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Date of Interview: 19th April, 3pm
Board: M. Sathyavathy Ma’am
Home State: Maharashtra
Background: BA honours, MA, and JRF all In Geography from Delhi University.
Optional: Geography
Hobbies: Aquascaping and backpacking (Most of my interview was focussed here)
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Etracurriculars- College Street Theatre and MUNs
Mocks- Helped in some critical questions (that actually came in the final interview) and in getting used to the required body language and confidence.
Experience in interview- Very conversational. All the questions were entirely from hobbies, extra curriculars and educational background/ Optional. Chairperson was very charming, smiling all the time. Wonderful experience altogether.
Chairperson
Read my DAF aloud and asked me my first name.
- What is this aquascaping? (My first hobby)
- Do you have your own aquariums?
- Do you do it commercially also?
- And what about backpacking? What is it?
- Where did you travel last? (I mentioned Chopta and explained its geographical position)
- Which other states did you cover?
- What were you doing since 2019?
- What is Interlinking of rivers? What is your opinion on it? (i mentioned EIA, rehabilitation and Ken Betwa Project) (another critical answer that led to quarter of my interview- River based questions)
- What are the issues involved in Ken Betwa Project? ( I supported it and mentioned about need for proper rehabilitation and wildlife relocation and minimum damage)
- Are you sure wildlife can be relocated at this scale?
Member 1
- What is Chopta? A hillstation?
- What makes Tungnath special? Tell me the story.
- Where is it? In Kumaon or Garhwal?
- Where are Garhwal and Kumaon in Uttarakhand?
- Distance of Chopta from Dehradoon. And of Kedarnath from Chopta.
- Where is Chardham? In Garhwal or Kumaon?
- What makes Chandrashila trek attractive to backpackers?
- What issues did you face in the trek? What happens in low oxygen at high altitude? What precautions?
- What is a floodplain of a river? What activities will you prevent in a North Indian river floodplain
- Why can’t transmission lines be laid?
- What were the issues involved with artificial embankments on Kosi floodplains? ( and A few more followup questions)
Member 2
- You have studied Geography throughout your education, why? (Asked from my response to what I had been doing since 2019)
- Did you not fall in the engineering trap? Or get insecure that engineers are more successful these days? ( I mentioned about UPSC’s report and the statistics that prove the opposite, they noded in approval)
- Does the lack of opportunities in Geography, if you dont qualify CSE, not frighten you?
- Why did you join Streetplay team in college? What did you learn?
- What issues do tourist places in India face (from my hobby)
- As a policymaker, tell me the policies you will make for promoting Indian tourism sector for foreign ‘backpackers’ ( specifically backpackers)
Member 3
- You mentioned about Environmental Impact Assessment. In that regard, what are IRR ( and some followup questions about very technical words that I had never heard about, so I said I have not read)
- How is silting of reservoirs harmful?
- How do we remove the silt? ( i mentioned dredging and was giving a general answer, he interrupted me and asked for specific technologies, so I apologised and said I dont know)
- You have many aquariums, open water leads to mosquito breeding. How do you prevent that?
- What things will you be most passionate about when you come into the services?
- Don’t you think you could have done better if you went to those sectors directly?
Member 4
- Have you visited abroad? ( I said no)
- Which country would I like to visit the most (I said Egypt)
- Why? ( I said architecture, mythology, history) What type and phase of architecture ( I said tombs, temples, sarcophagi and pyramids of the Old kingdom)
- How were pyramids made? ( I mentioned a few theories)
- Name a few pyramids, their years of construction and their makers?
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