UPSC Results 2024: Full of all vim and vigour, 27-year-old Raj Krishna Jha, a native of Athari panchayat under Runi Saidpur block in Sitamarhi district, who notched up the eighth rank in Civil Services Examination (CSE) 2025 held by Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) on Tuesday said he had premonition about his success in fifth attempt of the examination after his disastrous performance in the first two attempts.

His success has sparked a wave of pride and celebration in his village and across the district. Speaking to Hindustan Times over the phone from Kolhapur, Jha who had failed to qualify the preliminary examination in the first two attempts, said he approached the examination with clear intention to grab a rank.

“After I secured 739 marks in my fourth attempt in mains and missed the boat (selection) by a meagre two marks, I made it a point go for the first ten ranks in the examination. But the elements of the risk was always there,” said Jha, who is posted at Kolhapur as assistant manager for Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL). He said, “I was a tad confident about my success as I was doing quite well in mock tests as well.”