[UPSC Interview 2023] – Transcript #143: Shri Sheel Vardhan Singh Board, Anthropology Optional, Cooking, Cricket Hobby

Date of Interview: 20th Feb 2024, Morning session
Board: Shri Sheel Vardhan Singh
Optional: Anthropology
Duration: ~35 min

DAF Keywords – BTech-IIT Delhi, MBA-IIM Calcutta, Delhi, Punjab, Kolkata, Anthro, waste management, Cooking, Cricket, Placement Coordinator

• To view all IAS Interview Transcripts 2023, visit this page

Chairman

1. Tell me about your job profile, what are your roles and responsibilities
2. Since you worked in manufacturing sector, tell me why Manufacturing has remained stagnant for so many years
3. What are the social factors responsible for this
4. Indians don’t want to get their hand dirty, they don’t want to work hard, is it ?
5. How to boost manufacturing sector share in economy? Steps taken by the govt
6. Evolution of India’s foreign policy and recent success

Member 2

1. Why people not shifting away from Agriculture despite it being so risky in remunerative terms nowadays ,
2. But farmers are not risk averse, why they are taking risky agriculture with so much uncertainty
3. Why Farmers not taking up insurance policies for crops
4. Lack of awareness – but despite knowing they are not taking insurance policies
5. Risk Averse nature of society
6. More questions I can’t remember

Member 3

1. Govt acts and policies for women empowerment
2. Dowry good or bad
3. Are dowries still taken ? How method has changed
4. Misuse of acts
5. How to remove this evil from society

Member 4

1. What you did as project manager- waste management in IIT Delhi
2. Larger problem related to waste management in cities
3. What acts do we have in place to deal with waste management
4. Solutions to this problem
5. What is your Philosophy of life
6. Who is a Guru. Do we need to have a guru in life

Member 5

1. Follow up on Guru, Should we restrict Guru to traditional old men only ?
2. What do you think about the God men in contemporary times
3. Sympathy vs empathy
4. If want to relieve suffering of others, can we go to any extent ?
5. What annoys you
6. How do you deal with it
7. Do you know about financial markets – I said very limited understanding, so he did not ask anything

Chairman- once again

1. Before we wind up, tell me one more thing, recently a famous person died in Arctic Jail of Russia. What was his name?
2. What was his profession? What age?

Thank you, your interview is over.

Experience – Overall a very cordial and pleasant environment. No grilling happened at any time. I disagreed with some opinions at some points and clearly communicated I beg to differ. Chairman sir was encouraging with a pleasant smile all throughout. Other members had a poker face though.

Utility of Mocks-  I think it’s very important to do at least 2-3 mocks. It helps in getting accustomed to thinking on the feet and gain confidence when 5 very Senior officials are asking questions to you.  Vajirao&Reddy , Unacademy & Shubra Ranjan were good and closest to the actual interview environment.