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India.com
15 hours ago
- General
- India.com
12th Fail Boy Who Used To Sell Milk To Support Family Became IPS Officer: Meet Umesh Khandbahale Who Cracked UPSC In...Secured AIR....
photoDetails english 2918748 The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) conducts India's most prestigious exams, including Civil Services, NDA, CDS, and more. These exams select candidates for top government positions like IAS, IPS, and IFS. Known for their rigorous process, UPSC exams test a candidate's knowledge, analytical ability, and personality, shaping future leaders and administrators of the country. Updated:Jun 20, 2025, 10:28 AM IST Inspiring story of IPS officer Umesh Ganpat Khandbahale 1 / 7 Many UPSC aspirants achieve success through sheer determination, dedication, and consistent hard work—often while juggling household duties. Their stories are powerful reminders that perseverance can lead to remarkable accomplishments. One such inspiring journey is that of IPS officer Umesh Ganpat Khandbahale, who failed Class 12 in 2003 and later sold milk to support his father. Failed in Class 12 2 / 7 Umesh, a native of a small village in Maharashtra, failed his Class 12 English exam, scoring just 21 marks. Despite the setback, he didn't lose hope. Determined to move forward, he chose not to dwell on the past and instead focused on building a better future. Started selling milk 3 / 7 He started selling milk and took on several other jobs to support his father and stay committed to his dreams. Though he failed in English, he was also unable to clear his Class 12 exams overall. Re-enrolled in Class 12 4 / 7 Umesh Ganpat Khandbahale re-enrolled in Class 12 through open schooling, determined to complete his education. Balancing his studies with the demanding responsibilities of working as a milkman, he remained focused and motivated. His strong will and confidence played a crucial role in helping him pass Class 12 with impressive results. Two year break 5 / 7 As per media reports, Umesh resumed his studies after a two-year break and successfully passed his Class 12 exams in 2005. He went on to complete a BA, BEd, and MA. Determined to shed the label of a Class 12 failure, he aimed for the UPSC exam. Unexpected decision 6 / 7 After completing school, Umesh made a bold and unexpected decision—he chose to study English Literature, the very subject he had once failed. Determined to face his weakness head-on, he turned it into a strength, proving his commitment to personal growth and resilience. Umesh's qualification 7 / 7 Umesh went on to master English and earned multiple degrees, including a BEd, a BSc in Horticulture, and a Master's in English. He later moved to Delhi to prepare for the UPSC exam. On his third attempt in 2015, he successfully cleared the exam, securing an All India Rank (AIR) of 704. Today, Umesh Ganpat Khandbahale proudly serves as an IPS officer and Superintendent of Police in a West Bengal district. (All images: @JpgPolice/Twitter)
Irish Examiner
20 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Gen Z Student: Completing my essays without AI will benefit me — knowing they will be graded against it is disheartening
I went into my first year of college in September 2022. Two months later, in November, ChatGPT was launched. And from the moment of its introduction, artificial intelligence (AI) like ChatGPT has totally changed the college landscape. Research that would have previously taken weeks or months to read and understand, can now be interpreted and summarised in seconds. Complete essays can be produced instantly. As a student, I have real concerns about the ubiquitous use of AI on our university campuses. Because the reality is, assignments written by AI often pass, or achieve high grades. AI is getting university degrees. Now, I'm heading into the final year of my degree. And I can honestly say that I've never used artificial intelligence to do my work. But that puts me into a minority. I study English Literature. And I find my degree difficult. Waking up early to go to the library to get my reading done; preparing notes on novels to discuss in class; spending weeks researching and thinking about complex essay topics; late nights while I struggle to meet deadlines. Sometimes, you can put in so much effort, and still walk away with a result you're not too happy with. That's the harsh reality of university. It's bloody difficult. The feeling that 'you'd be stupid not to use artificial intelligence' is very real, particularly when you see people walking away from modules with high grades that they didn't really work for. I'm not saying that universities are openly allowing AI usage. The problem is that, while universities may have strict policies around the use of AI, implementing those policies is another issue. It seems to me that universities are outpaced by AI. As students, we are told that the university is using software that will detect AI use. And professors say that they can spot an essay written by AI with ease. Maybe that's true. But proving that someone has used AI is another thing. Because if it is so easy to detect AI, why then, do I know so many people that have never been reprimanded for it? In the earlier years of my degree, some of my exams were held online. They were always 'open book' style, meaning that I could use my notes or do research during the exam. During those exams, I know that many students used AI to generate their answers. And I am sure that our university was also aware of that. I totally get the appeal. When the opportunity to achieve highly in an exam presents itself, it's difficult to resist that. Of course, people will resort to AI. But when the results of those exams are released, and you see that people are achieving the same grade or higher than you, without attending lectures or completing the reading, it can be difficult to reconcile. I know that from personal experience. Logically, I understand that completing my essays and assignments without AI will benefit me in the long run. But the knowledge that my work will be graded against the work of AI is disheartening. Professors can't give everyone a first class honours. So, if they can't prove with certainty who has used AI, I'm often competing with AI to get the grades I want. When I recently received my university results for my third year of college, I couldn't help but think about how much easier my year would have been if I had used AI, or if I would have achieved more with the help of ChatGPT. I'm not some kooky hippie longing for academia before technology. The ability to access almost any piece of research from my laptop expands the scope of what students can do and learn significantly. But what I am saying is that AI is changing our universities. As a student that is trying to do well, that concerns me. AI is not going anywhere, anytime soon. And I'm not naïve enough to believe that universities can or should attempt to eliminate AI usage on campuses. If AI can increase students' levels of understanding and knowledge, we should take advantage of that. But problems emerge when students are earning degrees from work that is not their own. I don't know what the answer to this issue is. Maybe it's more in-person exams, or improved AI detection software. Because right now, AI is not improving the levels of knowledge among our students. It's providing students with a free pass to a university degree, while the work for that degree becomes increasingly optional.
AsiaOne
2 days ago
- General
- AsiaOne
'I just wanted a piece of nostalgia': Hundreds turn up at adoption drive to collect remaining Yale-NUS books, Singapore News
PUBLISHED ON June 19, 2025 5:22 AM By Liv Hana Roberts Hundreds of book lovers turned up at NUS Library's book adoption and exchange drive on Saturday (June 14) to pick up some of the discarded books from Yale-NUS College. Held outside the NUS Central Library, members of the public were given access to about 2,000 books. After the controversy over the disposal of hundreds of books in May, Yale-NUS College decided to host a donation drive for students, staff and their guests that month which saw "overwhelming response". 'A piece of nostalgia' Over at NUS Central Library on June 14, AsiaOne noted hundreds of people, ranging from children to graduates to elderly, queuing up and collecting books. "I just wanted to grab a piece of nostalgia," Yip, who declined to give his full name, said as he waited in the middle of a snaking queue. The 60-year-old, who studied economics in NUS about 20 years ago, added he was interested in collecting books on social sciences, humanities and history, as well as books on communication. "Yale-NUS College is closed, so they are giving away books for free, so I think that's good." The infotech worker said he felt "sad" hearing the books were dumped. "I mean I love books so if you see books being dumped they could be put to better use, somebody could use it. There's still value." Another book lover, who wanted to be known only as Chow, said he was curious to see "who are the people who would come to pick up the books". The school principal said that even though he understands the reason behind the outcry, the 52 year-old hopes the public can understand that "there is a proper way for libraries to dispose of books". He added that when books are "outdated", libraries often have their own "processes" to dispose of them and that information is often not known or accessible to the public. Many fresh graduates were also spotted at the book donation drive. One graduate, who only wanted to be known as Ping, said she wanted to check out the books as they are otherwise expensive. Ping, who had picked up books on anthropology, women in Afghanistan and slavery in America said: "There's so many people who want (the books), then you dump for what?" Jaron Lua and Sharyl Chin, both 25, and NTU English Literature graduates, said they just wanted to make sure the books didn't go to waste. Like Ping, Sharyl also noted that academic books are expensive. "We thought we should try our luck to see if we can get anything useful or relevant for our postgraduate studies." Sharyl, who picked up 18th and 19th century literature like Gertrude Stein, Jane Austin-adjacent titles and books on women's activism, added: "I think it's great that they decided to do this because you can see the whole Singaporean community come together for books. "So for me it disproves the idea that people don't read anymore." Both of them felt that the book dumping incident could have been handled better. Jaron said: "I feel like they should have considered adoption as their first option as opposed to (dumping the books)." The graduate, who collected books on Shakespeare, Italian poet Giovanni Boccaccio and English poet and author Geoffrey Chaucer, said: "They still shredded like 500 plus books… It may not seem like a lot but it actually is." Good haul Yip thought the fair was a good way for NUS Libraries to show the public that they "made an error and were trying to make amends". Yip revealed he wasn't just collecting books for himself but also for his friends and wife, who also had an interest in humanities, specifically history. Sharyl added that the event was "a really good haul" and had a "really good spread" of books. AsiaOne has reached out to NUS Libraries for more information. [[nid:718972]] NUSYale-NUSBooksStudentsUniversitydonations This website is best viewed using the latest versions of web browsers.
North Wales Live
3 days ago
- Business
- North Wales Live
Top 50 British words for money - from 'dough' to 'spondoolies' and 'moolah'
The way Brits refer to money varies greatly between generations, with 'cash' being the term of choice for Boomers and 'paper' preferred by Gen Z, according to a recent survey. The poll of 2,000 adults showed that 58 per cent of Gen Z use contemporary slang for money, whereas only 19 per cent of Boomers do the same. Older phrases such as 'lolly', 'shekels', and 'folding green' remain popular with over-65s, yet these are rarely recognised or used by the younger generations. In contrast, trendy terms like 'stacks' and 'P's' are part of Gen Z's vernacular. Ross Borkett, banking director at Post Office, which conducted the study, commented to say: "Money, how we talk about it and how we use it, has always been a unique part of British culture. "Such a wide range of phrases are being used for money, showing how entrenched cash still is within our society. "Whether you need money to pay the window cleaner or own a local shop and need to deposit your daily takings, we believe cash matters, and it seems so does the public." The research also indicates that regional dialects influence the language we use for money, with terms varying greatly across the UK. In the North East, 'dosh' is widely used, whereas 'bread' is popular in the South East. Meanwhile, in Northern Ireland, the preferred slang comprises 'bank' and 'moolah'. Dr Lynn Robson, lecturer in English Literature at Oxford University, said: "As money has evolved from shells and coins to plastic and digital forms, so too has the language we use to describe it. "Despite the changes in how we pay for things, 'cash' - which has been used in our language for over 500 years - is still the most popular word for money. "When it comes to the language of money, there are many cultural influences that can move phrases from the margins to mainstream culture. "For example, sayings like 'loot' are infiltrating conversations due to the popularity of games like Minecraft, but it is still those closest to us which have the greatest impact on our language." Top 50 British words for money: Cash Quid Fiver Tenner Coin Notes Change Dosh Grand (or G - £1000) Dough Funds Bucks Bills Coppers Bank Loot Ton (£100) Brass Bread Readies Wonga Lolly Moolah Pony (£25) Monkey (£500) Shrapnel Smackers Wedge Score Peanuts Spondulicks (or Spondoolies) Squids Plastic Paper Shekels Greenbacks Stacks Green Foldin' stuff Bob Benjamins Crust Ching Large Cheddar Beans Folding green Bangers and mash P's Racks
Wales Online
3 days ago
- Business
- Wales Online
Top 50 British words for money - from 'dough' to 'spondoolies' and 'moolah'
Top 50 British words for money - from 'dough' to 'spondoolies' and 'moolah' A poll of 2,000 adults found that the most popular slang term for money was 'cash', with 29 per cent of Brits using it regularly Do you know your Pony from your Monkey? (Image: Photography taken by Mario Gutiérrez. via Getty Images ) The way Brits refer to money varies greatly between generations, with 'cash' being the term of choice for Boomers and 'paper' preferred by Gen Z, according to a recent survey. The poll of 2,000 adults showed that 58 per cent of Gen Z use contemporary slang for money, whereas only 19 per cent of Boomers do the same. Older phrases such as 'lolly', 'shekels', and 'folding green' remain popular with over-65s, yet these are rarely recognised or used by the younger generations. In contrast, trendy terms like 'stacks' and 'P's' are part of Gen Z's vernacular. Ross Borkett, banking director at Post Office, which conducted the study, commented to say: "Money, how we talk about it and how we use it, has always been a unique part of British culture. "Such a wide range of phrases are being used for money, showing how entrenched cash still is within our society. "Whether you need money to pay the window cleaner or own a local shop and need to deposit your daily takings, we believe cash matters, and it seems so does the public." Article continues below The research also indicates that regional dialects influence the language we use for money, with terms varying greatly across the UK. In the North East, 'dosh' is widely used, whereas 'bread' is popular in the South East. Meanwhile, in Northern Ireland, the preferred slang comprises 'bank' and 'moolah'. Dr Lynn Robson, lecturer in English Literature at Oxford University, said: "As money has evolved from shells and coins to plastic and digital forms, so too has the language we use to describe it. "Despite the changes in how we pay for things, 'cash' - which has been used in our language for over 500 years - is still the most popular word for money. "When it comes to the language of money, there are many cultural influences that can move phrases from the margins to mainstream culture. Article continues below "For example, sayings like 'loot' are infiltrating conversations due to the popularity of games like Minecraft, but it is still those closest to us which have the greatest impact on our language." Top 50 British words for money:
