwent training at the Police Academy in Hyderabad. However, his ultimate goal was to become an IAS officer. Determined, he attempted the UPSC again and achieved AIR 1, becoming the first person from his state to do so.

As an IAS officer, Gaurav has worked on several projects, including using machine learning to develop agricultural chatbots and serving as a business analyst for Kisan Call Centres. He is currently posted in Bikaner, Rajasthan.

Gaurav is also the author of the book Indian Economy. While launching the book, he wrote on LinkedIn, "Since my preparation days, I always felt that there is lack of a proper textbook for the GS economics part. Most other works are simply a collection of notes and dry statistics. Economics is not a subject like that. It is a subject to be understood and enjoyed. That is why wrote this book." It is considered as one of the best books for UPSC aspirants.