External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Sunday reminded about the entry into civil services, stating that the UPSC interview in Delhi took place on March 21, 1977 – the day the Emergency was removed.
“(1977) Election results were coming from the previous day … The feeling of defeat of the emergency rule was understanding. In a way, this is what I got through interview,” he said in his address at a program here.
22 -year -old Memory Lane, walking under Jaishankar, said he returned from interview with two major takeaets – the importance of communication under pressure and these important people could live in “bubbles”.
In its address to a fresh batch meeting of admissions for civil services, the EAM asked the UPSC exam for ‘Agni Pariksha’ (Fire Buy Fire), and said that it is a “very unique” test system in the world to choose candidates for services.
The real challenge is interview, Jaishankar said, and cited his own UPSC interview 48 years ago.
“I was interviewed on March 21, 1977. It was the day of the day when the Emergency was canceled.
About a month ago, the Modi government marked the 50th anniversary by the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi to implement the Emergency, to recall the events held across the country that its leaders had called a “dark chapter” in Indian democracy.
The 21 -month emergency was imposed on 25 June 1975 and was lifted on 21 March 1977.
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The Janata Party, a alliance of opposition leaders, won the 1977 elections, defeated Indira Gandhi, and Morarji Desai became the Prime Minister.
Jaishankar said, in the interview, he was asked what happened in the 1977 elections.
Citing his association with JNU as a student and his subject of political science, the EAM reminded, “I was lucky.”
“We participated in the 1977 election campaign. We all went there and worked for the Emergency defeat,” Jayashankar said.
So, in response, “I forgot that I was in an interview”, and at that moment, “my communication skills came together somehow,” he said.
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Jaishankar, an experienced diplomat, who previously served as Foreign Secretary and has widely traveled, said at the time, to convince those who were “very connected to the government, sympathetic to the government, which happened, which happened, without annoying them, was really quite a challenge”.
And, another thing he said, he learned that day, this “Bubbles of Lutyens”.
“These people were really surprised, they could not assume that it was an electoral outcome, while for us, normal students, we could see that there was a wave against the Emergency,” the EAM recalled the interview experience.
From that day, he said that he learned how to communicate under pressure and do it without humiliating people.
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The Union Minister said, “How do you explain, how you explain. It was a carry-time. The second carry was that important people could live in a bubble and are not realizing what is happening in the country,” the Union Minister said.
And, the people in the region, because students like them who were part of the campaigns, and went to places like Muzaffarnagar, “We had raised a feeling on the ground”, but, the people sitting in Delhi, with all the information from all the systems, “somehow miss it,” he said.
In his address, he also asked what the barometer is to assess a successful democracy, saying that this voting is not from a record or voting percentage.
“For me, a successful democracy occurs when the whole society is given an opportunity; this happens when democracy is working. They have the right to express themselves, but it is not some people, not from the whole society … expressing themselves,” Jayashankar said without any detail.
He recalled the meeting of successful UPSC candidates that they are all “entering a service”.
“This Amrit period of 25 years is your era. Your era, because you have to work, you have to distribute, and you will be the beneficiaries of this era, you will be the leader of this era,” said Eam.
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He urged all of them to contribute to the vision of Vikasat India by 2047.
He said, “I want you to think 20 years ago … What will be your contribution when we move towards a trip to India? And, the mindset that you have to bring to feel that dream of creating a developed nation,” he said.
He emphasized that good governance is also related to national security.
For new admissions in civil services, he emphasized that “representing India abroad, representing India before the world, is the greatest privilege, the greatest honor that any Indian can have”.
Eam said that he “no doubt that by 2030, we will become number 3 financially. But, going to number 2 and eventually, will be a big thing, and it will be difficult, and it would be difficult, and will require big, national efforts”.
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In the next 20 years of your service, you have to know that “big changes” will be coming. The upcoming era will be of AI, drone, space and EV and green hydrogen, he said.
The Foreign Minister said in the Indo-Pacific sector, “Our abilities should be such that whatever challenges come, India is ready to move forward and handle responsibility, we call it the first response. How do you prepare India to become the first respondent?”.
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