Ever wondered who is the first IAS officer in India? This article will serve as wiki for the first UPSC officer in India.
The 1st IAS officer of India was Satyendranath Tagore. Yes, the same Satyendranath Tagore who is the older brother of Rabindranath Tagore.
This article will be a brief biography of the 1st IAS officer in India.
Biography
Satyendranath Tagore was born on 1 June 1842. He was the second oldest son of the family.
He is from the Jorasanko branch of the Tagore family of Calcutta.
He studied from Hindu school and was one of the first students to write an examination for the University of Calcutta in 1857.
He got married at a young age of 17 to Jnanadanandini Devi.
First UPSC Officer in India
The first civil servants can be dated back up to the 1750s when the East India Company had been ruling over India. It was called the Covenanted Civil Service(CCS) and the members had to sign covenants with the company’s board.
With the revolt of 1857, there were changes in the system of the British Rule.
It was now called the Imperial Civil Service and was later renamed to Indian Civil Service. The entry into this was allowed only through a competitive exam.
This exam was conducted in England. Satyendranath had left India for England in 1862 to prepare and compete in the examination.
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Journey to Become First IAS of India
He was selected into the civil services in 1863 and returned to India in 1864 after completing his training and probation period in England.
He was the 1st IAS officer in India officially.
He had been posted to Bombay Presidency and after a few months had been posted to the city of Ahmedabad.
His postings kept changing frequently, and because of this he even learnt various languages.
He hails from a family that has a rich heritage and culture in literature. His younger brother, Rabindranath Tagore, was the first Indian to receive a Nobel prize in literature.
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Literature Works
With a family that had such a rich heritage in the literature field, Satyendranath played a role in it too.
He had translated Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Sant Tukaram’s poems into Bengali for better understanding.
It is said that post-retirement, his house had become a meeting for discussing literature and he also was the president of the famous Bangiya Sahitya Parishad from 1900 to 1901. Some of his notable works are:
- Sushila O Birsingha
- Bombay Chitra
- Bhartvarsiya Ingrej
- Amar Balykatha O Bombay Prabas
Brahmo Samaj
Brahmo Samaj is the component of Brahmoism that rose out of the Bengal Renaissance. This movement was completely different from Brahminism. Raja Ram Mohan Roy and Debendranath Tagore, the father of Satyendranath Tagore, led this movement.
Ever since his childhood, Satyendranath too believed in the ideology of the Brahmo Swaraj and took active participation in this.
Even when he was in England, he used to preach the teachings of the Brahmo Swaraj. He used to write reports to England on the work done by the Brahmo Samaj.
They also were strong patriots, and he himself thought it was time to reform India and cultivate the society we originally had.
Conclusion
As an IAS aspirant, a good deal of students may never know who is the first IAS officer in India.
With the world moving ahead so much, let’s take a deep dive into history and know the biography of the 1st IAS officer in India.
The first UPSC officer in India was Satyendranath Tagore, the older brother of the great Rabindranath Tagore.
He was around 21 years of age when he had become an IAS officer. He served his duties very well and since he came from a literature-rich family, he himself had some work in literature.
He was a very modern man and looked to ensure that the woman in Indian society could live better lives.
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