Inspiring Journey Of Mohammad Ali Shihab: From Childhood In An Orphanage To Becoming IAS Officer

Most people often blame their failures on their bad luck. But there is nothing under the sun that one can't touch with individual talent.

Life can change at any moment and all one can do is to set goals high and to march towards them each day. Nobody knows this better than Mohammad Ali Shihab.

The 2011 batch IAS officer who once sold baskets and spent childhood in an orphanage due to poverty became an IAS officer thanks to his dedication and hard work.

Let¡¯s talk about the person whose fate forced him to spent his childhood in the orphanage but due to his sheer hard work, he cracked the civil services exams and qualified for the post of IAS officer. His journey will surely inspire you in many ways:

Losing father at very young age

mohammad ali shihab IAS | Photo: thelogically

Mohammad Ali Shihab Born on 15 March 1980 with the curse of poverty in Edavannappara, a remote village in the Malappuram district of Kerala. The economic condition of the house was not good, so at a young age, Shihab started selling betel (Paan) and bamboo baskets with his father Koroth Ali.

This somehow helped run the house but this support was also snatched when, in 1991 when Shihab was 11-year-old, his father passed away due to a long illness. Shihab was so young that he could not even do any of the work on his own or take care of his family. After his father's death, the responsibility of feeding five children fell on his mother, Fathima. His Mother was neither educated nor did she get any work so that she could take care of her children.

Spent childhood in an orphanage

muhammad ali shihab 226th ranked in UPSC examination | Photo: saudijobvacancy

Due to poverty, his mother was not able to even feed her children. The poor mother put her children in the orphanage in Kozhikode, hoping that at least they would get enough food there.

Whatever people may think about orphanages, but for Shihab, this orphanage proved to be a boon. Here he not only got food to fill his stomach but also found the way which would change his life. While living there, Shihab's attention went towards studies and the good thing was that he turned out to be smarter than other children there.

Started dreaming about civil services examination

During his 10 years in the orphanage, he attracted everyone's attention as an intelligent student. Even though the orphanage may not be like normal schools, the conditions from which Shihab had come out, this place was no less than a paradise for him.

The discipline he learned while living in an orphanage helped him in organising his life. While living there, Shihab made himself capable. And, apart from clearing UPSC, he also managed State-level Public Service Commission exams. During this, he had given examinations for the posts of Forest Department, Jail Warden, and Railway Ticket Examiner etc. Shihab was 25 years old when he started dreaming of taking the civil services examination.

Not just UPSC, Shihab passed serval state level examination

muhammad ali shihab ias nagaland | Photo: Twitter

But even before taking the UPSC exam, Shihab achieved success in other fields. He passed the SSLC examination with good marks and did a teacher training course, after which he got the job of a teacher at a government school. Post that he started preparing for competitive exams. Talking to the media, Shihab recalled the days of his struggle and said that "When I was in the orphanage, I used to study till late at night. I used to study in the dim light of a torch under the bed sheet so that the sleep of other companions is not disturbed¡±. During the days of this struggle, Shihab also worked as a peon in Kerala Water Authority, clerk and motor operator in a hotel.

After hard work and true dedication, Shihab became IAS officer

After this, the journey of giving UPSC examinations started, but this journey was not as easy as it seems today. In the first two attempts of the Civil Services Examination, Shihab only saw failure. But he did not give up and kept trying.

Finally, the year came when the son of a poor paan seller and a helpless mother succeeded in fulfilling his dream. Shihab cleared the UPSC exam in his third attempt in 2011. He got the All India 226th rank. Due to not being so good in English, Shihab needed a translator during the interview, after which he scored 201 marks out of 300. After this Shihab was posted in Kohima, Nagaland.

Thousands of students attempt the UPSC exam every year but only a few are able to crack, and thousands give up after one or two attempts. But this story of Mohammed Ali Shihab is a perfect example of hard work and dedication. If he could do it despite all odds and limited resources, what is your excuse?