Meet Ansar Shaikh, the youngest IAS officer who cracked UPSC CSE at 21

Asar Shaikh is the youngest IAS officer to crack UPSC CSE at the age of 21. Know his inspiring story here.

To clear the UPSC Civil Services Exam is extremely difficult and aspirants dedicate years of single-minded studies to prepare to crack the IAS recruitment exam. Ansar Shaikh became an example for millions when he cleared the UPSC CS exam and became an IAS officer at the mere age of 21, overcoming multiple setbacks and blocks.

Shaikh is currently posted as ADM, Cooch Behar, West Bengal. Was born to an autorickshaw father in the Marathwada district of Maharashtra’s Jalna village and a mother, who worked in the fields.

Shaikh’s family was struggling financially but they never let economic battles come in the way of Ansar’s education. Always an academically excellent student, Ansar scored 91 percent in the tenth class. He went on to pursue a graduation degree from Pune College.

After graduation, he started preparing for the UPSC Civil Services exam and cracked the exam in 2016 with an All India Rank (AIR) 361 on the first attempt.

As a child he witnessed several hardships, his brother had to drop out of class 7 and start working in a garage to earn a few extra bucks for the family. His sister was married off at the young age of 15. In spite of all the hardships, Ansar did not lose hope and dedicatedly studied and cracked the toughest exam in the world.