Meet Divya Tanwar, who became India’s youngest IPS officer at 21, she cracked UPSC exam twice but left IPS because…, currently working as…

In Haryana’s Nimbi village, a young girl named Divya Tanwar saw her life turn upside down when her father passed away in 2011. What could have ended her dreams of achievig something big in life instead became the reason she worked even harder. With courage and determination, Divya went on to clear the UPSC exam twice: first becoming an IPS officer at 21, and then an IAS officer at just 22. Behind her success, stands her mother, Babita Tanwar, whose strength and love made the impossible possible. After her husband’s death, Babita was left alone to raise four children. She worked in the fields during the day and stitched clothes at night to earn enough to keep her children in school.

Divya Tanwar’s UPSC journey

Divya studied in government schools and later at Navodaya Vidyalaya. Since her family couldn’t afford expensive coaching classes, she turned to free online study materials and practice tests.

In 2021, Divya, barely 21-years-ols, cleared the UPSC exam on her first attempt, securing an All India Rank (AIR) of 438, and joined the IPS. With this impressive show, she became one of the youngest IPS officers in the country. But she didn’t stop there. She continued to study with even more focus and appeared again the next year. In 2022 she cleared the exam again, and this time, with the AIR 105, helping her achieve her dream of becoming an IAS officer.

Now posted in the Manipur cadre, IAS Divya Tanwar’s journey is not just about cracking a tough exam — it’s a story of a mother’s courage, a daughter’s determination, and how faith and hard work can change a family’s destiny.

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