Meet 22-YO Rupam Sonali, Who Cleared JPSC in Her First Attempt

It was a quiet evening at the hospital in Ranchi when two sisters clutched their mother’s frail hands. Sixteen-year-old Rupam Sonali held her mother’s face gently, her eyes brimming with tears she refused to shed. Moments later, their world changed forever.

For Rupam and her elder sister Rupali, life would never be the same again. Their father had passed when Rupam was just 11, and now, within a week of being diagnosed with blood cancer, their mother too was gone.

“Relatives, instead of offering support, distanced themselves. We were only two daughters, and society was cruel,” Rupam recalls. “They told us we had no future, that we were helpless without parents.”

Yet in that moment of loss and abandonment, Rupam found the spark of a promise — to her mother, and to herself: I will do something big in life.

Today, at just 22, she has kept that promise by clearing the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) Civil Services Examination in her first attempt, without coaching, without guidance, and against all odds.

The long road to education

After losing their parents, Rupam and her sister resolved to fight back instead of succumbing to despair. Finances were tight, and emotional support was absent.

Her sister, Rupali, says, “When our mother passed away, it was a tense and uncertain period for us. As the elder sister, I felt responsible, but Roopam too carried herself with remarkable strength. Mum always told us to never lose hope and to find something positive even in the worst of times. Those words carried us through.”

“At that time, I was pursuing nursing training. Financially, we survived with the small savings left by our parents and by renting out a few rooms in the house. We were careful not to waste any amount from life insurance because we knew once that money was gone, it would never return,” adds the 25-year-old.

Rupam too refused to compromise on her studies. “I realised very early that financial independence is the only weapon for a girl in such a society,” she explains.

To fund her education, she began tutoring students from Class 2 to Class 11. Every day, she woke at 4 am to study, then travelled 80 kilometres from Kunti to Ranchi for her college. By afternoon, she was back home, and from 4 pm to 7 pm, she taught neighbourhood children. Only after dinner would she return to her books, often studying late into the night.

“I used to study six to eight hours daily, mostly at dawn and late at night,” Rupam recalls. “The lockdown years were actually a blessing because I could save travel time and focus completely on strengthening my base.”

But the journey was far from smooth. Without coaching or mentors, Rupam often doubted herself. “Many times I thought, am I even studying the right way? Am I wasting my time?” she says. “There was constant self-doubt. But every time I felt like giving up, my mother’s face on her deathbed came before me. That image would pull me back.”

Her strategy for success

Rupam’s preparation was rooted in discipline and resourcefulness. With no access to coaching centres, she built her own roadmap:

• NCERTs for basics: Geography, History, and Economics.
• M. Laxmikanth for Polity.
• Online research and YouTube lectures for Jharkhand-specific topics, since most standard books weren’t available in English.
• Previous Year Questions (PYQs) as her strongest tool. “A lot of JPSC questions repeat in some form. So, PYQs were a blessing,” she says.

Her mantra was simple: read less, revise more. She made detailed notes, revised them multiple times, and stuck to one source instead of chasing dozens.

“Many believe that coaching is necessary, but I want to tell every aspirant, it is not,” Rupam stresses. “Consistency, patience, and determination are far more important than expensive coaching classes.”

The result day

Last July at 3:30 am, Rupam received a call from a Deputy Superintendent of Police who had taken her mock interview. The words on the other end left her stunned: “Rupam, you have cleared JPSC.”

Still half-asleep, she was first shocked, then overwhelmed. Her sister, who had stood by her through every storm, burst into tears of joy.

Recalling the day, Rupali shares, “It was overwhelming — tears, laughter, disbelief all at once. For me, her success wasn’t just about clearing an exam; it was proof that all the sacrifices, all the hardships, and the lessons our mother had instilled in us had carried us through.”

“Of course, not everyone reacted the same. Some people celebrated, while others compared, saying she was lucky, their child wasn’t. But I believe it’s a balance of fate and hard work. Roopam worked tirelessly, and destiny met her halfway,” adds Rupali.

Soon, neighbours and teachers came to congratulate her. “Those very relatives who once told us we would amount to nothing came to our doorstep after seeing my name in newspapers,” Rupam says with a faint smile. “It was not just my victory, it was an answer to all the taunts we had endured.”

Rupam has been allocated Jharkhand Finance Service and is expected to join as a State Tax Officer after her training at the Ranchi Institute of Public Administration.

Beyond her achievements, she has bigger goals. “I want to start a YouTube channel where I’ll upload my notes and strategies,” she says. “I don’t want anyone else to go through the same hurdles I faced. If I can help even one underprivileged student, it will be worth it.”

For aspirants from disadvantaged backgrounds, Rupam offers these golden lessons:

• Start with NCERTs and build your basics strongly.
• Focus on PYQs as they reveal patterns and save time.
• Patience is key — this exam is a marathon, not a sprint.
• Use online resources smartly. Rely 70 percent on books, 30 percent on digital content.
• Make notes, revise relentlessly. For one book, ten revisions are better than ten books and one revision.

Her message is simple yet powerful: “Never give up. Even if you try once or twice, that single effort can transform your life. Whatever happens, happens for good — believe it, and keep moving forward.”

Sitting beside her sister today, Rupam often wonders how proud her parents would have been. “Everything I’ve done is for my mother,” she says softly. “I still feel her presence guiding me.”