Chennai: When Namrita Kumari from Karnataka read about Tina Dabi topping the UPSC examination back in 2015, she decided that she could do it too. After graduating from college, her three friends took the tried-and-tested path, and enrolled in coaching institutes in New Delhi. But Kumari turned to Anna Nagar in Chennai for her IAS dream. The neighbourhood in Tamil Nadu’s capital, with more than 80 coaching centres, is now South India’s Mukherjee Nagar, the UPSC hub attracting thousands of IAS-IPS aspirants every year.
“Anna Nagar is cheaper, safer, and closer to home. I found out about this from a family friend. There are plenty of coaching institutes here that are great for preparation. I don’t have to go to Delhi, which is crowded and unsafe,” says Kumari, who is going to attempt her first UPSC test this year.
With top institutes like Shankar IAS Academy and Officers IAS Academy, along with hostels, libraries, internet cafes, eateries, and study centres, Anna Nagar has cemented its reputation as a serious coaching hub over the last 10 years. Billboards with photos of toppers, posters with information about study material, lodging, discount offers, tea and coffee shops selling piping hot idli-sambar and bondas, and students milling around discussing current affairs—Anna Nagar has all the trappings of New Delhi’s Karol Bagh and Mukherjee Nagar. But it’s less crowded, less polluted, and not as expensive.
“Good salaries and job security attract many to become government servants. Whether it is North or South, the country is unified at least in this aspect [to join the steel frame],” says OP Siddharth with a wry smile. He has been running a coaching institute in Anna Nagar since 2004, even before the locality realised its identity as the preparatory grounds for UPSC examination.
Tamil Nadu has a thriving private sector, having established itself in IT, healthcare, manufacturing, and hospitality. But the craze to join the Indian bureaucracy is only increasing, says Siddharth. The approval of the 7th Central Pay Commission in June 2016 provided the impetus—it more than doubled the entry-level salaries for new government employees from Rs 7,000 to Rs 18,000 per month. The minimum pay for newly hired Class I Officer recruits was increased to Rs 56,100 (this is different for different services). Benefits like the recent 4 per cent hike in dearness allowance (DA) and dearness relief (DR), and increment in house rent allowance (HRA) as well as a hiked tax exemption limit for gratuity have suddenly made government jobs attractive to a generation of young people seeking stability and security.
Today, Anna Nagar attracts aspirants not only from Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and other South Indian states, but also from the North and Northeast states like Nagaland, Bihar, and West Bengal.
“Delhi’s materials [available],” reads one board hanging on a building in Anna Nagar.
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Mini Mukherjee Nagar
For many UPSC aspirants in South India, choosing Chennai over New Delhi is an easy decision to make—it is closer to home, less expensive, and has all the amenities and infrastructure that hubs like Karol Bagh and Mukherjee Nagar offer. The coaching institutes in both cities are similar with their tried-and-tested cookie-cutter approach to training students.
The average fee for general studies (GS) coaching in Chennai is Rs 1.5 lakh, optional subjects’ cost Rs 20,000-30,000, and for the Civil Service Aptitude Test (CSAT), the fee is Rs 20,000. But in New Delhi, one has to pay about Rs 2.5 lakh for GS, Rs 50,000 for optional subjects, and Rs 30,000 for CSAT. Rent is cheaper as well, says Kumari. In Chennai, a ‘nice’ shared flat costs around Rs 8,000 per month, whereas in New Delhi, a student would have to pay Rs 15,000 for a similar flat.
And with the UPSC aspiration, a mini-township of hustle and haphazard teaching shops also rises. Anna Nagar has around 30 bookshops and reading rooms, but unlike Mukherjee Nagar’s hole-in-the-wall spaces, these operate out of flats. Many enterprising landlords have converted two bedroom-hall-kitchen (BHK) flats into study halls.
“We have students from all states—Nagaland, West Bengal, Haryana, Karnataka, Odisha—but most of the students are from Tamil Nadu. People are choosing Chennai because we offer everything that Delhi does, but at a lower price,” says Israel Jebasingh, a former IAS officer who now operates a coaching institute in Chennai.
It was the government that first put Anna Nagar on the UPSC coaching map after it set up the state-run All-Indian Civil Services Coaching Centre on 12th Main Road back in 1966, catering to aspirants from backward classes, Scheduled Castes, and Scheduled Tribes. By 2012, it had relocated to Greenways Road, but by then, more than 40 private coaching institutes had set up their base in Anna Nagar. Now, the numbers more than doubled, as have the aspirants.
Not only the coaching fee but accommodation and printing cost is also less here
Siddharth says he noticed a surge in students applying for UPSC examination from 2015 onwards. Two factors contributed to this—a saturated IT sector and a change in the examination pattern. In 2011, the government introduced the Civil Services Aptitude Test in the first stage, UPSC (Prelims), along with the General Studies examination. Since 2015, only the CSAT was considered for qualifying—a candidate had to score a minimum of 33 per cent, or 66 marks out of 200, in order to qualify for the UPSC (Mains). GS marks were considered for merit.
“In 2005, there were 300-400 aspirants in Anna Nagar, but now more than 10,000 aspiring students are here,” Siddharth says. The number of aspirants has doubled across India in the last decade. In 2012, around 5.5 lakh students applied for UPSC; by 2022, this number had increased to 11.5 lakh.
“Not only the coaching fee but accommodation and printing cost is also less here,” says Deepak Singh, who came to Chennai from West Bengal in 2022. He comes from an upper-middle-class family; his father is an engineer and his mother runs a small business in Jalpaiguri.
Singh took some time to adjust to Chennai–its food, language, and culture. But now, he knows rudimentary Tamil. He can say ‘how are you?’ and, more importantly, ‘thank you’ in Tamil.
“Food used to be the major problem but now I have started liking South Indian food too. I have made friends here now. Most of my time is spent studying anyway,” says Singh, who lives in a shared flat. “Who wants to leave home? But rozgar ka sawal hai (it is a matter of employment).”
Even bookstores have become Anna Nagar’s ‘addas’—buzzing with students from all over India. Proprietors take pride in sourcing study material from New Delhi.
“We got some materials from Agra and Delhi, and some things we print on our own,” says P Raja, who owns Success Book store, which operates out of a one BHK flat in a three-storey building.
Metal almirahs in student residences are filled with books on politics, history, geography, science and humanities subjects. Volumes of Indian Polity by M Laxmikanth (the equivalent of Gray’s Anatomy book for medical students) jostle for space with Certificate Physical and Human Geography by GC Leong, Indian Economy by Nitin Singhania and his Indian Art and Culture. The kitchen and bathrooms are filled with maps of India and the world.
“Around 50-60 people visit our store every day, and the number increases on weekends. We have everything a student needs. This is the oldest [book] shop in Anna Nagar. Earlier it was small but with time and demand it got bigger,” says Raja, standing behind a counter stacked with pens. In his late 70s, he’s a permanent fixture in the store, welcoming new aspirants and encouraging those who have yet to make the cut. Name any book, and Raja will dive into the cupboards to pull it out.
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Tamil Nadu in UPSC race
Most of the UPSC study material is in English, though books in Tamil are also accessible for students opting for the local language in examinations and attending bilingual coaching classes.
In 2021, five people wrote their Main exam in Tamil, and in 2020 the number was 25, according to the latest 2021 UPSC annual report. What’s causing concern for everyone, including Tamil Nadu’s political leaders, is the state’s declining share of successful candidates. The ratio of aspirants from Tamil Nadu to successful candidates has been falling each year, dropping from 11 per cent in 2014 to 7 per cent in 2017, and just 5 per cent in 2020, according to a report in The Hindu. “During 2021, only 27 out of the 685 candidates who had cleared the exam were from Tamil Nadu,” reads the report.
The UPSC results for 2022 revealed a shift for Tamil Nadu as no candidates from the state secured a spot in the top 100. A total of 42 candidates were selected. And in 2023, the UPSC state topper was ranked 107th.
Chief Minister MK Stalin also expressed his worry about it.
“The rate of selection of students from Tamil Nadu in the civil services exam is declining. While it was over 10% in 2016, it has come down to 5%. This is disappointing. This has to change. We have to change this,” Stalin said in 2023.
In 1966, the Tamil Nadu government opened a training centre for the state’s aspirants who wanted to join the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Police Service (IPS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS) and other such services. By 1971, students from backward and most backward classes started attending coaching classes in Anna Nagar.
According to the state government, 19 candidates, including eight women, who undertook training in the government-run All India Civil Services Coaching Centre came out with flying colours in 2022.
“As far as Tamil Nadu is concerned, the number of OBC candidates is more,” says Siddharth.
This state-run institute, now located in Greenways Road alongside the official residences of Tamil Nadu’s ministers and High Court judges, is immensely popular among students unable to afford high coaching fees, which can run into lakhs. But the number of seats are limited. It is different for every institute. For some it is 40 and for some it is 60.
“When senior aspirants reached the interview level and couldn’t get selected, they returned to Chennai, and started coaching institutes in Anna Nagar,” says Jebasingh. Now 49, Jebasingh resigned as an IAS officer posted in West Bengal in 2011, returned to Chennai, his birthplace, and opened Officers IAS Academy in 2013.
“Students come to us because officers, who cleared these exams before, are full-time teachers here. You won’t get this anywhere,” adds Jebasingh. He does not regret resigning from the civil service to become a businessman and educator.
Five of the instructors at Officers IAS Academy are former civil servants, who retired or resigned from their posts.
“We provide everything in this one building. From study hall to a small canteen,” says Jebasingh.
With shiny tiles and photo slides flashing on large screens, the reception of Jebasingh’s coaching centre looks more like a five-star hotel. Showpieces and photo frames of the owner with the President of India are displayed on the wall—a teaser of sorts highlighting the best of an IAS officer’s life.
Six months ago they opened a branch in Bengaluru and a few weeks ago in New Delhi. Jebasingh is expanding the business as it is successful in Chennai; they are bringing it to other cities with the same fees structure and facilities.
Almost a kilometre away from Officers IAS Academy is Synergy Siddharth IAS Academy. OP Siddharth founded it in 2004 after he was unable to clear the UPSC examination. He has seen the coaching industry in Anna Nagar become more and more corporatised.
“There were very few coaching institutes back then, but in the last 10 years, it has become a business. Earlier, it was more like a mentoring [set-up], but now people are just constructing large buildings with AC halls, sofa seats, and other amenities to attract students,” he says.
Institutes are catering to what candidates think are the hallmark of a good and successful coaching centre. “They [aspirants] are drawn to luxury, seeking comforts like air conditioning. Consequently, instead of genuine coaching institutes, they end up in corporate-like offices,” Siddharth adds.
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The ecosystem
Namrita Kumari, who is in touch with her friends in New Delhi, does not regret choosing Anna Nagar as a gateway to her UPSC dream.
The coaching industry here has given rise to a slew of mom-and-pop businesses offering meal services and paying guest accommodations. Kumari lives in a one room-kitchen space in a hostel for which she pays Rs 8,000. Privacy and the freedom to cook her own meals are important to her.
“Comfort is important if I have to concentrate on my studies. If I can’t live or sleep in comfort, then how can I study for the most difficult exam in the country?” she says.
She is part of various study groups on Telegram and WhatsApp where students exchange notes, post information and generally help each other out.
“Can anyone send me the newspaper PDF of the last two weeks?” asks one aspirant in the Telegram group. “Here is the link to the channel that provides newspapers every day, you can find it here,” replies another.
Anna Nagar is the Mukherjee Nagar for me, says Namrita Kumari
“I couldn’t find a room for myself here but after sending the message to the group, one person called and said his senior left and the room is vacant, I got it,” says one student.
When she is not in her coaching institute, Kumari spends eight hours a day in one of the many study halls in Anna Nagar. She pays an hourly rate of Rs 1,111 for 12 hours.
“These [rates] are for non-permanent seats. If one wants to have a permanent seat, then it’s Rs 1,111 for 10 hours and Rs 1,888 for 24 hours,” says Prithvi Raj, who runs a study hall in Anna Nagar. In New Delhi the price is almost double. For six hours one has to pay Rs 1,200. A permanent seat is reserved for only one individual, nobody else can sit there.
Kumari carries her water bottle, reading materials, and some snacks like roasted chana, namkeen, and chips with her. She keeps her mobile phone, the biggest distraction, in the drawer and only checks it during short breaks.
“I get messages from my friends who are in Delhi, they share their pictures of studying. It is all the same. But there are less distractions here in Chennai. They keep going to visit some cafes and monuments,” says Kumari.
She wants to clear the UPSC before she can travel or go sightseeing.
“Anna Nagar is the Mukherjee Nagar for me. If I get selected, I will share my journey of being here—telling everyone that you don’t have to go to Delhi to prepare,” she adds.
(Edited by Ratan Priya)