Celebrations erupted in the Dubey household in Prayagraj as Shakti Dubey soared to the top of the UPSC Civil Services Examination 2024. With laughter, tears, and hugs all around, her family basked in the glow of her phenomenal success. Speaking to NDTV, her father Devendra Kumar Dubey said the family is happy with Sahkti's success and credited her hard work and god's blessings for the phenomenal result.
"I am feeling great, it's all because of god's grace," Mr Dubey said.
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Shakti was always a meritorious student, demonstrating exceptional academic performance and achievement.
"She did her graduation from Allahabad University, and is a gold medallist. After that, she completed her MSc from Banaras Hindu University (BHU)," said Mr Dubey.
Shakti had been preparing for UPSC exam for a few years, and even enrolled at a coaching institute in Delhi during the COVID time. But after that, she retuned home and studied on her own.
"She cleared the exam in her third attempt. She reached interview stage in her second attempt, but couldn't clear the exam then. But something better was in store for her, and we see this result," said an elated Mr Dubey.
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Her neighbour Sujata Dwivedi added, "I have been living in his area for 10 year, and a news like this has come for the first time."
"The family environment is good, she got a lot of support from her family. All of us are excited," she said.
Shakti told news agency ANI said that she had worked hard for many years, and at first, she could not believe the results, but later accepted them.
"I worked hard for many years. I told everyone at home--they are all very happy. It was hard to believe at first, but the feeling is slowly sinking in," she said.
"My brother had predicted I would secure the first rank," added Shakti.
Advising aspirants to focus on a minimal number of resources, she said, "A minimal number of books, guidance from previous years, and practising enough mock tests is equally important."
Harshita Goyal and Dongre Archit Parag secured the next two successive positions.