UPSC topper Raj Krishna Jha, who got 8th rank, says he twice failed the prelim exam

SITAMARHI: Raj Krishna Jha, 27, who notched up the eighth rank in the Civil Services Examination (CSE) 2024 conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) on Monday said he had performed disastrously in his first two attempts and believed that he would top the examination this time, his fifth attempt.

Jha, who failed to qualify the preliminary examination in the first two attempts, said he had approached the examination this time with a clear intention to top the examination and knew that he would make it.

“After I secured 739 marks in my fourth attempt in the Mains exam and missed the boat (selection) by a meagre two marks, I made it a point to go for the first ten ranks in the examination. But the element of risk was always there,” Jha, who is posted at Kolhapur as assistant manager for Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL), told HT.

He said, “I was confident about my success as I was doing quite well in mock tests as well.”

Raj Krishna completed his early education from a school in Nepal, near the Bhitamore border, and passed his Class 12 examination under the Bihar School Examination Board. He went on to pursue B.Tech in Mechanical Engineering from the Motilal Nehru National Institute of Technology (MNNIT), Allahabad.

After graduation, he joined Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) in 2018 and is currently serving as an assistant manager in HPCL’s City Gas Distribution (CGD) wing at Kolhapur in Maharashtra.

Raj Krishna said his father Sunil Kumar Jha’s experience as a private school teacher helped in shaping his career. “He is a great source of inspiration and my mentor as well,” said Jha.

Crediting his success to his parents, Jha said it was his father who encouraged and mentored him for a bigger role in the society. “Yes, the first two attempts were eventful. But, then I prepared for the UPSC consistently and devoted 14 to 15 hours on preparation during examination time,” said the UPSC topper, who had opted for geography in the optional subject.

His uncle, Anil Jha, who ekes out his living as an astrologer in Muzaffarpur, said Raj Krishna had been a bright student since the beginning,” said Anil Jha.

“The entire village is proud of Raj Krishna’s extraordinary success. He has become a role model for the youth of our area,” Tripurari Kumar, the deputy chief of Athari Panchayat, said.

Raj Krishna’s father, Sunil Jha, is a teacher in a private school in Nepal and his sister is a doctor.

In the UPSC examination, Raj Krishna opted Hindi and Geography as his main subjects.