New Delhi, Anuj Agnihotri from Rajasthan has topped the Civil Services Examination 2025 while Rajeshwari Suve M from Tamil Nadu secured the second position in the exam in which 958 candidates qualified for IAS (Indian Administrative Service), IFS (Indian Foreign Service), IPS (Indian Police Service) and other services, an official statement said on Friday.

While Rajeshwari is the highest-ranked woman candidate in the CSE 2025, there are two more women in the top 10 candidates.

Agnihotri belongs to the Chittorgarh district of Rajasthan and is an MBBS from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Jodhpur. He completed his Class XII from M.B. Public Senior Secondary School in Kota, said a note shared by a civil services exam coaching institute.

Before securing the second position, Rajeshwari had already topped the TMPSC Group 1 (Deputy Collector).

The third top performer in the list is Akansh Dhull of Chandigarh, who belongs to a family of politicians.

In this year’s CSE, of the total 958 successful candidates, 317 general category candidates have qualified the CSE examination, while 104 Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) candidates, 306 Other Backward Classes (OBC) candidates and 73 Scheduled Tribes (ST) category candidates qualified the final exam which comprised scores from the written examination held in August 2025 and personality test between December 2025 and February 2026.

The number of vacancies reported by the Government to be filled totalled 1,087, said an official statement.

Appointments to the various Services will be made according to the number of vacancies available with due consideration to the provisions contained in the Rules for the Examination, adding that the 1,087 vacancies included 180 IAS, 55 IFS, 150 IPS, 507 Central Services Group ‘A’, 195 Group ‘B’ Services, it said.

The list of 1,087 vacancies included 42 for persons with benchmark disabilities.

In accordance with Rule 20 (4) & (5) of the Civil Services Examination Rules 2025, the Commission is maintaining a consolidated Reserve List of 256 candidates. The candidature of 348 recommended candidates has been kept provisional, while result of two candidates have been withheld, said the statement.

Anuj Agnihotri had previously cleared the UPSC examination.

In his first attempt in 2023, he was allotted the Delhi, Andaman and Nicobar Islands Civil Services (DANICS) and was appointed as an Sub-Divisional Magistrate in Delhi, joining the service in December 2024.

In his second attempt, Agnihotri cleared the UPSC Mains, but could not make it through the interview stage.

However, in his third attempt, Agnihotri achieved the top rank in the country.

Speaking after the announcement of the UPSC results, Agnihotri said that success feels easier now after the long journey of preparation.

“If I hadn’t succeeded this time, I would have prepared for the next attempt. The UPSC journey has many ups and downs, but after succeeding today, it feels much easier,” he added.

He also revealed that he tried to learn from conversations with different people while preparing.

“I prepared for every possibility in the interview. If I was even asked to sing a song,” he said with a smile.

During the interview, Agnihotri was asked several questions related to medical science, as his academic background is in medicine.

He was also asked questions related to Rajasthan, including about Mirabai, who belonged to Chittorgarh, and her spiritual guru Lord Krishna.

Another query asked was about who made Rajasthan’s history globally known.

Agnohotri answered by referring to James Tod, the historian who documented the region’s history.

He completed his MBBS from AIIMS Jodhpur in 2023. Earlier, he had secured 215th rank in the AIIMS All India Medical Entrance Examination in 2017.

He completed his schooling at the Atomic Energy Central School in Rawatbhata, scoring 94 per cent in Class 12.

Apart from academics, he enjoys playing table tennis.

His father K.B. Agnihotri works at the Rajasthan Atomic Power Station, while his mother Manju Agnihotri is a homemaker.

Expressing pride in his son’s achievement, Agnihotri’s father said, “It is Anuj’s hard work and the blessings of the entire family. This is a matter of great pride for us.”

Agnihotri’s mother said that she always focused on taking care of his son’s diet and well-being during preparation.

Meanwhile, other candidates from Rajasthan also performed well.

Mayank Purohit from Phalodi secured 33rd rank in his fifth attempt, while Saurabh Sharma from Bundi achieved 146th rank.

Ashish Sharma, a government school teacher from Dausa district, secured 722nd rank in his fourth attempt.

The UPSC results have sparked celebrations across Rajasthan, highlighting the state’s growing presence in India’s prestigious civil services.