Shakti Dubey tops UPSC Civil Services Exam 2024: Know all about her

New Delhi: Shakti Dubey has topped the civil services examination 2024, results of which were declared on Tuesday by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).

Who is Shakti Dubey?

Shakti Dubey, a resident of the Mamabhanja Talab area in the Naini area of Prayagraj's Yamuna Nagar locality, studied locally up to Class 12.

"Shakti studied till Class 12 at the SMC Ghoorpur, just nearby, and later topped the B.Sc exam from the University of Allahabad," her father, Devendra Dubey, a sub-inspector in the Uttar Pradesh Police, told reporters here.

"After graduation, she pursued M.Sc from the Banaras Hindu University (BHU), where she also topped. Though we initially sent her to Delhi for coaching, the COVID-19 pandemic forced her to return home and she continued her preparations on her own," he said.

Shakti's mother, Prema Devi, said the news of her daughter topping the exam was overwhelming. "I could not believe it at first. This has been possible only with the god's grace," she said, adding that Shakti is currently in Delhi and will be returning home soon.

Shakti's journey to the top began in 2018, after she completed her post-graduation in Biochemistry from Banaras Hindu University (BHU), following her graduation from Allahabad University.

She qualified for the examination with political science and international relations as her optional subject, a statement issued by the commission said.

Harshita Goyal, a B.Com graduate from MS University of Baroda, secured the second rank with political science and international relations as her optional subject.

Dongre Archit Parag, who has a Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech) in electrical and electronics engineering from VIT, Vellore, stood third in the rank with philosophy as his optional subject.

The civil services examination is conducted annually in three stages -- preliminary, main and interview -- by the UPSC to select officers of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS) and Indian Police Service (IPS) among others.

The civil services (preliminary) examination, 2024, was conducted on June 16 last year. A total of 9,92,599 candidates applied for this examination, out of which 5,83,213 candidates actually appeared in the examination.

A total of 14,627 candidates qualified for appearance in the written (main) examination, which was held in September 2024. Out of these, 2,845 candidates qualified for the personality test or interview.

Of these, 1,009 candidates (725 men and 284 women) have been recommended by the commission for appointment to various Services.

Among the finally qualified candidates, the top five comprise three women and two men.