Programming minds

A.K. Mishra: We train aspirants to think and express themselves like administrators.-BY SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

Interview with A.K. Mishra of Chanakya IAS Academy.

CHANAKYA IAS Academy, with 16 years of expertise in coaching civil services aspirants, has four study centres two in Delhi and one each in Ahmedabad and Ranchi. A.K., its director, spoke to Frontline:

What makes Chanakya different from the other institutes in the business?

Our institute focusses on inculcating administrative traits in candidates in addition to comprehensive teaching of the prescribed syllabus. We organise seminars and workshops with the help of civil servants and experts in soft skills. We train aspirants to think, feel and express themselves like administrators.

We keep only a manageable number of students in a batch so that each student gets the personal attention of teachers. We maintain good, modern infrastructure with a library.

How does Chanakya update itself on the changing pattern of Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) examinations?

We have a research and development team and also an advisory board of retired bureaucrats and top academics. With their support, we keep upgrading our training programmes.

What subjects do you specialise in?

We specialise in optional subjects such as history, public administration, geography, sociology and law. These subjects are taught by the best of experts. Special classes by successful candidates are also organised. Model Tests are held in both the preliminary and main examinations.

What has been your success rate?

In the past 10 years, our successful candidates have filled nearly 20-25 per cent of the vacancies in the civil services every year.

Is there a convergence of management studies and civil services after the initiation of CSAT?

Administrative and managerial skills are integral parts of civil services. But the aptitude required for the civil services is not the same as for management studies. What is required in a civil services candidate are administrative traits matching the principles outlined in the Preamble to the Indian Constitution.

Do you work on personality development?

I give special focus to it. I strongly believe that the success of a candidate in the examination depends primarily on his personality and necessary administrative traits. In fact, a candidate should prepare himself first with basic administrative traits so that he can think, feel and express himself like an administrator.

What is your much-talked-about Art of Success programme?

This programme is based on the concept of Human Software Development Programme. Just as a computer cannot produce the desired results in areas for which it has no software, the human brain cannot get results for which it is not programmed with the necessary traits.In the case of the civil services examination, a candidate's mind, which is programmed with academic traits, must be replaced with one programmed with administrative traits. Through my programme I try to achieve this.