The UPSC 2017 results have given a lot of inspirational stories for UPSC aspirants to take a cue from and renew their own IAS preparation for the upcoming IAS exam. One such truly amazing story is that of Saumya Sharma, the rank 9-holder in the CSE 2017. IAS topper Saumya’s success is stupendous not just because of the single-digit rank but also because of the fact that she has a hearing impairment.
Aspirants would find this article very inspiring while preparing for the IAS Exam.
| Aspirants should begin their preparation by solving UPSC Previous Year Question Papers now!!
To complement your preparation for the upcoming exam, check the following links: |
UPSC Exam Topper – Background
- A native of Delhi, Saumya is a graduate of the National Law School, New Delhi.
- Saumya Sharma completed her schooling from Delhi.
- Both of her parents are doctors.
- She started losing her hearing power from the eleventh standard. Since then, she uses hearing aids to help her hear.
Tidbit About Saumya Sharma
| When she was a final year student in that institution in 2016, Saumya made headlines when she wrote a letter to the Delhi High Court seeking the extension of reservation for physically handicapped students applying for the Delhi Judicial Services Exam to hearing-impaired candidates as well.
At that time, the quota was only for the orthopedically handicapped and the visually handicapped. Taking cognisance of the cogent arguments in her letter, the then Chief Justice G Rohini extended the reservation without any litigation. |
UPSC Topper Strategy Video – Saumya Sharma
- Saumya studied only for 5 – 6 hours per day.
- She relied a lot on the internet and gave a lot of importance to the daily current affairs.
- She suggests candidates to not take the CSAT lightly and practice CSAT papers to be able to clear it with ease.
- She read the newspaper daily to keep track of the daily current affairs.
After reading her strategy, also follow the mentioned links below to complement your preparation:
- 10 Must Habits Which Will Help You Crack UPSC in First Attempt
- 10 quick tips on answer writing
- 5 Basic Tips and Tricks to Prepare for UPSC Exam or any Competitive Exam
- 4 Simple Tricks to Remember Everything You Learn
Optional Subject
Saumya took law as her optional subject since it was the subject of her graduation as well and she was quite confident about it.
If you want to know more about the law optional, click on the linked article.
It is very important to know how to choose the optional subject for the UPSC mains, as the two optional papers account of 500 marks, a big chunk of the final tally.
Read about the success rate of optional in UPSC in the linked article.
Saumya Sharma – IAS Topper Booklist
Here is Saumya Sharma’s booklist for the GS papers:
- Current affairs: The Hindu, online sources
- Polity: Laxmikanth, selected chapters from DD Basu and ‘Our Parliament’
- Ancient history: RS Sharma’s old NCERT, new NCERTs
- Medieval history: 7th NCERT, selected chapters from old NCERTs
- Modern history: Bipan Chandra’s old NCERT, Spectrum, India After Gandhi
- Art & Culture: 11th NCERT book on Art, NIOS, CCRT
- Geography: GC Leong, NCERTs, Oxford India Atlas
- Environment: Down to Earth magazine
Refer to UPSC Books in the linked article.
Saumya Sharma – Rank in UPSC Civil Service Exam & Education Background
Rank: 9
CSE: 2017
Age when cleared: 23
Optional Subject: Law
Attempt: First
Education: Graduation in Law
Native: Delhi
Preferred cadre: AGMUT
Service: IAS
The above details would help candidates prepare for UPSC 2022.
Related Links
| IAS Salary | IAS Eligibility |
| IAS Toppers | Kanishak Kataria |
| Tina Dabi | Ira Singhal |
| Anudeep Durishetty | Nandini K R |
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