The Civil Services Examination is regarded as one of the most difficult examination in the country. Millions of applicants sit for the competitive exam every single year. If you want to get a good score in the examination then there is a lot of physical and mental preparation as well as effort and self discipline needed.
There are numerous inspiring stories of UPSC success that circulate on the internet, but out of all of these, there are only a handful which are unique and striking to the heart. Such narratives demonstrate the remarkable strength of individuals who have achieved victory over extremely tough circumstances. In that sense, one, IAS Ramesh Gholap, the son of a cycle-repair shop owner — is another astonishing success story.
Encounter this individual who cannot remember when he last had a good meal or a warm shower, sold bangles with a mother after losing his father. Smirking, he only sold bangles. Later on he worked hard to become a UPSC IAS officer.
Ramesh Gholap hails from the village of Mahagaon from solapur in the state of Maharashtra. He was born to Gorakh Gholap, a man from a middle class family, who worked self employed at a bicycle repair business. The Gholap family consisted of Ramesh’s mother, Vimal Gholap, his brother and his father. They initially lived off of Gorkah’s meager earning, until the health conditions of Gorkah went south due to alcoholism, which lead to him to close his shop, and the family plunged deeper into poverty.
In order to make ends meet, Ramesh Gholap’s mother Vimal did everything in her power, showing impressive strength by starting a business of selling bangles in neighboring villages. Ramesh was twelve years old at the time and was working as a bangles seller too in order to help sell the family business, even after contracting polio in his left leg.
Ramesh was a brilliant student and the idol of his school in Barsi. In the year 2005 though, his story turned tragic after the death of his father. He was so strapped for cash, that he could not even afford the bus ticket required to travel for the funeral. Thankfully he was able to attend his father’s last rites thanks to his neighbors. This event had a major effect on Ramesh because he understood at that moment that education was his key to breaking the cycle of poverty. He never looked back after that – dedicating all his time to studying with a single goal – to improve the future of himself and his family.
Even though Ramesh was an above average student, financial constraints made him prioritize job security instead of following his interests and aspirations. His started working as a teacher in 2009 right after earning an arts degree through an open university. Yet, the chance meeting with a tehsildar during his collegiate years fueled a different dream. Considering the aforementioned incident, he made up his mind to leave his employment and head to Pune to prepare for the UPSC exam. With the constant encouragement and assistance of his mother who toiled to earn enough to fund his studies, Ramesh was about to witness a drastic change in his life.
Ramesh then went to Pune in order to start preparing for the UPSC examinations, working for six months on his own before attempting the civil services exam. However, destiny was not on his side, so he failed the exam on his first attempt in 2010. He first attempted this examination in 2010 and couldn't succeed, But he's commitment lead to success when he passed Civil Services Exam in the year 2012 Ramesh has been able realising his dream of becoming an IAS officer by achieving AIR 287 under handicapped category, he has been able to overcome numerous obstacles in this regard. Presently, IAS Ramesh Gholap is the Joint Secretary in the Jharkhand Energy Department.
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