M Sivaguru Prabakaran Went From Factory Worker Who Slept On Railway Platform To An IAS Officer
Worked as a sawmill operator
Sivaguru's father was an alcoholic and therefore his mother and sister used to work in the field during the day and weave baskets to earn a livelihood, at night. Watching them work day and night, Sivaguru also decided to leave his education and work as a sawmill operator.
According to one of his interviews, Sivaguru Prabakaran said, “I worked as a sawmill operator for two years and did a bit of farming. Whatever money I could muster, I spent some on my family and saved some for my education. I wasn't prepared to let go of my dreams.”
Never let go of his dreams
Speaking to the Times of India, Sivaguru said, “I wasn’t prepared to let go of my dreams.” In 2008, Sivaguru decided to get himself an education too after having already paid for his brother's engineering and marrying off his sister. He enrolled in civil engineering at Thanthai Periyar Government Institute of Technology in Vellore.
“My English language skill was not good. I studied in Tamil medium,” Prabakaran said.
Soon after, Sivaguru decided to travel to Chennai with the hope of cracking the IIT-Madras entrance examinations.
Sleeping on platforms to clear the exam
Speaking to Times of India, he said, “A friend referred me to a tutor in St Thomas Mount who trained underprivileged students like me.” It was not easy at first as Sivaguru studied during the weekend and took shelter at the platforms of the St Thomas Mount railway station. He would then return to Vellore for his college during the week and worked part-time to support himself.
Prabhakaran’s hard work and consistency towards his goal bore fruit after he successfully cracked the IIT-M entrance and finished his M.Tech program with a top rank in 2014. After clearing IIT and finishing his M.tech Prabhakaran decided to pursue this dream of becoming an IAS.
Sivaguru started preparing for the exams but was unable to clear the UPSC exam in the first three attempts. But, this gritty young man who did not let any failure distract him from his goal, cracked the UPSC exams in his fourth attempt.
Inspiration for others
Sivaguru Prabhakaran’s inspirational journey to push himself and his family out of poverty by getting an education are incredibly heartwarming. Prabhakaran’s inspiring story will help many more individuals from his hometown as well as across the nation to never give up on his dreams.
