[Reports that Rakesh Balwal (282), Vikas Kundal (797) and Raj Kamal Arya (882), are also residents of Jammu, are still under verification. If that is established true, total number of successful candidates from J&K will rise to 10. However, I have not found any candidate by the name of Nitish Suri of Udhampur, as reported by UNI and carried in a section of press, in the entire list]

7 candidates from J&K qualify IAS-2011

PDP MLC’s daughter cracks IAS after topping in MBBS, KAS

Ahmed Ali Fayyaz

SRINAGAR, May 4: As the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) today announced results of the country’s most prestigious competitive examination, Civil Services Examination 2011, as many as seven candidates from Jammu & Kashmir were declared successful and recommended for appointment to Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Police Service (IPS) and other All India Services. Five of them are from Kashmir and two more from Jammu division.

Luck has this year favoured Dr Syed Abid Rasheed Shah of Habib Colony, Baghat Barzulla, who, at serial number 23 of the merit list, figures among the 25 IAS toppers. He is loosely followed by Dr Syed Sehrish Asgar of Kishtwar (118), Mohammad Aijaz of Mendhar Poonch (268), Dr Inamul Haq Mengnoo (280), Dr Bashir Ahmad Bhat (434), Dr Manazir Jeelani Samoon (451) and Qazi Mohammad Salman Ibrahim (459).

Five of the selected candidates from J&K are doctors, one has Bachelors in Technology and another Masters in Financial Administration. Two of them---Abid and Aijaz---had been selected even last year but both have got higher ranking this year.

Currently under training at a Police training academy in Hyderabad, Dr Syed Abid Raheed Shah had been declared successful in last years examination by UPSC and was subsequently allotted IPS. With remarkable improvement this year, he is the only candidate from J&K who figures among the 25 IAS toppers. He is sure to get J&K cadre of IAS but strongly subject to the condition that Government of Jammu & Kashmir refers at least two vacancies---minimum of one in General category---to the Department of Personnel and Training of the Government of India.

Son of a retired Deputy Conservator of Forest, Abdul Rasheed Shah, and retired head master, Jehan Ara Naqashbandi, Dr Abid had previously completed MBBS from Acharya Shri Chander College of Medical Sciences (ASCOMS) Jammu. For some time later, he had worked as a Resident doctor at New Delhi’s Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital and SKIMS Medical College Bemina. In his first attempt in 2010-11, he qualified the UPSC examination and was placed in IPS. In 2011-12, he appeared again and rose up to rank number 23 in the merit list. He is sure to get IAS.

Abid told Early Times that hard work, perseverance, dedication to work for welfare of the common people besides his parents’ support and encouragement were the key factors behind his success. “With due credit to my parents, particularly my mother who taught thousands of students for 34 years of her service in Education Department, my friends, colleagues and teachers, I have to say that my key source of inspiration is my sister, Andleeb, who has just completed her MBA from University of Kashmir”, Abid said.

Since he wants to dedicate himself for the service of poor people in J&K, he is keenly aspiring to get J&K cadre. “Being already trained as Police officer, I have the rare prospects of dovetailing law and order with development, which, I believe, is need of the hour in our strife-torn state”, he added.

Dr Abid’s nearest follower in J&K is none other than Dr Syed Sehrish Asgar from Kishtwar, who happens to be the daughter of a retired officer of Kashmir Administrative Service (KAS) and now PDP’s leader and MLC, Syed Asgar Ali. This exceptionally brilliant candidate has the unique distinction of having topped in the MBBS from ASCOMS Jammu. During her school days, she had reached the top of a quiz competition conducted by Doordarshan India.

Born on 01-06-1986 in reputed Syed family of Kishtwar District, Sehrish had done her schooling from Presentation Convent Jammu and remained topper through all these years. After passing 10+2 with 90% from Presentation Convent, she joined ASCOMS Jammu in the year 2003 and secured first position in MBBS when results were declared by Jammu University in the year 2009. Her father Syed Asgar Ali was the first to have qualified KAS from Kishtwar in the year 1977. Her grandfather Pir Nizam-ud-Din is also a renowned social worker of Kishtwar and as served Member Legislative Assembly (MLA) from Kishtwar constituency.

After completing her MBBS with first class first, Sehrish appeared in KAS examination of J&K State Public Service Commission (PSC) in 2009-10 but was declared successful. She filed a writ petition in J&K High Court but her claim was strongly contested by PSC with the plea that she had not completed MBBS at the time of appearing in Civil Service examination. Even as her petition was under hearing, she decided to teach the PSC a better lesson and appeared afresh in next year’s KAS. She figured at serial number one of the merit list when PSC declared result of 2010-11 KAS examination last year. Figuring at serial No: 118 in this year’s UPSC merit list, she is likely to be allotted IPS and may thus create history of becoming J&K’s first Muslim woman IPS officer.

Currently under training of KAS at IMPA in Jammu, Sehrish attributed her success to her parents and said that it was Allah’s blessing and gift to her family. She told Early Times that she had a strong urge or working for the people of the state of Jammu and Kashmir. “KAS is a prestigious stream but IAS is a far wider platform. I thank God that I am getting an opportunity to be part of policy making and policy implementation for my people”, she added.

Third from J&K in the UPSC merit list is a resident of Dharana village of Mendhar, Poonch, just 5 Km from LoC. Mohammad Aijaz too had qualified last year’s UPSC examination but due to his falling low in merit, he had been allotted Indian Revenue Service (IRS). Designated as Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax, Aijaz is currently under training at National Academy of Direct Taxes in Nagpur, Maharashtra. Like, Sehrish, he too had qualified PSC’s KAS examination, in 2009, but had soon joined All India Service after qualifying IAS (IRS) last year. He went for KAS and IAS after passing B Tech in Mechanical Engineering at the prestigious IIT Delhi with over 95% marks in 2008.

With his improvement in ranking this year, Aijaz has bright prospects of getting IAS in J&K cadre. He belongs to the reserved ST category but has qualified today in General category. His father, Choudhary Ghulam Nabi is a Junior Engineer in Rural Engineering Wing of Rural Development Department in Poonch and his mother is a housewife. Like Abid and Sehrish, Aijaz too said that he had a strong aspiration to work for the people of his state. His induction into IAS comes three years after Shahid Iqbal of Rajouri district broke the ice in UPSC for the border belt of Rajouri-Poonch.

Dr Inamul Haq Mengnoo from Kashmir, who figures at serial number 280 of the UPSC merit list, has qualified after reportedly completing MBBS followed by MS in Orthopedic Surgery. Reports said that Bashir Ahmad Bhat (434) was a Bachelor in Veterinary Science while as Dr Manazir Jeelani Samoon has MBBS. His father, Dr Jeelani Samoon, from Gurez area of Bandipore district, is working in Department of Hematology at SKIMS, Soura. Reports said that Qazi Mohammad Salman Ibrahim of Baramulla district had a masters in Financial Administration.

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