Meet woman who left medical studies to fulfill father’s wish, cracked UPSC exam, became IPS, then IAS officer after failing thrice, her AIR is...

The UPSC Civil Services Examination (CSE), one of India’s most challenging exams, involves a rigorous selection process with millions of aspirants competing for it every year. Countless individuals from diverse backgrounds put in their hard work and dedication to become IAS, IPS, or IRS officers. Numerous candidates appear for the exam annually, but not everyone can crack the UPSC examinations. It requires days of hard work and many sleepless nights. However, some individuals work harder to fulfill their parents' wishes and leave their dreams behind. One such individual is Mudra Gairola, who left her medical studies to become an IAS officer for her father.

Who is Mudra Gairola?

Mudra Gairola is from Karnprayag, in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district. Her family stays in Delhi. Mudra has always been an excellent student who used to always top her class. She scored 96 per cent marks in her Class 10 exam and scored 97 per cent in her Class 12 exam. To top it all, Gairola also received an achievement award from Kiran Bedi, India’s first woman IPS officer, Kiran Bedi.

After schooling, she took admission in a medical college in Mumbai to study Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) and made her mark by earning the gold medal. After graduation, she came to Delhi and enrolled in the Master of Dental Surgery (MDS). But her father, Arun Gairola, always wanted her to become an IAS officer, a career he could not achieve. Her father had taken the exam in 1973 but could not crack it and his dream of becoming an IAS officer was left unfulfilled. 

How IAS officer Mudra Goirala cracked UPSC exam?

But Mudra Goirala was determined to fulfill her father’s dream and left her medical studies to prepare for the UPSC exam. IAS officer Mudra Gairola first took the exam in 2018 and reached the interview round but failed to qualify. She again appeared for the UPSC interview round in 2019 and failed again. Not losing her hope, she attempted to crack the exam for the third time in 2020 but failed again. She then worked harder and finally cleared the UPSC exam in 2021 with 165th rank and became an IPS officer.

But to fulfill her goal of becoming an IAS officer, Mudra Goirala took the exam again in 2022 and cleared it with a better AIR of 53 and became an IAS officer.