At her residence at Mutholi, near Pala, Gahana Navya James would wake up at the crack of dawn every day and pore over a whole volume of newspapers and textbooks for hours end. As the examination approached, she stepped further away from social life and took mock tests and read more and more books.
When the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) announced the results of the Civil Services examination on Tuesday, this 25-year-old discovered that she had secured sixth rank nationally. The rest of the day was taken up by media interviews, congratulatory phone calls, and visits from friends and family.
The inspirational story of Gahana, a Ph.D scholar with Mahatma Gandhi University, is not only about self-belief but also about relentless endurance. University topper in both under and postgraduate degrees in history and political science respectively, she opted to pursue doctoral degree in international relations.
