Praveen Kumar (also referred to as Praveen Kumar Laxkar) secured All India Rank 7 in the UPSC Civil Services Examination 2020 — in his second attempt. An IIT Kanpur graduate in Civil Engineering who had previously secured GATE AIR 5 and Engineering Services (ESE) AIR 3, Praveen’s UPSC journey is the story of a multi-talented engineer who chose public service over a prestigious career in the technical field. Hailing from Jamui, Bihar, his story is an inspiration for every aspirant from a Tier-2 city. In this complete Praveen Kumar Laxkar IAS biography, we cover his age, family, education, marksheet, Civil Engineering optional strategy, and UPSC preparation approach.

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Praveen Kumar Laxkar IAS Biography — Early Life & Background

Praveen Kumar was born and raised in Jamui, Bihar — a small district town that has produced several administrative and engineering talents over the years. His father runs a medical store in Jamui, while his mother is a homemaker. Coming from a modest middle-class background, Praveen’s academic journey is marked by consistent top performances across some of India’s most competitive examinations — JEE, GATE, ESE, and ultimately UPSC.

His story is especially inspiring because he chose to leave a prestigious engineering career path to serve the public through the IAS — driven by a belief that civil services offer a unique platform for innovation and societal change that engineering alone cannot provide.

Praveen Kumar UPSC Education — From Jamui to IIT Kanpur

• School: Ramakrishna Vivekananda Vidya Mandir, Jamui, Bihar
• B.Tech: Civil Engineering, IIT Kanpur (2017 — one of India’s premier engineering institutions)
• GATE 2018: All India Rank 5 — one of the top scores in Civil Engineering
• Engineering Services Examination (ESE) 2018: All India Rank 3 — selected for Indian Railways
• Indian Railways: Briefly worked before deciding to pursue UPSC CSE for IAS

Praveen Kumar UPSC 2020 — Journey to AIR 7

Praveen Kumar IAS Marksheet — Score Breakdown

Praveen Kumar UPSC Optional Subject — Civil Engineering

Praveen Kumar chose Civil Engineering as his UPSC optional subject — a strategic choice directly aligned with his B.Tech degree from IIT Kanpur. His GATE and ESE notes for Civil Engineering became the backbone of his optional preparation, significantly reducing the time needed to cover the optional syllabus from scratch.

• Civil Engineering optional directly leverages technical education — ideal for IIT/NIT Civil Engineering graduates
• Praveen used his existing GATE 2018 and ESE 2018 preparation notes extensively
• Technical optionals tend to have high scoring consistency for well-prepared candidates
• His AIR 5 in GATE 2018 indicated near-mastery of Civil Engineering concepts

Praveen Kumar UPSC Strategy

1. Leveraging GATE and ESE Notes for OptionalUsed his existing GATE 2018 (AIR 5) and ESE 2018 (AIR 3) preparation notes for Civil Engineering optional — dramatically reducing additional preparation time and allowing more focus on GS papers.
2. Understanding the Syllabus and StructureEmphasised deeply understanding the UPSC syllabus structure before starting preparation — treating it as the blueprint for all study decisions.
3. Previous Year PapersSolved extensive previous year question papers to understand the pattern, identify recurring themes, and build exam temperament for both Prelims and Mains.
4. Time Management as Core DisciplineMaintained a structured daily timetable balancing static subjects, current affairs, optional, and answer writing — without neglecting any component of the syllabus.
5. Answer Writing — Clarity and CoherenceFocused on writing answers that were clear, well-structured, and coherent — prioritising logical flow over length.
6. Learning from Failure with ResilienceUsed his first UPSC attempt’s experience constructively — analysing shortcomings, adjusting the approach, and returning stronger in the second attempt.

Praveen Kumar IAS Profile — Why He Chose Civil Services

Praveen Kumar has explained that his choice of civil services over a purely technical career stemmed from his belief that IAS offers a unique opportunity for innovative public service at scale. In interviews, he proposed ideas like setting up subsidised canteens for the poor — a reflection of his vision of using administrative power to directly address ground-level challenges.

“Civil services give you the opportunity to think innovatively and work for societal upliftment in a way that no other profession allows. The platform to directly address public challenges is what drew me to IAS over engineering.” — Praveen Kumar, IAS, UPSC CSE 2020 AIR 7

Some Lesser Known Facts About Praveen Kumar IAS

• Praveen Kumar secured GATE 2018 AIR 5 in Civil Engineering — one of the country’s top scores that year — before switching to UPSC preparation.
• He also secured Engineering Services Examination (ESE) 2018 AIR 3, which gave him a posting in the Indian Railways — a job he briefly held before pursuing IAS.
• He is an IIT Kanpur graduate in Civil Engineering (2017 batch), giving him one of the strongest technical foundations among UPSC 2020 toppers.
• He used his GATE and ESE preparation notes directly for his Civil Engineering optional — a smart approach that saves significant preparation time.
• He hails from Jamui, Bihar — a small district town, proving once again that UPSC toppers come from every corner of India.
• He cleared UPSC in his 2nd attempt — having learned from his first attempt’s shortcomings.
• His father runs a medical store in Jamui — a middle-class background that makes his multi-examination excellence all the more remarkable.
• His vision for public service includes addressing poverty at the grassroots level — including creative ideas like subsidised meals for the underprivileged.

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