Interview Transcript

During Mock Interview

Full transcript with answers:

• Board - Ms. Smita Nagraj (Chairperson)
• 5 member board including the chairperson 
• Interview Date: 27th of March 2019

• Me: May I come in, Ma'am?
• Chairperson:  Yes, Please come in.

• Me: Good evening Ma'am. Good evening sir. (Looking at all the members)
• Chairperson: Good evening. Have a seat.
• Me: Thank You, Ma'am.

• Chairperson: So Digvijay, you are in the Postal service. (Yes Ma'am) People Nowadays think that postal department is outdated and the government is spending too much money on it. Do you agree with it?

• Me: It is indeed the perception, but I don't agree with it, Ma'am. There are 2 roles which postal department perform. One is a commercial function through premium services such as speed post, logistics post, etc. Second is Universal service obligation under which it performs the function of financial inclusion through post office savings bank and recently opened IPPB, also Aadhar verification, Passport Seva Kendra, gold bonds, etc.

• When we calculate subsidies given by the government, we do not separate the commercial and service part of the department. And that is why the subsidy given by the government of India to department looks large.

• Chairperson: All functions you mentioned mostly caters to rural India. What is there for the urban population?

• Me: Our department has 3 premium services Ma'am. Speed post, express and business post, and logistics post. 60% of the traffic of these services come from the largest 20 cities.
• To give my own example. If IIT Kharagpur student wants to have a correspondence with US university for MS admission, India post offers best services in comparison to any private courier like Bluedart or FedEx because of our department's linkages with United States Postal Service.

• Chairperson: Okay. That is good to hear. Why do you think this is the perception of Post?

• Me: I honestly think Ma'am, all our advertisements are catering to rural sectors. So it has built this perception. Movies also caricature the role of Dak Sevak. To change the perception our department should focus on branding and targeted advertisement to the consumers.

• Chairperson: All people who came before you have given reasons that they want to join civil service because of fame, money, and prestige. Do you have any other reason to join?

• Me: Yes Ma'am. During my college days, I did internships in 3 organizations. One in multinational research and development center in Japan, one in private tractor manufacturing company and one in government farm machinery testing center.
• What I observed during this time, is that there is a stark difference between the technology generation and the technology adoption at the ground level, and mostly at the farm level.
• Being the part of the administration at such esteemed position, and having the knowledge of Agricultural and food engineering, it will give me an opportunity to bridge this gap, remove the information asymmetry and create the level playing field even for most vulnerable strata, apart from the reasons you mentioned Ma'am. 

• Chairperson: (Smiles and indicates Panel member 1 to continue)

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• Panel member 1: Digvijay, since the late 1970s and '80s, we are hearing about the bipolar world. Since the early '90s, after the end of the cold war, American uni-polarity came. Again we are talking about polarity in the world. Do you think, this is the start of a new cold war or it is already happening?

• Me: The cold war is surely dead Sir, but the cold war mentality survives. The most defining feature of the cold war was the battle of ideologies between Communism and liberalism. Today we do not see that. Rather what we are seeing is the struggle for hegemony in terms of the economic sphere like trade war and in a strategic sphere like in Afghanistan and Syria between Western powers and Eurasian powers.
• In the Indo-Pacific region, we are seeing the formation of QUAD, although in initial stages. USA's security doctrine also mentions it. 

• Panel member 1: Okay. As you mentioned Afghanistan and Syria, who are the players in these power struggle?

• Me: In Syria Sir, the Bashar Al Assad government is supported by Russia, Iran, and Hezbollah. The opposition faction consists of the Free Syrian army supported by the USA and its allies, and Kurds.
• Sir, In Afghanistan, both powers are conducting talks with the Taliban. Moscow talks with Russia and Doha Talks with the USA. China, India, and Pakistan are also important players in the region.

• Panel member 1: Good. You also talked about QUAD. What do you think about its future?

• Me: It was conceptualized by Japanese prime minister in 2007 as the democratic diamond of Indo-Pacific region. It is seen as an arrangement to counter possible Chinese hegemony in the region. Although it is still in an infant stage of its development. It could be used as an alternative platform to offer infrastructure projects to the countries in the region to avoid them being strangled in the debt trap of China.

• Panel Member 2: So Digvijay, you talked about Pass Port Seva Kendra outlets in Post offices. (Nod) Do you know which software they are using for their functioning?

• Me: I don't know Sir.

• Panel Member 2: Okay. Let us talk about subsidies. Are you aware of fertilizer subsidies? (Nod) How could we reduce the use of fertilizers by farmers, as most of them using in excess of required limit?

• Me: Yes Sir. Our NPK ratio is 8.4: 4.2: 1. Ideal ratio should be 4:2:1.
• Sir, GOI has already come up with Soil health cards which mention the proper limits.

• Panel Member 2: (Interrupting me) but farmers do not follow it.

• Me: Yes, Sir, that is why the Government has come up with the behavioral solution. Farmers measure fertilizer applied to their crops in terms of the number of bags of fertilizer used. Earlier, there were 50Kg bags of urea, Now the government has mandated to reduce its limit to 45kg. So for each bag used by the farmer, there will be 5 kg less fertilizer application.

• Panel member 2: Our country is deficient in phosphate. How should we resolve the problem? Also, there is less application of phosphate in comparison to urea.

• Me: Sir, just like natural gas, we should start the joint ventures with countries with phosphate reserves. So that our dependence on imports will be reduced and the requirement of fertilizer will also be completed.

• Panel Member 2: tell me countries with large phosphate reserves?

• Me: I don’t recall at the moment, Sir.

• Panel Member 2: Thank You Digvijay.

• Panel Member 3: Your engineering subject is Agricultural and Food Engineering. So do you know what is this precision farming, precision agriculture we always talk about?

• Me: Yes Sir. Precision farming involves maximum utilizer of all resources. If we are putting inputs such as seeds, irrigation, fertilizer or pesticide, they should be in the exact amount and at the precise time as required by crop. It should be more or less rather precise.
• I was fortunate enough to work on software called - DSSAT - Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer. If we feed micro-climatic data such as daily precipitation, sunrays, ground moisture, soil type to the software, it can be used to predict exact timings of inputs application and also yield of the crop can be calculated.

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• Panel Member 3: Well done. For long, there is talk about FTA with the EU. Are you aware of this? (Nod) tell me more about it.

• Me: Yes Sir. We have had 17 round of talks with the EU over FTA. But there are concerns by India over Agri and Dairy products. EU wants us to reduce it. Also, Indian companies have not given Data Secure Status by EU regulation which is hurting their competitiveness. The automobile sector is another contention. EU has removed most of the tariffs but India is still yet to remove and the EU wants to hasten this.

• Panel Member 3: As you mentioned about Agri and Dairy, there are concerns that if FTA comes to a conclusion, the Indian market will be flooded with European Agri and Dairy products. In the electronics sector, our complete market is flooded with foreign products, why we are so sensitive to agri products. Wouldn't it increase productivity?

• Me: Certainly Sir. 5 years back, we had virtually non-existent electronics market. Due to the successful implementation of Electronics policy and SEZs, India is now the Second largest mobile manufacturing country. We have attracted foreign companies to set their bases in India.
• In a similar way, we should also bring policy in agri and dairy sector with the EU, so that their companies will set food processing industries in India. Because of this, they will have access to the Indian market, jobs will be generated and we already have 10% FDI in the food processing sector.
• We are sensitive because Agri and dairy sectors involve people from lower strata. Electronics products are used by the middle class and above. It is the government's duty to protect the most vulnerable.
• That is why tough stand on agri and dairy products.

• Panel member 3: Compare Indian agricultural practices with other countries' practices.

• Me: Sir, could you please give me a country to compare with?

• Panel member 3: you can take any western country like France, Israel. Choose any one.

• Me: Sir, to compare India with Israel. What Israel does differently are 4 things. Water recycling up to 80%, vertical in-house LED farming, start-up promotion for value chain development and appropriate mechanization.
• In comparison, India is yet to develop value chain integration. Irrigation coverage is at 45% and we are exporting water-intensive crops such as rice, sugarcane, banana. Mechanization is still not prevalent. We should work on warehousing, cold chain and transport infrastructure, direct farming and more business -farm linkages so that technology would be transferred.
• Although these things are changing now with the focus on APMC reforms, land leasing, export promotion, etc.

• Panel Member 3: Coming to your hobbies, can you name some famous English poets who are Indian?

• Me: Yes Sir, recently Mr. Amitav Ghosh got Dnyan Peeth Award. Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore.

• Panel Member 3: Name some more. I assume you write poems in English.

• Me: Yes Sir. I write in both Hindi as well as English. I don’t recall any Indian poets who write  English poems at the moment, Sir.

• Panel Member 3: Have you heard of ….. (Some 3 names which I never heard of - Names were not Indian)

• Me: No Sir. I haven't.

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• Panel Member 4: Digvijay, Let us talk about Maharashtra. Why Maharashtra has developed a strong cooperative culture in comparison to other states? What do you think is the reason?

• Me: Maharashtra cooperative societies we can see mainly in 3 areas sir - one in Banking,  Second in Sugar and third in Dairy.
• Bank cooperative culture developed during the British time. Western India was involved in trading with other countries and also cash crops were produced as per requirement of Europe. So bank network developed to cater to this demand. Second reasons being the role of progressive princely states and social reformers because of which bank cooperatives are spread out all over the state.
• Sugar cooperative and Dairy cooperative culture developed as these are the platform for political leadership. These cooperatives act as a political mobilizing factor. Also, the leadership of Morarji Desai and Vallabh Bhai Patel played an essential role in Dairy cooperatives in Northen Maharashtra.

• Panel Member 4: Okay. Despite this, why there are so many suicides committed by farmers in Maharashtra?

• Me: There are 3 main reasons Sir. First is Irrigation. Second is the prevalence of cash crops and pest infestation and third is social prestige and non-farm expenditure.
• Irrigation coverage is at 20% only and disproportionately goes towards sugarcane.
• Most suicides are happening in the cotton belt which is a cash crop. If the crop fails, there are no sustenance crops to farmers even to feed their family unlike North India, where rivers are perennial and they take cereal crops mostly. Because of this farmers have to take loans even for day to day consumption.
• Cost of living is higher in Maharashtra that is another factor. Due to social pressure, one has to incur lots of expenditure on marriages, or even Shraddh.
• Farm loan waiver is offered only to crop loans, so, that also does not solve the problem.

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• Chairperson: Digvijay, you were involved in Elocution during your college time. And the way you speak reflects that…(smiles) But in villages, you will have to communicate with villagers. How would you communicate with them?

• Me: Ma'am, the first principle of elocution is to find connect with our audience. I think I have found it with this panel. If the audience change, I change my tone to find my connect with them.

• Chairperson: (While smiling) Okay…So you need the atmosphere before delivering your speech. (everybody laughs)

• Chairperson: Now tell me, North Indian population is growing and it is not going to be reversed for some time. At the same time, the south Indian population is shrinking. There is migration from North to South. Now South Indian states are only planning for their own population. How to solve this problem?

• Me: Ma'am, there needs to be a two-pronged approach. First, is to create ease of doing business in North Indian states. So enough jobs will be generated and migration impact would be lesser.

• Chairperson: But what should south Indian states do?

• Me: The 2nd approach is Ma'am, to create the cosmopolitan culture in Southern states. Problem is not just because the native population is losing jobs, but migrated people are getting registered in the voter list of states and influencing politics. So the atmosphere of tolerance and fraternity should be increased.
• At the same time, these populations are living in a dilapidated situation, so we require more focus on affordable housing and the creation of the rental market.
• (Should have talked about Ayushyman Bharat which is applicable all over India)

• Chairperson: Thank You Digvijay. 

• Me: Thank Ma'am. Thank You, Sir. Have a Good Day.

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P.S: Surely there were few instances where I fumbled and it was not as crisp and clear as written in the above blog. But it will certainly give the idea of how the questions are asked in the UPSC interview.