Today I sat for
the annual Preliminary Test (PT) of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC)
for the third time. My first attempt had been successful, while my second
attempt not so. As I occupied the shaky chair with an equally unstable desk, I
realized that I had a fifty-fifty chance of making it this time. Now that the
day is over and I am reeling under a sharp pain in both my legs (don’t know
whether it was the stress of a long day or the sudden weather change that
caused it), I can admit that I still have similar odds of making it. I knew that as
soon as I stepped inside my house, Dad would want to discuss the paper with me.
As in the past, my answer this time was the same. I had managed to screw Paper I, while Paper II had gone superbly well. In the quest to being third time lucky, I happened
to ruin my chances by a few percentages when I was unable to attempt more than
60 questions in the first paper.
Somehow, when I look back, I remember time had never been a
constraint. I was more than happy with the two hours that was allotted for each
paper. My anger, this year, rests with the invigilators. Once the first bell
rings, we are so busy tackling the questions that we lose a sense of time and
it is the responsibility of the invigilators to keep us updated. The latter
seemed least bothered today. So when the second bell rang, which I learned in the next few minutes was the “time is up” indication, I was shocked. What about the warning bell
or announcement??
Well now that
the PT is over and done with, I do not see a point in cribbing. In the next two
or three days, the answer keys will be up in the internet and that is when I
shall get a fair idea of how I have performed and what I should expect. Tonight
I am skipping dinner and getting to bed straight in the hope of erasing the
aches. Hope to be better soon. Good night.
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