MADURAI: Joy knew no bounds for D Felix Gabriel Mark, son of a traditional farmer hailing from Melapanaikulam, a backward village in Sathankulam taluk of Thoothukudi district, who cracked UPSC exam.
The 27-year-old Mark secured a rank of 783 at the all India level and managed to achieve his goal to become an IAS officer in the sixth attempt.
The overjoyed Mark, on Wednesday, a day after the results were declared, stated that he was aware of the importance of holding onto an ambition amid peer pressure that stemmed from the talent pool of aspirants during his college days in Chennai.
Mark said he started UPSC exam preparation in 2019 and honed his competitive skills to begin from an IAS Academy in Chennai. However, a sudden outbreak of Covid-19 at the fag end of 2019 caused a setback to his plans, he recounted.
After a brief period of three months of witnessing no progress, with the academy shut after lockdown restrictions were imposed, Mark said he managed to prepare for the exam online.
Mark pointed out that to excel in the UPSC exam, he had to spend a great deal of time towards acquiring practical knowledge rather than mere theoretical knowledge and have social interaction with civil servants as a means of motivation. But unfortunately, the Covid lockdown hampered his progress, he recalled. Finally, he achieved the desired results, he said.
Attributing his success to self-motivation and parental support, Mark told DT Next that he wants to dedicate his achievement to his native village.
He said ‘everyone in the society is equal and no one should feel left out or marginalised’ and added that he wanted to bring out more talents from the village.