Ten years ago, Venkatesh Hogibandi was a police constable. He is now a Deputy Superintendent of Police after having come out with flying colours in the examination conducted by the Karnataka Public Service Commission.
Apart from his dogged determination and hard work, what helped this young man from a poor stone mason’s family rise up the ranks so quickly was the training provided by the Bidar district administration four years ago. At least five others who attended the training have cleared the exam. Parvati Reddy has been selected as Assistant Commissioner, while Madiwalappa has become a taluk panchayat executive officer. Khaja Khalilulla, Balaji, Rajanikanth, Jagadeesh, and M. Mehrajuddin have been selected for other State services.
The district administration organised an entrance test for over 700 young graduates in 2013. A whole batch of young IAS probationary officers descended on Bidar to inspire the candidates. A month-long training programme followed, and the 11 best candidates were selected for a year-long residential coaching programme in New Delhi. The then Deputy Commissioner P.C. Jaffer helped the young men and women get the training and accommodation in the national capital.
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Then, a residential programme for 40 candidates was organised in Basava Kalyan for one and a half months. Whenever candidates passed the written exams, they were exposed to personality tests. Senior IAS officers such as Amlan Aditya Biswas addressed the trainees and shared their experiences.
The training was financed by the Hyderabad Karnataka Regional Development Board. Leaders from the district such as Mallikarjun Khuba and Gurupadappa Nagamarapalli supported the programme. The Shaheen civil service academy in Bengaluru provided logistical support, while philanthropist Gurunath Kollur and Sri Shivakumar Swami of Siddharoodh Mutt donated money.