Ms. Ira Singhal, acclaimed Indian Administrative Service (IAS) Officer, Brand Ambassador of the Department of Disability, Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment, Ministry of Women & Child Development, and the NITI Aayog, ennobled Vertos at Lovely Professional University with her alluring charisma on 19th of April, 2021 through an online Women Empowerment Conclave organized by the Society of Management Learning.
In her first year in the office, she redeemed over 300 minors from bonded labor and reunited them with their families. She had been credited as the first person in Delhi to offer a full-time government job to a transgender individual.
She narrated her life chronicles, the swedges she had to face to get admission into different schools despite being exceptionally brilliant in academics. It’s an issue with most of the schools in India, as in cases of disability generally, most schools tend to find a reason to reject. Our society stigmatizes children with disabilities as if they are born without competencies. She elaborated how having the perfect self-image can potentially benefit us. She conveyed how she overlooked what society thought of her and continued with her goal-oriented attitude.
She explained how she originally wanted to be a doctor but, due to some constraints, had to enroll in a B.Tech in Computer Science Engineering program at Netaji Subhas Institute of Technology, Delhi. She took it as a pre-MBA, contriving her skills for a full-time MBA from the Faculty of Management Studies, Delhi. She discussed the motivation that drove her from working at Cadbury to the Indian Administrative Service. At some point in her life, she found herself working 20 hours a day, but she wasn’t satisfied she wanted her work to make a difference, which drove her towards the civil services.
She discussed her preparation strategy, how a course target-based approach over hour target-based approach while preparing landed her the top rank in the country.
Ira Singhal is an accomplished polyglot by nature and has proficiency in 3 languages Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, and of course, English & Hindi. She explained the moment she got her result and got to know she was the topper. She felt a breeze of relief, knowing the agonizing preparation has finally paid off! She added IAS exam is one of the worst self-inflicted torture you can put yourselves through. She also stated some paramount issues with the Indian students while preparing for any exam. We focus too much on what others do or what the toppers did. We must think about what’s best for ourselves and choose the right path.
Her message, “We should embrace ourselves wherever we are and move on. The how and why questions are the ones that destroy people from within. If she started interrogating herself; why she’s facing such issues? What’s her fault? Why did she have to go through so much? She would have shambled her entire existence attempting to discover resolutions to these issues. When we embrace ourselves and what has transpired to us; the path ahead of us unlocks, the light breaks through the hidden mist, and it’s a stunning journey. You are enhanced, enlightened, and enthralled by the places, the people, and the experiences“. In those prepossessing words, the wise lady signed off!
