Everything you need to know about UPSC Topper 2024 B. Sivachandran (AIR 23)
- Name: B. Sivachandran
- Hometown/City: Chennai, Tamil Nadu
- Roll Number: 1214507
- Year of Appearance: 2024
- Attempts: Fifth
- Age: 28 years
- Education: CA
B. Sivachandran, hailing from the district of Dharmapuri, Tamil Nadu, has emerged as the state’s top performer in the Civil Services Examination 2024, achieving an All-India Rank of 23. He is the first person under the Tamil Nadu government’s Naan Mudhalvan to reach such a high rank in the civil services examination.
Sivachandran’s Family Background
B. Sivachandran comes from a modest background in Dharmapuri. He completed all his education in Chennai. His family consists of his parents and his brother. Both of his parents work in the finance sector, and his brother serves in the Indian Army. His father is a qualified chartered accountant, while his mother is a financial consultant.
Sivachandran’s Educational Background
B. Sivachandran completed his schooling at the DAV Group of Schools, Chennai. After completing school, he pursued a bachelor’s in commerce from Bharathiar University. B. Sivachandran is also a qualified chartered accountant, having cleared the CA exams in 2019. What makes his journey to becoming a CA exceptional is that he did it without any coaching. In addition to being a CA, he is also a qualified company secretary. He cleared the CS Executive exams with an All India Rank of 1. His preparation for UPSC began in 2018, while he was preparing for the CA Final exams.
Sivachandran’s Work Experience
Sivachandran interned at Deloitte and R. Balachandran & Co. He worked as an accounting associate at Deloitte for 11 months, from August 2015 to July 2016. After becoming a chartered accountant, he joined R. Balachandran & Co. as an audit manager. He has been a practicing chartered accountant for the last few years. He started preparing for the civil services while working as a chartered accountant. He also works as a consultant for the DAV Group of Schools, the same school from which he completed his schooling. B. Sivachandran has several years of experience in the fields of audit, financial management, and income tax.
Why civil services?
Sivachandran’s motivation to join the civil services, particularly the IPS, stemmed from a desire to contribute to national security. The 26/11 Mumbai terror attack had a great impact on his life. He admitted that the bravery of the NSG during the Mumbai terror attack inspired him to pursue a career in national security and governance. Sivachandran initially considered joining the army but couldn’t due to some technical reasons.
Sivachandran’s UPSC Journey
Sivachandran started preparing for the civil services in 2018 while he was studying to become a CA. His journey to becoming an IAS officer was not easy. It took Sivachandran five attempts to clear the UPSC CSE.
One of the noteworthy aspects of his UPSC journey is that he cleared it without any coaching. He was against the idea of spending lakhs of rupees on coaching institutions and believed that anyone could clear the UPSC with determination and sincere efforts. Even though his initial attempts didn’t yield the desired results, he kept persevering. He eventually cleared the UPSC in his fifth attempt with an All India Rank of 23 and emerged as one of the toppers from Tamil Nadu.
Sivachandran’s Preparation Strategy
Sivachandran, who started preparing for the UPSC in 2018, never attended any coaching classes. He believed that it is a myth that UPSC cannot be cleared without coaching. He proved this right by clearing the exam with an All India Rank of 24, without any coaching.
Initially, Sivachandran used to study for 11-12 hours a day but later shifted to 6-7 hours of daily study. Even though he didn’t attend any coaching classes, he participated in various mock tests over the years. These tests helped him prepare better for the exam and significantly improved his answer-writing skills.
Read more about UPSC AIR 1 (2024) Shakti Dubey and UPSC AIR 2 (2024) Harshita Goyal and other UPSE Toppers 2024
