KOCHI: Malavika G Nair, one of the three civil services candidates from Kerala to figure among the top 50 rank holders in the Civil Services Examination 2024 announced on Tuesday, said she appeared for the Civil Services (Main) Examination just 17 days after giving birth in September last year.
“I am very happy that my name appeared on the rank list, thank God. It was my last attempt to get into the IAS,” Nair, who hails from Chengannur in Alappuzha district, told reporters after the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) announced the results.
Nair, who has secured the 45th rank, is currently an Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer. She told reporters that the months in the runup to the examination had been a ‘stressful period.’
“It was a highly strenuous attempt. I was pregnant while writing the prelims exam last year. There were challenges on the health front. My son was born on September 3 and I wrote the Mains exam on September 20. I was able to write the exam only because of the support given to me by my family,” she said, adding that the experience of writing the exam in previous years helped her immensely.
Nair, a deputy commissioner-rank officer, is currently on child-care leave. She has cracked the UPSC rank list twice before and secured the 172th rank in the 2022 exam when she was allocated the IRS.
{{/usCountry}}Nair, a deputy commissioner-rank officer, is currently on child-care leave. She has cracked the UPSC rank list twice before and secured the 172th rank in the 2022 exam when she was allocated the IRS.
{{/usCountry}}Her husband Nandagopan M is an Indian Police Service (IPS) officer trainee of the 2023 batch, currently in charge of the Manjeri police station in Malappuram district.
“I am very happy because the effort she took while carrying the baby and preparing for the exam was massive. It is not easy at all. She is very deserving,” he said.