in photo: Azhar with his mother Naseem Baig

The announcement of Union Public Service Commission Civil Services Examination- 2011 results on Friday, probably made it was one of the happiest days in life of Baig family of Udaipur as their son, Mirza Azhar Baig, triumphed with an All India Rank of 313.

Azhar, who achieved his goal in the second attempt, is a 27-year-old IIT Delhi graduate who left his job at Bharat Heavy Electrical Limited (BHEL) to pursue his dream of serving the nation.

“Actually it was my grandfather’s (Late Mirza Anwar Baig) dream to see me as an IAS officer. Though he passed away when I was 4, but I hope today his soul would be contented” , said Azhar.

Azhar’s father Mirza Asad Baig is an AGM at BSNL while his mother Naseem Baig is a housewife. His elder sister is a lecturer at Pacific College and his younger brother is doing B Tech from GITS, Udaipur.

“Azhar was always studious and remained reserved. He hardly attends any family functions or gets social. He was only focused on his goal and he did it” says Naseem Baig.

in photo: Azhar with his father Mirza Asad Baig

He finished schooling from Central Academy Sardarpura and later moved to Kota for IIT-JEE preparation. He then got admission at IIT-Delhi and graduated with an engineering degree.

For nearly a year, Azhar served in BHEL and worked on several high profile projects, but destiny had something else in store for this Udaipuri Boy.

While preparing for IAS, Azhar was also associated with an NGO called Aryavat Seva Sansthan. In a series of discussion with UT, when asked what the secret of his success is, Azhar said – “There is no secret as such but one should be focused, sincere and committed to achieving the aim.” He credited his achievement to the blessings of his parents and prayers of his late grandfather.

Report and Photos by Sohail Khan