'Destroy UPSC-prep cult': 24-year-old IAS officer Neha Byadwal went phone-free for three years, igniting online storm

Neha Byadwal stayed off her phone for three years to prepare for India’s UPSC exam. Her decision, now public, has stirred strong views online. One X user wrote, “This UPSC-prep cult needs to be dismantled & destroyed. Complete sociopaths with zero idea of how India runs outside of their 247 rote study room end up governing the public.”

Her intense routine has opened a wider conversation about the country’s toughest exam. Some call it discipline. Some call it privilege.

The OTP argument and everyday reality

Another user on X pointed out how impossible it feels to stay phone-free in today’s world. Replying to the viral post, they wrote, “Bureaucracy har cheez ke liye OTP maangti hai..imagine the privilege of not requiring a mobile phone for 3 years in today’s world.”



This sparked support from a few netizens who believe India’s bureaucrats live cut off from common life. One user agreed, “Absolutely correct... They run the admin as their personal fiefdom bowing to whims of politicians who themselves have no clue of how to think beyond themselves.”

Some demand work experience for civil servants

The debate didn’t stop there. One comment read, “Having work experience should be a pre-requisite for such senior positions. How to handle targets, bosses, colleagues, subordinates and teams. How to talk in an office environment (i.e. scolding subordinates in public is not administration).”

Another user added bluntly, “Why can't recruitment happen just like another corporate job? This exam business is so crap.”

But many still see grit in Neha’s sacrifice

Not everyone sees it the same way. Several voices pushed back against the backlash. One user said, “Message is good, but you're wrong here. They are very well aware of how the world functions...”

Another shot back, “easier said than done, crack this exam and then we’ll hear you.”

Who is Neha Byadwal?

Neha Byadwal was born in Jaipur. She grew up in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh. Her father Shravan Kumar works with the Income Tax Department.

She once dreamed of being a lawyer. But her father gave her a new vision. In her own words: “Initially, I was drawn to movies and wanted to be a lawyer, to fight for justice. But then one day, my father sat me down. He showed me a photo — maybe a picture of a trash heap, I don’t know, but it looked like a mountain. He told me, 'That’s the peak — that’s where you have to reach. I believe you will reach there. But there are two ways — one I know, one you can carve on your own. But if you choose a long, difficult route, I may not be able to help you.’”

Neha first went to Delhi for coaching but soon returned home. She switched to self-study. She failed more than once, but never gave up.

“First attempt, I had no regrets, because I hadn’t worked that hard anyway. But in the second attempt, I missed prelims by two marks. In my fourth attempt and my final mains, when the mains results came out, I missed qualifying by eight marks. And it was my father who texted me my marksheet,” she recalled.

Her family became her support system. Neha says one must “try until you become the best version of yourself.”

Neha finally cracked UPSC in 2021. She secured an All India Rank of 569 with 960 marks in total, including 151 in her interview.

Yet her story, now viral, has split opinions. Does UPSC build dedicated officers — or does it breed disconnected rulers? For now, Neha’s phone-free years remain a spark for India’s oldest question: Who should lead and how?

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