In our list of India's Best 50 - the 50 Most Employable Students from the Class of 2021-23, we feature MBA students who have walked that extra mile and done that little more to stand out! One of those featured in today's story, Garima Singh, has shown an incredible amount of passion to achieve her true potential. Read on and find out her story!
The following are Garima Singh’s set of responses to a questionnaire floated amongst MBA graduates to determine the top 50 Most Employable MBA Graduates of the Class of 2023. Amongst the massive number of entries and responses being evaluated, Garima's story and profile stood out. Here's her story in her own words.
Name an instance where you wanted something and went out of your comfort zone to achieve it OR Tell us the biggest risk you have taken so far in your life.
Three years ago, I graduated from college, and after years of occasional all-nighters, skipped meals and serious stress over exams, I was looking forward to a new professional life. However, it felt pretty disheartening and demotivating when despite sending out several applications, I wasnt able to secure myself a job within the six months after the post-graduation. This was because my area of specialization i.e. urban planning was a very niche domain and the job market was still at its nascent stage. Thus, there were fewer positions to fill and the competition was fierce. As a fresher with limited academic skills, it was difficult to stand out, even with excellent scores. Sometimes, it seemed no matter how many resumes I put out and no matter how many jobs I applied for, I just could not land that elusive interview. However, after a struggle of six months, I finally got an offer from one of the start-ups and I started feeling proud of myself. Unfortunately, the happiness was short lived. I was informed that my offer got rescinded because the company's financial situation changed drastically, and suddenly the role was no longer required. That was a dark moment for me; to feel that I had a new job and then let it slip through my fingers. However, I realized that worrying wont help and I needed to bounce back and use that as an opportunity to become a stronger candidate by honing new skills and building resilience. Finally, I found a PwC listing that sounded perfect; and I knew I was just right for the position, and it was almost too good to be true. I never thought of working at a Big-4 as I thought that only rank holders and experienced get themselves in the Big-4. But fortunately, not only had I secured this job I really wanted, but I also learnt a few life lessons by dealing with many tough situations daily in the entire journey. All it took was some time and dedication to hit the bulls eye and to instil the learning that Whatever the problem in your life may be, the real, long-lasting and effective solution is never outside of you but inside of you. You only need an internal adjustment. I realized that setbacks are actually progress in disguise. It not only helped me trust my talent, but also nurtured my pressure handling skills and prepared me for any crisis situation. The entire job search process enhanced my diligence, perseverance and resilience. It also helped question my values and distil down to the core elements that are important to me. It has helped me push through a roadblock of solitude and has helped me surround myself with people who are objective, positive and focused on solutions.
When was the last time someone relied on you? OR What did you do which was purely for someone else - a truly selfless act?
As an urban development professional who aspired to deliver change that matters to citizens and have a significant and positive impact on society, I successfully solved my clients diverse challenges in domains like climate change, urban resilience, child safety, disaster risk management, infrastructure service delivery, etc. However, last year, when the COVID-19 pandemic led to a dramatic loss of human life worldwide and presented an unprecedented challenge to public health, and the world of work, I wanted to give back to the society by volunteering virtually, and checking in on people who might need support. Through my work, I tried to help the clients in the Housing & Development sectors overcome the challenges posed by COVID-19. As part of the engagement, I developed strategies for phased exit from the lockdown while considering critical sectors such as water supply, sanitation, transportation etc. impacted by the pandemic. As a key team member, I also went an extra mile to offer proactive interface, guidance and monitoring support to 18 municipalities in West Bengal for safe handling and management of the domestic biomedical waste streams to prevent transmission of COVID from waste streams. While most strategies focused on scientific and technical solutions crucial to contain the epidemic, I also recognized the dire need to strengthen preparedness and response measures to safeguard the invisible frontline workers. Thus, I developed guidelines for health and safety of sanitary workers during the pandemic, which has ensured reduced health and safety risks to sanitation workers. I believe this was my greatest achievement as I could make a difference in the lives of these people. My efforts and work towards COVID management was further recognized and appreciated by the senior management when I was honoured with the GEM (Going Extra Mile) Award for this project.
Tell us about a time when you disagreed with an opinion/idea/decision. What did you do about it?
Dilemma on Inappropriate and Harassing Behaviour: Sexual harassment of the students was one of the major ethical issues that I witnessed while pursuing my graduation. This situation dates back to the day when I saw one of my professors speaking and touching my classmate inappropriately. This had been going on for a while, and I knew that these actions of the professor were wrong. These incidents made the class a hostile place and caused distress for the sexually abused student. However, the victimized student responded passively by denying the harassment and avoided the harasser. I knew that I was witnessing a sexual harassment, but I could not muster courage to discuss or report this incident. While my other batchmates asked me to keep silent, I was confused if I should report this to the Head of the Department or to the Students council.However, I decided to talk to the victim and convince her to report the case to the Students council anonymously. I then organized several discussions in the students union to discuss about the sexual misconduct and partnered with them to initiate an enquiry against the professor. This had the dual benefit of protecting my classmates identity while it also helped to stop the issue get to the attention of the media. In this way, I believe, I brought an end to the emotional suffering that was being endured by the person being harassed and by me who witnessed it in front of me.
What is the one thing you can claim to have some level of expertise or depth of knowledge in - it could be anything - a subject, a sport, a hobby, a venture, an initiative that has led you to do deep work in that field?
My passion to contribute towards the upliftment of the vulnerable and marginalized communities motivated me to participate in several social case competitions and to work with several NGOs in the past. Working with an NGO, I participated in an urban mapping exercise to create an "Anti-Eviction Map' of Delhi which was finally set up as a project website. The initiative aimed to leverage the power of maps and data in supporting marginalized communities to assert their right to the city. For another NGO, I surveyed 50 slums in Pimpri-Chinchwad in months period to assess level of basic services available to these settlements. These reports were then shared with the ward office and the resident communities to help them plan infrastructure for these settlements.As an urban development professional who aspired to deliver change that matters to citizens and have a significant and positive impact on society, I successfully solved my clients' diverse challenges in domains like climate change, urban resilience, child safety, disaster risk managemEnt, infrastructure service delivery, etc. Last year, when the COVID-19 pandemic led to a dramatic loss of human life worldwide and presented an unprecedented challenge to public health, and the world of work, I tried to contribute to the society by donating, volunteering virtually, and checking in on people who might need support. At my workplace too, I tried to help our clients overcome the challenges posed by COVID-19 by developing ideas towards strategizing the phased exit from the lockdown by covering various critical sectors impacted by the pandemic. As a key team member, I tried to offer proactive interface, guidance and monitoring support to 18 municipalities in West Bengal for safe handling and management of their domestic biomedical waste streams to prevent transmission of COVID from waste streams.I believe, all these experiences have developed my potential in many ways-most importantly pressure handling skills and emotional quotient. My participation in case-study competitions further add a lot of weightage to my candidature.Recently, I also won a national level Diversity & Inclusion Case Competition that aimed at creating an inclusive environment for LGBTQIA+ community. As part of the research, I devised practical business solutions to address the problems faced by LGBTQIA+ community in the corporate workplace.While all these initiatives and efforts are miniscule when compared to my larger goal of uplifting the underprivileged and marginalized communities, I aim to work my way to the top to ensure that underprivileged and marginalized communities experience equality and empowerment to move towards a sustainable way of living.
If 10 Million Dollars (approximately INR 75 Crores) is given to you to use it any way you deem fit what would you do with this corpus?
The purpose of my life is to stand up for the social issues that I believe in and to contribute positively to the upliftment of the underprivileged and marginalized communities residing in slums. I envision a world where everyone can lead healthy and productive lives, regardless of who they are or where they live. I want to leave the world in a better place than I found it. Despite recent advances and significant strides toward lifting people out of poverty, inequality based on economic status still persists and large disparities remain in access to essential services, employment opportunities and other assets. Crowded slums, poor sanitation and unhealthy diets is a potent cocktail and a daily reality for many slum communities in the country. Slums are where the many deprivations facing the urban poor collide, including lack of access to clean drinking water, sanitation, nutritious foods, sufficient and safe living space. They are where human waste is routinely emptied into streets, canals, and garbage dumps as people do not have individual toilets and public facilities are unusable due to a lack of maintenance. Children growing up in these surroundings are at a higher risk of death and disease and are more likely to be chronically malnourished. This doesnt just have implications for today - children who are stunted early in life go on to learn and earn less. So, it is crucial that the response is commensurate to the challenge. Thus, I intend to leverage my experience in government consulting and the social sector to efficiently use the 10 million dollars to bridge the gaps in the socio-economic development of these vulnerable and marginalized communities. I aspire to forge strong partnerships with duty-bearers (the state and the Urban Local Bodies) and build the capacity of rights-holders, to ensure sustained service delivery rather than focusing solely on building infrastructure. Going right in the middle of the communities and through insightful research and corpus to enable the transformation, I aim to ensure that these underprivileged communities get equal access to critical services like sanitation, water etc. and get to experience inclusive and sustainable growth.
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As per government tax payers' data and our assessment, only about 6,00,000 Indian taxpayers earn an annual 'salaried' income of INR 30 lacs or above. And only 11,00,000 Indian taxpayers earn a 'total' income of INR 30 lacs or more.
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