Date of Interview: 14/09/2021
Board: Sujata Mehta Ma’am
Home State: Haryana
Background: BITS Pilani Goa Campus – Electrical and Electronics Engineering. Hobby: Playing Football and Reading History and other Non – Fiction Books.

Chairperson

1. Introduce yourself with reference to your education and work experience.
2. What is the status of IRMS?
3. What do you think about IRMS?
4. Privatisation has been followed in other countries’ railways systems with mixed results. Should India go for it?
5. What would be thhe benefits for consumers?
6. Is cost the sole concern of railway passengers or does quality of services matter? What approach should IR take?

Member 1

1. Why are the farmers protesting in Haryana? (No follow up)
2. What do you think about recent events in Afghanistan? (very broad question)
3. (a few more questions which i can’t remember)

Member 2

1. Should India go for bullet train?
2. Why are we redeveloping railway stations to attract more traffic when traffic is already an issue?
3. at this point the chairperson chided me for not knowing how to wear mask properly DESPITE being an ENGINEER!?!?!?!?!? This was the third time she had asked me to put on my mask properly which was sliding down my nose again and again
4. I didnt lose my composure. Remained confident enough and apologised.
5. As an Electrical engineer, tell me if we should go for complete solarisation in electricity generation when we know that solar is cheaper than hydro.
6. Why does railway not follow commercial accounting?
7. Tell me about FIFA world cup 2018. (again a very broad question)
8. Tell me if you have ever attended the chaupal proceedings in Haryana.
9. What did you learn from chaupals?

Member 3

1. Private operators would take only the plum routes in railways. what is in it for railways to privatise?
2. (I said that we will get revenue sharing and haulage charges)
3. But you can get 100% revenue if you run. your own trains. why are you sharing?
4. Do you think that the private Operators will carry the social sector obligations which you mentioned earlier?
5. What did the railways do during COVID?
6. Anything related to farmers?

Member 4

1. Started with a long monologue on “Presumptive loss” and asked me if CAG should be going in this direction? //I said i had heard of the term but wasn’t aware of the specifics.//
2. Asked me the same question again, and i said i didnt know.
3. Do you read newspaper?
4. So recently a judge from Allahabad HC said that cow is the only animal which both inhales and exhales Oxygen. Do you subscribe to this view?
5. But it is a judgement by the HC judge. How can we reject it? //I said we can file an appeal with the SC in case it is a judgement.//
6. So you feel that theres no option against the judiciary when they do wrong? Do you feel that there are different sets of rules for the executive and the judiciary?
7. How is Afghanistan’s situation similar to that of Myanmar?
8. But everyone is talking only about Afghanistan and not Myanmar. Why is that the case?

Chairperson:

1. Would you like to be asked any questions from any other area?
2. I said she could ask me about my hometown
3. What is your hometown?
4. Rohtak
5. Does it fall in the Aravalli belt?
6. Ok then tell me something about Rohtak?
7. Why is there good infra in Rohtak?

Reflection

Overall a great experience. Over half of the questions were from Railways.

Didnt know how to respond to one question. Some questions were impossibly broad to answer, one was somewhat unreasonable. Got chided by the chairperson who is very strict about masks. Felt lucky she didnt throw me out of the room, and went on to have a good interview in my estimation

Source: Forum IAS