At an age when most graduates are still deciding on a career path, Pooja Singhal had already secured a place in India’s elite civil service.

While most news from Dantewada once centered on conflict and Naxalite insurgency, Namrata Jain changed the narrative in 2018. She grew up in Geedam, a small town in one of India’s most restive regions.

Can an IIT Delhi graduate, naturally gifted at technical subjects, fail the UPSC in his first attempt? For Divyanshu Jha, the answer was a humbling “yes.”

What does it take for a single civil servant to become the “right-hand man” for three different Prime Ministers of varying political ideologies? T. K. A. Nair provides the answer.

Most bureaucrats are known for managing the status quo, but Amitabh Kant became famous for disrupting it.

What makes an officer stand out in a crowd of thousands? For Anil Swarup, it was the transition from the khaki of the Indian Police Service (IPS) to the highest echelons of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS).

What drives a man to decline a full scholarship from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) after topping IIT Madras in Computer Science?

Would you build a 100km road with your own salary and social media donations if the government said no? For Armstrong Pame, the answer was a resolute yes.

What happens when the mind that topped India’s toughest competitive exam meets the world’s most pressing developmental challenges?