[UPSC Interview 2025] – Transcript #83: Sanjoy Verma Board, Geography Optional, Watching and playing Football Hobbies

Date of Interview: 05/01/2026 Afternoon Session
Board: Sanjoy Verma Sir
Optional: Geography
Home State: Tamil Nadu
Hobbies: Watching and playing Football

Key DAF Details – Geography optional, Watching and playing Football, Mechanical Engineering, Tamilnadu.

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Chairman

1) How do your friends and relatives call you? Then throughout the interview he addressed me like my friends used to call me.
2) What are all the Hindi movies were Illayaraja had worked on? (DAF)
3) what’s your favourite songs of 2025?
Chairperson himself mentioned about Dhurandhar music. (Had no idea)
4)You play football, so with whom do you play? Answered with young people.
Follow-up question – don’t they feel that you’re bullying them?
5) If you have absolute power to change the climate of India, what would be your actions? (Geography optional)
6) According to you which state in India has the perfect weather?

Member 1

7) so you have done mechanical Engineering, What are critical minerals?
8) Currently which country holds the monopoly in critical minerals?
9) Don’t you think they are weaponising the monopoly?
10) What would be the implications on India due to supply chain constraint?

Member 2

11) Asked Questions regarding Job details which was not mentioned in the DAF.
12) eV sector is extremely dependent on Batteries and it is quite expensive, so apart from Govt subsidies how does the price of battery would be reduced in the long run?
13) what is circular economy?
14) Questions regarding Biofuels?
15) what are all the initiatives of government in using Stubbles burnt in Punjab and Haryana for circular economy?

Member 3

16) What according to you are leadership qualities? Are leaders born or made?
17) Questions regarding recent Indian Football issue related to AIFF and it’s implication on Indian football?

Member 4

18) Situation based question where a subordinate of you (me) who is close with your boss is corrupt. How would you handle this?
19) Is corruption can only be handled with actions and complaints?
20) what is that one quality that you would need to develop to become the best officer?
21) Which service would you like to join and Why?

Chairperson

22) Evaluate India as a whole – Is India a introvert or Extrovert nation? (Follow-up)
23) When India has never tried to occupy other countries how can India be an Extrovert nation?
24) What is that one historical fact that only you or only few people knows about it?
25) what is the famous dish in Madurai? And some follow up questions regarding that.

That’s all. All the best for you all.