The desire of making it big in his life always left Khursheed Ali Qadri thirsty for knowledge. A lecturer at a government college in Kashmir, he kept reading books and dreaming big till he became the first youth from north Kashmir’s Pattan town to qualify IAS exam this year, Ruwa Shah reports.
As a student of Pattan’s Government Higher Secondary School in north Kashmir, Khursheed Ali Qadri had no focussed goals. After his Class 12 results were declared, he sat in J&K Pre-Medical Entrance (PMT) examinations but he failed to qualify the test.
“Efforts may fail but never fail to make efforts” Qadri, now 29, the first youth from Pattan to qualify Indian Administrative Services (IAS) examination this year, said. Qadri secured 95th rank and he is counted among the four Muslim toppers in top 100 selected candidates throughout India.
Born in an educated family, Qadri, since childhood, dreamt of being a gazetted officer like his father Ali Mohammad Qadri. His father is a retired executive magistrate while as his mother, Hameeda Begum, is a homemaker.
Qadri did his initial schooling at New Era Islamia School, Pattan up to Class 5. When he was in Class 6, he got admission at Sainik School, Manasbal, from where he completed his matriculation. After he failed to secure a seat in PMT exams, he did his Bachelor’s degree (B.Sc) from Government Degree College (Bemina) in Srinagar.
He then appeared in an entrance examination at Jamia Hamdard University, Delhi to pursue Master’s degree. This time, he managed to grab a seat. Being interested in academics, he qualified the National Eligibility Test (NET) and was awarded a junior research fellowship at University of Kashmir. He later on went to join as a lecturer in a government college of Kashmir valley.
However, his desire of making it big was not fulfilled. He continued to work hard to get the best out of himself. “I never studied for long hours at a stretch. I gradually prepared myself,” the young administrator says. In 2009, he climbed the first step of success when he qualified the Kashmir Administrative Services (KAS) examinations.
As his desire of becoming a civil servant was fulfilled, it didn’t satisfy his hunger of achieving greater heights. During his service as a tehsildar in Baramulla, he kept himself busy in reading books to acquire more knowledge. Amidst a busy schedule, he took out time for studying a number of journals, newspapers and literature. “I consider every field as dynamic and I continued studying which proved beneficial for me,” he says.
His method of preparation was simple. He studied two to four hours per day and chose books which could be easily read and understood. “Choosing limited books helped me as I could revise all the important topics. During this time, I studied previous question papers to understand the pattern of the examination,” Qadri said.
It was finally in May this year that Qadri touched the height of success by qualifying the Indian Civil Service exam which has made his parents proud. “I feel that this is simply an exam that has opened new vistas for me,” he says with confidence.
Qadri believes that his qualification had put more responsibilities on his shoulders. “The real test begins now. I will use this opportunity constructively which will define my real success and essence,” he said.
With a kindling passion to help needy people, Qadri wants to use his position as an administrator for the larger good of the society. His family which includes his brother and a sister have been supportive since beginning. And he credits all his success to his family, especially his uncle, Abdul Aziz Qadri, and his fiancé Shaista Bashir who, he believes, infused confidence in him to face the exams.
“For me this is a step towards fulfilling my dream. Life is beyond IAS and I want to contribute with my full potential to fulfil the essence of my existence,” he says.
Qadri has also worked as a teacher at Initiative for Competition Promotion, a Free Coaching Programme for Jammu and Kashmir (ICPJK) which was the brainchild of the incumbent Inspector General (Kashmir), Abdul Gani Mir. He also taught at SN Das Institute of Coaching.
Qadri is passionate about teaching, “I want to create a hub where those who lack proper guidance and counselling receive the best education for qualifying civil service examinations. I want to instil a passion for education among the student which I feel is lacking,” he says.
As an advice to the aspiring administrators, he says it is important to understand the pattern of the exam, “Be an effective learner and have firm belief and faith in Almighty,” he says.
Qadri feels proud to be the first IAS officer from Pattan and asks more youth to inculcate the passion and desire of touching new heights of success in them.
