>>MY UPSC INTERVIEW ON 10 APRIL, 2008

MY UPSC INTERVIEW
ON 10 APRIL, 2008
AT UNION PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION (UPSC) BUILDING
DHOLPUR HOUSE, SHAH JAHAN ROAD,
NEW DELHI

Mr. Balaguruswami, Chairman of the board

1. You might be feeling angry because we let you wait for a long time?
2. You don’t be angry in your life at all.
3. Tell us when you get angry?
4. In our life we do get angry sometime. Tell us when you did so?
5. You did your graduation from?
6. What was your academic subject?
7. What you are doing right now?
8. What is your hobby?
9. Your hobby of reading history books and your academic subject are same why?
10. What is your service preference?
11. Why you want to be a civil servant?
12. Which part of history you like most?

First lady member

1. Have you read only Indian history and not the world history?
2. In graduation you might have read about the world history or European history?
3. Do you know Elizabeth?
4. Why her period is famous?
5. One particular area for which her period is known for?
6. Who was the most important literary figure of her period?
7. Which segment of the ancient and medieval history you like most?
(My answer was the Gupta and Mughal period)
(She said yes Gupta period is known as golden age of the ancient India)
8. Among Mughals which ruler you like most?
9. Why you like Akbar as ruler?
10. Who were the courtiers of Akbar?
11. Which one of them was related with art?

Second member

1. Akbar’s courtiers were known by a ‘group name’. Can you tell that?
2. Presently few of the important companies are known by that name?
3. One contemporary person was very famous poet and was known for his shayari was offered services in Akbar’s court, but he decline to accept that. Can you name that person?
4. Do you know what shayari is?
5. You can come out with your guess about that person.
(I guessed Tulsidas and Surdas)
When he said no, then my answer was ‘Sorry, sir, I don’t know who was he.)
6. Do you know Ghalib?
(I said politely, but sir, he was not the contemporary of Akbar, he lived during the time of 1857 revolt and died in 1860’s)
(Other member consented)

First lady member

1. She said Ghalib lived during the time of the last Mughal ruler.
(I said yes that’s king name was Bahadur Shah Zafar.)
2. She said that he himself was famous poet.
(I consented and said he has himself written few books of shayari.)

Second member

1. After being appointed what you would like to be, Ghalib or Elizabeth?
2. Why not like Ghalib; he was a good person.
(I replied that he took life very lightly and was very humorous and was not ready to hear anybody, such qualities are not needed in an organization.)
3. How you would handle the undue pressure if it comes from your boss?
4. If you would not abide by his order he would throw you out of service.
(I replied if I would be appointed as civil servant I would get job security and no body can throw me out or dismiss me on trifling ground)
(On this the chairman of the board said smiling; your boss would certainly throw you out.)

Third member

1. Mr Hamid do you know Tawang and the controversy attached to it.
2. Which treaty is the cause of conflict, which demarcated boundaries between China and India?
3. In which year the MacMohan treaty was signed.
4. We also have problem in the Aksai Chin with china. Which treaty was signed for that area?
(I said the MacMohan line but he said it was only for the eastern area and we signed different agreement on the Aksai region)
(I replied sorry sir I don’t know about that treaty.)

Second lady member

1. Recently, we celebrated the 150th year of a particular incident. What was that incident?
2. Who was the hero of that incident?
3. One lady was also very famous. Name that lady?
4. Why there are so much controversy regarding history writing and which Indian government agency supervises such controversies?
5. Name the two historical incidents about which historians have differences?
6. Name the two historians one from ancient and other from medieval period you like most?
7. What difference you find in their writing?
8. Have you read ‘Glimpses of the World history’ and ‘Discovery of India’ written by Jawaharlal Nehru?
9. Can you tell in which form they have been written?
10. Name the daughter to whom these letters were written?
11. What is the difference between author and writer?

Second member

1. Have you gone thought the recent Union budget?
2. What are the various projects and policies?
(I replied Bharat Nirman)
3. Which is its main emphasis area?
4. What amount has been allotted for this project?
5. How many villages are in India?
(I replied sir I don’t know the exact figure of the villages in India)
6. He asked me to guess.
(I said nearly 6 lakhs of villages are in India)
7. He said if we divide 3500 crores of rupees to 6 lakhs of villages how much amount a village will get. Can that amount be sufficient for its infrastructural development?
8. Let me know other projects?
(I replied National Rural Health Mission)
9. What amount has been allotted to this project?

Third member

1. Do you know what is ‘Clash of civilization’?
2. What would be India’s position according to that book?

Mr. Balaguruswami

1. Please ask a question to me?
(My spontaneous response was ‘how was my performance sir?’)
(Chairperson laughed and said you can not ask this question?)
2. Ask another question?
(Then again I said that when I was sitting outside few of the aspirants were talking that you were former Vice Chancellor of certain university. I was unable to know the name of that university. Can you name that university?)
All started smiling along with chairman.
(Second member said that this is a personal question. Ask general question?) (Then I asked a question in regard to the inflation problem and what step government should take in the field of the monetary policy.)
3. He asked other members if they want to ask any question.
(First lady Member said she had a question)

First lady member

1. Can you tell me why out of proportion controversy has been created about Babari Masjid?
(My answer was ‘Babari Masjid controversy has been created because it is said that it was built by destroying a mandir there. But historically it is not the fact. Recently, excavation has been conducted at the place but no remains of the mandir have been found. But it is also historical fact that few of the mosques were built during medieval period using the materials of the mandirs for example the Quwwatul Islam mosque in Delhi and the Dhai Din Ka Jhopra at Ajmer.
I continued that such controversies related with these places have been attached to the Babari Mosque. But historically it is not true in Babari mosque case. Babari mosque was built by general Baqi of Babar’s period who named it on the name of the emperor. Recent out of proportion controversy has been created because the whole issue has been greatly politicised.

Mr. Balaguruswami

1. Any more questions? (all members said now its ok)
2. So, Mr. Hamid, please take out one card from the stand.
(I asked from which side I have to pick out the card)
3. Chairman said from any side you can.
(I took out the card and put before me ‘there was a sentence written on it’.)
4. Chairman asked me to read the sentence loudly and said to say few words on that.
5. The sentenced was all about as follow “Life is not all about success but the most important thing in the life is virtue”.
(I said that it’s true that in life a person has to be virtuous.)
(On this the Chairperson said ‘that means you don’t give importance to success in your life’.)
(I said that success has its own importance in our life but if we are virtuous and are on the righteous path nothing can stop us in achieving success.)

Thank you Mr. Hamid your interview is over you can go now.
I stand up and thanked the lady members and then the other members and left.

(Interview started on 4.30 p.m. and lasted for 5.00 p.m.)
(My answers were very short ans targetted)