Pranjal Patil, India’s first visually challenged woman IAS officer on Monday took charge as Sub-Collector of Thiruvananthapuram
ALTHOUGH she lost the ability to see when she was six years of age, she did not let it deter her. She serves as an inspiration to many. Hard work will help you overcome the hardest of obstacles and Pranjal is a prime example of this. She has not let any setbacks stop her from achieving her goal.
Pranjal who is originally from Ulhasnagar in Maharashtra, went on to complete a postgraduate degree in International Relations from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and later cracked the Union Public Service Examination in 2016 with a rank of 773 in her very first attempt, while she managed to secure 124th rank in 2017.
She received her first appointment as Assistant Collector in Kerala’s Ernakulam.
Pranjal was given a warm welcome in Thiruvananthapuram, in the presence of Social Justice Department Secretary Biju Prabhakar and RDO Senior Superintendent TS Anil Kumar.
“We should never be defeated. We should not give up. Because with all our efforts, we will definitely get that one breakthrough moment that we are waiting for,” Pranjal said while speaking to the press on her first day at the office of Thiruvananthapuram’s Sub Collector.
She stated that she expects support and co-operation from people of Thiruvanthapuram as she begins her work here.