Bhubaneswar: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today felicitated differently abled Sarika Jain for her outstanding performance in the Union Civil Services Examination.
“Sarika will be a strong inspiration for many people. She is a real role model for others,” Patnaik said after offering flower, a citation and a shawl to Sarika, who cleared Union Civil Service Examination 2013 in her first attempt by overcoming her disability.
Jain (29), a resident of Kantabanji in Balangir district, cleared the civil service examination two years after qualifying the tough Chartered Accountancy examination.
She ranked 527 among the 1,122 candidates who cleared the civil services examinations (2013) conducted by Union Public Service Commission.
“I am happy that the Chief Minister felicitated me.
I will work for the needy people,” She said. Jain was afflicted with polio in her right leg with 50 per cent disability since the age of two despite taking polio drops.
Her father Sadhuram Jain is a small time trader of sanitary fittings. Third among three sisters and a brother, Sarika studied in local Saraswati Sishu Mandir and later completed her bachelor's degree in commerce from Kantabanji Women's College.
