Inspiring Story: IIT-Delhi Graduate Anil Basak, Whose Father Sold Clothes On Bicycle, Secures AIR 45 In UPSC CSE 2020

Anil Basak, son of a hawker’s son from Kishangarh in Bihar, has secured the 45^th rank in the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) Civil Services Examination (CSE) 2020.

Basak first entered the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi in 2014. He then began preparing for CSE from August 2016 but was unable to clear the prelims in his first attempt in 2018.

He secured the 616^th rank the following year and got into the Indian Revenue Service (IRS). However, edging to get into the IAS, Basak gave the exam again in 2020 and managed to attain the desired goal this time around.

Being the second-oldest amongst his four brothers, Basak comes from a really downtrodden family. In his own words, his father did all kinds of odd jobs to sustain the family and gradually managed to build a pucca house in Kishangarh after years of living in rented places and then a kaccha house.

“My father had studied only until fourth class. But he speaks several languages. My family has seen a state of abject poverty,” Basak was quoted in a report by India Today.

He added, “My father used to work as a hawker. He had also worked as a house help in Rajasthan just to sustain his family. He kept on doing odd jobs. And he eventually, single-handedly managed to build a small clothes business unit in Kisangnaj.”

In fact, Basak was eligible to avail the benefits offered to the scheduled caste (SC) community. However, his brilliant performance in the UPSC CSE meant that he qualified from the unreserved category itself.